Amazing Men! How Biblical They Were! Quiz

Answer: Samson

Samson was a judge of Israel and the Hercules of the Old Testament. Despite his super-human strength, however, he could not escape tragedy. He made a series of bad decisions and mistakes, and fell in love with Delilah, a woman from the Valley of Sorek.

Some Philistines bribed Delilah into collaborating with them to discover the secret of Samson's strength. She eventually learned that cutting his hair would sap him of his power, and while he slept in her lap, a co-conspirator shaved off Samson's seven braids.

The Philistines gouged out Samson's eyes and subjected him to hard labor in Gaza. Samson prayed for deliverance, and he got it. During a pagan sacrificial ritual, the Philistines paraded their prize prisoner in their temple. Samson pushed against the pillars of the temple with all his might, and the entire structure collapsed, killing everyone inside. You can read more details of the story of Samson and Delilah in Judges, ch. 13-16.

Answer: Job

In the Book of Job, Satan questions the sincerity of an innocent and prosperous man named Job. God tests Job with a series of catastrophes. Job complains and demands to be allowed to hear directly from God why he should suffer so. God answers not by explaining divine justice but by parading the wonders of creation in a rather mystical experience that satisfies Job, who says "Therefore, I disown what I have said, and repent in dust and ashes." (Job 42:6). God then restores Job at the end of the book.

Answer: Noah

Displeased with humanity's wickedness, the Lord decided to bring a flood to wipe out the Earth and start over. God ordered Noah to build an ark to preserve his family, his sons and their wives, and also the animals of the earth (and some food as well).

Then God sent the Great Flood, and for forty days and nights it rained. You can read the entirety of the story of the Great Flood and Noah's Ark in Genesis, ch. 6-7.

Answer: Ezekiel

Ezekiel was a prophet who had many visions. In the first chapter of the Book of Ezekiel, the prophet is called to God in a vision: "As I watched, a great stormwind came from the North, a large cloud with flashing fire, a bright glow all around it, and something like polished metal gleamed at the center of the fire" (Ez 1:4).

He saw "living creatures" with four faces and four wings. He writes, "The creatures darting back and forth flashed like lightning. As I looked at the living creatures, I saw wheels on the ground, one alongside each of the four living creatures.

The wheels and their construction sparkled like yellow topaz, and all four of them looked the same: their construction seemed as though one wheel was inside the other" (Ez 1:14-16). To read more about this prophetic vision, read Ezekiel chapter 1.

Answer: Joshua

During the conquest of Canaan, the first battle described in the Book of Joshua is the Battle of Jericho. The Israelites marched around the walls of Jericho once daily for six days with their priests and the Ark of the Covenant. On the seventh day they marched seven times, and while Joshua himself didn't blow a trumpet, the priests blew their horns and the army shouted, and the walls crumbled.

The Israelites killed every man, woman, and child in Jericho, except for Rahab, who had sheltered Israelite spies. You may read the entire story in Joshua 6:1-27.

Answer: Jacob (Israel)

Jacob was on his way to visit his estranged brother Esau (in hopes of reconciliation) when he encountered the mysterious figure on a riverbank at night. Jacob wrestled the man, and overpowered him. Jacob refused to let him go until this person blessed him.

The man asked him his name, and then told Jacob that his name would now be Israel, and he refused to tell Jacob/Israel his own name. There is much difference of opinion about this episode. Some believe Jacob wrestled an angel (some rabbis even think it was the archangel Phanuel), whereas others think it was the Angel of the Lord, which is to say a manifestation of God himself before his Incarnation later in history (in the New Testament). You may read the exact words of Scripture and decide for yourself in Genesis 32:14-32.

Answer: Joseph

Joseph was the favorite son of Israel (Jacob), and of his favorite wife Rachel (who had died). The sons of the less-favored wife, Leah, plotted to kill him out of jealousy. The eldest brother persuaded them to sell Joseph into slavery instead. Joseph proved himself to be an abler interpreter of dreams, correctly predicting seven years of abundance followed by seven years of famine.

He rose to become vizier of Egypt, second only to Pharaoh. He reconciled with his family, who moved out of Canaan and into Egypt, establishing the Israelite presence in Egypt.

These events would have occurred sometime around 700-425 BC, and you may read the story of Joseph in more detail in Genesis 37:1-50:26.

Answer: Moses

As detailed in the Book of Exodus, after suffering devastating plagues, the Pharaoh of Egypt decided to let the enslaved Israelites go, as Moses had asked. But once they left, Pharaoh grew angry at the loss of his slave labor. He summoned his chariots and his army and pursued the Israelites, who soon found themselves trapped, with mountains beside them, the chariots behind them, and the Red Sea before them. Moses shouted, "Do not fear! Stand your ground and see the victory the Lord will win for you today!" (Ex 14:13).

Then he lifted his staff and stretched out his hand, and "the Lord drove back the sea with a strong east wind all night long and turned the sea into dry ground."(Ex 14:21). With the waters split, the Israelites crossed. When the Egyptians followed them, the Red Sea closed back upon them, and they were drowned. You can read the entire account of the deliverance of the Israelites from Pharaoh and the victory at the Red Sea in Exodus 13:17-15:21.

Answer: Daniel

The Babylonians conquered Israel in 605 BC. Daniel, it is believed, was one of many Jews deported to Babylon, where he lived at least until 538 BC. The first six chapters of the Book of Daniel recount many episodes in which Daniel and his three companions are the heroes; the story of the lions' den appears in the sixth chapter. Darius the Mede passed a 30-day decree that anyone who prayed to another god or man other than the king would be thrown into the lions' den. Daniel, who would have been in his 80s by the time of Darius, continued to pray to God as usual, and was caught.

But Medo-Persian laws were "immutable and irrevocable" (Dn 6:9), so even Darius himself was powerless to intervene. Consequently, at sundown he was cast into a pit of lions which was sealed with a stone. Darius could not eat or sleep all night.

At dawn, he ran to the lions' den and asked Daniel if his God had protected him. Daniel replied. "My God sent his angel and closed the lions' mouths so that they have not hurt me. For I have been found innocent before him..." (Dn 6:23). Daniel was brought out, unharmed. You can read the entire account of Daniel in the lions' den in Daniel 6:1-29.

Answer: David

The Israelites were at war with the Philistines. A nine-foot-tall Philistine giant named Goliath came to the front line each day for forty days and mocked the Israelites and their God. King Saul and his army were too afraid to fight him. A shepherd boy named David, sent by his father Jesse to bring news from his brothers in the army, heard the giant.

After persuading Saul to let him fight, young David, with no armor, took his sling and gathered five smooth stones. Goliath laughed. David responded: "You come against me with sword and spear and scimitar, but I come against you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel whom you have insulted. Today the Lord shall deliver you into my hand; I will strike you down and cut off your head" (1 Sam 17:45-46a).

He slung one of the stones, and it sank into Goliath's forehead. The giant fell. David then picked up Goliath's sword and finished him off. The Philistines fled, having lost their champion, and Israel won the battle. You can read the entire story of David and Goliath in 1 Samuel 17:1-54.