Voices Heard by People in the Bible -- #2 Quiz

Answer: Moses

Moses, of course, is the correct answer. Moses and his brother Aaron, with assistance from their sister Miriam, spearheaded the exodus of the Israelites out of Egypt followed by a forty-year journey to the Promised Land. According to Scripture, it was during the travels of the Israelites that Moses was commanded by God to go to the top of Mount Sinai to receive the law.

Exodus 19:17-20 explains things this way in the NKJV: "And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. Now Mount Sinai was completely in smoke, because the LORD descended upon it in fire. Its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked greatly. And when the blast of the trumpet sounded long and became louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him by voice. Then the LORD came down upon Mount Sinai, on the top of the mountain. And the LORD called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up."

Answer: Elijah

After experiencing a major wind storm, an earthquake and fire, Scripture says Elijah, a prophet of God, heard "a still small voice". The voice was that of God giving Elijah divine instructions. One of the instructions was to anoint Elisha as a prophet to replace himself.

Incidentally, the wind in 1 Kings 19:12 is described as being "great" and "strong". It was that and very much more, as Scripture says the wind was so powerful it "tore into the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces". No details are given in Scripture about the intensity of the earthquake and the fire. One can only imagine.

Answer: Barzillai

Barzillai made the statement to King David after David extended an invitation to him to go to Jerusalem with the promise he would provide for him. According to 2 Samuel 19:31-33, Barzillai was "a very aged man" as well as "very rich" and had provided supplies to David while he stayed at Mahanaim. David
stayed in Mananaim during a bloody civil war in which his son Absalom attempted to become king.

Barzillai, however, rejected David's offer of kindness. 2 Samuel 19:34-37 in the NKJV states: "But Barzillai said to the king, 'How long have I to live, that I should go up with the king to Jerusalem? I am today eighty years old. Can I discern between the good and bad? Can your servant taste what I eat or what I drink? Can I hear any longer the voice of singing men and singing women? Why then should your servant be a further burden to my lord the king? Your servant will go a little way across the Jordan with the king. And why should the king repay me with such a reward? Please let your servant turn back again, that I may die in my own city, near the grave of my father and mother'."

Answer: God

The correct answer is God. According to Scripture, Samuel heard a voice call out his name four times one evening and the child was perplexed. In the first three instances his name was called out, Samuel thought it was Eli, the high priest and judge of Israel, who was calling him. The fourth time, Samuel realized it was the LORD who was calling. According to Scripture, the LORD told Samuel about his disgust for the corrupt practices of Eli's sons and announced there would be divine retribution. Scripture doesn't say how old Samuel was at the time, but Wikipedia states Jewish historian Josephus recorded the child was about twelve years old.

Here's how 1 Samuel 3:3-14 tells of the incident:

"...before the lamp of God went out in the tabernacle of the LORD where the ark of God was, and while Samuel was lying down, that the LORD called Samuel. And he answered, 'Here I am!' So he ran to Eli and said, 'Here I am, for you called me.'

"And he said, 'I did not call; lie down again.' And he went and lay down.

"Then the LORD called yet again, 'Samuel!'

"So Samuel arose and went to Eli, and said, 'Here I am, for you called me.' He answered, 'I did not call, my son; lie down again.' (Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, nor was the word of the LORD yet revealed to him.)

"And the LORD called Samuel again the third time. So he arose and went to Eli, and said, 'Here I am, for you did call me.'

"Then Eli perceived that the LORD had called the boy. Therefore Eli said to Samuel, 'Go, lie down; and it shall be, if He calls you, that you must say, 'Speak, LORD, for Your servant hears.' So Samuel went and lay down in his place.

"Now the LORD came and stood and called as at other times, 'Samuel! Samuel!'
And Samuel answered, 'Speak, for Your servant hears.'

"Then the LORD said to Samuel: 'Behold, I will do something in Israel at which both ears of everyone who hears it will tingle. In that day I will perform against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end. For I have told him that I will judge his house forever for the iniquity which he knows, because his sons made themselves vile, and he did not restrain them. And therefore I have sworn to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli's house shall not be atoned for by sacrifice or offering forever'."

The chapter concludes by stating Samuel grew and "the LORD was with him" and "all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel had been established as a prophet of the LORD."

Answer: Jeremiah

The verse in question is from Jeremiah 30:5. The 30th chapter of Jeremiah is prophecy pertaining to the restoration of Judah and Israel.

To put Verse 5 in context, here's how Jeremiah 30:5-9 reads in the NKJV:
"For thus says the LORD:
'We have heard a voice of trembling,
Of fear, and not of peace.
Ask now, and see,
Whether a man is ever in labor with child?
So why do I see every man with his hands on his loins
Like a woman in labor,
And all faces turned pale?
Alas! For that day is great,
So that none is like it;
And it is the time of Jacob's trouble,
But he shall be saved out of it.
For it shall come to pass in that day,'
Says the LORD of hosts,
'That I will break his yoke from your neck,
And will burst your bonds;
Foreigners shall no more enslave them.
But they shall serve the LORD their God,
And David their king,
Whom I will raise up for them'."

Jeremiah is known as the weeping prophet as a result of the difficulties chronicled in the books of Jeremiah and Lamentations.

Answer: Stephen

Stephen, one of seven Grecian disciples and the first martyr of the early church, is the correct answer. Acts 7:59-60, in the NKJV Bible, states: "And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, 'Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.' Then he knelt down and cried out with a loud voice, 'Lord, do not charge them with this sin.' And when he had said this, he fell asleep."

The statement "do not charge them with this sin" echoes closely what Jesus said when He was being crucified. Luke 23:34 quotes Jesus as saying "'Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do'."

Stephen, according to Acts 6:8 was "full of faith and power." There is no disputing the fact he was the acknowledged leader among the Grecian Jews. For example, his name appears first when the names of seven Grecian disciples are listed. What's more, a major part of chapters 6 and 7 of Acts is devoted to Stephen. Out of the Grecian disciples, Philip is the only other one to be mentioned after the list of names is given in Acts. After Stephen's death, Philip rose to the forefront of the Group of Seven.

According to Acts 7:58, the stoning of Stephen was overseen by Saul, who would later be known as Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles.

Answer: 1

According to Scripture, only one of the ten cleansed lepers returned to give thanks to Jesus. The account can be found in Luke 17:11-19. The mass healing took place near an unnamed village on the border of Samaria and Galilee and the only leper to return and give thanks was a Samaritan.

Here's how the passage reads in the NKJV: "Now it happened as He went to Jerusalem that He passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. Then as He entered a certain village, there met Him ten men who were lepers, who stood afar off. And they lifted up their voices and said, 'Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!'

"So when He saw them, He said to them, 'Go, show yourselves to the priests.' And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed. And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks. And he was a Samaritan.

"So Jesus answered and said, 'Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?' And He said to him, 'Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well'."

Answer: The Jordan River

If the Bible used street slang, the Jordan River would be John the Baptist's office. According to Scripture, Jesus was baptized by John in the Jordan River, as were scores of other people. The exact location is not known, but according to John 3:23, John did many of his baptisms at Aeon, near Salim.

Matthew 3:13-17, in the NKJV, gives this account of Christ's baptism: "Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. And John tried to prevent Him, saying, 'I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?'

"But Jesus answered and said to him, 'Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.' Then he allowed Him.

"When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, 'This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased'."

Answer: Bartimaeus

According to Scripture, Bartimaeus was a helpless blind beggar who miraculously regained his sight after he had an encounter with Jesus. It's a heartwarming story and has always been one of my favorites.

What I find so endearing about the story is the persistence of Bartimaeus. According to Mark 10:47-48, the blind beggar, when he heard Jesus was about to pass by, cried out "Son of David have mercy, on me." The crowd accompanying Jesus, however, told Bartimaeus to be quiet. In other words, they told him Jesus would want to have nothing to do with a filthy, blind beggar like him. However, Bartimaeus refused to listened to them and cried out even louder: "SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME."

When Jesus said He wanted to meet with Bartimaeus, there was a remarkable change in the crowd. The same people who told him to keep quiet are quoted in Mark 10:49 as saying, "Be of good cheer. Rise, He is calling you."

Mark 10:50-52 tells of the miraculous event that happened next: "And throwing aside his garment, he rose and came to Jesus. So Jesus answered and said to him, 'What do you want Me to do for you?' The blind man said to Him, 'Rabboni, that I may receive my sight.' Then Jesus said to him, 'Go your way; your faith has made you well.' And immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus on the road."

Answer: Lazarus

Lazarus, the brother of Mary and Martha, 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 was not keen about the stone being rolled away from Lazarus' 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.

John 11:43-44 tells what happened, however: "Now when He had said these things, He cried with a loud voice, 'Lazarus, come forth!' And he who had died came out bound hand and foot with graveclothes, and his face was wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, 'Loose him, and let him go'."