My 1,000th Quiz -- A Salute to the Editors

Answer: Bartimaeus

My first quiz for FunTrivia was about Bartimaeus, a blind beggar at Jericho who was miraculously able to see after a brief encounter with Jesus. (See Mark 10:46-52.) I cringe with embarrassment when I think about the first draft of the quiz I submitted to CellarDoor for approval. She had no choice but to send the quiz back for a complete re-write.

She politely pointed out my quiz had a number of shortcomings, including lack of content in the information section of the quiz. Some of them consisted of only five words. For example, I asked a question about where Bartimaeus lived and my answer simply stated 'Jericho is the correct answer'. CellarDoor pointed out I needed to not only provide the correct answer, but also offer a couple pieces of interesting information. In other words, I should have pointed out Jericho is one of longest continually inhabited cities in the world and was once the home of Rahab the prostitute.

Answer: Because names can be different in various Bible versions.

Yes, it's important the Bible version used is mentioned in every Bible quiz, largely because some names and other general information can be different. A classic case is Esther 1:1 in the NKJV and the NIV. In the verse in the NKJV, the king of Persia is identified as Ahasuerus, but in the NIV he is named Xerxes. (This even though historians generally agree Ahasuerus and Xerxes are one and the same.)

Another example of a difference in a name is the father of John the Baptist. In the NKJV, he is identified as Zecharias and in the NIV as Zechariah.

On a personal note on this matter, I have come across Bible quizzes posted on FunTrivia something like fifteen years ago with the Bible version used in the quiz not identified. As a result, I have been unable to correctly answer some questions as I had no idea about the Bible version being used.

Looney_tunes' requirement is based on sound, common sense. However, even after one thousand quizzes I am still sometimes guilty of not stating the Bible version used in a particular quiz. Fortunately, Looney_tunes has caught my shortcoming and has always made sure my quizzes appear with the Bible version that is being used.

As regular players of my quizzes will know, I usually use the NKJV in my quizzes. However, I have in the past compiled quizzes using the NIV and the KJV.

Answer: The wrong man was mentioned.

Using the NKJV Bible, there are two men with ALMOST identical names. One is Methuselah and the other is Methushael.

The oldest man (whose age is given) in the Bible is Methuselah. As per Genesis 5:27, Methuselah was nine hundred and sixty-nine years old when he died.

Meanwhile, Genesis 4:18 tells of Methushael being a descendent of Cain. He was the son of Mehujael and the father of Lamech. (Incidentally, Lamech was the second murderer in the Old Testament after Cain.)

I identified the wrong man as being the oldest person in the Bible, but fortunately, LeoDavinci was there to save the day for me.

Incidentally, LeoDavinci is a fellow Canadian. He lives in the sprawling city of Toronto while I live about ten hours north in the midst of sprawling moose pasture. I feel a kindred spirit with Leo and deeply respect him.

Answer: True

While there is no mention of vampires in the Bible, surprisingly there are a number of verses in the NKJV that appear 'vampirish' as they contain information about blood, biting and teeth. Here are some examples from the NKJV:

Revelation 16:6 -- "For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and you have given them blood to drink for it is their just due."

Proverbs 30:14 -- "There is a generation whose teeth are like swords and whose fangs are like knives to devour the poor from off the earth and the needy from among men."

1 Chronicles 19:11, a verse quoting David -- "...'Far be it from me before my God that I should do this. Shall I drink the life blood of these men? For at the risk of their lives they brought it.' Therefore he would not drink it."

Psalm 37:12 -- "The wicked plots against the just and gnashes at him with his teeth."

Joel 1:16 -- "For a nation has come up against My land, strong, and without number; his teeth are the teeth of a lion and he has the fangs of a fierce lion."

At one time, FunTrivia had more quizzes about Buffy the Vampire Slayer than the Bible and a number of Bible quiz writers, myself included, decided to do something about the situation. Leading the charge were quiz writers Dean521, Logcrawler, Ilona_Ritter and Rimrunner.

Looney_tunes, however, had her hands full when I submitted my quiz about Bible quiz writers slaying Buffy the Vampire. She politely pointed out my quiz did not fit into the 'Religion' queue because a number of questions pertaining to Buffy were on an entertainment theme. However, the quiz also didn't fit into the 'Entertainment' queue as a number of the questions were about the Bible.

Looney_tunes provided a number of suggestions to improve the quiz so it would fit into the Religion queue. I was only too happy to follow her advice as I was floundering. To my pleasant surprise, when the final draft of the quiz was submitted, she gave it an 'Editor's Choice Award'!

Answer: Aron

The name 'Aron' is incorrectly spelled. It appears as Aaron in the KJV, NKJV and NIV, as well as a long list of other Bible versions.

Aaron, of course, was the brother of Moses and Miriam. Aaron was front and center with Moses when repeated requests were made of the Pharaoh to allow the Israelites to stage a mass exodus out of Egypt and journey to Canaan, known as the Promised Land. Only after ten highly punishing plagues were unleashed on Egypt did the Pharaoh grant permission.

Answer: Rebekah

I had a complete brain cramp when I filed that one. (I wrote the quiz late at night after a hectic day, but that's still not a valid reason for me making such a bonehead mistake.) Fortunately, the mistake was caught by a sharp-eyed editor.

My colossal error was made seven or eight years ago, and to be honest, I can no longer remember who caught my embarrassing mistake, although I believe it was Agony.

Sarah, of course, was the wife of Abraham and the mother of Isaac. Meanwhile, Isaac and Rebekah were the parents of the first set of documented twins in the Bible -- Jacob and Esau.

Had my mistake slipped through, I am certain there would've been dozens and dozens of correction notices, much to my supreme embarrassment.

Answer: Yes

Yes. The word 'style' is found once in the NKJV, although it is used slightly differently than the way Agony and Looney_tunes used the word in notes to me. The lone verse containing the word 'style' is Psalm 144:12. The verse reads this way: "That our sons may be as plants grown up in their youth; that our daughters may be as pillars, sculptured in palace style." Psalm 144 is one of more than seventy Psalms written by David, a noted king of Israel.

For the record, the KJV and the NIV both don't contain a single mention of the word 'style'.

Psalm 144:12 reads this way in the NIV: "Then our sons in their youth will be like well-nurtured plants, and our daughters will be like pillars carved to adorn a palace."

In the KJV, the same verse reads: "That our sons may be as plants grown up in their youth; that our daughters may be as corner stones, polished after the similitude of a palace."

Answer: FunTrivia wants every quiz to be different from other quizzes.

Looney_tunes politely pointed out I needed to stop repeating word-for-word information in information sections. In other words, every FunTrivia quiz written by an individual should be different from all the other quizzes.

I must confess repeating of information was an easy trap to fall into. For example, I would write a quiz about the wives of kings with one of the questions featuring Bathsheba, the wife of David. A few months later, I would write a quiz about 'bad girls' of the Bible with another question featuring Bathsheba. It became expedient to copy-paste much of the answer from the first quiz and use it in the second quiz. The move made sense, at the time, as the copy from the first quiz had been previously approved by an editor and there would no problem with errors or typos. In other words, it was expedient for me and for the editors.

However, Looney_tunes made me aware of the obvious. Each and every quiz I write needs to be different from the other quizzes. What's more, Looney_tunes also pointed out I could be found guilty of plagiarism, this even though I was using my own material.

She made extremely valid points and I quickly conformed.

Answer: Catholics believe Mary, the mother of Jesus, did not have other children.

When I made the statement Jesus had brothers and sisters, I based it on on Matthew 13:55-56. The verses in the NKJV state, "Is this not the carpenter's son? Is not His mother called Mary? And His brothers James, Joses, Simon, and Judas? And His sisters, are they not all with us?"

Well, that's all fine and just, but different people have a different interpretation of the verses. Agony politely pointed out a number of theologians, especially but not exclusively those in the various Catholic Churches, believe an accurate translation of the words given as 'brothers' and 'sisters' in the NKJV verses is comrade. In other words, many people view James, Joses, Simon, and Judas as comrades of Jesus, and not as brothers as the word is understood today.

Yes, evangelical theologians all seem to be of the belief Jesus had brothers and sisters, but that view is definitely not supported by everyone. (For the record, I personally believe Jesus had brothers and sisters.)

Agony explained my information in my quiz could stand, but to be fair to everyone, I should point out Catholics do not believe Jesus had any siblings. The extra information was added and everyone, myself included, has been happy.

I am proud to say Agony is a fellow Canadian and it has been a pleasure working with her.

Answer: True

True. Using the NKJV, there are five verses -- four in the Old Testament and one in the New Testament -- containing the two words 'between' and 'among'. The verses are Genesis 17:10, Joshua 8:9, Ezekiel 22:26, Joel 2:17 and 1 Corinthians 6:5.

To give you a bit of an idea, I present 1 Corinthians 6:5 as it appears in the NKJV: "I say this to your shame. Is it so, that there is not a wise man among you, not even one, who will be able to judge between his brethren?"

As mentioned in the question, a quiz writer took exception to me using the word 'between', saying I should have used the word 'among'. To be perfectly honest, I don't profess to be an expert at grammar rules. Nevertheless, after working in the newspaper business for three decades, you acquire a 'general feel' for what's right and what doesn't seem right. However, when a quiz player expressed concern about my choice of words, I was a little perplexed and opted to go along with the player's advice and make the suggested change. Because the quiz in question was archived, I was unable to change the copy on my own so I had to call upon the editors to help me once again.

This is when MotherGoose entered the scene and pointed out there was no need to make the change. She then went on to give me an excellent tutorial about using the words 'between' and 'among'.

The tutorial reads in part:

"Re the difference between 'between' and 'among', once again, there was nothing wrong with your original question. It is often taught that 'between' is used for two items and 'among' for three or more. But this is not completely accurate. The more accurate difference is this:

"Between is used when naming distinct, individual items (can be two, three, or more). Among is used when the items are part of a group, or are not specifically named (MUST be three or more).

"This example will help illustrate the difference: The negotiations between Brazil, Argentina, and Chile are going well. The negotiations among the countries of South America are going well.

"Of course, these sentences are not equivalent (because there are more countries in South America than just Brazil, Argentina, and Chile) but they illustrate the rule -- you CAN use between with three individual items, and you must use among when talking about a general group (in which no specific countries are named).

"Here's another example that is more exact:
I'm trying to decide between the green shirt, the blue shirt, and the black shirt.
I'm trying to decide among these shirts.

"These sentences are the same -- but in the first sentence, we specifically name each of the three options (the green shirt, the blue shirt, and the black shirt) -- so we use the word between. In the second sentence, we treat the items as part of a group ('these shirts') so we use the word among."

MotherGoose also provided more information and then in turn contacted the quiz player on my behalf to explain why a change to the quiz was not necessary.

And to think FunTrivia editors are volunteers!

I am deeply indebted to them and I urge quiz players to stand up at their computer at this very moment and give each and every editor a hearty standing ovation.