The Persecuted in the New Testament Quiz

Answer: Stephen

Stephen became the first Christian martyr when he was stoned to death, as reported in Acts 6:8-15 and Acts 7:1-50. The passage tells of Stephen appearing before the Sanhedrin and making a passionate and convincing argument in defence of Christianity. However, members of the Sanhedrin refused to listen to Stephen and quickly became infuriated and ordered his execution.

According to Acts 6:5, Stephen was a Hellenistic Jew who was selected to oversee the distribution of food to those in need. The same verse describes Stephen as "a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit."

Answer: James

Out of the original twelve disciples, James was the first to be executed. Little in the way of details are given about his execution, however. Acts 12:1-2, in the NKJV, simply states: "Now about that time Herod the king stretched out his hand to harass some from the church. Then he killed James the brother of John with the sword."

To be killed`"with the sword" is simply another way of saying he was beheaded.

After the execution of James, Scripture goes on to tell of Peter being imprisoned.

Before becoming a disciple, James was a fisherman along with his brother John.

Answer: John the Baptist

Herod ordered the execution of John the Baptist even though he didn't want to do so.

It`s a bit of a long story, but Herod had John imprisoned after he publicly denounced the king's marriage to Herodias, who had been originally married to his brother Philip. Herodias despised John and she pulled strings behind the scenes to make sure John would never leave prison alive.

Scripture tells of Herodias' unnamed daughter performing a dance before a gala banquet hosted by an apparently drunken Herod and he told the girl she could have whatever she wanted -- up to one half of his kingdom. After consulting with her mother, the girl requested John's head on a platter.

Herod reluctantly followed through with the girl's request and John was beheaded.

John the Baptist is mentioned in all four Gospels. He is regarded by Christians as the forerunner of Christ. He is also regarded by many Christians as the last of the Old Testament prophets.

For details about John the Baptist being beheaded, see Matthew 14:1-12 and Mark 6:14-29.

Answer: Paul

The persecution and the sufferings Paul faced are almost beyond comprehension. In 2 Corinthians 11:24-27, in the NKJV, Paul tells of his horrific ordeal: "From the Jews five times I received forty stripes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods; once I was stoned; three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I have been in the deep; in journeys often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils of my own countrymen, in perils of the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren."

Answer: Silas

It boggles the mind, but after being stripped naked, savagely beaten by a mob and then locked up in a jail, Silas and Paul were heard signing hymns at midnight.

According to Acts 16:16-34, Silas and Paul were singing hymns at midnight when an earthquake miraculously struck and set them free from their chains. The dynamic duo, however, did not make a break for their freedom. Instead, Silas and Paul stuck around and converted the jailer to Christianity. Later, the jailer and his household would be baptized.

The incredible event took place in Philippi.

Answer: Peter

The miraculous escape of Peter from prison is told in Acts 12:5-19. Peter's imprisonment had taken place after Herod had James beheaded and Peter was facing the same fate. However, an angel of the Lord intervened and Peter was able to escape.

Acts 5:17-21 also tells of imprisoned apostles making a miraculous escape from prison.

Tradition holds that Peter was put to death by crucifixion. He reportedly requested to be crucified upside down saying he was not worthy of dying in the same manner as Christ.

Answer: Luke

Luke is the correct answer. The answer might come as a surprise to some as Luke is primarily remembered for writing two books in the New Testament -- the Gospel of Luke and the Book of Acts.

However, he was an active worker in the early church, often serving alongside Paul.

Acts 27:1-44 tells of a ship Paul was travelling on sinking off the coast of Malta. It is known Luke was a passenger of the ship with Paul as he uses the collective pronoun 'we' when describing events in the chapter.

Luke was also known for his loyalty. While writing the epistle 2 Timothy, Paul was near the end of his ministry and facing execution. Luke, however, was with him to the end. In 2 Timothy 4:9-10, Paul writes: "Be diligent to come to me quickly; for Demas has forsaken me, having loved this present world, and has departed for Thessalonica -- Crescens for Galatia, Titus for Dalmatia. Only Luke is with me."

Answer: Timothy

Timothy was a young worker in the early church who Paul apparently regarded as a son. In addition to being young, Timothy had a reputation for being timid.

However, he ended up facing persecution similar to other workers in the early church and he was apparently jailed.

Hebrews 13:23 makes mention of our brother Timothy "being set free" from prison.

Timothy was from Lystra and his mother was Eunice and his grandmother was Lois.

Answer: John

John, the brother of James, was exiled to Patmos, a windswept island in the Aegean sea. No one knows for certain, but many scholars believe John was quite elderly, possibly in the 80s, when he was exiled.

It was on Patmos that John wrote Revelation, the last book of the New Testament.

To be fair, many modern day scholars believe the John who wrote Revelation was not the John who was one of the original twelve disciples. They describe the writer as 'John of Patmos' to differentiate him from the disciple. They are entitled to their opinion, but I believe John the disciple was the writer of Revelation.

Answer: Jesus

Jesus, of course, is the correct answer. Details of His arrest, crucifixion and resurrection can be found in all four Gospels.

For details see Matthew 26:47-75, 27:1-66, 28:1-20, Mark 14:43-72, 15:1-47, 16:1-20. Luke 22:47-71, Luke 23:1-56, Luke 24:1-53 and John 18:1-40, 19:1-42, 20:1-30.