New Start with God

The apostle Paul was called by Jesus on the road to which city?

• Jerusalem

• Corinth

• Damascus

• Rome

Answer explanation

If you're familiar with the name "Damascus," blame the news coming out of this city in war-troubled, present-day Syria. Damascus is one of the world's oldest continuously-inhabited cities. Fun fact: It's also the source for our word "damask," meaning "pale reddish," supposedly the color of Damascus roses.

Which of these was NOT the name of one of Noah's sons?

• Aaron

• Shem

• Japheth

• Ham

Which book of the Bible does not mention God?

• Nahum

• 3 John

• Esther

• Songs of Solomon

Answer explanation

The story of Esther, the queen who saved her people from a wicked king's adviser named Haman, is important in Judaism; it is the basis for the religious holiday of Purim. Though religion plays a key role, as the reason for Haman's persecution of the Jews, God is never mentioned. In fact, you might say that Haman and Esther's struggle was more about ethnicity than faith.

What was the name of the "wicked" queen whom Esther replaced?

• Grace

• Salome

• Vashti

• Jezebel

Answer explanation

It isn't for nothing that I have put the word "wicked" in quote marks. Vashti's sin? She refused to come to court and display her beauty for the king and his friends. In a sense, Vashti can be seen as a feminist heroine; but to Jews, her fall from grace allowed Esther to replace her and thus come to her people's aid.

Several of the Twelve Apostles shared a name. Which of these names, though, belonged to a sole apostle?.

• Simon

• Judas

• Thomas

• James

Answer explanation

Yes, there were even two Judases. For clarity, the second Judas was commonly referred to by the alternate name, Thaddaeus. Simon the Caananite shared a name with Simon Peter, and there was a James the Greater (son of Zebedee) and a James the Lesser.

Terah was the father of which important leader?

• Noah

• Abraham

• Moses

• John the Baptist

Answer explanation

Terah isn't a major figure in the Bible, but he plays an important role. He was the father of the "father of many nations." He is also the father of Abraham's wife Sarah, who was Abraham's half-sister, reminding us that customs were really different in the ancient Middle East.

Which of these is NOT a book of the Old Testament?

• Micah

• Manasseh

• Joel

• Nahum

Answer explanation

Manasseh was a king of Judea, the "southern kingdom." No book of the Bible, though, is named for him. The other three names above are those of minor Old Testament prophets and are among the lesser-read books of the Bible.

Which of these disciples of Jesus also had the name "Cephas"?

• John

• Peter

• Andrew

• James the great

Answer explanation

Cephas is probably the least-well-known name of Simon Peter, the disciple who became Catholics believe is the first pope. Originally "Kepha" in Aramaic, it is rendered "Cephas" in most translations of the gospels, and means "rock," as does the Latinized name, "Peter."

The apostle Paul was blinded as part of his conversion experience. Who healed him?

• John

• Simon Peter

• Annanias

• Dorcas

Answer explanation

This is evidently a different Ananias from the one married to Sapphira, who sold a plot of land and withheld the profit from the early church. The Ananias to which we refer lived in Damascus and was initially reluctant to heal Paul because Ananias knew he was a zealous enemy of the early Christians. Of course, all that was beginning to change, and his healing would be part of that change.

When a group of boys taunted Elisha, what did God send to punish them?

• Painful Boils

• Their grandmothers

• She-Bears

• Heavy Floods

Answer explanation

In 2 Kings 2:23-24, a group of boys yell, "Go away!", at the prophet Elisha and mock him for being bald. When Elisha calls on God for help, God sends "she-bears" to maul the boys. The language of the Bible isn't clear on whether the boys survived, but this is certainly an instance of very harsh justice in the Bible.