The sons of Ham:
Cush, Egypt, Put and Canaan.

• Genesis 10:6

Funny, I could have started the quiz with the question: “What is the first mention of Egypt in the Bible?”  The answer: Genesis 10:6, but as a son of Ham, not the country or region.  In some cases, the regions near the Promised Land are named after people that originally settled there, the reason for some of the genealogies in the Bible.  While Genesis 10:6 mentions Egypt as a son of Ham, Genesis 10:7 mentions the sons of Cush, one being Sheba.  There has been much written about where Sheba might have been located, but we know that the land was named after a grandson of Ham, a great-grandson of Noah.  In some translations, the name for Egypt is listed as Mizraim – the Hebrew name for the same word possibly.

But before we get to the quiz, I have an odd question, possibly rhetorical or maybe no one knows, where did they put Put?  After Genesis 10:6, you get the descendants of Cush, Egypt, and Canaan.  No Put!  Did Put putter out without any children?  Did he only have girls?  Inquiring minds want to know.  Then again, if it is not in the Bible, is it really needed to know about where they put Put?  No more frivolity or I will think of playing Putt Putt for the rest of the day…

Enjoy this quiz about Egypt.

But first, since Egypt enslaved the Israelites and Egypt, as a world power of those days, often oppressed their neighbors, some of these questions and answers may not show Egypt in a good light.  Some of the videos may not be politically correct either – just too funny to pass up.  If I offend anyone, I apologize in advance, but in writing this quiz, I am reminded of my wife’s friend in Richland, Washington.  She worked at the grocery store that my wife preferred, and they started talking one day.  My wife was surprised that this Egyptian immigrant was a Christian, and her friend began to teach her about the Coptic Church.  The Coptic Church of Alexandria was founded in 42AD.  “Coptic” is basically “Egyptian” in the ancient Greek language.  It is very possible, therefore, that there is a Bible called the “Egypt Bible” or “Coptic Bible,” but this quiz regards references to Egypt in the Bible.

As for the photo above, I provided training at a steel mill in Seattle, WA while the King Tut exhibit was on display. One of the days when I got away from the mill early, I took my wife to the exhibit, a few blocks from our downtown hotel. This necktie has hieroglyphics on it. At one point, I knew what each symbol was and its significance, but my brain has become leaky.

The following quiz is copied from J. Stephen Lang’s book, The Whimsical Quizzical Bible Trivia Book.  If the question is not in bold/italics, I have edited the question for Biblical accuracy.  I have often modified the questions, answers and Biblical references.  As for the questions, I try to ensure that the question is written so that the answer is the only perfect answer and that it matches what is written in the Bible.  Thus, it should be unquestionably the answer if you need to look up the Biblical reference.

Disclaimer:  Whenever I quote something from this book, I will include this disclaimer.  The Apostle Paul told Timothy in 2 Timothy 3:16 that all Scripture is useful for instruction.  Thus, none of Scripture could be considered “Trivia.”  And if this quiz causes people to look up the answers, that is not trivial at all.

The Questions:

	Question
1	Who was the first Hebrew to leave his famine-struck country to seek sustenance in Egypt?
2	The pharaoh bestowed the name Zaphenath-Paneah on what Hebrew leader?
3	In the book of Revelation, which city is ‘spiritually called Sodom and Egypt’?
4	Who told Joseph to carry Mary and the newborn Jesus to Egypt?
5	What servant of Abraham and Sarah was an Egyptian?
6	According to Proverbs, what is one type of cloth that comes from Egypt?
7	Which pharaoh killed Judah’s good king Josiah in battle?
8	What is the name of the area in Egypt granted to the Israelites as tribute for the great work done by one of Israel’s sons?  The original question discussed below.
9	What king of Israel married a daughter of the pharaoh?
10	What Hebrew liberator killed an Egyptian and buried his body in the sand?
11	Which apostle was accused of being an Egyptian terrorist?
12	What author of a large section of the Bible never once mentions Egypt?
13	What king extended the boundary of Israel all the way to Egypt?
14	What New Testament martyr gave a long account of Israel and Egypt before he was stoned to death?
15	What prophet was carried off to Egypt after Jerusalem was captured by the Babylonians?

Some of these questions may seem harder than others.  I tried to stay away from two questions about the same event, since the answer to one question might give away the answer to the other.  That does not mean that all the answers are different.  There may be more than one question with the same answer.

In the book that is quoted in the other questions, the original wording of question 8 above refers to “Israel’s ghetto.”  For one, the term “ghetto” is considered a derogatory term and this land was the choice land for agricultural use.  The term “ghetto” means where the Jews were ‘required’ to live.  Again, this being choice agricultural land, it was the best place for them, granted to them by pharaoh.  As time wore on and a new pharaoh, who did not remember why these people, were there came along, the Israelites were looked down upon and eventually enslaved.  Really, in those ancient times, shepherds were looked down upon regardless of ethnicity, because they smelled like sheep.

And for question 15, the governor left behind by the Babylonians chose to go to Egypt for protection, against the prophecy of God through this prophet, yet, the prophet and his assistant accompanied them to Egypt. I felt the question was adequate, but it might be a bit misleading with the words “carried off.”

Bible References:

1. Genesis 12:10
2. Genesis 41:45
3. Revelation 11:8 – The name of the city is not mentioned, but there is a big hint in the verse.
4. Matthew 2:13
5. Genesis 16:1
6. Proverbs 7:16
7. 2 Kings 23:29
8. Genesis 45:10
9. 1 Kings 3:1
10. Exodus 2:11-12
11. Acts 21:38
12. N/A, but think of someone who is credited for writing more than six books of the Bible.  And why is this significant?  Egypt is mentioned throughout the Old Testament.  Not every book, but 29 of the 36 books.  Egypt is mentioned in five books of the New Testament.  Yet, this prolific author never mentions Egypt, at least not that we know about.
13. 1 Kings 4:21
14. Acts 7
15. The name of the book would give it away, but the chapter and verses are 43:6-7.  There are not too many prophetic books with 43 chapters.

While Egypt enslaved the Hebrews and went to war against them, Egypt was a place of refuge, recorded several times in the Scriptures.  I included the questions 1, 4, and 15 to illustrate that.

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The Answers:

1. Abraham (Abram at the time)
2. Joseph
3. Jerusalem.  While the name of the city is not mentioned, it talks about where their Lord was crucified.
4. An angel
5. Hagar, the mother of Ishmael (in Genesis 16:16)
6. Linen
7. Necho (or Neco)
8. Goshen
9. Solomon
10. Moses
11. Paul
12. Paul, and there is no evidence that Paul held a grudge for having been accused of being an Egyptian terrorist.  But consider Paul’s focus.  Egypt is mentioned historically.  Egypt is mentioned as being an evil country that is cursed, along with a lot of other conquering countries.  Egypt is mentioned as the place people wanted to return to when  were hard, as if being a slave was not hard.  But Paul’s focus was on Jesus.  The old has passed away, and all that matters in our Savior.  Why mention Egypt?  Of course, if someone discovers that Paul really wrote Hebrews, this question would have to be thrown out as Egypt is mentioned six times in the book of Hebrews.
13. Solomon
14. Stephen
15. Jeremiah

Since you did so well, treat yourself to a Earnest Gold tune, lyrics written and sung by Pat Boone, the theme for the movie Exodus.  The 1960 movie was about a ship called the Exodus and how the character played by Paul Newman fought his way through resistance to get the refugees on board to the Holy Land.  While the original Exodus was exiting Egypt and eventually arriving in the Promised Land, the movie depicts the return of the Jews to what is now Israel.  The movie is based on the book by Leon Uris.  Otto Preminger, the director and producer of the film, softened the anti-British and anti-Arab sentiments from the novel, but even so, there was backlash over the depiction of the Israeli-Arab conflict.  The film received three Oscars:  One for cinematography, one for Earnest Gold’s musical score, and one for best supporting actor, Sal Mineo, seen briefly in the video, and to the far left in the thumbnail photo for the video link.

Of course, if you did not do well on this quiz, maybe this song from Steve Martin is more your speed. This from Saturday Night Live. It is odd that years later, Steve Martin claimed to not remember the lyrics. Could it be that he was afraid of being “cancelled?”

Or maybe the Bangles hit…

And God showed His great wonders with the Ten Plagues of Egypt.  The last being the death of the first born.  But the Israelites were spared because they prepared a Passover Lamb.  And several centuries later, Jesus became the perfect sacrifice at the time of the Passover.

If you like these Saturday morning Bible quizzes, but you think you missed a few, you can use this LINK. I have set up a page off the home page for links to these Saturday morning posts. I will continue to modify the page as I add more.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.