Facts About Sarah: Are They True or False? Quiz

Answer: True

According to the Web site Christiananswers.net, Sarai means 'my princess'.

Genesis 17:14:15, in the NIV Bible, tells of God giving Sarai her new name: "God also said to Abraham, 'As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah. I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her.'"

Wikipedia has this observation about the name change: "In Biblical times, the changing of one's name was significant and used to symbolize the binding of a covenant. In this case, God promised to put an end to her barrenness and give her a child (Isaac)."

Answer: False

Well, Lamech was indeed the second murderer in the Bible after Cain, as per the fourth chapter of Genesis. However, there is no connection between him and Sarah.

According to Genesis 20:12, Sarah and Abraham had the same father, Terah. However, they had different mothers. In other words, Sarah was Abraham's half sister.

Genesis 11:27-29, in the NIV Bible, gives Abram's lineage: "This is the account of Terah's family line. Terah became the father of Abram, Nahor and Haran. And Haran became the father of Lot. While his father Terah was still alive, Haran died in Ur of the Chaldeans, in the land of his birth. Abram and Nahor both married. The name of Abram's wife was Sarai, and the name of Nahor's wife was Milkah; she was the daughter of Haran, the father of both Milkah and Iskah."

Answer: True

It's a bit of long story, but when Abraham and Sarah moved to Egypt to escape a famine, the men noticed she was extremely beautiful. According to Scripture, Abraham requested Sarah pretend to be his sister, rather than his wife, because he was afraid he would be killed by the men who coveted her. Genesis 20:2, in the NIV Bible, simply states, "then Abimelek king of Gerar sent for Sarah and took her." Scripture states Abimelek was alerted by God in a dream that what he was doing was wrong and Sarah was set free.

Genesis 20:16, in the NIV Bible, reports about Abimelek telling Sarah that he was giving Abraham 1,000 shekels of silver. Verse 17 concludes by stating: "Then Abraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelek, his wife and his female slaves so they could have children again, for the LORD had kept all the women in Abimelek's household from conceiving because of Abraham's wife Sarah."

Answer: True

According to Scripture, Sarah started laughing when she overheard the LORD tell her husband Abraham that she would birth to a son, even though she was "well advanced in age". When the LORD rebuked Sarah for laughing, she denied she did such a thing.

Genesis 18:10-15 gives this account in the NKJV Bible: "And He said, 'I will certainly return to you according to the time of life, and behold, Sarah your wife shall have a son.' (Sarah was listening in the tent door which was behind him.) Now Abraham and Sarah were old, well advanced in age; and Sarah had passed the age of childbearing. Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, 'After I have grown old, shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?' And the LORD said to Abraham, 'Why did Sarah laugh, saying, 'Shall I surely bear a child, since I am old?' Is anything too hard for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son.' But Sarah denied it, saying, 'I did not laugh,' for she was afraid.
And He said, 'No, but you did laugh!'"

Answer: True

True, Genesis 16:3, in the NIV Bible, states: "So after Abram had been living in Canaan ten years, Sarai his wife took her Egyptian slave Hagar and gave her to her husband to be his wife." Hagar would become the mother of Ishmael, as per Genesis 16:15.

Answer: True

It might be difficult for some to believe, but according to Genesis 17:17, it's true. When Abraham heard the pronouncement from God, he couldn't believe it either. The verse, in the NIV Bible, states: "Abraham fell facedown; he laughed and said to himself, 'Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?'"

Answer: False

There is no indication Sarah was able to interpret dreams. In fact, the only person in the book of Genesis credited with being able to interpret dreams was Joseph, as per the 37th, 40th and 41st chapters. Incidentally, Joseph was Sarah's great grandson.

Answer: False

While Sarah was the grandmother of Jacob and Esau, Scripture indicates she wasn't alive when the two boys were born to Rebekah. Sarah's death is recorded in the 23rd chapter of Genesis while the arrival of Jacob and Esau appears in the 25th chapter. Jacob, however, was preferred by his mother while Esau was preferred by his father Isaac, as per Genesis 25:28.

Answer: True

Incidentally, Sarah is the only woman in the Hebrew Bible or the Old Testament of the English Bible to have her age given. In the New Testament, Luke 2:37 states the prophetess Anna was a widow of about 84 years but no details are given about her exact age.

Answer: True

True. In fact, her name is mentioned no less than five times there. The verses are Romans 4:19, Romans 9:9, Galatians 4:21, Hebrews 11:11 and 1 Peter 3:6. In Hebrews 11:11, for example, she is commended for her faith. The verse, in the NKJV, reads: "By faith Sarah herself also received strength to conceive seed, and she bore a child when she was past the age, because she judged Him faithful who had promised."