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About This Quiz
Who lives in the "nether" regions of the cosmos? What does that word, "maranatha" mean; you see it all the time on banners at the front of your church's sanctuary. And is an "ephod" related to an "ephah"?
Let's face it, it takes years of study to truly understand the Bible: the historical context, the theological concepts and the lessons to be found in the lives of its saints and sinners. And before you can do any of that, you have to understand the words being used. OK, that doesn't have to be hard: There are extremely modern translations of the Bible. However, maybe you love the poetic sound of the King James Bible. Many people do. But you've set yourself a real task, in that case -- the King James Bible was being translated at about the same time that Shakespeare was writing his plays.Â
Are you a scholar of these traditional Bible terms? Do you feel confident you can define both "chastity" and "chasteneth"? If so, try our quiz and prove it!
Finally, we'd like to give a shout out here to "preservedwords.com," whose detailed list of Biblical terms was very helpful to us in putting this quiz together, and recommended if you'd like to learn some more. Now, set your mind to the quiz!
"Now we see in a glass darkly, but then we shall see face to face." (1 Cor. 13:12). What does "glass" mean in this verse?
Disordered mind
Sky
Mirror
The apostle Paul is saying that at present, we see God as if reflected in a dark or tarnished mirror, not very clearly. In the afterlife, we will see God face to face. This verse is from the famous reflection on love in 1 Corinthians 13.
Telescope
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"Alms" are important in the Bible. What are they, though?
Priests in training
Gifts of charity
Today, we've largely replaced the word "alms" with "donations," but the idea is essentially the same. Throughout the Middle Eastern world, in both Judaism and Islam, almsgiving is very important, and it's not frowned on to give directly to a poor person or beggar. In contrast, in modern, Western Christianity, the prevailing idea is that it's better to give through a structured charity instead.
Minor sins
Significant sins
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Found in Deuteronomy and Jeremiah, what does "battlements" mean?
Clothing worn during war
Smaller units within an army
A protective structure on a fortress wall
If you look this up in the dictionary, you'll likely see a picture of alternating stone "teeth" on the wall of a castle rooftop. It's a very medieval image, but the use of the word in Deuteronomy suggests the idea of these fortifications has been around a long time.
Reasons to go to war
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On the cross, Jesus said, "Abba, into your hands I commend my spirit." What did he mean by "Abba"?
Angels on high
Father
"Abba" is the Aramaic word for "Father," and when it appears in the Bible, it is a reference to God. Arabic has a similar term, "Abu." This also means "Father," and is often an honorific before an older man's name.
Fall silent
Take heed
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What's the definition of the Biblical word "flagon"?
Bottle
We didn't quote a Bible verse here because the ones we found would have given away the definition, like "to every one a cake of bread ... and a flagon of wine," in 2 Sam. 6:19. But if you enjoy sword-and-sorcery fantasy, you might not have needed a verse for context. "Flagons" frequently appear in fantasy novels, holding mead or cheap "firewater" for the heroes to drink after their adventures.
Bottlefly
Plow
Sea-beast
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Which of these would you "whet"?
A beast of burden
A field
A stew
A sword
Edged weapons are "whetted," meaning they are sharpened. The "whetstone" is the object you use to sharpen the weapon. You can still find a whetstone in a kitchen-supplies store, thought nowadays they're just called sharpening stones, and are used for cooking knives.
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"And God made the firmament, and divided the waters that were under the firmament from the waters that were above ..." What does "firmament" mean in Gen. 1:7?
Earth
Heavens
Although the first syllable, "firm-," might suggest something that can be stood upon, meaning the ground, this is not the case. "Firmament" is an old-fashioned word for "sky" or "heavens," and is used several times in the creation story.
Moral grounding
Polar ice caps
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What does the Biblical term "adjure" mean?
Command by an oath or vow
This is another term you'll find in medieval- or Renaissance-inspired fantasy fiction. The leaders of covens, for example, can "adjure" younger witches to do something, and those witches have no choice but to obey.
Travel in haste
Render aid to
Refuse aid to
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What does it mean to be "astoned"?
Amazed
Whenever we see this old-fashioned variant of "astonished," we're reminded of one of our favorite Bible-related witticisms (not blasphemous, don't worry): "And when Jesus had finished speaking, the people were astoned and said 'Can you put that in Evernote?' "
Asleep
Badly hurt
Buried
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In the Bible (not the bar), "gin" means ... ?
A reddish color
A small room
A snare or trap
Speaking of a wicked man, one of Job's friends predicts, "The gin shall take him by the heel, and the robber shall prevail against him." (Job 18:9). This meaning of the word persisted well into 19th-century English, turning up in novels and poems.
An understanding or deal
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Today, we say a "chamois" is a cloth for cleaning. What was it in Biblical times?
An antelope-like creature
The chamois we modern people might use to polish wood or a car is usually made from some kind of hide, though today, it's often sheep. Still, it's probably no surprise that its name is derived from a deer-like or antelope-like creature. The chamois is mentioned in the book of Deuteronomy.
An altar
An impure woman
A plain or stretch of ground
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In older Bible, you'll see books called "epistles." What are they?
Another name for gospels
Histories
Letters
"Epistle" is an old-fashioned term for "letter" or "missive," and they make up much of the New Testament, after the four gospels and the book of Acts (which is generally considered a history). The names by which we call some of the best-known books of the New Testament, like "Corinthians" or "Galatians" are actually the recipients of those letters from the apostle Paul.
Prophecies
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"Firstlings" occasionally appear in the Old Testament. What, though, are they?
Baptism rituals
Firstborn offspring
The word "firstlings" usually refers to the offspring of livestock animals, not humans. For example, Deuteronomy 13:12 requires that "every firstling of a beast which thou hast, the males shall be the Lord's." We're assuming this means it was to be sacrificed, though the verse doesn't explicitly say that.
First marriages
Sins committed spontaneously
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To "forbear," mentioned more than 20 times in the Bible, is a good thing. But why, exactly?
It means to be patient or to endure
This word appears in its noun form, "forbearance," as well. Paul writes in 1 Thessalonians, "When I could no longer forbear, I sent to know your faith, lest by some means the tempter have tempted you, and our labor be in vain." In other words, he had to know if the Thessalonians had lost their faith.
It means to make sacrifices promptly
It means to remain celibate
It means to abstain from wine
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In the scriptures, what does it mean to be "hoar"?
You are foolish
You are ill with consumption
You are white-haired with age
You might know this word better as "hoary," but it means the same thing. Likewise, you might have heard of "hoarfrost," which is the delicate crystalline frost that makes its patterns on flat surfaces, especially windows. The meaning of "pale whiteness" is consistent in all these terms.
You are very righteous
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"And their word will eat as doth a canker ..." (2 Tim. 2:17) What is a "canker"?
A donkey-like creature
A growth or sore
"Canker" can mean a spreading sore, or, in rare cases, a caterpillar that consumes plants in a similarly destructive fashion. If you guessed that the words "canker" and "cancer" are related, you are correct ... but why such sore or growths reminded the ancients of crabs (the original meaning of "cancer" in Greek) isn't entirely clear.
A horde of people
A storm cloud
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What's the meaning of "husbandry" in the Bible?
Attainment of one's full height
Brotherly love
Management of a household, thrift
This term survives today in the guise of "animal husbandry," a term for the care of livestock. In King James's time, though, it was broader, and often implied frugality. See also a line in "Macbeth," where a character sees a starless sky and comments, "There's husbandry in heaven; the candles are all out."
Marital relations
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What does it mean to "ordain" someone?
To condemn them
To establish them in an office, often priestly
The word "ordain" is still used today in this ecclesiastical sense; when they finish seminary, clergy members are "ordained." Meanwhile, to become a Catholic priest is "taking orders," a related term.
To give them shelter
To "know" them in the physical sense
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In a Biblical sense, what does it mean to be "incontinent"?
Bad at self-control
This term survives today in the narrower meaning of bladder incontinence, which is literally not having control over urination. However, it used to be defined more broadly. If you had no filter on your speech, or no control over how you spent money, those were ways of being "incontinent."
Paralyzed below the waist
Mentally very sharp
Located on an island
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Is "lasciviousness" a good thing?
Yes, it is.
No, it's sinful.
Well, we suppose it could depend who you ask (for example, the late Hugh Hefner). But since this quiz is on the Bible, we're comfortable saying that "lasciviousness," meaning lewdness or lustfulness, does not put a check mark in the "plus" column.
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The book of Hebrews says that "Whom the Lord loveth, he chasteneth." What does "chasteneth" mean here?
Disciplines or scolds
Maybe you've had a coach who said, "When I don't bother to yell at you, that's when you should start worrying." The apostle Paul is saying a similar thing here. God finds ways to scold or punish those He cares about, so they will improve in their faith and their morals.
Favors
Pursues
Saves
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In the parable of the wheat and the tares, what are "tares"?
Flowers
Harvesters
Oxen
Weeds
In our experience, weeds just spring up without being planted. However, in Jesus' parable, an enemy of a farmer comes by night and actually sows tares among the wheat seeds. The farmer wisely decides to let both grow, until it's clear which is which, and then he'll separate them. The obvious parallel is to God, who will someday divide the good from the wicked, but not before letting humans mature and show their true colors.
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"Meat" meant something different in the King James Bible. Specifically, it was ...
Beef
Bread
Food of any kind
"Meat and drink" meant "food and drink" to the readers of the early Bible (and speakers of early English, in general). Only in recent times has it come to mean the flesh of a non-fish animal
The word of God
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You'll hear the word "nativity" around Christmastime. What does it mean?
Birth, and the circumstances surrounding it
Today, we almost exclusively use the word "nativity" to discuss the birth of Christ. But it used to refer to the circumstances surrounding someone's birth, especially their homeland -- note the resemblance to the word "native."
Blessing
Conception
Revelation
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Who exists in the "nether" regions?
The angels
The Devil and demons
"Nether" is an old-fashioned term for "lower" or "below." In the Bible, it is used almost exclusively to refer to the Hebrew/Jewish concept of "sheol," or the Christian variant, which is hell.
Mountain goats and rams
Fish and whales
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What is an "ephod" in the Old Testament/Jewish Bible?
A clay tablet
A bundle of wheat
A flock of birds
A priest's robe
"And he made the ephod of blue, gold, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen." (Exo. 39:2). The pronoun "he" is unclear, possibly referring to Moses or to his brother-in-law Aaron. But the ephod is definitely to be worn by Aaron — he was the priest of the Hebrews who fled Egypt under Moses' leadership.
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We say that God is "omnipotent." What does this mean he is?
All-powerful
"Potent" means "strong or powerful," so "omnipotent" means "all-powerful." Christians also refer to God as all-knowing (omniscient) and all-forgiving (which doesn't have a convenient single word, that we know of).
Everywhere at once
Extremely loving
Very forgiving
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Jesus advised the disciples not to take "staves" with them as they went out to evangelize. What did he mean by "staves"?
Coins
Loaves of bread
Scrolls of the scriptures
Walking sticks
In Luke chapter 9, Jesus tells the disciples to go out into the world with "neither staves, nor scrip, neither bread nor money." In other words, Jesus required the new apostles to really lean on God for their basic needs.
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Is it a virtue or a sin to "vaunt"?
A virtue!
No, a sin!
To "vaunt" is the brag or boast. It's still used today in its adjective form. For example, "You can expect the candidate's vaunted military service to come up in every stump speech or debate."
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Would you want to live in "penury"?
Yes, I would!
No thanks!
"Penury" is a state of poverty or destitution, which most of us prefer to avoid. Proverbs 14:23 also suggests it's an undesirable outcome: "In all labor there is profit, but the talk of the lips tendeth only to penury."
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When it isn't an adjective meaning "intelligent," what is a "wise"?
An eagle or hawk
A gallon jug
A light ship
A way or method
If you think this meaning of "wise" has fallen completely out of use, you'd be wrong. It survives in the word "likewise," meaning "in a similar way." You'll also hear people say "contrariwise," meaning, "in the opposite fashion."
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"Maranatha," used in the New Testament, means what?
He is coming
This word is actually only used once in the Bible, in 1 Corinthians. However, it has been picked up by Christian churches, especially evangelical ones; you'll see it on banners or church bulletins. The definition is sometimes stretched from "He is coming" to "Rejoice, the Lord is coming soon."
Grieve and be mournful
Beware of sin
Listen!
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If you are a worker in Biblical times, and your employer is "wroth" with you, how would you describe him?
Angry
This term is more familiar in its noun form, "wrath," which probably owes its longevity to being one of the seven deadly sins. However, you'll also see "wroth" in the Bible, meaning, "angry at."
Delighted
Confused
In love
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How many gallons in the Biblical "ephah"?
.75
2
4
8
This word is pretty obscure, so we gave you a head start by telling you that it's a measurement of liquid, usually water. Fun fact: A gallon of water weighs about 8 and a third pounds, so that "ephah" weighed about 65 pounds. Too heavy? Try an "omer," which was about 1/10 of an ephah.
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"Whence" and "whither" get confused with each other a lot. Which is which?
"Whence" means "from where" and "whither" means "to where"
In other words, you'd ask a friend "Whence that idea?" to ask "Where'd that idea come from?" And you'd say "Whither is this argument tending?" to ask "Where are you going with this argument?" Or, alternatively, we could just forget altogether that these two words exist.
"Whither" means "to where" and "whence" means "from where"
They both mean "from where"
They both mean "to where"
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You Got:
/35
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