Forty -- A Common Number in the Bible Quiz

Answer: Genesis

Genesis is the correct answer with details of the Great Flood found in Genesis 7 and 8. According to Scripture, the flood was divine punishment because of man's wickedness. The only human survivors of the flood were Noah and his unnamed wife, and their three sons and their wives. The names of their sons were Shem, Ham and Japheth. However, no names are given for their wives. Scripture states they took refuge in a gigantic ark, along with two every kind of animal and bird.

Interestingly, Genesis 8:6-7 tells of Noah opening the window of the ark forty days after the rain had stopped to release a raven to determine if there was any dry land.

Answer: Joshua

Joshua, who replaced Moses as leader of the Israelites, is the correct answer. Joshua 1:4 tells of God selecting Joshua to replace Moses as leader of the Israelites just prior to their entry into Canaan. Moses, with the assistance of his brother Aaron and sister Miriam, led the Israelites out of Egypt on a forty-year-long journey to the Promised Land.

However, Moses, Aaron and Miriam died before they reached Canaan, with Joshua having the honor of completing the forty-year-long odyssey.

Answer: Jacob

I strongly suspect this question tripped up a number of quiz players, as Jacob is the correct answer. Genesis 50:2-4 tells of Joseph commanding "his servants the physicians" to embalm his father, Jacob. According to Verse 3, "forty days were required for him, for such are the days required for those who are embalmed; and the Egyptians mourned for him seventy days." Scripture goes on to tell of Joseph taking his father's body to Canaan for burial.

To ward off getting an endless series of correction notices, it must be pointed out that Genesis 50:26 also tells of Joseph's body being embalmed. However, there is no mention of a forty-day embalming period and seventy days of mourning, although it would be assumed such would be the case for Joseph as well.

Answer: Moses

According to Exodus 24:18, Moses spent forty days and forty nights on Mount Sinai with God. Chapters 20 through 31 of Exodus tell of Moses receiving the Ten Commandments from God, as well precise details for worship and the construction of an Ark of Testimony.

Moses, with the assistance of his brother Aaron and sister Miriam, led the Israelites out of Egypt on a forty-year-long journey to Canaan, referred to as the Promised Land in Scripture.

Answer: Caleb

All four names were among the twelve spies Moses sent into Canaan to spy out the land. However, going strictly by Scripture, Caleb was the only one who was known to be forty years old at the time. His age at the time is divulged in Joshua 14:7.

Out of the twelve spies sent into Canaan, also known as the Promised Land, only two returned with a favorable report about the Israelites taking over the land. The two spies who filed a favorable report were Caleb and Joshua. The names of the ten remaining spies can be found in Numbers 13:1-15.

The ten dissenting spies were impressed with the land of Canaan, describing it as a land of milk and honey, but stated they didn't think the Israelites were capable of scoring a military victory over the inhabitants. Numbers 14:26:38 goes on to tell of the ten spies being killed by divine retribution, with the lives of Caleb and Joshua being spared.

Answer: True

In the book of Judges, there are at least three different mentions of the Israelites enjoying periods of peace that lasted forty years. Details about the periods of peace that lasted forty years can be found in Judges 3:11, 5:31 and 8:28.

Meanwhile, Judges 13:1 tells of the Israelites doing evil in the sight of the LORD and God delivering them into the hand of the Philistines for forty years.

Answer: Jonah

Jonah is the correct answer with Jonah 3:4 telling of him going about the streets of Nineveh proclaiming "yet, forty days, and Nineveh will be overthrown!" Scripture goes on to state the people of Nineveh took Jonah's message to heart and turned from their evil ways.

Jonah, of course, was the man who was swallowed by a huge fish only to be regurgitated onto dry land after surviving three days and three nights in its stomach, according to Scripture. After surviving his ordeal in the fish's stomach, Jonah agreed to go to Nineveh, the place the LORD wanted him to go all along. According to the book of Jonah, the LORD told him to go to Nineveh and "preach against it" because of its wickedness. His story is one of the best known in the Old Testament.

Wikipedia states Nineveh was an ancient city on the eastern bank of the Tigris River in ancient Assyria. The city's ruins are across the river from the modern-day city of Mosul, in Iraq.

Answer: True

Remarkably, both David and Solomon reigned for forty years, or a total of eighty years between them. According to 1 Kings 2:11, David reigned over Israel for forty years with seven years of his reign spent in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem. Meanwhile, 1 Kings 11:42 tells of Solomon reigning in Jerusalem over all Israel for forty years.

In addition, 2 Kings 12:1 tells of Jehoash, also known as Jeoash, reigning for forty years in Jerusalem over Judah. He was the son of Ahaziah, also known as Azariah and or Jehoahaz. His mother's name was Zibiah of Beersheba.

Answer: Satan

Scripture states that Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert and was unsuccessfully tempted by the devil. According to Matthew 4:2, Jesus fasted for forty days and forty nights, with the following verses telling of Satan trying to tempt Jesus, but with no success. Satan's unsuccessful temptation of Jesus during His fasting of forty days and forty nights can be also found in Mark 1 and Luke 3.

Answer: Acts 1:3

Following His resurrection, Jesus made a number of appearances over a forty-day period, according to Scripture. In Acts 1:3, mention is made of Jesus being seen for forty days after His resurrection. Acts, a history of the early church, was written by Luke.

According to the four Gospels, Jesus made a number of different resurrection appearances, being seen by various people. 1 Corinthians 15:6 states Christ was seen by "over five hundred brethren at once."