Biblical Alphabetics -- The Letter 'H' Quiz

Answer: 3

Two books in the Minor Prophets, or the Twelve Prophets section, start with the letter 'H'. They are Habakkuk, Haggai and Hosea. In the Christian Bible, Habakkuk, Haggai and Hosea are considered minor prophets. They're called 'minor' simply because their books are much shorter than those by the likes of Daniel and Jeremiah.

The twelve books in the Minor Prophet section, however, are seen as every bit as important as the books written by other prophets in the Old Testament.

Answer: Hagar

The correct answer is Hagar. After Abraham's wife Sarah had been unable to conceive for a number of year, she granted permission to him to sleep with Hagar, as per Genesis 16:3.

The union resulted in the birth of a son who was named Ishmael. He would become the forefather of a great nation, according to Genesis 17:20. Traditionally, Ishmael is regarded as the father of the Arab nation.

Answer: Hadassah

Hadassah is the original name of Queen Esther, as per Esther 2:7. The passage in the NIV Bible states: "Mordecai had a cousin named Hadassah, whom he had brought up because she had neither father nor mother. This young woman, who was also known as Esther, had a lovely figure and was beautiful. Mordecai had taken her as his own daughter when her father and mother died."

Esther, of course, would go on to play a key role in preventing the extermination of the Jews in the vast area ruled by the king known as Xerxes in the NIV Bible. The annual Jewish festival of Purim recalls the deliverance.

Answer: Hezekiah

Hezekiah is the correct answer. He was the 14th king of Israel, according to Wikipedia. The prophet Isaiah told Hezekiah to get his house in order "because you are going to die, you will not recover," as per 2 Kings 20:1. Hezekiah then pored out his heart to the Lord immediately after Isaiah left and Scripture reports the prophet promptly received a message from the Lord. 2 Kings 20:4-5, in the NIV Bible, states in part: "...the word of the LORD came to him: 'Go back and tell Hezekiah, the ruler of my people, 'This is what the LORD, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will heal you.'" Scripture goes on to report 15 more years were added to Hezekiah's life.

Answer: Hannah

Hannah's story is told in the first chapter of 1 Samuel which is devoted to the birth of Samuel. Scripture reports Hannah was married to Elkanah, who had a second wife named Peninnah. While Peninnah was giving birth to children, Hannah was barren, a status that depressed her immensely. Making matters worse, Peninnah would apparently remind Hannah she was unable to conceive, simply to provoke her.

In 1 Samuel 1:11 she issues a prayer: "LORD Almighty, if you will only look on your servant's misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the LORD for all the days of his life, and no razor will ever be used on his head." The chapter concludes by stating in the course of time Hannah became pregnant and gave birth to a son.

She named him Samuel, saying, "because I asked the LORD for him."

Answer: Hophni

The death of Hophni is told in the fourth chapter of First Samuel, which also tells of the deaths of Hophni's brother Phinehas, his father Eli and his unnamed sister-in-law. Hophni and Phineas were killed in a battle with the Philistines at Ebenezer, where the enemy captured the Ark of God, according to Scripture.

1 Samuel 4:12-18 tells of Eli falling off his chair and breaking his neck before dying. According to Scripture, Eli fell off his chair after learning of the deaths of his two sons and the capture of the Ark of God. Meanwhile, the death of Phinehas' wife is told in 1 Samuel 4:18-22. Scripture states she died during childbirth. 1 Samuel 4:21-22, in the NIV Bible, states: "She named the boy Ichabod, saying, 'The Glory has departed from Israel' -- because of the capture of the ark of God and the deaths of her father-in-law and her husband. She said, 'The Glory has departed from Israel, for the ark of God has been captured'."

Answer: Herodias

Herodias was not only conniving, but extremely vindictive. When she left her first husband (Herod Phillip I) and married his half brother Herod Antipas, John the Baptist was disgusted and denounced the union, according to the 14th chapter of Matthew. As a result, Herod ordered the arrest of John the Baptist and from this point on, his fate was sealed as Herodias had him in her clutches.

Matthew 14:6-12 reports Herod hosted a lavish birthday party for himself and when Herodias' daughter danced at the reception, Herod was so pleased he told the girl he would give her whatever she asked for. Verse 9, in the NIV Bible, states: "Prompted by her mother, she said, 'Give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist'."

Verse 11 goes on to tell of this macabre scene: "His head was brought in on a platter and given to the girl, who carried it to her mother."

Answer: father and your mother

The correct answer is honor your 'father and your mother'.

Here are the ten commandments as they appear in the NKJV Bible:
"You shall have no other gods before Me.
"You shall not make for yourself a carved image-any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.
"You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.
"Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the LORD your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it.
"Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the LORD your God is giving you.
"You shall not murder.
"You shall not commit adultery.
"You shall not steal.
"You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
"You shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall not covet your neighbor's wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor's."

Answer: Titus

Titus is the correct answer. The passage above is from Titus 2:11-13. Not much is known about Titus but according to Galatians 2:1-3, he was from Greece and appears to have been a Gentile. In 2 Timothy 4:10, Paul writes that Titus was ministering in Dalmatia, a mountainous area in what is present-day Croatia. Titus' name also appears in 2 Corinthians 8:6 and 12:18.

Answer: The Disciples

According to Matthew 19:13, the disciples had rebuked Jesus when "little children were brought to Him that He might put His hands on them and pray." After Jesus made his famous statement in verse 14, the following verse goes on to state: "And He laid His hands on them and departed from there."

It's difficult in today's world to comprehend why the disciples would rebuke Jesus for paying attention to children, but it must be remembered things were entirely different in Biblical times with children expected to be simply seen and not heard. And this at a time when women were not even included in census figures, largely because they were seen as unimportant!