Bare Bones Quiz About Famine in the Bible

Answer: Egypt

Abram and Sarai, who later became known as Abraham and Sarah, went to Egypt to escape a severe famine in Canaan, as per Genesis 12:10. Using the KJV, the NKJV and the NIV, this is the first mention of a famine in the Bible. Much later, Abraham and Sarah would become the parents of Isaac.

Answer: Isaac and Rebekah

Issac and Rebekah pretended to be brother and sister to deceive the king of Gerar after they moved to the Philistine town due to a famine. (Ironically, Isaac's parents, Abraham and Sarah had pretended to be brother and sister when they moved to Gerar some time before.) Scripture reports Rebekah was extremely beautiful and Isaac feared if he was known as her husband he would be killed and Rebekah put in the king's harem. The same details basically hold for Abraham and Sarah who had moved to Gerar due to famine a number of years before.

The deception of Isaac and Rebekah is reported in Genesis 26:1-10, while the deception of Abraham and Sarah is contained in Genesis 20:1-1-18. On top of all this, Abraham and Sarah also pretended to be brother and sister in Egypt on another occasion to spare the life of Abraham. That account can be found in Genesis 12:10-20. Scripture states they moved to Egypt to escape a severe famine. In other words, there are three cases in Genesis in which couples pretended to be brothers and sisters to spare the lives of the males. In all three cases, the deceptions were found out, but the lives of Isaac and Abraham were spared.

Answer: Joseph

Joseph is the correct answer. He assumed the job when the Pharaoh appointed him as the second most powerful man in Egypt. The promotion was given when Joseph interpreted two dreams for the Pharaoh, even though others were unable to do so.

In the first dream, the Pharaoh told Joseph he saw seven fat cows and seven emaciated cows. Then in the second dream, he said he saw seven good heads of grain and seven blighted heads.

Joseph told the Pharaoh the dreams meant Egypt would have seven years of bountiful harvests followed by seven years of famine. Scripture goes on to tell of Joseph advising the Pharaoh to collect one-fifth of the produce of the land of Egypt in the seven plentiful years, with the food being kept in reserve for seven years of famine.

See Genesis 41:25-28 for details.

Answer: David

David and his people endured famine for three years, as per 2 Samuel 21:1. Scripture states the famine was divine retribution, with the LORD telling David the poor harvests were the result of Saul, a previous king of Israel, killing a large number of Gibeonites. Scripture goes on to tell of David making atonement with the Gibeonites and the famine ending.

According to notes in the NKJV Study Bible, Saul had broken a sacred agreement the Israelites had with the Gibeonites. About four hundred years earlier, the Gibeonites had entered into an agreement with the Israelites that guaranteed their protection and security, the study notes state. Details about the agreement between the Gibeonites and the Israelites can be found in Joshua 9:3-27.

Answer: Elijah

In 1 Kings 17, Elijah boldly proclaimed to Ahab, king of Israel, there would be no dew or rain, "except at my word." According to Jesus in Luke 4:25, the drought in Elijah's days lasted three years and six months.

Backing up Christ's statement is 1 Kings 18:1. The verse tells of the word of the LORD coming to Elijah in the third year saying, "Go, present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the earth."

Answer: Israel

Israel is the correct answer. 2 Kings 8:1-2 provides an account of Elisha telling a Shuammite woman about a seven-year-long famine that would take place in Israel. Scripture goes on to tell of the unnamed woman moving to the land of the Philistines for seven years to escape the famine. According to Scripture, Elisha had raised the unnamed woman's son from the dead.

Answer: Bethlehem

According to Scripture, Elimelech and Naomi and their two sons, Mahlon and Chilion, left Bethlehem and moved to Moab during a famine. Mahlon would take Ruth as his wife and Chilion would marry Orpah. Later Elimelech and his two sons would die, leaving their wives as widows. Scripture does not provide details about how they died.

Later, Naomi would hear "the LORD had visited His people by giving them bread" and she opted to return to Judah. Scripture tells of Ruth going to Judah with Naomi while Orpah stayed in Moab.

(In the NIV, Chilion is referred to as Kilion.)

Answer: The Prodigal Son

In a parable told by Jesus in Luke 15:11-32, the Prodigal Son moved to an unnamed foreign country and quickly squandered all his money on a wild lifestyle. Making the situation worse, Verse 14 tells of a famine arising; to survive, the young man got a job feeding pigs. Scripture states he was so hungry he longed to eat what the pigs were eating.

The parable goes on to tell of the man deciding to return to his father's house and serve as a hired hand. However, to his amazement his father welcomed him with open arms. In Verse 32, the father is quoted as saying there was cause to celebrate his son's return because he was "dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found."

Many Christians liken the parable to the fact God is always open to welcome to the fold those who have made major mistakes in their lives.

Answer: Agabus

Agabus is the correct answer. Acts 11:27-30 tells of prophets going from Jerusalem to Antioch, with Agabus standing up and showing "by the Spirit that there was going to be a great famine throughout all the world, which also happened in the days of Claudius Caesar." The passage goes on to tell of the disciples agreeing to send relief to help people cope with the famine.

Answer: black

The horseman telling of a severe famine to come was riding on a black horse. Revelation 6 tells of six seals being opened by the Lamb, with verses 5-6 telling of the opening of the third seal and details about a famine that is to grip the world.

Verse 6 in the NKJV tells of John, the writer of Revelation, hearing a voice saying, "A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not harm the oil and the wine." Notes in the NKJV Study Bible state a denarius was the equivalent of a day's wages.