A Quick Look at Ten New Testament Men & Their Sons Quiz

Answer: James and John

According to Scripture, Zebedee was the father of James and John. However, not much is known about him as he is mentioned in passing reference. According to Matthew 4:21, he was a fisherman, just like his sons James and John. Theologians believe his wife's name was Salome.

Answer: Judas Iscariot

Simon was the father of Judas Iscariot, according to John 6:71, 12:4, 13:2 and 13:26.

John 6:71 in the NKJV states: "He spoke of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, for it was he who would betray Him, being one of the twelve."

John 12:4 states: "But one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, who would betray Him, said..."

John 13:2 states: "And supper being ended, the devil having already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray Him."

Meanwhile, John 13:26 states: "Jesus answered, 'It is he to whom I shall give a piece of bread when I have dipped it.' And having dipped the bread, He gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon."

Little is known about Simon, the father of Judas, as these are the only verses in the Bible that mention him.

Answer: Bartimaeus

Timaeus was the father of Bartimaeus, according to Mark 10:46. However, little is known about Timaeus as he is mentioned in passing reference in only this verse.

Bartimaeus was a helpless beggar who "immediately" regained his sight after he had an encounter with Jesus at Jericho. His story appears in Mark 10:46-52. It's a heartwarming story and has always been one of my favorites. In fact, the first quiz I did for FunTrivia was about blind Bartimaeus.

Answer: James the Lesser

Alphaeus was the father of James the Lesser. There were two disciples with the first name James. They were the brother of John and James the son of Alphaeus who is often referred to as James the Lesser.

Matthew 10:3, Mark 3:18, Luke 6:15 and Acts 1:13 all make reference to "James the son of Alphaeus."

However, nothing is known about Alphaeus as he is mentioned in passing reference.

Answer: Apparently never married

Tradition has it Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles, was never married and did not have a son.

However, some theologians today argue it's possible he was married. In 1 Corinthians 7:8, Paul states in the NIV: "Now to the unmarried and the widows I say: It is good for them to stay unmarried, as I do." However, in 1 Corinthians 9:5, he states: "Don't we have the right to take a believing wife along with us, as do the other apostles and the Lord's brothers and Cephas?" Going by these two passages, some people are of the view Paul was married at one time, but his wife had passed away.

Meanwhile, Paul is apparently stating in 1 Corinthians 7:1-7 he had the gift of celibacy. Here's how the passage reads in the NKJV:
"Now concerning the things of which you wrote to me: It is good for a man not to touch a woman. Nevertheless, because of sexual immorality, let each man have his own wife, and let each woman have her own husband. Let the husband render to his wife the affection due her, and likewise also the wife to her husband. The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. And likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. Do not deprive one another except with consent for a time, that you may give yourselves to fasting and prayer; and come together again so that Satan does not tempt you because of your lack of self-control. But I say this as a concession, not as a commandment. For I wish that all men were even as I myself. But each one has his own gift from God, one in this manner and another in that."

The website Gotquestions.org provides this answer when a query is made about Paul's marital status: "So, was the Apostle Paul married? It is possible that he was at one time, but again, the Bible does not specifically say."

So the correct 'match' for Paul has to be 'apparently never married'.

Answer: Alexander and Rufus

Simon of Cyrene was the father of Alexander and Rufus, according to Scripture. Simon was called upon to help Jesus carry His crucifixion cross to Golgotha.

Mark 15:21 in the NKJV states: "Then they compelled a certain man, Simon a Cyrenian, the father of Alexander and Rufus, as he was coming out of the country and passing by, to bear His cross."

According to Wikipedia, Cyrene was an ancient Greek and Roman city near present-day Shahhat.

Answer: Timothy

According to Acts 16:1 Timothy, a worker in the early church, was the son of an unnamed Greek man. The verse in the NKJV states: "Then he [Paul] came to Derbe and Lystra. And behold, a certain disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a certain Jewish woman who believed, but his father was Greek."

This is the only mention of Timothy's father. According to 2 Timothy 1:5, his mother's name was Eunice and his grandmother's name was Lois.

Timothy was young and known for being timid. A number of different times in Scripture, Paul refers to Timothy as his son.

Answer: John the Baptist

According to Scripture, Zecharias, who is also known as Zechariah in the NIV, was rendered speechless by an angel until John the Baptist was born. Scripture states Zecharias was a priest who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah and his wife was also a descendant of Aaron, as per Luke 1:5.

Luke 1:11-25 tells of the angel Gabriel appearing before Zecharias and telling him of the upcoming birth of their son, who would become John the Baptist. When Zecharias doubted Gabriel's claims, he was rendered speechless as per Luke 1:20.

There's a happy ending to the story, however. After the baby was born, Zecharias wrote on a tablet that the infant was to be called John and, according to verse 64, "immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue was loosed, and he spoke, praising God."

Answer: Joseph

According to Scripture, Joseph, the husband of Mary, was the son of Heli. Heli's name is part of the genealogy of Christ. Luke 3:23 simply states "Now Jesus Himself began His ministry at about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, the son of Heli." There is no further mention of Joseph's father in Scripture.

Answer: Simon Peter and Andrew

Jonah was the father of Simon Peter and Andrew, according to Scripture. John 1:42 in the NKJV states: "And he brought him to Jesus. Now when Jesus looked at him, He said, 'You are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas' (which is translated, A Stone)."

In John 21:15-17, Jesus calls Simon the son of Jonah three times.

Peter and Andrew were well known brothers who were part of the original twelve disciples.

However, there is no information in Scripture about Jonah's personal life.