Match These Old Testament Characters -- #20 Quiz

Answer: Second oldest person

According to Genesis 5:20, Jared lived a total of 962 years, making him second to only Methuselah who lived 969 years, as per Genesis 5:27. Jared was the son of Mahalalel and is perhaps best known for being the father of Enoch.

Answer: Israel's second king

Similar to many people, I once had the mistaken belief David was the second king of Israel, replacing Saul. However, before David ascended to the throne, Ishbosheth, the son of Saul, was proclaimed as king, reigning for two years. 2 Samuel 2:8-10, in the NKJV Bible, states: "But Abner the son of Ner, commander of Saul's army, took Ishbosheth the son of Saul and brought him over to Mahanaim; and he made him king over Gilead, over the Ashurites, over Jezreel, over Ephraim, over Benjamin, and over all Israel. Ishbosheth, Saul's son, was forty years old when he began to reign over Israel, and he reigned two years. Only the house of Judah followed David."

Basically a civil war erupted as the tribe of Judah remained loyal to David. The story continues on into the fifth chapter of 2 Samuel with Ishbosheth being killed and David becoming king.

It was a dramatic rise to power for David, who was seen simply as a shepherd boy until he slew Goliath. Ironically, Saul spent the latter part of his life attempting to kill David simply out of jealousy. Saul would die by committing suicide on the battlefield. When David became king, Israel enjoyed the beginning of a golden era that would continue through to the end of the reign of Solomon. The story of Saul and David takes up much of the Books of Samuel, but Ishbosheth did have his moment in the limelight.

Answer: Killed 600 with oxgoad

Shamgar was the third judge of Israel, as per Judges 3:31. According to the verse, Shamgar was the son of Anath, and he struck down 600 Philistines with an oxgoad. No details are given about his slaying of the Philistines. However, the verse in the NKJV concludes by saying Shamgar "also delivered Israel". (In the NIV it states he "too saved Israel.") Shamgar was replaced as judge by Deborah.

Answer: Ai

Joshua tasted both defeat and victory at Ai, as per the seventh and eighth chapters of Joshua. Ai was a city in the land of Canaan and it was here Joshua and the Israelites tasted bitter defeat (Joshua 7:4-5) and spectacular victory (Joshua 8:26). Incidentally, the first mention of Ai in Scripture is Genesis 12:8.

The passage states Abram, who would later become known as Abraham, pitched his tent between Bethel and Ai and there he built an altar to the LORD.

Answer: Thirteen-foot bed

Deuteronomy 3:3 tells of the Israelites scoring a decisive victory over Og's army, thanks to the blessing of the LORD.

Then there's the fascinating information in Deuteronomy 3:11 in the New Living Translation Bible about Og's massive bed. The verse states: "(King Og of Bashan was the last survivor of the giant Rephaites. His bed was made of iron and was more than thirteen feet long and six feet wide. It can still be seen in the Ammonite city of Rabbah.)"

The NKJV states the bed measured nine cubits by four cubits, "according to the standard cubit".

Fittingly, the Website Christiananswers.net states Og means 'gigantic'.

The Israelite victory over Og is also mentioned in Psalm 135:11 and 136:20.

Answer: Patience and suffering

Job is synonymous with patience and long suffering. His world was turned upside down and inside out when a series of severe calamities beset him, as documented in the book of Job. Scripture tells of Job being visited by his friends, Eliphaz, Bildad, Zophar and Elihu. And while the friends had intended to comfort Job, it appears they only succeeded in making things worse with their pointing of fingers. Job, however, refused to point fingers at God for his predicament.

The book ends with Job's fortunes changing dramatically for the better. Job 42:12, in the NIV, states: "The LORD blessed the latter part of Job's life more than the former part.

He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen and a thousand donkeys. And he also had seven sons and three daughters."

Answer: Son of Bilhah

Dan was the son of Jacob and Bilhah and one of the founders of the twelve tribes of Israel. Scripture states Dan's brother was Naphtali. According to Genesis 46:23, Dan had a son called Hushim. In Genesis 49 Jacob blesses his sons and states this about Dan: "Dan will provide justice for his people as one of the tribes of Israel. Dan will be a snake by the roadside, a viper along the path, that bites the horse's heels so that its rider tumbles backward."

Answer: Orphan

Esther was an orphan, according to Scripture. 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.

Answer: Sacrificial offering

The story of Abraham preparing to sacrifice Isaac is one of the best known stories in the Old Testament. Scripture reports God commanded Abraham to take his son Isaac to a mountain in the region of Moriah and to sacrifice him as a burnt offering. Just as Abraham was preparing to sacrifice Isaac, Scripture reports an angel of the LORD called out and told him to spare his son because it was evident Abraham feared God.

After the angel called out, Abraham spotted a ram in the thicket and used it as his sacrificial offering.

The story is told in the 22nd chapter of Genesis. Many Christians compare this episode to God's sacrifice of His own son, Jesus, in the New Testament.

Answer: Purified water

The miracle of Elisha purifying the water is told in 2 Kings 2:19-23.

The passage in the NKJV Bible states: "Then the men of the city said to Elisha, 'Please notice, the situation of this city is pleasant, as my lord sees; but the water is bad, and the ground barren.' And he said, 'Bring me a new bowl, and put salt in it.' So they brought it to him. Then he went out to the source of the water, and cast in the salt there, and said, 'Thus says the Lord: 'I have healed this water; from it there shall be no more death or barrenness.' So the water remains healed to this day, according to the word of Elisha which he spoke."

According to Wikipedia, Jericho is one of the longest continually inhabited cities in the world.