1989 BIBLE CONTENT EXAM

All biblical quotations have been taken from the NRSV.

The questions here are the property of the Presbyterian Church (USA).  Internet version software and formatting are copyright ©2000-2023 by Stephen A. Whitney. All rights reserved.


1. The laws in Leviticus were delivered to:

a. Eleazar
b. Aaron
c. Joshua
d. Moses

Bible reference for question 1 or the reference with options

2. According to Leviticus, the Jubilee Year requires:

a. the celebration of the exodus
b. return of property
c. ritual purification
d. animal sacrifice

Bible reference for question 2 or the reference with options

3. According to Leviticus, every one who curses his father or mother shall:

a. be driven out from the people
b. be put to death
c. go to the priests to be purified
d. offer a sacrifice

Bible reference for question 3 or the reference with options

4. The sentence, "You shall be holy; for I the Lord your God am holy." is found in:

a. Exodus
b. Leviticus
c. Numbers
d. Deuteronomy

Bible reference for question 4 or the reference with options

5. Jethro was a priest of:

a. Moab
b. Ur of the Chaldees
c. Midian
d. Bethel

Bible reference for question 5 or the reference with options

6. "The Lord bless you and keep you: The Lord make his face to shine upon you, and be gracious to you: The Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace." may be found in:

a. Genesis
b. Exodus
c. Leviticus
d. Numbers

Bible reference for question 6 or the reference with options

7. Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5 both contain:

a. rules governing pilgrimage feasts
b. the Ten Commandments
c. the story of the golden calf
d. rules governing the Day of Atonement

Bible reference for question 7 or the reference with options

8. "God will provide himself the lamb for a burnt offering . . . " was spoken by:

a. Abraham
b. Isaac
c. Jacob
d. Joseph

Bible reference for question 8 or the reference with options

9. "I will not let you go, unless you bless me." was said by:

a. Abraham
b. Laban
c. Isaac
d. Jacob

Bible reference for question 9 or the reference with options

10. "The Lord watch between you and me, when we are absent one from the other." Was spoken by:

a. Abraham
b. Lot
c. Jacob
d. Laban

Bible reference for question 10 or the reference with options

11. Jacob's youngest son, who was born in the promised land, was named:

a. Dan
b. Benjamin
c. Naphtali
d. Joseph

Bible reference for question 11 or the reference with options

12. To what subject are the first seven chapters of Leviticus devoted?

a. sexual offenses
b. the priesthood
c. ritual offerings
d. laws concerning purity

Bible reference for question 12 or the reference with options

13. Who told Moses to choose "able men" to help ease the burden of his responsibilities?

a. Yahweh
b. Aaron
c. Jethro
d. Miriam

Bible reference for question 13 or the reference with options

14. Yahweh denied Moses permission to accompany the Israelites into the promised land because Moses had:

a. failed to give satisfactory credit to Yahweh for causing water to spring from a rock.
b. fathered children who were unfaithful to Yahweh.
c. allowed the Israelites to intermarry with pagans and to worship foreign gods.
d. failed to follow Yahweh's instructions concerning the building of the tabernacle.

Bible reference for question 14 or the reference with options

15. Which individual was allowed to enter the promised land?

a. Miriam
b. Jethro
c. Joshua
d. Aaron

Bible reference for question 15 or the reference with options

16. Abraham purchased a field in Machpelah for use as:

a. an inheritance gift for Isaac
b. a burial place for Sarah
c. barter when trading for livestock
d. a place to build an altar to Yahweh

Bible reference for question 16 or the reference with options

17. From which book comes the saying, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself?"

a. Exodus
b. Leviticus
c. Numbers
d. Deuteronomy

Bible reference for question 17 or the reference with options

18. The story of the Israelite defeat of Canaan is narrated in:

a. Joshua
b. Judges
c. 1 Samuel
d. 2 Samuel

Bible reference for question 18 or the reference with options

19. "No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life; as I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you." was said by God to:

a. Joshua
b. Deborah
c. Samson
d. Gideon

Bible reference for question 19 or the reference with options

20. In the Book of Esther, Mordecai draws the wrath of whose fury?

a. Ahasuerus
b. Vashti
c. Haman
d. Hegai

Bible reference for question 20 or the reference with options

21. "Sun, stand thou still at Gibeon." This was said by:

a. Jephthat
b. Elisha
c. Moses
d. Joshua

Bible reference for question 21 or the reference with options

22. Which tribe of Israel received cities within the territories of others?

a. Ephraim
b. Levi
c. Judah
d. Benjamin

Bible reference for question 22 or the reference with options

23. Joshua gathered the tribes of Israel to Shechem to:

a. make a covenant with them.
b. establish a religious ritual.
c. begin a census.
d. conscript the men for his army.

Bible reference for question 23 or the reference with options

24. " . . . choose this day whom you will serve . . . " was said by:

a. Gideon
b. Joshua
c. Deborah
d. Samson

Bible reference for question 24 or the reference with options

25. "And the people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and served the Baals; and they forsook the Lord, the God of their fathers . . . " This comment is typical of:

a. 1 Samuel
b. 2 Samuel
c. Joshua
d. Judges

Bible reference for question 25 or the reference with options

26. She directed a battle fought by certain tribes against the Canaanites.

a. Deborah
b. Jael
c. Miriam
d. Vashti

Bible reference for question 26 or the reference with options

27. The Canaanite command defeated by Barak was

a. Anak
b. Sisera
c. Ehud
d. Cushen

Bible reference for question 27 or the reference with options

28. The duties of a next of kin figure strongly in what book?

a. Judges
b. Esther
c. Ruth
d. 1 Kings

Bible reference for question 28 or the reference with options

29. Eli, Abiathar, and Zadok were all:

a. Judges
b. Kings
c. Military leaders
d. Priests

Bible reference for question 29 or the reference with options

30. Why did David refuse to take Saul's life when he had a chance?

a. David did not believe in killing
b. David had great respect for Saul's son, Jonathan.
c. Saul was the Lord's anointed.
d. David felt obligated to Saul for his past generosity.

Bible reference for question 30 or the reference with options

31. Hiram was most closely associated with:

a. Babylon
b. Israel
c. Judah
d. Tyre

Bible reference for question 31 or the reference with options

32. "When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son." is a quotation from which book?

a. Hosea
b. Joel
c. Amos
d. Zephaniah

Bible reference for question 32 or the reference with options

33. Which prophetic book develops its main themes around the imagery of marriage between God and Israel?

a. Isaiah
b. Zechariah
c. Hosea
d. Amos

Bible reference for question 33 or the reference with options

34. Which prophet spoke the words of promise cited in Acts 2, " . . . I will pour out my spirit on all flesh."?

a. Zechariah
b. Micah
c. Joel
d. Hosea

Bible reference for question 34 or the reference with options

35. Which prophet identified himself as from "among the shepherds"?

a. Amos
b. Habakkuk
c. Zephaniah
d. Obadiah

Bible reference for question 35 or the reference with options

36. Who named his children "Not pitied" and "Not my people" at birth as signs of his message from God to Israel?

a. Hosea
b. Isaiah
c. Jeremiah
d. Ezekiel

Bible reference for question 36 or the reference with options

37. Which prophet justified his behavior by saying: " . . . I knew that thou art a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love, and repentest of evil."?

a. Micah
b. Nahum
c. Jonah
d. Joel

Bible reference for question 37 or the reference with options

38. Which prophet declared: "Hear this, you who trample upon the needy, and bring the poor of the land to an end, saying, 'When will the new moon be over . . . that we may buy the poor for silver and the needy for a pair of sandals, and sell the refuse of the wheat?'"?

a. Micah
b. Amos
c. Obadiah
d. Malachi

Bible reference for question 38 or the reference with options

39. Which two prophets proclaimed that in the future "the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established as the highest of the mountains . . . and peoples shall flow to it, and many nations shall come...?

a. Hosea and Jeremiah
b. Micah and Isaiah
c. Amos and Hosea
d. Haggai and Zechariah

Bible reference for question 39 or the reference with options

40. Which prophet said, "I will take my stand to watch, and station myself on the tower, and look forth to see what he will say to me, and what I will answer concerning my complaint."?

a. Zephaniah
b. Zechariah
c. Joel
d. Habakkuk

Bible reference for question 40 or the reference with options

41. When some of the people exiled to Babylon had returned to Jerusalem during the Persian period, who urged them to rebuild the temple?

a. Johan
b. Malachi
c. Haggai
d. Micah

Bible reference for question 41 or the reference with options

42. Which prophetic book is, in its entirety, an oracle concerning Nineveh?

a. Jonah
b. Nahum
c. Habakkuk
d. Zephaniah

Bible reference for question 42 or the reference with options

43. Which prophetic book envisions a future in which "your sons and daughters shall prophecy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions."?

a. Joel
b. Haggai
c. Zechariah
d. Malachi

Bible reference for question 43 or the reference with options

44. The immanent approach of "the great day of the Lord" is a major theme in which prophetic book?

a. Nahum
b. Habakkuk
c. Zephaniah
d. Haggai

Bible reference for question 44 or the reference with options

45. Ahaz's response to the Lord's demand to ask for a sign "deep as Sheol or high as heaven" in Isaiah 7 is:

a. to refuse to ask for a sign.
b. to request a sign.
c. to challenge Isaiah.
d. to walk away in anger.

Bible reference for question 45 or the reference with options

46. Maher-shalal-hash-baz is:

a. a priest of Assyria against whom Isaiah contended
b. the son of Baladan, king of Babylon
c. Isaiah's son
d. one who cried for the destruction of Samaria

Bible reference for question 46 or the reference with options

47. As predicted to Hezekiah by Isaiah, Sennacherib, king of Assyria, died:

a. in the siege of Jerusalem
b. by the same illness that threatened Hezekiah
c. by the sword in his own land
d. by a fall from his horse

Bible reference for question 47 or the reference with options

48. "Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my spirit upon him, he will bring forth justice to the nations." is found in:

a. Isaiah 9
b. Isaiah 24
c. Isaiah 42
d. Isaiah 56

Bible reference for question 48 or the reference with options

49. "For I know that my redeemer lives . . . " is found in:

a. Job
b. Psalms
c. Proverbs
d. Ecclesiastes

Bible reference for question 49 or the reference with options

50. "Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!" is found in:

a. Job
b. Psalms
c. Proverbs
d. Ecclesiastes

Bible reference for question 50 or the reference with options

51. "A good wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels." is found in:

a. Psalms
b. Ecclesiastes
c. Job
d. Proverbs

Bible reference for question 51 or the reference with options

52. "I am a rose of Sharon, a lily of the valleys." is found in:

a. Job
b. Ecclesiastes
c. Proverbs
d. Song of Solomon

Bible reference for question 52 or the reference with options

53. One of the themes of Psalm 91 is:

a. the futility of life
b. the importance of Zion
c. the power and protection of God
d. the law of God

Bible reference for question 53 or the reference with options

54. Psalm 51 begins as follows:

a. "The almighty God, the Lord speaks . . ."
b. "Have mercy upon me, O God, according to they steadfast love."
c. "Make a joyful noise to God."
d. "The Lord reigns, he is robed with majesty."

Bible reference for question 54 or the reference with options

55. "Out of the depths have I cried to you, O Lord!" is found in:

a. Job
b. Psalms
c. Proverbs
d. Ecclesiastes

Bible reference for question 55 or the reference with options

56. Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar appear in the book of:

a. Ecclesiastes
b. Psalms
c. Song of Solomon
d. Job

Bible reference for question 56 or the reference with options

57. "Blessed is every one who fears the Lord, who walks in his ways!" is found in:

a. Job
b. Psalms
c. Proverbs
d. Ecclesiastes

Bible reference for question 57 or the reference with options

58. "By the waters of Babylon, there we sat down and wept . . . " is followed in the Biblical text by what line:

a. "why do the nations conspire and the people plot in vain?"
b. "sing us one of the songs of Zion."
c. "I have set my king in Zion."
d. "when we remembered Zion."

Bible reference for question 58 or the reference with options

59. "God is our refuge and strength . . . " is followed in the Biblical text by what line?

a. "but man that is born of woman is of few days."
b. "a very present help in trouble."
c. "now let us go into the house of the Lord."
d. "my help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth."

Bible reference for question 59 or the reference with options

60. "Let the day perish wherein I was born and the night which said, 'A manchild is conceived.'" is found in:

a. Job
b. Ecclesiastes
c. Psalms
d. Proverbs

Bible reference for question 60 or the reference with options

61. "A wise son makes a glad father, but a foolish son is a sorrow to his mother." is found in:

a. Job
b. Psalms
c. Proverbs
d. Ecclesiastes

Bible reference for question 61 or the reference with options

62. The passerby forced to carry Jesus' cross was:

a. Simon of Cyrene
b. Joseph of Arimathea
c. Lazarus of Bethany
d. Caiaphas of Jerusalem

Bible reference for question 62 or the reference with options

63. Jesus was arrested in the:

a. courtyard of the temple
b. home of Mary and Martha
c. garden of Gethsemane
d. upper room

Bible reference for question 63 or the reference with options

64. According to the Gospel of Matthew, when Jesus called him to be a disciple, Matthew was a:

a. fisherman
b. shepherd
c. tax collector
d. teacher

Bible reference for question 64 or the reference with options

65. The two who appeared talking with Jesus when he was transfigured were:

a. Jacob and David
b. Abraham and Jacob
c. Elias and Isaiah
d. Moses and Elijah

Bible reference for question 65 or the reference with options

66. Jesus was baptized in the:

a. Sea of Galilee
b. Dead Sea
c. Jordan River
d. Mediterranean Sea

Bible reference for question 66 or the reference with options

67. In the Gospel of Luke, who prayed, "God, I thank thee that I am not like other men!"?

a. samaritan
b. sadducee
c. pharisee
d. publican

Bible reference for question 67 or the reference with options

68. In the Nazareth synagogue, Luke reports that Jesus read from the book of Isaiah:

a. "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me."
b. "All we like sheep have gone astray."
c. "Seek the Lord while he may be found."
d. "Harken to me, you who pursue deliverance."

Bible reference for question 68 or the reference with options

69. According to the Gospel of Luke, the mother of John the Baptist was:

a. Elizabeth
b. Anna
c. Joanna
d. Martha

Bible reference for question 69 or the reference with options

70. According to Matthew, Mark, and Luke, immediately after Jesus was baptized, he:

a. called the twelve disciples.
b. went to the wilderness.
c. returned to Galilee.
d. returned to Nazareth to tell his family.

Bible reference for question 70 or the reference with options

71. "Salt of the earth," "Light of the world," and "lilies of the field" occur in:

a. Jesus' instructions to the seventy
b. Jesus' instructions to the twelve
c. Jesus' sermon on the mount
d. Jesus' teaching after the resurrection

Bible reference for question 71 or the reference with options

72. The parable of the sower is found in the gospel according to

a. Matthew
b. Mark
c. Luke
d. All of these

Bible reference for question 72 or the reference with options

73. The parables about the two sons and the lost coin are found in

a. Matthew
b. Mark
c. Luke
d. Mark and Luke

Bible reference for question 73 or the reference with options

74. Which of the following phrases correctly continues the story beginning with the words, "Behold a woman of the city, who was a sinner . . .

a. came up behind him and touched the fringe of his garment."
b. began to wet his feet with her tears."
c. begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter."
d. put two copper coins into the offering."

Bible reference for question 74 or the reference with options

75. The closing verse of John's gospel declares:

a. none should add to take away anything in the book.
b. Jesus did so many things, the world could not contain all the books reporting them.
c. anyone who brings back a sinner from error will save his soul from death.
d. a second book will be written, dealing with the history of the church.

Bible reference for question 75 or the reference with options

76. In John 1, John the Baptist is introduced as:

a. a kinsman of Jesus
b. one from the wilderness
c. a man sent from God
d. one of God's prophets

Bible reference for question 76 or the reference with options

77. The conversation of Jesus with the woman at the well took place in:

a. Samaria
b. Judea
c. Galilee
d. Idumea

Bible reference for question 77 or the reference with options

78. When in John 9 Jesus answered the questions concerning the blindness a man had known before Jesus healed him, Jesus declared the man had been blind:

a. because of his sin
b. because of his parents' sin
c. so that others would have sympathy for him
d. so that the works of God could be seen in him

Bible reference for question 78 or the reference with options

79. The major theme of chapter 10 of the Gospel of John is about Jesus as the:

a. bread of life
b. Son of Man
c. good shepherd
d. true vine

Bible reference for question 79 or the reference with options

80. Which of the following is an essential theme of the First Letter of John?

a. Election
b. Creation
c. Predestination
d. Love

Bible reference for question 80 or the reference with options

81. Which event occurs earliest in the Book of Revelation?

a. giving of seven trumpets
b. opening of the seven seals
c. seven angels with seven plagues
d. vision of Christ with seven messages

Bible reference for question 81 or the reference with options

82. "A Jew is one who is one inwardly, and real ___________ is a matter of the heart, spiritual and not literal." The missing word is:

a. love
b. sacrifice
c. circumcision
d. conversion

Bible reference for question 82 or the reference with options

83. Those who speak in a tongue should pray for:

a. the power to heal
b. the power to interpret
c. the power to exorcize demons
d. the power to convert

Bible reference for question 83 or the reference with options

84. Identify: "We know that in everything God works for good with those who love him, who are called according to his purpose."

a. Romans 8
b. 1 Corinthians
c. Galatians 5
d. Ephesians 5

Bible reference for question 84 or the reference with options

85. Which saying is from Paul's letter to the Romans?

a. "So faith, hope, love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love."
b. "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen."
c. "Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound?"
d. "See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God, and so we are."

Bible reference for question 85 or the reference with options

86. "If there is a physical body," Paul says, "there is also ___________."

a. a terrestrial body
b. a spiritual body
c. a perishable soul
d. an immortal soul

Bible reference for question 86 or the reference with options

87. Paul's counsel not to marry if one is not already married is from:

a. Galatians
b. 1 Corinthians
c. Ephesians
d. Romans

Bible reference for question 87 or the reference with options

88. Paul besought the Lord three times to remove his thorn in the flesh; and received the response:

a. "You will inherit a spiritual body."
b. "You must not boast about it."
c. "My grace is sufficient for you."
d. "Are you not willing to drink from this cup?"

Bible reference for question 88 or the reference with options

89. One of the key questions posed to Paul which he seeks to answer in I Thessalonians is:

a. what to do about the divisions of the church.
b. what about the secret teachings of Jesus.
c. what about Christians who have died.
d. what should be done about Judaizers.

Bible reference for question 89 or the reference with options

90. That the Day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night is from Paul's letter to:

a. I Thessalonians
b. Romans
c. Colossians
d. Ephesians

Bible reference for question 90 or the reference with options

91. Paul said:

a. "For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain."
b. "I have been crucified with Christ."
c. "If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness."
d. all of the above.

Bible reference for question 91 or the reference with options

92. At their trial after they had healed a lame man, Peter and John defended themselves with the claim that the man was healed

a. by the name of Jesus Christ
b. by speaking in tongues
c. through the power given them by God
d. through the power of the Holy Spirit

Bible reference for question 92 or the reference with options

93. Peter's accusation to Ananias and Sapphira (who sold property while keeping back some of the proceeds) was that they

a. were filled with new wine
b. lied to God
c. dishonored the name of Jesus
d. lied to Peter

Bible reference for question 93 or the reference with options

94. Peter's visit to Cornelius in Caesarea concerned the

a. stoning of Stephen
b. Gentiles receiving the word of God
c. the appointment of a new disciple
d. the preaching of the Gospel

Bible reference for question 94 or the reference with options

95. When the residents of Lystra thought Barnabas was Zeus and Paul was Hermes, Barnabas and Paul

a. tore their garments and delivered a speech.
b. left the city immediately.
c. exhorted the local magistrate to calm the crowd.
d. refused to acknowledge they understood the local tongue.

Bible reference for question 95 or the reference with options

96. The riot led by the silversmiths took place in

a. Ephesus
b. Lystra
c. Caesarea
d. Athens

Bible reference for question 96 or the reference with options

97. "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." is found in

a. I Corinthians
b. Philippians
c. Romans
d. Ephesians

Bible reference for question 97 or the reference with options

98. The priest of the most high God was:

a. Levi
b. Aaron
c. Moses
d. Melchizedek

Bible reference for question 98 or the reference with options

99. "If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself,' you do well . . . for whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of it all." is found in:

a. Titus
b. James
c. I Peter
d. II John

Bible reference for question 99 or the reference with options

100. "Come unto him, to that living stone, rejected by men but in God's sight chosen and precious; and like living stones be yourselves built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood . . . " is found in:

a. Ephesians
b. Jude
c. I Peter
d. II Peter

Bible reference for question 100 or the reference with options

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