• Bible scriptures are quoted according to the Bible's translation.bible image by pearlguy from Fotolia.com
  
  Throughout the Bible, scripture advises that people do not take away or add to scripture. When taking a scripture directly from Bible, regardless of the version, the scripture must be properly cited. The Bible is a scared text, and its reference formatting is different from other books. The number of pages within the Bible versions always varies. As a result the page number is never included in the reference.
  
  

MLA Ciation

• The Modern Language Association (MLA) advises writers using this style to use parenthetical citations when quoting directly from the Bible. Do not use the author and page format. Use the book, chapter and verse format. Jesus wept (John 11:35) is an example of the proper format.
  
  Unlike other books, the books of the Bible are not underlined or italicize. An example of the proper format is Old Testament, Bible.
  
  According to the MLA, writers may distinguish the chapter from the verse in one of two ways. The writer may separate them with a colon or period. Readers can reference the thirty-fifth verse of the eleventh chapter in the book of John as John 11.35 or John 11:35.
  
  The work cited does not include the scripture's reference source when the scripture is taken from the King James Version or the Revised Standard Version. When using other translations, mention the translation in the first reference.
  
  

The Chicago Manual of Style

• Writing in the Chicago style and quoting scripture directly, reference the scripture, using the abbreviated book name, the chapter number and the verse.
  
  The Chicago style offers two book abbreviation styles -- a traditional abbreviation and a shorter version. With this style the writer abbreviates even the short Bible book names. For example, John is written as Jn., Amos is written as Am. and Kings is written as Kgs. Books such as Ezekiel may be abbreviated traditionally as Ezek. or the shorter Verizon of Ez.
  
  Do not shorten the name of the book of the Bible when making mention of the book. "Some believe the apostle Paul wrote the book of Hebrews" is the correct way of writing the name of the Bible book in a sentence. Do not italicize the books of the Bible when referencing them.
  
  Reference the translation of the Bible in the parenthetical reference when using a translation other than the King James Version. For example, write (Heb. 11:6, New International Version). Do not reference the Bible's translation in subsequent citations.
  
  

APA

• The American Psychological Association (APA) requires writers to mention the translation type in the first citation. When quoting a scripture from Genesis, the proper way to reference the scripture from the Amplified Translation is (Gen. 11:1 Amplified Translation). The translation does not need to be identified in subsequent translations. The Bible and other major classical works are not mentioned in the works cited according to the APA Publication Manual.