Cities of the Old Testament : Promised Land Quiz

Answer: Jericho

When Joshua destroyed the city of Jericho, he laid a curse upon the city that "Cursed before the Lord be anyone who tries to build this city ... At the cost of his firstborn he shall lay its foundation, and at the cost of his youngest he shall set up its gates." (Joshua 6:26 NRSV) During the reign of Ahab of Israel, Hiel of Bethel built Jericho; and his firstborn and youngest died in the process. (1 Kings 16:34)

Answer: Gath

The city of Gath is one of the five Philistine capitals, the others being Gaza, Ashkelon, Ekron, and Ashdod. Gath was also the first to be destroyed. According to the Bible, the city was destroyed by Hazael of Aram and recent excavations of the site confirm this as a possibility (2 Kings 12:17).
During the Crusades, a small fortress was built on the site of Gath which supported a settlement called Tell es-Safi until 1948, when it was abandoned during the Arab-Israeli War.

Answer: Hebron

Hebron has been a very important city since before the time of Abraham. Abraham bought a cave here in which he buried Sarah, and later he and his son Isaac and grandson Jacob were also buried here. Their wives Rebekah and Leah are also said to be buried in the cave. This cave, known as the Cave of the Patriarchs, is considered a holy site in Judaism and considered a sacred site in Christianity and Islam.

The cave has been excavated many times. In 1119 CE, a monk claimed to have found the bones of three people in the caves and he sealed the caves.

Jewish tradition holds that the cave is also the final resting place of Adam and Eve.

Answer: Jerusalem

Archaeologists place a settlement at Jerusalem almost 4 million years ago, which makes it one of the oldest cities in the world. During the time of Abraham, the city was known as Salem and was ruled by a priest called Melchizedek, one of the biblical figures pointed to by Christians as foreshadowing Christ or even a pre-Jesus coming of Christ.

Jerusalem has been the capital of Israel and Judah since David conquered the city from the Jebusites. Solomon built the famous temple in the city.

Jerusalem is considered a holy city in Judaism, Christianity and Islam and all three religions have holy buildings within the city.

Answer: Ai

The city of Ai's location is a point of contention between those who take the Biblical account literally and those who don't. There are several locations which could have been the city of Ai, but none of them fulfill all the qualifications that Ai needs to have. Proving that Ai was already destroyed at the date of the conquest would prove this portion of the Bible (Joshua 8) inaccurate, while proving that Ai was destroyed at the time of the conquest would prove this portion of the Bible accurate.

This would also require a known date of the conquest, which is also a point of contention.

Answer: Samaria

After the Assyrian invasion of the Northern Kingdom of Israel, the people of Israel were carried off to Assyria and new settlers were brought into Samaria and the surrounding areas. These people mingled with the few Israelites who were left and the population became known as the Samaritans.

When the Judean people returned from exile, they looked down upon the Samaritans as not being pure descendants of Jacob, a view which extended well past the time of Jesus.

Answer: The pass of Michmash

Jonathan Maccabaeus established the city of Michmash as his capital during the short independence of Israel between Greek and Roman control.

During World War I, British General Allenby led the British forces to a confrontation with the Ottomans at a small town called Michmash. Major Vivian Gilbert remembered the name from his Bible readings and found the verses describing Jonathan's battle (1 Samuel 14). British forces went on to find this same passage and used it to outflank the Ottoman forces and win the battle.

Answer: Bethel

Bethel was one of two cities, the other being Dan, in which Jeroboam I placed a golden calf which the people were supposed to worship instead of going to Jerusalem. Bethel means "House of God," and its original name was Luz. The city of Bethel escaped the Assyrian invasion, being captured by Josiah, king of Judah, who removed the calf (2 Kings 23).

Answer: Gibeah

Gibeah was the Capital of Israel during the reign of Saul, Israel's first king. Gibeah was also the base of operations for the 10th Roman Legion during the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 CE by the Roman army. Gibeah is located about three miles north of Jerusalem on a plateau.

The crime described in the question occurred in Judges 19. Benjamin was the only tribe to remain loyal to Rehoboam besides his own tribe of Judah.

Answer: Dan

Dan was one of two cities, the other being Bethel, which Jeroboam I chose to house a golden calf, which the people were to worship instead of travelling to the temple in Jerusalem. Dan was the northernmost city in Israel and was the center of the Tribe of Dan. Since Dan was the northernmost city, it bore the brunt of the Armenian and eventually Assyrian invasions.