(A tip for your research…write down the source, including the page number, otherwise you may never find it again! Some are using their smart phones to take a picture of the page and file the photo in Evernote.) It took me a full day at the library to find that book again, make of copy of the quotation, and send it to that editor. I once had a magazine editor ask me to prove that a quotation I cited was verbatim and not paraphrased. In the editing process one of the jobs of the copy-editor is to verify the accuracy of quotations and citations. The thought is that they are already familiar with those words and that they want to get into what the author is saying. There are many readers who admit to skipping over Bible verses when quoted in full. The Word of God is powerful and should not be taken for granted.

Very few actually verify quotations or citations. In talking with readers it is interesting to ask whether they bother to look up a Bible citation or question whether a Bible verse has been quoted correctly.

Cite esv bible