Match These Old Testament Characters -- #5 Quiz

Answer: Wife of Moses

Zipporah became Moses' wife when he fled to Midian after killing an unnamed Egyptian man, as per the second chapter of Exodus. (In the NIV, her name is Zippora.) Zipporah was the daughter of a priest in Midian and she had six sisters, as per Exodus 2:16. Moses and Zipporah were parents of Gershom and Eliezer. Exodus 18:3-4, in the NIV Bible, gives this explanation of the names of the two sons: "One son was named Gershom, for Moses said, 'I have become a foreigner in a foreign land'; and the other was named Eliezer, for he said, 'My father's God was my helper; he saved me from the sword of Pharaoh'."

Answer: False charges

According to Genesis 39:6-7, Joseph was "handsome in form and appearance" and Potiphar's unnamed wife cast "longing eyes" on him.

Scripture goes on to tell of the woman unsuccessfully trying to seduce Joseph. Genesis 39:11-12, in the NKJV, states: "But it happened about this time, when Joseph went into the house to do his work, and none of the men of the house was inside, that she caught him by his garment, saying, 'Lie with me.' But he left his garment in her hand, and fled and ran outside."

Potiphar's wife then accused Joseph of attempted rape and he was tossed into prison, according to Scripture.

Answer: Broken neck

Eli was a judge and high priest of Israel and according to Scripture, he fell off his chair and died from a broken neck after he learned of the deaths of his two sons Hophni and Phinehas in battle and the capture of the ark of God.

According to 1 Samuel 4:12-18, Eli died after the news was broken to him when "a man of Benjamin ran from the battle line the same day, and came to Shiloh with his clothes torn and dirt on his head."

Scripture states, "Eli fell off the seat backward by the side of the gate; and his neck was broken and he died, for the man was old and heavy."

Answer: Hiding among equipment

1 Samuel 10:22-23 in the NKJV tells of the Israelites running and bringing forward Saul who was hiding among equipment to become king of the nation. (In the NIV, it states he was hiding among the supplies.) Scripture goes on to state Saul was "taller than any of the people from his shoulders upward".

The tenth chapter of 1 Samuel tells of the Israelites, under the direction of Samuel, coming together before the LORD at Mizpah to select a king. However, when the crucial time came for Saul to step forward, the Israelites could not find him as he was in hiding.

1 Samuel 10:20-24 gives this account in the NKJV about what happened next: "... And Saul the son of Kish was chosen. But when they sought him, he could not be found. Therefore they inquired of the LORD further, 'Has the man come here yet?' And the LORD answered, 'There he is, hidden among the equipment.' So they ran and brought him from there; and when he stood among the people, he was taller than any of the people from his shoulders upward. And Samuel said to all the people, 'Do you see him whom the Lord has chosen, that there is no one like him among all the people?' So all the people shouted and said, 'Long live the king!'"

Answer: Mother of Ben-Oni

According to Scripture, Rachel died giving birth to her second son who she named Ben-Oni. Her husband, Jacob, however, changed the baby's name to Benjamin. Genesis 35:18, in the NKJV, states this about Rebekah's death and the name she selected for her son: "And so it was, as her soul was departing (for she died), that she called his name Ben-Oni; but his father called him Benjamin."

Notes in the NKJV Study Bible state Ben-Oni means 'Son of My Sorrow' while Benjamin means 'Son of the Right Hand'.

Rachel's first son was Joseph, as per Genesis 30:24.

Answer: Mother of Samson

According to Scripture, Manoah's wife was the mother of Samson. He would go on to be known for his brute strength and then ended up being betrayed by his Philistine lover, Delilah. According to Scripture, Samson's final act was to kill a large number of Philistines when he caused a temple to collapse. Judges 16:30 states Samson was killed in the collapsed temple "along with all the people who were in it."

Judges 13:2-5 tells of Manoah's wife receiving news from an angel she would become a mother: "Now there was a certain man from Zorah, of the family of the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife was barren and had no children. And the Angel of the LORD appeared to the woman and said to her, 'Indeed now, you are barren and have borne no children, but you shall conceive and bear a son. Now therefore, please be careful not to drink wine or similar drink, and not to eat anything unclean. For behold, you shall conceive and bear a son. And no razor shall come upon his head, for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb; and he shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.'"

Answer: Head chopped off

After Goliath was struck by a stone from David's slingshot, Scripture states David cut off the head of the Philistine giant.

Goliath's story is told in the 17th chapter of 1 Samuel. 1 Samuel 17:4-7 in the NKJV Bible says he was a "champion" from Gath and I have included additional information about him in between the brackets: "...whose height was six cubits and a span. [That is, about 9 feet 9 inches or about 3 meters.] He had a bronze helmet on his head, and he was armed with a coat of mail, and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of bronze. [That is, about 125 pounds or about 58 kilograms.] And he had bronze armor on his legs and a bronze javelin between his shoulders. Now the staff of his spear was like a weaver's beam, and his iron spearhead weighed six hundred shekels [That is, about 15 pounds or about 6.9 kilograms]; and a shield-bearer went before him."

David, however, did not back down from the challenge. In fact, 1 Samuel 17:48 states David "hurried and ran" toward the Philistine giant.

Scripture states David chose five smooth stones from a stream for his slingshot, but it appears all he needed was one as 1 Samuel 17:49, in the NKJV: "Then David put his hand in his bag and took out a stone; and he slung it and struck the Philistine in his forehead, so that the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell on his face to the earth."

After Goliath came crashing to the ground, Scripture tells of David running toward the giant and killing him with a sword. Then he proceeded to cut off Goliath's head. 1 Samuel 17:51 states: "Therefore David ran and stood over the Philistine, took his sword and drew it out of its sheath and killed him, and cut off his head with it. And when the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled."

Answer: Executed by Solomon

1 Kings 2:39 tells of two slaves of Shimei running away to Achish, the son of Maachah, king of Gath. After Shimei went to Gath to retrieve his run-away slaves, King Solomon ordered his execution. To simplify things, Shimei was basically under house arrest for his treatment of King David.

In other words, Solomon was following a deathbed request of David, as recorded in 1 Kings 2:8-9 in the NKJV: "And see, you have with you Shimei the son of Gera, a Benjamite from Bahurim, who cursed me with a malicious curse in the day when I went to Mahanaim. But he came down to meet me at the Jordan, and I swore to him by the LORD, saying, 'I will not put you to death with the sword.' Now therefore, do not hold him guiltless, for you are a wise man and know what you ought to do to him; but bring his gray hair down to the grave with blood."

Shimei's cursing of David is recorded in 2 Samuel 16:5-14.

Scripture goes on to tell of Solomon putting Shimei under house arrest and when he left to retrieve his two run-away slaves, Solomon had the perfect opportunity to fulfill the request of his father, David.

Answer: Thief

Achan is probably the most notorious thief in the Hebrew Bible, or the Old Testament. On top of this, he is the first stoning victim in Scripture.

According to the seventh chapter of Joshua, after Achan stole a large amount of booty in the capture of Jericho, the LORD turned against the Israelites and they were defeated in battle at Ai. It's one of those long stories, but the Israelites invaded Jericho and were attempting to conquer Ai as it had been allocated to them as 'The Promised Land.'

Joshua 7:21, in the NKJV, tells of Achan making his confession of guilt to Joshua: "When I saw among the spoils a beautiful Babylonian garment, two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold weighing fifty shekels, I coveted them and took them. And there they are, hidden in the earth in the midst of my tent, with the silver under it."

After Achan made his confession, his fate was sealed.

Joshua 7:22-26 states: "So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran to the tent; and there it was, hidden in his tent, with the silver under it. And they took them from the midst of the tent, brought them to Joshua and to all the children of Israel, and laid them out before the LORD. Then Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, the silver, the garment, the wedge of gold, his sons, his daughters, his oxen, his donkeys, his sheep, his tent, and all that he had, and they brought them to the Valley of Achor. And Joshua said, 'Why have you troubled us? The LORD will trouble you this day.' So all Israel stoned him with stones; and they burned them with fire after they had stoned them with stones. Then they raised over him a great heap of stones, still there to this day. So the LORD turned from the fierceness of His anger. Therefore the name of that place has been called the Valley of Achor to this day."

The Web site Christiananswers.net reports Achan means "one who troubles."

Answer: Mighty Warrior of David

Zalmon was one of David's Mighty Warriors, also known as Mighty Men. However, not much is known about Zalmon as he is mentioned in passing reference. In 2 Samuel 23:28, he is referred to as Zalmon the Ahohite. 2 Samuel 23:24-39 comprises a list of names of David's Mighty Warriors with Zalmon's name appearing in Verse 28.