A Quick Look: Sandals & Shoes in the Bible Quiz

Answer: Moses

Moses is the correct answer, as per Exodus 3:5. Scripture states God appeared to Moses in the form of a burning bush and requested Moses remove his sandals for "the place where you stand is holy ground."

To put the verse in contest, here's how Exodus 3:1-6 reads in the NKJV:

"Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian. And he led the flock to the back of the desert, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. And the Angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of a bush. So he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed. Then Moses said, 'I will now turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush does not burn.'

"So when the LORD saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, 'Moses, Moses!' And he said, 'Here I am.'

"Then He said, 'Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.' Moreover He said, 'I am the God of your father -- the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.' And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look upon God."

Answer: Boaz

Boaz, the husband of Ruth, is the correct answer, as per Ruth 4:7-10. According to notes in the NKJV Study Bible, "the removal of a sandal was part of a legal transaction in ancient Israel." In other words, the removal of a sandal was a parallel to the modern custom of signing a document or handing over a set of keys.

Ruth 4:7-10 gives this account in the NKJV of Boaz removing his sandals before buying a key piece of land: "Now this was the custom in former times in Israel concerning redeeming and exchanging, to confirm anything: one man took off his sandal and gave it to the other, and this was a confirmation in Israel. Therefore the close relative said to Boaz, 'Buy it [a piece of land] for yourself.' So he took off his sandal. And Boaz said to the elders and all the people, 'You are witnesses this day that I have bought all that was Elimelech's, and all that was Chilion's and Mahlon's, from the hand of Naomi. Moreover, Ruth the Moabitess, the widow of Mahlon, I have acquired as my wife, to perpetuate the name of the dead through his inheritance, that the name of the dead may not be cut off from among his brethren and from his position at the gate. You are witnesses this day'."

Boaz and Ruth would go on to become parents of Obed. Obed in turn would become the father of Jesse, who was the father of King David. (See Ruth 4:13-17)

Answer: Joab

David is quoted in 1 Kings 2:5 as stating Joab covered his sandals with blood. The verse is part of a passage in which David gives instructions to Solomon before he became king. The verse, in the NKJV, states: "'Moreover you know also what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me, and what he did to the two commanders of the armies of Israel, to Abner the son of Ner and Amasa the son of Jether, whom he killed. And he shed the blood of war in peacetime, and put the blood of war on his belt that was around his waist, and on his sandals that were on his feet."

Joab was one of David's army commanders, but he was ruthless in his tactics and David, while on his deathbed, requested that Solomon execute him. David was upset with Joab for a number of reasons, not the least of them being that he killed Absalom in a civil war battle. However, Joab also had two army commanders -- Abner and Amasa -- killed and then on top of all this, he supported a bid by Adonijah to become king when David was elderly and frail.

Notes in the NKJV Study Bible give this account of David's disgust with Joab: "David's parting advice {to Solomon} singled out some problems that had not been resolved. The bold, headstrong Joab had murdered two generals (2 Samuel 3:27 and 20:10) and David's son Absalom (2 Samuel 18:14); he had also joined Adonijah's ill-fated conspiracy."

The notes go on to state Joab had lived a long time without requital for his "wicked deeds" and the aged king knew that Joab would likely "continue to be a problem to Solomon even as they had been to him."

Even though Absalom was prepared to kill his father David in his bid to become king, Scripture reports David was deeply distressed when Joab killed him in battle. (2 Samuel 18:33)

Answer: Amos

Amos is the correct answer, as per Amos 2:6. To put the verse in context, here's how Amos 2:6-8 reads in the NKJV:

"Thus says the LORD:
'For three transgressions of Israel, and for four,
I will not turn away its punishment,
Because they sell the righteous for silver,
And the poor for a pair of sandals.
They pant after the dust of the earth which is on the head of the poor,
And pervert the way of the humble.
A man and his father go in to the same girl,
To defile My holy name.
They lie down by every altar on clothes taken in pledge,
And drink the wine of the condemned in the house of their god.'"

In addition to being a prophet of God and author of the Book of Amos in the Old Testament, Amos was a sheep breeder. (See Amos 1:1 and 7:14.) According to Scripture, he was the son of Tekoa, and lived in the days of Uzziah, king of Judah, and Jeroboam, king of Israel.

Answer: Isaiah

Isaiah is the correct answer, as per Isaiah 20:2. The actions of Isaiah might be seen today as extremely bizarre, but according to Scripture, he was following divine instructions when he went without clothing and sandals.

Isaiah 20:1-6 explains things this way in the NKJV: "In the year that Tartan came to Ashdod, when Sargon the king of Assyria sent him, and he fought against Ashdod and took it, at the same time the LORD spoke by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, 'Go, and remove the sackcloth from your body, and take your sandals off your feet.' And he did so, walking naked and barefoot.

"Then the LORD said, 'Just as My servant Isaiah has walked naked and barefoot three years for a sign and a wonder against Egypt and Ethiopia, so shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptians as prisoners and the Ethiopians as captives, young and old, naked and barefoot, with their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt. Then they shall be afraid and ashamed of Ethiopia their expectation and Egypt their glory. And the inhabitant of this territory will say in that day, 'Surely such is our expectation, wherever we flee for help to be delivered from the king of Assyria; and how shall we escape?'"

Notes in the NKJV Study Bible state Isaiah replaced wearing sackcloth, "'the garb of spiritual mourning', with walking naked and barefoot, signs of being exiled into captivity."

Answer: The Gibeonites

The Gibeonites, according to Scripture, pulled off a ruse to negotiate a peace treaty with Joshua and the Israelites. Scripture states the Israelites were in the process of conquering various tribes of people in Canaan, also known as the Promised Land, when the Gibeonites pretended to be people originally from "a very far country" to hide the fact they were occupants of Canaan. The Gibeonites were aware the Israalites had conquered the towns of Jericho and Ai, and feared they would be next.

Here's how Joshua 9:1-9 explains things in the NKJV:

"And it came to pass when all the kings who were on this side of the Jordan, in the hills and in the lowland and in all the coasts of the Great Sea toward Lebanon -- the Hittite, the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite -- heard about it, that they gathered together to fight with Joshua and Israel with one accord. But when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai, they worked craftily, and went and pretended to be ambassadors. And they took old sacks on their donkeys, old wineskins torn and mended, old and patched sandals on their feet, and old garments on themselves; and all the bread of their provision was dry and moldy. And they went to Joshua, to the camp at Gilgal, and said to him and to the men of Israel, 'We have come from a far country; now therefore, make a covenant with us.'

"Then the men of Israel said to the Hivites, 'Perhaps you dwell among us; so how can we make a covenant with you?' But they said to Joshua, 'We are your servants.' And Joshua said to them, 'Who are you, and where do you come from?' So they said to him: 'From a very far country your servants have come, because of the name of the LORD your God; for we have heard of His fame, and all that He did in Egypt'."

Scripture goes on to tell of the Israelites agreeing to peace with the Gibeonites.

Answer: The Israelites

According to Deuteronomy 29:5, the Israelites were able to wear the same clothes and sandals for forty years as the items never wore out. It was one of a number of miracles God performed for the Israelites after they made a mass exodus out of Egypt and spent forty years traveling to Canaan, also known as the Promised Land. Scripture also states the Israelites ate manna and quail, provided by God, during the time.

Answer: Ezekiel

Ezekiel is the correct answer, as per Ezekiel 24:15-24. Here's how Scripture explains the bizarre situation in which Ezekiel did not mourn for his wife when she died, as per the NKJV:

"Also the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 'Son of man, behold, I take away from you the desire of your eyes with one stroke; yet you shall neither mourn nor weep, nor shall your tears run down. Sigh in silence, make no mourning for the dead; bind your turban on your head, and put your sandals on your feet; do not cover your lips, and do not eat man's bread of sorrow.'

"So I spoke to the people in the morning, and at evening my wife died; and the next morning I did as I was commanded. And the people said to me, 'Will you not tell us what these things signify to us, that you behave so?'

"Then I answered them, "The word of the LORD came to me, saying, 'Speak to the house of Israel, 'Thus says the Lord God: 'Behold, I will profane My sanctuary, your arrogant boast, the desire of your eyes, the delight of your soul; and your sons and daughters whom you left behind shall fall by the sword. And you shall do as I have done; you shall not cover your lips nor eat man's bread of sorrow. Your turbans shall be on your heads and your sandals on your feet; you shall neither mourn nor weep, but you shall pine away in your iniquities and mourn with one another. Thus Ezekiel is a sign to you; according to all that he has done you shall do; and when this comes, you shall know that I am the LORD God.'"

Notes in the NKJV Study Bible offer the following insight into the perplexing passage: "The picture of Ezekiel's wife dying and Ezekiel not being allowed to grieve illustrated God's pain over the death of His wife -- Jerusalem -- and His inability to mourn because the nation deserved the punishment. Ezekiel was called by God to be 'a sign to the exiles' by demonstrating what they should do (see vv 21-23) in response to 'death' (destruction) of their desire and delight -- their nation and its capital city."

Answer: Unnamed father

The father of the prodigal son commanded his servants to put sandals on his Prodigal Son, according to Luke 15:22. No names are given for the father or the son. The ever-popular parable tells of a young man leaving his home and going to live in a foreign country where he squandered all his money on a wild lifestyle. When the money ran out, the prodigal son ended up feeding pigs, a job detestable to Jews. According to Scripture, the man was so hungry, he longed to eat the food he was feeding pigs. After some deep soul searching, the son opted to return home to his father, offering to work for him as a hired hand.

To the son's surprise, the father gladly welcomed him back as his son. Luke 15:22 states the father ordered his servants to "bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet." Scripture goes on to tell of the father having a feast to welcome back his son because he "was dead and is alive again."

Here's the touching parable in its entirety, as per Luke 15:11-32 in the NKJV:

"Then He [Jesus] said: 'A certain man had two sons. And the younger of them said to his father, 'Father, give me the portion of goods that falls to me.' So he divided to them his livelihood. And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with prodigal living. But when he had spent all, there arose a severe famine in that land, and he began to be in want. Then he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. And he would gladly have filled his stomach with the pods that the swine ate, and no one gave him anything.

"'But when he came to himself, he said, 'How many of my father's hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.'

"'And he arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. And the son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.'

"'But the father said to his servants, 'Bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet. And bring the fatted calf here and kill it, and let us eat and be merry; for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.' And they began to be merry.

"'Now his older son was in the field. And as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. So he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. And he said to him, 'Your brother has come, and because he has received him safe and sound, your father has killed the fatted calf.'

"But he was angry and would not go in. Therefore his father came out and pleaded with him. So he answered and said to his father, 'Lo, these many years I have been serving you; I never transgressed your commandment at any time; and yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might make merry with my friends. But as soon as this son of yours came, who has devoured your livelihood with harlots, you killed the fatted calf for him.'

"And he said to him, 'Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours. It was right that we should make merry and be glad, for your brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found.'"

Answer: John the Baptist

John the Baptist, the forerunner of Christ, is the correct answer. In Mark 1:7, John states he was not worthy of untying Jesus' sandals. In other words, John was saying Jesus was so immensely mightier and more important than him, that he was nothing compared to Christ. According to Scripture, John had been baptizing people in the Jordan River while preaching a message of repentance telling the people a Savior was at hand when he made the statement about Jesus and His sandals.

Mark 1:4-8 in the NKJV explains things this way: "John came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. Then all the land of Judea, and those from Jerusalem, went out to him and were all baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins. Now John was clothed with camel's hair and with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. And he preached, saying, 'There comes One after me who is mightier than I, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down and loose. I indeed baptized you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit'."