Something New Trivia Quiz

Answer: Peter

The story is recounted in Acts 9:36-42. Dorcas - an interpretation of the name Tabitha - "was full of good works and almsdeeds," but she fell ill, died, and was buried in Joppa. Peter was nearby in Lydda, so Dorcas's friends sent for him. He came, went into the tomb alone, "and kneeled down, and prayed; and turning him to the body said, Tabitha, arise. And she opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter, she sat up." Interestingly, Peter had earlier witnessed Jesus raising Jairus' daughter by this very same method (Mark 5:41). According to Acts 9:42, this miracle converted many people to Christianity.

Answer: He was stoned to death.

Stephen first appeared in Acts 6:5, when he was named to help administrate the church - freeing the original apostles to spend their time in prayer. "Full of faith and power, [he] did great wonders and miracles among the people" (Acts 6:8) - but he was accused of blasphemy against Moses and the holy city of Jerusalem.

He was stoned in the presence of Saul - who would, of course, later convert to Christianity and become Paul - and his last words, "Lord, lay not this sin to their charge" (Acts 7:60), echo one of Christ's last statements: "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do" (Luke 23:34). We are told that Stephen's martyrdom initiated "a great persecution against the church which was at Jerusalem" (Acts 8:1), during the course of which Paul was converted.

Answer: Matthew

The Beatitudes appear in Matthew 5:3-12, at the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount. The first of them is "Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven"; the last is "Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake ... for great is your reward in heaven." Beatitudes also appear in Luke 6:20-23, but he mentions only four of them - the blessings of the poor, the hungry, the sorrowful, and those hated for their faith.

Answer: In the temple

Mary and Joseph had brought Jesus with them to Jerusalem to celebrate Passover, but he did not leave the city with his parents and other relatives. They searched desperately for him and "after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions . . . And he said unto them, How is it that you sought me? Wist ye not that I must be about my Father's business?" (Luke 2:46-49).

When he became a man, Jesus would again choose the work of God.

Answer: the daughter of Herodias

Matthew refers to the young dancer as "the daughter of Herodias" (14:6); Herodias is the wife of Herod's brother Philip (14:3), whom Herod had taken as his own. Herodias's daughter is never named in the Bible, but from historical accounts we know she was Salome.

Herodias hated John because the prophet had told Herod "It is not lawful for thee to have her [Herodias]" (14:4), and it was she who persuaded her daughter to ask for John's head "in a charger." At that point Herod wished he had never made the promise, but he felt bound by it, and so he had John killed (14:8-11). Jesus performed His miracle of feeding the multitudes with five loaves and two fishes soon after hearing of his cousin's death.

Answer: Greek

Trying to justify the departure of the Christian church from adherence to Mosaic law, Paul wrote that the superficial differences between individuals no longer mattered to them: "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus . . . and heirs according to the promise" (Galatians 3:28-29).

A similar passage appears in his letter to the Colossians: "Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision or uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all" (Colossians 3:11).

Answer: Ananias and Sapphira

Ananias and Sapphira had promised the funds from a land sale to the church, but when it came time to give the monies to Peter, Ananias held some back -- while claiming that he was handing over the entire proceeds of the sale. Peter, shocked, told him that "thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God" (Acts 5:4) - and Ananias fell down, dead. Three hours later, his wife Sapphira - not knowing what had befallen her husband - came and continued the lie, meeting the same fate as Ananias.

Answer: Matthew and Luke

The Gospel of Mark begins with the baptism of Jesus by His cousin John; the Gospel of John skips from the creation of the universe to the same baptism. Matthew and Luke are also the only two Gospels to give a genealogy of Christ, although there is some debate as to whether they trace His lineage through Joseph or through Mary. Luke gives a more extensive genealogy, tracing Jesus's line all the way to "Adam, which was the son of God" (Luke 3:38).

Answer: A calf

Jesus tells this parable in Luke 15 to demonstrate the "joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth" (Luke 15:10). The youngest son of a wealthy man demanded his inheritance early, so that he could enjoy it right away. His father complied, and the boy - moving away from home - soon wasted all the money on a dissolute lifestyle. Reduced to destitution, he decided to return home and ask his father to take him in as a menial laborer - but once his father saw that he had returned, he welcomed him in great celebrations. "It was meet that we should make merry, and be glad," the father explained to his jealous older son, who had always behaved responsibly, "for this thy brother was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found" (15:32).

Answer: Philemon

"I beseech thee for my son Onesimus ... that thou shouldest receive him for ever; not now as a servant, but above a servant, a brother beloved, specially to me, but how much more unto thee, both in the flesh and in the Lord?" (Philemon verse 10-16). Paul also offered to repay Philemon any quantity that Onesimus might owe him, in money or in service.

In this, Paul acted in accordance with the Hebrew fugitive laws as stated in Deuteronomy 23:15: "Thou shalt not deliver unto his master the servant which is escaped from his master unto thee."