Rock On: A Bible Quiz About Stones -- #2

Answer: Jacob and Laban

Jacob and Laban erected a pile of stones to symobilize their friendship, as per Genesis 31:44-52. Erection of the pile of stones would mark the end of extremely bitter times between the two men. Jacob and Laban had a feud, with Scripture telling of Jacob fleeing with his two wives, Leah and Rachel, his livestock and other material possessions with Laban in "hot pursuit".

According to the New King James Version Bible, Jacob made an arrangement with Laban that whenever a sheep was born, he could keep it if the animal was speckled, spotted or brown. (Rather than brown, the NIV uses the word 'colored' and the Easy to Read Version uses the word 'black'.) If it was white and without specks or spots, Laban would keep it.

However, when a large number of sheep were born speckled and spotted, Laban became infuriated.

According to Scripture, Jacob cut "rods of green poplar and of the almond and chestnut trees, peeled white strips in them, and exposed the white which was in the rods." Jacob then put the branches in front of the flocks at the watering places. When the animals came to drink, they would also mate.

Scripture states that when the animals mated in front of the rods, the young that were born were streaked, speckled, and spotted. As a result, the animals became property of Jacob.

Genesis 30:43 reports Jacob "became exceedingly prosperous, and had large flocks, female and male servants, and camels and donkeys."

At first blush, Jacob's tactics appear to be fraudulent. However, Scripture states his tactics were endorsed by the LORD because Laban had taken advantage of Jacob in a number of ways. Laban, of course, had deceived Jacob by getting him to work fourteen years to win the hand of Rachel. There were other issues as well. Genesis 31:7 quotes Jacob as saying Laban had changed his wages "ten times".

Verses 38 to 40 tell of Jacob informing Laban of even more abuses he suffered: "These twenty years I have been with you; your ewes and your female goats have not miscarried their young, and I have not eaten the rams of your flock. That which was torn by beasts I did not bring to you; I bore the loss of it. You required it from my hand, whether stolen by day or stolen by night. There I was! In the day the drought consumed me, and the frost by night, and my sleep departed from my eyes."

The chapter, however, concludes with Jacob and Laban agreeing to a covenant and living in peace. To mark their new friendship, the two men erected a pile of stones.

Answer: Moses

Moses is the correct answer, as per Exodus 17:8-12. The passage tells of Moses holding aloft the rod of God in his hand while the Israelites battled the Amalekites.

According to Scripture, when Moses held up his hand, the Israelites prevailed in battle. However, when he let down his hand, the Amalekites prevailed.

Scripture states that Moses grew tired from holding hid hand aloft, so they took a stone and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur supported his hands and Scripture states "his hands were steady until the going down of the sun."

Verse 13 goes on to tell of the Israelites defeating their enemies.

Answer: Nebuchadnezzar

Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, had a dream in which a giant statue was hit by a stone and broke into pieces, as per Daniel 2. According to Scripture, Nebuchadnezzar called upon magicians, astrologers and sorcerers to interpret his dream. However, he refused to even tell them what his dream was about in an apparent effort to find out if they actually possessed special powers. No one could even guess what his dream was about and the king, in a fit of rage, ordered the magicians, astrologers and sorcerers to be put to death.

Scripture goes on to tell of Daniel approaching Nebuchadnezzar and not only telling him what his dream was about, but also accurately interpreting it.

As a result of his interpretation, the king promoted Daniel and his three friends -- Mescah, Shadrach and Abed-Nego.

For more about Nebuchadenezzars's dream and Daniel's interpretation, see Daniel 2:1-49.

Answer: Joshua

Joshua is the correct answer. Joshua 10:17-18 tells of the five Canaanite kings found hidden in a cave at Makkedah, with Joshua giving the orders to "roll large stones against the mouth of the cave, and set men by it to guard them." (The five kings represented Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish and Eglon). Scripture goes on to tell of the kings being executed. Joshua 10:27 states: "And afterward Joshua struck them and killed them, and hanged them on five trees; and they were hanging on the trees until evening."

Answer: Daniel

The account of Daniel in the lions' den is found in Daniel 6 with Verse 17 stating the entrance to the den was closed with a stone. Scripture states Daniel was thrown into the lions' den because he bowed and prayed to God, even though there was a decree citizens should petition only King Darius and no one else.

To the king's amazement, however, Daniel was not harmed when he spent a night in the lions' den. In Daniel 4:21, Daniel proclaims he was able to survive because, "My God sent His angel and shut the lions' mouths, so that they have not hurt me, because I was found innocent before Him."

Answer: Joshua

Joshua is the correct answer, as per Joshua 24:26. Because the Israelites promised to serve God, and not follow false gods, Joshua saw fit to set up a commemorative stone. Verse 26 tells of Joshua taking a large stone in Shechem and setting it up by an oak tree by the sanctuary of the LORD. The following verse quotes Joshua as telling the people: "Behold, this stone shall be a witness to us, for it has heard all the words of the LORD which He spoke to us. It shall therefore be a witness to you, lest you deny your God."

Shortly after this event, Joshua died. According to Joshua 26:29, he was one hundred and ten years old.

Answer: 1 Corinthians

The reference to Christ as a spiritaul Rock is found in 1 Corinthians 10:4. Paul states the Israelites, while wandering in the wilderness on their way from Egypt to Canaan, drank of a spiritual Rock that was Christ.

To put the verse in context, here's how 1 Corinthians 10:1-4 reads in the NKJV: "Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware that all our fathers were under the cloud, all passed through the sea, all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ."

Paul is credited with writing thirteen books in the New Testament, including 1 Corinthians and 2 Corinthians. The two books were addressed to members of the early church in Corinth, a city in Greece. It was approximately half way between Athens and Sparta on the Ithmus of Corinth.

Answer: Lazarus

Lazarus, of course, is the correct answer. The report of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead at Bethany is perhaps Christ's most famous miracle. Scripture states the man had been dead for four days and in John 11:39, Martha, a sister of Lazarus, was not keen about the stone being rolled away from her brother's tomb because of concern about the "stench" from the body.

In other words, the funeral was over a long time ago and Lazarus was as dead as they come. According to Wikipedia, rigor mortis lasts for about 72 hours, or three days. In this case, the rigor mortis was over and now the body was starting to decay in the hot Mediterranean sun.

Scripture goes on to tell of the stone being rolled away and Christ commanding Lazarus to rise from the tomb -- and he did just that!

Answer: Peter

Jesus referred to Peter as a rock, as per Matthew 16:18. The reference was made after Peter proclaimed Jesus to be "the Christ, the Son of the living God." John 1:42 also states Jesus gave Peter the nickname Cephas which means stone, or rock. The verse in the NKJV, states: "And he [Andrew] brought him [Peter] 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)."

Peter was also known as Simon Peter. It wasn't unusual for characters in the New Testament to have more than one name. For example, there's Matthew and Levi, Bartholomew and Nathanael, Barnabas and Joses, and Paul and Saul.

Answer: Revelation

Information about an angel casting an enormous stone into the sea can be found in Revelation 18:21. The verse in the NKJV states, "Then a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea, saying, 'Thus with violence the great city Babylon shall be thrown down, and shall not be found anymore'."

Chapter 18 of Revelation is devoted to the fall of the great city of Babylon. The book goes on to tell of the beginning of the glorious city called the New Jerusalem.