A Quick Look at Complainers and Grumblers Quiz

Answer: Cain

Scripture doesn't expressly say Cain complained about his offering to God not being as pleasing as that of his brother Abel, but the implication is he was very unhappy with the situation. In fact Genesis 4:6, in the NKJV, states, "Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell."

Cain's complaining apparently developed into a severe case of anger and before long, his anger dominated his thought process with the end result being he killed his brother Abel. According to Scripture, Cain was the world's first murderer.

Answer: Rachel

Rachel is the correct answer. In addition to complaining about being barren, Rachel even went as far as to suggest life wasn't worth living because she was unable to conceive. In Genesis 30:1 in the NKJV Bible, she is quoted as saying "Give me children, or else I die!"

The following verse goes on to tell of Rachel's husband Jacob being angry with her, stating, "Am I in the place of God, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?"

Rachel was highly distraught over the fact she was unable to conceive while her sister Leah, who was also married to Jacob, bore a number of children.

Later, Rachel would be able to conceive due to divine intervention, according to Genesis 30:22. She gave birth to two boys, Joseph and Benjamin. However, she died giving birth to Benjamin, as per Genesis 35:18. In other words, her statement 'give me children, or else I die' became prophetic.

Answer: Rebekah

Rebekah, the mother of Esau, is quoted in the NKJV Bible as saying she was "weary of my life" because her son had married two daughters of Heth. (In the NIV, it states Hittite women, rather than daughters of Heth.) Rebekah also suggested life would not be worth living if her other son, Jacob, married a daughter of Heth.

There's no mistaking the fact Rebekah was depressed and did a lot of complaining after Esau married women she did not like. According to Genesis 26:34, Esau married Judith and Basemath when he was 40 years old. Verse 35 goes on to state the women were a "source of grief" to Isaac and Rebekah, but no details are given.

Answer: The Israelites

The Israelites, while on the way to the Promised Land, loved to complain, according to Scripture. Scripture states that after the Israelites were freed from the yoke of slavery, they longed for the food they ate in Egypt. Some of the food they longed for included leeks and garlic. And many of them, it seemed, complained about the manna the LORD provided from heaven, as per Numbers 11:4-6.

Answer: Chloe's household

Chloe's household is the correct answer. According to 1 Corinthians 1:11, unanmed members of Chloe's household made the apostle Paul aware of divisions in the church at Corinth. Little is known about Chloe as she is mentioned only in passing reference.

According to Scripture, members of her household had every right to complain to Paul as a number of unsavory things were happening at the church in Corinth. In his first letter to believers at Corinth, Paul admonishes them, stating their church had become infected with sexual immorality and was split by factions that dragged each other into court. To overcome their differences and shortcomings, Paul told believers at Corinth they needed to make Jesus No. 1 in their lives.

Answer: Mary

Mary is the correct answer, as per John 11:32. However, her sister Martha also made a similar statement as per John 11:21. The two sisters made the statement when Jesus visited their home four days after the death of their brother Lazarus. John 11:1-3 states the sisters had sent word to Jesus their brother was seriously ill, but opted to stay where He was for two more days. As notes in the NKJV Study Bible state, Jesus opted to wait for the death of Lazarus so He could "demonstrate His deity in an undeniable way."

Shortly after Mary and Martha made their statements to Christ, he commanded Lazarus to rise from the dead, and according to Scripture, he did just that. (See John 11:1-43 for full details.)

Answer: The Pharisees

The Pharisees bitterly complained about Jesus for a number of reasons, including the fact that He professed to be the Son of God and associated with tax collectors and sinners. The Pharisees were also infuriated with Jesus because He denounced their legalism. To paraphrase His statements, Jesus told the Pharisees following man-made rules was of no value. The only thing that truly counts was to love God "with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself", Jesus is quoted as stating in Luke 10:27.

On top of all this, one of recurring complaints of the Pharisees against Jesus is the fact He healed a number of people on the Sabbath.

A classic case is Jesus healing the man with a shriveled hand, as per Luke 6:6-11.

Answer: The high priest

The high priest and the Pharisees were bitterly opposed to Paul, originally known as Saul, after he converted to Christianity. According to Acts 9, Paul was vehemently opposed to Christianity but had a complete change of heart after he had a dramatic encounter with the Lord Jesus Christ on a road outside Damascus.

Meanwhile, Acts 25:1-12 tells of Paul being put on trial for preaching the news of a resurrected Jesus Christ and appearing before Festus, procurator of Judea. According to Verse 7, the high priest, as well as others in his group "laid many serious complaints against Paul, which they could not prove."

Scripture goes on to tell of Paul traveling to Rome to plead his case before Caesar.

Answer: Hellenist Jews

According to Scripture, Hellenist (or Grecian) Jews complained that their widows were being neglected in the distribution of daily distribution of food by Hebraic Jews. Their complaints got action, with the appointment of seven Hellenist Jews to serve as deacons. The seven men, according to Acts 6:5, were Stephen, "a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit", Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas.

According to notes in the NKJV Study Bible, the Hellenists were those of Jewish descent who grew up outside the land of Israel. As a result, they spoke Greek and used the Greek translation of Hebrew Scripture.

Answer: Judas

According to the 12th chapter of John, Judas became upset when he saw Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus, anointing Jesus with the perfume, or costly oil.

Verses 4 and 5 state Judas Iscariot was indignant at the display of affection, claiming the perfume could have been sold and given to the poor. However, John, the writer of the Gospel, states in the next verse that Judas didn't care about the poor and was putting on a false front.

Going by the account in Matthew 26:6-13, the display of affection by Mary took place at the home of Simon the Leper. There is no smoking gun, but some theologians believe Simon the Leper was the father of Mary, Martha and Lazarus. According to Scripture, Simon lived in Bethany, the same community as Mary, Martha and Lazarus. There is also speculation that Simon was cleansed of leprosy by Jesus, hence his name Simon the Leper.