Biblical Firsts -- Do You Have a Second? #2 Quiz

Answer: Moses

The correct answer is Moses. Christian tradition also credits Moses with writing the first book of the Bible. In a nutshell, Genesis is a book about the creation of the world followed by the initial rise of the Israelite nation through the blood line of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Notes in the NKJV Study Bible state it is believed Moses wrote Genesis in the wilderness of Sinai.

Jewish and Christian tradition also credit Moses with writing the next four books of the Bible, after Genesis. The books are Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy.

Answer: Levi

The correct answer is Levi. Matthew was a tax collector, one of the most despised people in Biblical times. While Matthew is the most common name given to the disciple today, the name Levi appears more often in the New Testament. The name Levi, when referring to the disciple, appears eight times in the NIV Bible, while the name Matthew appears six times.

Answer: Miriam

The correct answer is Miriam, the sister of Moses and Aaron. According to Exodus 15:20 in the NKJV, Miriam was "the prophetess". (In the NIV, she is described as "the prophet".)

Other woman in the Hebrew Bible, or the Old Testament of the English Bible, to have such a distinction are Deborah, the dynamic female judge of Israel (Judges 4:4), and the wife of Isaiah (Isaiah 8:3). Exodus 15:20 is the first mention of Miriam by name.

Answer: Seven fattened cows followed by seven gaunt cows.

The correct answer is seven fattened cows followed by seven gaunt cows.

Genesis 41:1-7 in the NIV Bible gives this account of the Pharaoh's dreams: "When two full years had passed, Pharaoh had a dream: He was standing by the Nile, when out of the river there came up seven cows, sleek and fat, and they grazed among the reeds. After them, seven other cows, ugly and gaunt, came up out of the Nile and stood beside those on the riverbank. And the cows that were ugly and gaunt ate up the seven sleek, fat cows. Then Pharaoh woke up. He fell asleep again and had a second dream: Seven heads of grain, healthy and good, were growing on a single stalk. After them, seven other heads of grain sprouted -- thin and scorched by the east wind. The thin heads of grain swallowed up the seven healthy, full heads. Then Pharaoh woke up; it had been a dream."

Scripture goes on to tell of Joseph being able to interpret the dreams and then going from being a prisoner to becoming the second most powerful man in Egypt.

Answer: Sarai

Sarai, who would later become known as Sarah, is the correct answer. She is described as beautiful in Genesis 12:11 and 14. In fact, it was Sarai's beauty that prompted her husband Abram, who would later become known as Abraham, to pretend she was his sister.

The twelfth chapter of Genesis states when Abram and Sarai moved to Egypt to escape a famine, the men noticed she was extremely beautiful. Scripture goes on to state Abram requested Sarai pretend to be his sister, rather than his wife, because he was afraid he would be killed by the men who coveted her.

Answer: Abigail

Abigail is the correct answer. In fact, she is the only woman in the Hebrew Bible and the English Bible who is named and described as intelligent. There's no doubt a number of other women in Scripture could be described as intelligent. Esther and Bathsheba in the Old Testament with Lydia and Priscilla in the New Testament all leap to mind. However, Abigail is the only named woman to have the distinction in text.

Other women in Scripture are described as being intelligent, but they are not named. 2 Samuel 14:2 makes mention of a "wise woman of Tekoa," but no name is given. 2 Samuel 20:16 also makes mention of a "wise woman crying out" to Joab, but once again no name is given.

Answer: Naamah

Naamah is the correct answer. According to Genesis 4:22, she was the daughter of Lamech and Zillah and the sister of Tubal-Cain. The same verse reports Tubal-Cain was an "instructor of every craftsman in bronze and iron." There is no further mention of Naamah in Scripture.

One other woman in the Old Testament was also called Naamah. She was a wife of Solomon and she bore Rehoboam, who replaced Solomon as king, as per 1 Kings 14:21.

Answer: Tamar

Er, the son of Judah, was Tamar's first husband. Genesis 38:6, in the NIV Bible, simply states "Judah got a wife for Er, his firstborn, and her name was Tamar." Verse 7 goes on to state Er was "wicked" so the LORD "put him to death". However, no details are given about Er's wickedness.

After Tamar's first husband died, she became the wife of Onan, the son of Judah and the brother of Er. Genesis 38:8, in the NIV Bible, states: "Then Judah said to Onan, 'Sleep with your brother's wife and fulfill your duty to her as a brother-in-law to raise up offspring for your brother'." According to Geneses 38:9-10, Onan was also put to death by the LORD because he emitted his seed on the ground to prevent Tamar from becoming pregnant.

The 38th chapter of Genesis also reports about Tamar having a sexual relationship with her father-in-law Judah, but the two were never married.

It's a long story, but Judah had sexual intercourse with Tamar after encountering her along the side of the road. Although he had sex with her, he did not know it was his daughter-in-law. (According to verse 14, her face was covered with a veil.)

There is no mention of Tamar having a third husband. Genesis 38:11 states Judah told Tamar to remain a widow until his son Shelah came of age and she would become his wife. However, verse 14 goes on to state that when Shelah had grown up, she still had not been given to him as his wife.

Answer: Mary Magdalene

Mark 16:9 in the NKJV Bible states: "Now when He rose early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom He had cast seven demons."

Incidentally, Mary is the English translation of Maria or Miriam, a common Hebrew name.

Answer: Ananias and Sapphira

Ananias and Sapphira are the first husband-wife team mentioned in Acts.
Ananias and his wife Sapphira were struck dead about three hours apart when they claimed they had turned all the proceeds of the sale of their property over to the early church, despite having secretly kept some for themselves. They made the claim to Peter, one of the original Twelve Disciples. According to Acts 5:11, in the NIV Bible, "great fear seized the whole church and all who heard about these events."