A Bible Quiz That's Truly 'Bad'

Answer: Laban

The correct answer is Laban, the father of Rachel and Leah and the father-in-law of Jacob. Genesis 31:24 is part of a passage telling of Laban and Jacob having a major feud, with Jacob fleeing with his two wives, Rachel and Leah. After Jacob fled, Laban pursued his son-in-law and his two daughters, but before he caught up with them, he was warned by God in a dream to be careful in what he said. Verse 24 in the NKJV quotes God saying: "Be careful that you speak to Jacob neither good nor bad."

Rather than refer to Laban as a Syrian, the NIV refers to him as an Aramean.

The passage goes on to tell of Laban and Jacob finally resolving their differences and making a covenant with each other. For further details, see Genesis 31:1-55.

Answer: Joseph

Genesis 37:2 in the NKJV tells of Joseph making "a bad report" about his brothers to his father Jacob. However, details are not given in regards to the exact event that caused Joseph to make the report to his father. Verse 2 simply states Joseph was seventeen years old at the time and was feeding the flock with his brothers.

However, Verses 3-11 tell of Joseph's brothers being jealous of him as Jacob had given him a coat of many colors. Verse 4 states, "when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not speak peaceably to him."

Joseph also had a dream in which the sheaves of wheat of his brothers were bowing to his sheaf of wheat. The brothers were apparently deeply perturbed when Joseph told them about his dream.

Answer: Israelites

Exodus 33 tells of God describing the Israelites as "stiff necked" largely because of their stubbornness and their refusal to place their full trust in Him.

Verse 3 in the NKJV quotes God telling Moses: "Go up to a land flowing with milk and honey; for I will not go up in your midst, lest I consume you on the way, for you are a stiff-necked people."

Verse 4 goes on to state, "when the people heard this bad news, they mourned, and no one put on his ornaments."

The Israelites are also described by God as "stiff necked" in other passages in Exodus and Deuteronomy.

Answer: Moses

Tradition holds the Book of Leviticus was written by Moses. In fact, Moses is credited with writing the first five books of the Hebrew Bible and the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. The five books comprise the Pentateuch and in order of appearance, the books are Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy.

According to various Websites, in Old Testament times the book of Leviticus was the first book studied by a Jewish child.

It must be pointed out some modern day theologians dispute the belief Moses wrote the books of the Pentateuch.

Answer: Elisha

Elisha was the prophet of God who solved the issue of a town's bad tasting water by simply adding a bowl of salt to the water supply. Details about the miracle can be found in 2 Kings 2:19-22. The passage in the NKJV states after Elisha added salt to the water supply he proclaimed: "Thus says the LORD: 'I have healed this water; from it there shall be no more death or barrenness."' According to the passage, "the water remains healed to this day, according to the word of Elisha which he spoke."

Answer: Proverbs

The verse is from Proverbs 25:19. Much of the content of Proverbs was written by Solomon, a king of Israel noted for his wisdom. Proverbs is largely a collection of witty sayings and the like. In fact, the subhead for Chapter 25 in the NKJV Study Bible is 'Further Wise Sayings of Solomon'.

Verses 21 and 22 contain this well-known saying: "If your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat; and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink; for so you will heap coals of fire on his head and the LORD will reward you."

Answer: Moses

The twelve men were commissioned by Moses to spy out Canaan. Scripture states ten spies returned with "a bad report" about the land while only two (Joshua and Caleb) were impressed with what they saw.

The ten spies who filed a bad report were all killed in a case of divine retribution. Shortly after the spies returned, Moses died and the Israelites ended up being led into Canaan, known as the Promised Land, by Joshua.

Answer: Barzillai

Barzillai, a key ally of David during a bloody civil war, is the correct answer. Scripture tells of David and his supporters being on the run as supporters of his son Absalom were beginning to hold the upper hand in the war. However, David's supporters prevailed, thanks in part of Barzillai providing them with much needed supplies. Later, David would extend an offer to Barzillai to move to Jerusalem where all his needs would be taken care of. Barzillai, however, rejected David's offer, pointing out he was simply too old to pick up stakes and move.

In 2 Samuel 19:35 , Barzillai explains in part to David: "I am today eighty years old. Can I discern between the good and bad? Can your servant taste what I eat or what I drink? Can I hear any longer the voice of singing men and singing women? Why then should your servant be a further burden to my lord the king?"

Answer: Jesus

The statement in Matthew 6:23 was made by Jesus during his famous address known as the Sermon on the Mount. To help put the verse in context, here's how Matthew 6:22-23 reads in the NKJV: "The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!"

In Verse 24, Jesus goes on to explain it is impossible for a person to serve God and riches.

Answer: Paul

2 Corinthians, similar to 1 Corinthians, was written by Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles. The books of 1 and 2 Corinthians are actually two letters addressed to believers in the early church at Corinth. The ancient city of Corinth was on the Isthmus of Corinth, about 40 miles (about 64 kilometres) west of Athens. Corinth was a flourishing trade centre when Paul established a church there.