Ten Shades of Gray in the Bible Quiz

Answer: Jacob

According to Genesis 30 and 31 in the NKJV, Jacob had an agreement with Laban that whenever a lamb was born streaked, speckled, or gray-spotted, it would be his to keep. However, if the lamb was white and without specks or spots, Laban would keep it. (Rather than gray, the NIV uses the word 'colored' and the Easy to Read Version uses the word 'black'.)

In Genesis 31:10, Jacob tells of having a dream in which an angel of God told him he would become the owner of a large number of "streaked, speckled and gray-spotted" sheep to compensate for all that Laban had done to him.

Laban thought Jacob's proposal was a good deal at the time, but he became infuriated when an extremely large number of sheep were born gray speckled and spotted.

According to Scripture, Jacob cut "rods of green poplar and of the almond and chestnut trees, peeled white strips in them, and exposed the white which was in the rods." Jacob then put the branches in front of the flocks at the watering places. When the animals came to drink, they would also mate. Scripture states that when the animals mated in front of the rods, the young that were born were streaked, speckled, and gray-spotted. As a result, the animals became property of Jacob.

Genesis 30:43 reports Jacob "became exceedingly prosperous, and had large flocks, female and male servants, and camels and donkeys."

At first blush, Jacob's tactics appear to be fraudulent. However, Scripture states his tactics were endorsed by the LORD because Laban had taken advantage of Jacob in a number of ways. Laban, of course, had deceived Jacob by getting him to work fourteen years to win the hand of Rachel. There were other issues as well. Genesis 31:7 quotes Jacob as saying Laban had changed his wages "ten times".

Verses 38 to 40 report about Jacob telling Laban of more abuses he suffered: "These twenty years I have been with you; your ewes and your female goats have not miscarried their young, and I have not eaten the rams of your flock. That which was torn by beasts I did not bring to you; I bore the loss of it. You required it from my hand, whether stolen by day or stolen by night. There I was! In the day the drought consumed me, and the frost by night, and my sleep departed from my eyes."

Answer: Reuben

Jacob made the statement to Reuben, as per Genesis 42:38. The statement was made after Reuben and his brothers returned from Egypt where they purchased food as Canaan was in the grip of a severe famine. Unbeknownst to Reuben and his brothers, the Egyptian official they purchased the food from was their long-lost brother Joseph, who they had sold into slavery.

As part of a plan, Joseph requested the brothers return to Egypt with their youngest brother, Benjamin, who had stayed in Canaan. Benjamin was a full brother of Joseph, unlike the others who were half brothers, and Jacob did not want to risk losing Benjamin because he was under the impression Joseph, his favorite son, had been killed.

So when Reuben told Jacob that when they purchased more food in Egypt, they were to return and take Benjamin with them, he was strongly opposed to the idea. "If any calamity should befall him [Benjamin] along the way in which you go, then you would bring down my gray hair with sorrow to the grave," Jacob told Reuben.

Scripture, however, goes on to tell of Jacob reluctantly giving permission for Benjamin to travel with his brothers to Egypt to buy food. After a number of twists and turns in the story, Joseph revealed his identity to his brothers and Jacob and his sons ended up moving to Egypt.

Answer: Moses

The LORD, according to Scripture, made the statement to Moses.

To put the verse in context, here's how Leviticus 19:32-37 reads in the NKJV:

"'You shall rise before the gray headed and honor the presence of an old man, and fear your God: I am the LORD.

"'And if a stranger dwells with you in your land, you shall not mistreat him. The stranger who dwells among you shall be to you as one born among you, and you shall love him as yourself; for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.

"'You shall do no injustice in judgment, in measurement of length, weight, or volume. You shall have honest scales, honest weights, an honest ephah, and an honest hin: I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt. Therefore you shall observe all My statutes and all My judgments, and perform them: I am the LORD'."

Moses, of course, led the Israelites in an exodus out of Egypt and received from God the ten commandments, as per Exodus 20:1-17.

Answer: Deuteronomy

The verse in question is from Deuteronomy 32:25 and is part of a song presented to the Israelites by Moses. The 32nd chapter of Deuteronomy, or the Song of Moses, is an expression of deep love and total appreciation of the LORD, who led the Israelites out of Egypt and provided for them time and again, according to Scripture.

Deuteronomy, in general, is a book that largely explains the law of God revealed at Mount Sinai to a second generation of Israelites. Deuteronomy consists of thirty-four chapters and is seen by many as the last will of Moses.

Notes in the NKJV Study Bible have this to say about Deuteronomy: "With the nation of Israel poised at the entrance of Canaan, Moses seized one last opportunity to prepare the people for their new life in the land of their inheritance. Since Moses would not be entering the land with the people, he wanted to make sure that the nation did not forget its covenant with God. Moses' careful review of the laws of God is included in the Book of Deuteronomy."

Answer: Samuel

Samuel, the last judge of Israel, made the statement as part of an address to the Israelites during the coronation of King Saul. The verse in question is found in 1 Samuel 12:2.

Samuel had strongly opposed having a king rule over the country, but eventually had to give in when the Israelites insisted they have a king similar to other nations. It was Samuel's belief a king would rule for his own personal gain, and not place emphases on following the LORD and His statutes. Previously, Israel was ruled by judges.

According to Scripture, Samuel installed his two sons Joel and Abijah as judges over Israel for an ever-so-brief period of time, but they "turned aside after dishonest gain, took bribes and perverted justice." The die was then cast for the coronation of Saul as king.

Answer: David

The statement about Joab and his gray hair was made by David, as per 1 Kings 2:6. According to Scripture, David, while on his deathbed, gave Solomon a number of instructions on what to do when he became king of Israel. The instructions given to his son can be found in 1 Kings 2:1-11.

While David urged Solomon to show kindness to some, he wanted no mercy shown to Joab, the brutal and ruthless commander of David's army for a number of years.

Here's how 1 Kings 2:5-6, the passage containing David's instructions to Solomon pertaining to Joab, reads in the NKJV:
"'Moreover you know also what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me, and what he did to the two commanders of the armies of Israel, to Abner the son of Ner and Amasa the son of Jether, whom he killed. And he shed the blood of war in peacetime, and put the blood of war on his belt that was around his waist, and on his sandals that were on his feet. Therefore do according to your wisdom, and do not let his gray hair go down to the grave in peace."

Scripture goes on to tell of the execution of Joab. (See 1 Kings 2:26-35.)

Incidentally, it was Joab who David called upon to orchestrate the death of Uriah, the husband of Bathsheba, as per 2 Samuel 11:14-17.

Answer: Psalms

The verse is from Psalm 71:18, one of more than seventy Pslams written by David. To put Verse 18 of Psalm 71 into context, here's how Verses 17 to 21 read in the NKJV:

"O God, You have taught me from my youth;
And to this day I declare Your wondrous works.
Now also when I am old and grayheaded,
O God, do not forsake me,
Until I declare Your strength to this generation,
Your power to everyone who is to come.
Also Your righteousness, O God, is very high,
You who have done great things;
O God, who is like You?
You, who have shown me great and severe troubles,
Shall revive me again,
And bring me up again from the depths of the earth.
You shall increase my greatness,
And comfort me on every side."

In regards to Psalms written by David, it's impossible to come up with an exact total as a number of the Psalms do not have any credit lines. The numbers vary, with different Websites giving a different total for David's contributions. However, the consensus appears to be that David wrote more than seventy Psalms at the very least. According to notes in the NKJV Study Bible, some of the other Palmists include Ethan, Heman and Asaph as well as Solomon, who is credited with writing two of the Psalms -- Numbers 72 and 127. Moses is also credited with writing Psalm 90.

Answer: Solomon

Solomon is the correct answer, with the verse coming from Proverbs 20:29. Solomon is credited with writing a major portion of Proverbs, as well as all of Ecclesiastes and Song of Solomon. On top this, he is also credited with writing two of the Psalms.

The book of Proverbs is one of the most popular in the Hebrew Bible and the Old Testament. In a nutshell, the book is packed with witty sayings and many Jews and Christians believe it offers good practical advice. Most of the proverbs were written by Solomon. However, chapter 30 was written by Agur, and Proverbs 31:1-9 was written by Lemuel.

Answer: Isaiah

The verse in question comes from Isaiah 46:4. In a nutshell, Isaiah 46 is largely about dead idols and the living God. To put the verse in contest, here's how Isaiah 46:1-4 reads in the NKJV:

"Bel bows down, Nebo stoops;
Their idols were on the beasts and on the cattle.
Your carriages were heavily loaded,
A burden to the weary beast.

"They stoop, they bow down together;
They could not deliver the burden,
But have themselves gone into captivity.

"Listen to Me, O house of Jacob,
And all the remnant of the house of Israel,
Who have been upheld by Me from birth,
Who have been carried from the womb:

"Even to your old age, I am He,
And even to gray hairs I will carry you!
I have made, and I will bear;
Even I will carry, and will deliver you."

Isaiah's father was Amoz and according to Isaiah 1:1 he prophesied during the reigns of Uzziah (or Azariah), Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, the kings of Judah. According to the website Biblical-Baby-Names.com, Isaiah means Jehovah has saved.

His prophecies tell of impending judgment on the Israelites followed by better times ahead. Many Christians believe the book of Isaiah contains a number of prophecies pertaining to Jesus Christ, with Chapter 53 being an example.

Answer: True

True. The word 'gray', or variations such as 'grayheaded', appears multiple times in the Old Testament using the KJV, NKJV and the NIV. However, using the listed three versions of the Bible, the word 'gray' cannot be found in the New Testament.

For the record, the word 'gray' and its variations can be found fifteen times in the Old Testament of the NKJV, with five of the appearances being in Genesis. Meanwhile, the word 'gray' and its variations can be found thirteen times in the Old Testament of the NIV and seven times in the KJV.