Seven-Letter Names in the Bible Quiz

Answer: Deborah

Deborah is the correct answer. There's no doubt she was a spark plug who made things happen. Her story is told in the fourth and fifth chapters of Judges. According to Judges 4:2, Jabin king of Canaan ruled over the Israelites who were cruelly oppressed by Sisera, the commander of his army. Things changed dramatically, however, when Deborah rose to power.

The Israelites, led by Deborah and her general Barak, scored a decisive military victory over Sisera and their freedom was gained. According to Judges 4:16, "all Sisera's troops fell by the sword; not a man was left." Notes in the NIV Study Bible indicate Deborah was the only judge referred to as a prophetess. And according to Wikipedia, she was the "fourth, and the only female, Judge of pre-monarchic Israel in the Old Testament (Tanakh)." Her husband's name was Lappidoth, but little is known about him as he is mentioned in passing reference.

Answer: Absalom

Absalom, the son of David and Maacah, attempted to oust his father as king. The end result was Israel was plunged into a bloody civil war. According to 2 Samuel 18, a decisive battle between forces loyal to David and those loyal to Absalom took place in the forest of Ephraim and 20,000 men were killed.

The battle ended with the death of Absalom. Even though Absalom was attempting to overthrow David and kill him in the process, Scripture reports David was deeply shaken by the death.

Answer: Zebulun

Zebulun is the correct answer. In the 49th chapter of Genesis, Jacob blesses his 12 sons. In verse 13, he has this to say: "Zebulun will live by the seashore and become a haven for ships; his border will extend toward Sidon." According to notes in the NIV Study Bible, Zebulun probably means honor.

Answer: Malachi

Malachi is the correct answer. In addition to being the last book of the Minor Prophets, it's also the last book of the Christian Old Testament.

Notes in the NKJV Study Bible state Malachi means 'My Messenger'. The notes go on to state "the final book of the Old Testament is about the error of forgetting about the love of God."

(According to Wikipedia, the Septuagint of the Eastern churches has the Minor Prophets appearing before, instead of after, the 'Major Prophets. There is also a slightly different order of twelve books in the Septuagint, but Malachi is the last one. According to Wikipedia, the books appear in this order: Hosea, Amos, Micah, Joel, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi.)

Answer: Obadiah

Obadiah is the correct answer. Although Ahab and his wife Jezebel were dedicated to wiping out the prophets of the LORD, Obadiah remained faithful to God, according to the 18th chapter of 1 Kings. In fact, while Ahab was killing off the prophets of the LORD, verse 4 states Obadiah hid 100 prophets in two caves and provided them with food and water. Incidentally, Obadiah is a common name in the Old Testament as no less than nine other men had such a name.

Answer: Othniel

Othniel was the first judge of Israel. He was the younger brother of Caleb and his father was Kenaz. His wife was Achsah. Judges 3:10-11, in the NIV Bible, states: "The Spirit of the LORD came on him, so that he became Israel's judge and went to war. The LORD gave Cushan-Rishathaim king of Aram into the hands of Othniel, who overpowered him. So the land had peace for forty years, until Othniel son of Kenaz died."

Answer: Jahzeel

Jahzeel is the correct answer, but little is known about him as he is mentioned in passing reference. Genesis 46:24 simply states he was the first born son of Naphtali. According to the Web site Christiananswers.net, Jahzeel means allotted by God.

Naphtali was the fifth son of Jacob and his mother was Bilhah, Rachel's handmaid, as per Genesis 30:1-8.

Answer: Malchus

The account of Malchus having his ear severed by Peter can be found in Matthew 26:51, Mark 14:7, Luke 22:50 and John 18:10. I find it highly fascinating that Luke, the physician, is the only one to report about the healing of Malchus' severed ear. John 18:26 tells of one of the high priest's servants, a relative of the man whose ear Peter had severed, questioning the disciple about being with Jesus. Peter denied the man's claims and Scripture reports the rooster crowed, just like Jesus had predicted.

Answer: Apollos

The correct answer is Apollos. Acts 18:24-26, in the NIV Bible, state: "Meanwhile a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was a learned man, with a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures. He had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and he spoke with great fervor and taught about Jesus accurately, though he knew only the baptism of John.

He began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they invited him to their home and explained to him the way of God more adequately." Verses 27 and 28 state Apollos later went to Achaia and he was "a great help to those who by grace had believed. For he vigorously refuted the Jews in public debate, proving from the Scriptures that Jesus was the Christ."

Answer: Matthew

Levi was also known as Matthew. Tradition has it he is the same Matthew that wrote the first Gospel that bears the same name. According to Mark 2:14, Levi was the son of Alphaeus. The Web site Christiananswers.net states Matthew was a common name after the exile. Before becoming a disciple, he was a tax collector, as per Matthew 9:9.