Word Association -- New Testament Characters #9 Quiz

Answer: Barnabas

Barnabas is the correct answer. According to Acts 4:36, his original name was Joseph and he was a Levite from Cyprus. However, the apostles opted to call him Barnabas, which means 'son of encouragement'. In addition to being an encouragement to others, Barnabas was a generous giver. Acts 4:37 states he sold a field he owned and "brought the money and put it at the apostles' feet".

Answer: Anna

No one can accuse Anna of not being faithful. In fact, she was apparently as reliable as the world-famous geyser Old Faithful. Luke 2:37, in the NKJV Bible, states Anna "did not depart from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day." According to verse 37, she was the daughter of Penuel, of the tribe of Asher, and was of "great age" and a widow.

After Jesus was presented as an infant at the temple by his parents Mary and Joseph, Scripture states Anna "gave thanks to the Lord, and spoke of Him to all those who looked for redemption in Jerusalem."

Answer: Demetrius

Demetrius was a silversmith who lived in Ephesus and according to Acts 19:23-41 he made things interesting when he caused a "great disturbance" against workers with the early church. Gaius and Aristarchus, two of Paul's traveling companions, were ushered into a theater and so great was the anger of the assembled people that they shouted "Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!" for about two hours, Scripture states. According to verse 35, the city clerk eventually quieted down the crowd and the riot came to an end.

Answer: Berea

Acts 17:10-13, in the NIV, tells of Paul and Silas leaving Thessalonica and going to Berea, where the people received the Gospel message with "great eagerness." The KJV and the NKJV states the Bereans received the Gospel message "with all readiness."

As a result of the work of Paul and Silas, Scripture states "many of the Jews believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men." According to Wikipedia, Berea is now known as Veria (or Voria) and "is a small city on the eastern side of Vermion Mountains, north of Mount Olympus."

Answer: Elijah

Elijah is the correct answer. The events on Mount Transfiguration are recorded in the seventeenth chapter of Matthew, the ninth chapter of Mark and the ninth chapter of Luke. According to Scripture, Peter, James and John were with Jesus when Elijah and Moses appeared in their midst.

Matthew 17:1-8, in the NKJV Bible, states: "Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, led them up on a high mountain by themselves; and He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light. And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him. Then Peter answered and said to Jesus, 'Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, let us make here three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.' While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, 'This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!' And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their faces and were greatly afraid. But Jesus came and touched them and said, 'Arise, and do not be afraid.' When they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only."

Answer: Stephen

Acts 6:15 leaves no doubt Stephen was special. According to Scripture, when Stephen was on trial before the Sanhedrin, his accusers looked "intently" at Stephen's face and "they saw that his face was like the face of an angel." They may have seen the face of an angel, but before long those same people would be committing devil-like acts against Stephen and by the end of Acts 7, he was executed.

When it comes to mortals, perhaps no other man in the New Testament commands as many praiseworthy statements as Stephen. For example, Acts 6:8 reports Stephen did "great wonders and miraculous signs" among the people. This on top of him being described in verse 5 as "a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit." No details are given about the "great wonders and miraculous signs". However, considering Peter and Paul raised people from the dead, Stephen's accomplishments must have been every bit as great to rate such accolades by Luke, the writer of Acts. When it comes to raising people from the dead, Peter of course revived Dorcas (Acts 9:36-43) and Paul did the same for sleepy Eutychus (Acts 20:7-12).

Answer: Andronicus

Andronicus is the correct answer but not much is known about him as he is mentioned in passing reference. According to Scripture, Andronicus was a Jew who was a member of the early church and had apparently been imprisoned with Paul. Romans 16:7 states: "Greet Andronicus and Junia, my fellow Jews who have been in prison with me. They are outstanding among the apostles, and they were in Christ before I was."

Romans was written by Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles, and the 16th chapter is regarded by many as a tribute to the 'Joe' and 'Jill' Christians of the day.

Answer: Philip

John 12:20-22 tells of Philip being approached by a group of Gentiles from Greece wanting to meet with Jesus. Scripture states Philip sought out Andrew to help lead the Gentiles to Christ.

Incidentally, Philip and Andrew are the only two disciples with Greek names. However, some theologians suspect Philip may have been able to speak Greek and if this was the case, it would've made sense for the Greeks to approach Philip to lead them to Christ.

Answer: Aquila

Acts 18:1-2 states Paul met Priscilla and Aquila in Corinth after Claudius ordered all the Jews to leave Rome.

Notes in the NIV Study Bible state Claudius served as Emperor of Rome from 41 to 54 AD. All Jews were ordered deported during his reign. Corinth is in Greece, about 75 kilometres southwest of Athens. Paul's books 1 Corinthians and 2 Corinthians are addressed to followers of Christ in Corinth.

Answer: An unnamed leper

An unnamed leper is synonymous with thankfulness. According to Luke 17:11-19, Jesus cleansed ten lepers but only one, a Samaritan, returned to give thanks.

Scripture reports after the lepers asked Jesus to cleanse them, He simply told the lepers "go, show yourselves to the priests." As they proceeded on their way to show themselves to the priests, a miracle happened as Scripture reports they were suddenly healed of their leprosy. According to notes in the NIV Study Bible, showing oneself to the priests was a normal procedure after a cure. (Further information about showing oneself to the priests can be found in Leviticus 13:2-3 and 14:2-32.)

When one of the lepers discovered he was cleansed, Scripture reports he returned to Jesus praising God in a loud voice. The former leper was obviously ecstatic without the deplorable affliction Jesus had removed forever from his life. It must have been a wonderful sight to see.

Scripture also reports the former leper was a Samaritan. This is noteworthy because Jews and Samaritans largely despised each other in Biblical times. Although there was a major rift between the Jews and Samaritans in Biblical times, the four Gospels continually report about Jesus looking favorably upon the Samaritans. Some examples that leap to mind are the Samaritan woman at the well and the Parable of the Good Samaritan.

No information is given about the nine other men who were healed of leprosy as there is no further mention of them again in Scripture. We can only speculate. Many Christians see the story about the ten lepers as a lesson in the importance of giving thanks and how easy it is to take blessings in life for granted.