Secondary sources like journals, series, and major reference works usually have a standard abbreviated form. In footnotes and bibliographies you should refer to a journal by its abbreviated form (e.g., Journal of Biblical Literature is abbreviated as JBL). You've probably noticed that biblical commentaries are usually published as a series of books with an individual author for each. The title of the commentary series (e.g., New International Commentary on the Old Testament) is abbreviated (e.g., NICOT) in footnotes and in the bibliography. Similarly, reference works like dictionaries or encyclopedias have abbreviated forms (e.g., The Anchor Bible Dictionary is abbreviated as ABD).
For an extensive list of abbreviations for secondary sources, see §8.4 (pages 171-260) of SBLHS.
Abbreviations for journals are listed together with series and reference works alphabetically by full title in §8.4.1 (pages 171-216) and alphabetically by abbreviation in §8.4.2 (pages 216-260) of SBLHS. The journals listed below are only a small portion of those listed in the handbook. All journal titles and abbreviations should be italicized.
Note: titles with an asterisk (*) are not found in SBLHS, but are commonly abbreviated as follows.
| Journal Title | Abbrev. | |
|---|---|---|
| Biblica | Bib | |
| Biblical Archaeologist | BA | |
| Biblical Archaeological Review | BAR | |
| Bibliotheca Sacra | BSac | |
| Bulletin for Biblical Research | BBR | |
| Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research | BASOR | |
| Catholic Biblical Quarterly | CBQ | |
| Christian Century | ChrCent | |
| Christianity and Literature | ChrLit | |
| Church History | CH | |
| Currents in Biblical Research | CurBR | |
| Evangelical Quarterly | EvQ | |
| Harvard Theological Review | HTR | |
| *International Journal of Systematic Theology | IJST | |
| Interpretation | Int | |
| Jewish Studies Quarterly | JSQ | |
| Journal for the Study of the New Testament | JSNT | |
| Journal for the Study of the Old Testament | JSOT | |
| Journal of Ancient Near Eastern Religions | JANER | |
| Journal of Biblical Literature | JBL | |
| Journal of the American Academy of Religion | JAAR | |
| Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society | JETS | |
| *Journal of Theological Interpretation | JTI | |
| Journal of Theological Studies | JTS | |
| Master's Seminary Journals | MSJ | |
| New Testament Abstracts | NTA | |
| New Testament Studies | NTS | |
| Novum Testamentum | NovT | |
| Old Testament Abstracts | OTA | |
| Review of Biblical Literature | RBL | |
| Revue biblique | RB | |
| Scottish Journal of Theology | SJT | |
| Southwestern Journal of Theology | SwJT | |
| *Southern Baptist Journal of Theology | SBJT | |
| Themelios | Them | |
| Theology Today | ThTo | |
| Trinity Journal | TJ | |
| Tyndale Bulletin | TynBul | |
| Vetus Testamentum | VT | |
| *Wesleyan Theological Journal | WesTJ | |
| Westminster Theological Journal | WTJ |
Abbreviations for commentary series are listed together with journals and reference works alphabetically by full title in §8.4.1 (pages 171-216) and alphabetically by abbreviation in §8.4.2 (pages 216-260) of SBLHS.
Note: commentary series with an asterisk (*) are not listed in SBLHS. Abbreviations for these are taken from www.bestcommentaries.com.
| Full Title | Abbrev. | |
|---|---|---|
| Abingdon New Testament Commentaries | ANTC | |
| Abingdon Old Testament Commentaries | AOTC | |
| Anchor Bible (or *Anchor Yale Bible) | AB (or AYB) | |
| Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture | ACCS | |
| Appolos Old Testament Commentary | ApOTC | |
| Augsburg Commentary on the New Testament | ACNT | |
| Baker Exegetical Commentary on the NT | BECNT | |
| *Bible Speaks Today | BST | |
| Black's New Testament Commentaries | BNTC | |
| *Brazos Theological Commentary | BTC | |
| Eerdmans Critical Commentary | ECC | |
| *Expositor's Bible Commentary, Revised | REBC | |
| Hermeneia | Hermeneia | |
| International Critical Commentary | ICC | |
| Interpretation | IBC | |
| *IVP New Testament Commentary | IVPNTC | |
| New American Commentary | NAC | |
| *New Cambridge Bible Commentary | NCBC | |
| New Century Bible | NCB | |
| New International Biblical Commentary on the NT | NIBCNT | |
| New International Biblical Commentary on the OT | NIBCOT | |
| New International Commentary on the NT | NICNT | |
| New International Commentary on the OT | NICOT | |
| New International Greek Testament Commentary | NIGTC | |
| The New Interpreter's Bible | NIB | |
| The New Jerome Bible Commentary | NJBC | |
| New Testament Library | NTL | |
| *NIV Application Commentary | NIVAC | |
| Old Testament Library | OTL | |
| *Pillar New Testament Commentary | PNTC | |
| Sacra Pagina | SP | |
| Smyth & Helwys Bible Commentary | SHBC | |
| Tyndale New Testament Commentaries | TNTC | |
| Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries | TOTC | |
| The Women's Bible Commentary | WBC | |
| Word Biblical Commentary | WBC | |
| *Zondervan Exegetical Commentary | ZEC | |
| *Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary | ZIBBC |
Abbreviations for major reference works are listed together with series and journals alphabetically by full title in §8.4.1 (pages 171-216) and alphabetically by abbreviation in §8.4.2 (pages 216-260) of SBLHS.
Note: titles with an asterisk (*) are not found in SBLHS, but are commonly abbreviated as follows.
| Title | Abbrev. | |
|---|---|---|
| Anchor Bible Dictionary. Edited by David Noel Freedman. 6 vols. New York: Doubleday, 1992. | ABD | |
| Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible. Edited by Walter A. Elwell. 4 vols. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1988. | BEB | |
| *Baker Illustrated Bible Dictionary. Edited by Tremper Longman III. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2013. | BIBD | |
| *Dictionary for Theological Interpretation of the Bible. Edited by Kevin J. Vanhoozer. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2005. | DTIB | |
| *Dictionary of Biblical Imagery. Edited by Leland Ryken, James C. Wilhoit, and Tremper Longman III. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1998. | DBIm | |
| Dictionary of Biblical Interpretation. Edited by John Hayes. 2 vols. Nashville: Abingdon, 1999. | DBI | |
| Dictionary of Classical Hebrew. Edited by David J. A. Clines. 9 vols. Sheffield: Sheffield Phoenix Press, 1993-2016. | DCH | |
| Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible. Edited by Karel van der Toorn, Bob Becking, and Pieter W. van der Horst. Leiden: Brill, 1995. 2nd rev. ed. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1999. | DDD | |
| Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels. Edited by Joel B. Green, Jeannine K. Brown, and Nicholas Perrin. 2nd ed. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2013. | DJG | |
| Dictionary of New Testament Background. Edited by Craig A. Evans and Stanley E. Porter. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2000. | DNTB | |
| Dictionary of Paul and His Letters. Edited by Gerald F. Hawthorne and Ralph P. Martin. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1993. | DPL | |
| Dictionary of the Later New Testament and Its Developments. Edited by R. P. Martin and P. H. Davids. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1997. | DLNT | |
| *Dictionary of the Old Testament: Historical Books. Edited by Bill T. Arnold and H. G. M. Williamson. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2005. | DOTHB | |
| *Dictionary of the Old Testament: Pentateuch. Edited by T. Desmond Alexander and David W. Baker. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2003. | DOTP | |
| *Dictionary of the Old Testament: Prophets. Edited by Mark J. Boda and J. Gordon McConville. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2012. | DOTPr | |
| *Dictionary of the Old Testament: Wisdom, Poetry & Writings. Edited by Tremper Longman III and Peter Enns. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2008. | DOTWPW | |
| Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible. Edited by David Noel Freedman. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2000. | EDB | |
| Encyclopedia Judaica. Edited by Fred Skolnik and Michael Berenbaum. 2nd ed. 22 vols. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2007. | EncJud | |
| *Encyclopedia of Ancient Christianity. Edited by Angelo di Berardino et al. 3 vols. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2014. | EAC | |
| *Encyclopedia of Christianity. Edited by Erwin Fahlbusch, et al. 5 vols. Grand Rapids and Leiden: Eerdmans and Brill, 1999-2008. | EC | |
| Encyclopedia of Early Christianity. Edited by Everett Ferguson. 2nd ed. 2 vols. New York: Garland, 1997. | EEC | |
| Encyclopedia of Religion. Edited by Lindsay Jones. 2nd ed. 15 vols. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2005. | ER | |
| Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception. Edited by Hans-Josef Klauck et al. Berlin: de Gruyter, 2009- | EBR | |
| Encyclopedia of the Dead Sea Scrolls. Edited by Lawrence H. Schiffman and James C. VanderKam. 2 vols. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000. | EDSS | |
| *Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology. Edited by Walter A. Elwell. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1996. | EDBT | |
| *Evangelical Dictionary of Theology. Edited by Walter A. Elwell. 2nd ed. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2001. | EDT | |
| Exegetical Dictionary of the New Testament. Edited by Horst Balz and Gerhad Schneider. ET. 3 vols. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1990-1993. | EDNT | |
| Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament. Frederick W. Danker, Walter Bauer, William F. Arndt, and F. Wilbur Gingrich. 3rd ed. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000. | BDAG | |
| Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains. Johannes P. Louw and Eugene A. Nida. 2nd ed. 2 vols. New York: United Bible Societies, 1989. | L&N | |
| Greek-English Lexicon of the Septuagint. Johan Lust, Erik Eynikel, and Katrin Hauspie. Rev. ed. Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 2003. | LEH | |
| Greek-English Lexicon of the Septuagint. Takamitsu Muraoka. Leuven: Peeters, 2009. | GELS | |
| The Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament. Ludwig Koehler, Walter Baumgartner, and Johann J. Stamm. 4 vols. Leiden: Brill, 1994-1999. | HALOT | |
| International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. Edited by Geoffrey W. Bromiley. 4 vols. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1979-1988. | ISBE | |
| New Bible Dictionary. Edited by D. G. W. Wood, I. Howard Marshall, J. D. Douglas, and N. Hillyer. 3rd ed. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1996. | NBD3 | |
| *New Catholic Encyclopedia: Second Edition. Edited by Berard L. Marthaler et al. 15 vols. Farmington Hills, MI: Gale, 2003. | NCE2 | |
| *New Dictionary of Biblical Theology. Edited by T. Desmond Alexander, et al. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2000. | NDBT | |
| New International Dictionary of Biblical Archaeology. Edited by E. M. Blaiklock and R. K. Harrison. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1983. | NIDBA | |
| *New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology and Exegesis. Edited by Moisés Silva. 2nd ed. 5 vols. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2014. | NIDNTTE | |
| New International Dictionary of Old Testament Theology and Exegesis. Edited by Willem A. VanGemeren. 5 vols. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1997. | NIDOTTE | |
| New Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible. Edited by Katharine Doob Sakenfeld. 5 vols. Nashville: Abington, 2006-2009. | NIDB | |
| The NIV Theological Dictionary of New Testament Words. Edited by Verlyn D. Verbrugge. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2000. | TDNTW | |
| Oxford Classical Dictionary. Edited by Simon Hornblower and Antony Spawforth. 4th ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2012. | OCD | |
| Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. Edited by Frank L. Cross and Elizabeth A. Livingstone. 3rd ed. rev. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005. | ODCC | |
| *Oxford Encyclopedia of Biblical Interpretation. Edited by Steven L. McKenzie. 2 vols. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013. | OEBI | |
| Religion Past and Present: Encyclopedia of Theology and Religion. Edited by Hans Dieter Betz et al. 14 vols. Leiden: Brill, 2007-2013. | RPP | |
| Theological Dictionary of the New Testament. Edited by Gerhard Kittel and Gerhard Friedrich. Translated by Geoffrey W. Bromiley. 10 vols. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1964-1976. | TDNT | |
| Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament. Edited by G. johannes Botterweck and Helmer Ringgren. Translated by John T. Willis et al. 10 vols. 1974-2006. | TDOT | |
| Theological Lexicon of the New Testament. Ceslas Spicq. Translated and edited by James D. Ernest. 3 vols. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1994. | TLNT | |
| Theological Lexicon of the Old Testament. Edited by Ernst Jenni, with Claus Westermann. Translated by Mark E. Biddle. 3 vols. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1997. | TLOT | |
| Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament. Edited by R. Laird Harris, Gleason L. Archer Jr., and Bruce K. Waltke. Chicago: Moody Press, 1980. | TWOT | |
| The Vocabulary of the Greek Testament. James H. Moulton and George Milligan. London, 1930. Repr. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1997. | MM | |
| *The Zondervan Encyclopedia of the Bible. Edited by Merrill C. Tenney and Moisés Silva. 5 vols. Grand Rapids, 2009. | ZEB |