Judges of Israel Quiz

Question 1

Samson's great strength came from his hair. According to Judges 16, who discovered the secret of his strength and betrayed him?

Accepted Answer

Delilah

Answer

Timnah

Answer

Miriam

Answer

Rahab

Question 2

Gideon defeated the massive Midianite army with only 300 men. What unusual weapons did his men use?

Accepted Answer

Torches hidden inside clay jars, plus trumpets

Answer

Slings and stones, like David later used

Answer

Bows and arrows fired from surrounding hills

Answer

Chariots of iron captured from the Canaanites

Question 3

Deborah was unique among Israel's judges. What two roles did she hold simultaneously?

Accepted Answer

Prophet and judge — and she is the only female judge recorded in the Bible

Answer

Queen and high priestess

Answer

Prophet and judge — she also led Israel's army into battle

Answer

Judge and wife of the military commander Barak

Question 4

Before Samson was born, an angel appeared to his mother with instructions. What was Samson forbidden to do as part of his Nazirite vow?

Accepted Answer

Touch a dead body, eat grapes or drink wine, and cut his hair

Answer

Eat pork, worship foreign gods, or marry a non-Israelite

Answer

Work on the Sabbath, touch blood, or cut his hair

Answer

Eat any meat, touch weapons of war, or leave Israel's borders

Question 5

Gideon asked God for a sign involving a fleece of wool on two consecutive nights. What were the two signs?

Accepted Answer

Dew on the fleece but dry ground on the first night; dry fleece but dew on the ground on the second night

Answer

Fire consuming the fleece on the first night; dew falling only on the fleece on the second night

Answer

The fleece turning white on the first night; turning black on the second night

Answer

The fleece being lifted by wind on the first night; remaining still in a storm on the second night

Question 6

The book of Judges contains a repeating cycle of four stages. What is the correct order?

Accepted Answer

Sin → Oppression → Crying out to God → Deliverance by a judge → Peace → Sin again

Answer

Peace → Sin → Oppression → Repentance

Answer

War → Conquest → Prosperity → Forgetting God

Answer

Obedience → Blessing → Disobedience → Curse

Question 7

Jephthah made a rash vow to God before battle. What did he vow, and what was the tragic consequence?

Accepted Answer

He vowed to sacrifice the first animal he saw — but his daughter came out to meet him first

Answer

He vowed never to speak again if God gave him victory, meaning he could not lead Israel afterwards

Answer

He vowed to dedicate his entire household to God's service, losing all his family to temple service

Answer

He vowed to fast for 40 days, which weakened him so that he could not consolidate his victory

Question 8

Samson's final act of strength was to destroy a Philistine temple. How many people were said to die in this event?

Accepted Answer

About 3,000

Answer

About 500

Answer

About 1,000

Answer

About 5,000

Question 9

Which judge was left-handed and used this unexpected trait to assassinate the Moabite king Eglon?

Accepted Answer

Ehud

Answer

Othniel

Answer

Shamgar

Answer

Tola

Question 10

The final chapters of Judges (19-21) contain a horrifying account involving a Levite's concubine. What tribe was responsible for the atrocity that triggered a civil war?

Accepted Answer

Benjamin

Answer

Dan

Answer

Reuben

Answer

Manasseh

Question 11

How did Gideon test his soldiers to narrow them from 10,000 to 300?

Accepted Answer

He watched them drink from a stream — 300 lapped water with their hands while the rest knelt down to drink

Answer

He picked the 300 tallest and strongest men

Answer

He had them run a race and chose the fastest 300

Answer

He asked who was afraid, and 9,700 left; then he chose 300 by lot from the remainder

Question 12

Shamgar is one of the briefest judges mentioned. What weapon did he use to kill 600 Philistines?

Accepted Answer

An oxgoad

Answer

A jawbone of a donkey

Answer

A millstone

Answer

A sling and stones

Question 13

Abimelech tried to make himself king over Israel after Gideon's death. How did he die?

Accepted Answer

A woman dropped a millstone on his head from a tower, and he had his armour-bearer run him through so it would not be said a woman killed him

Answer

He was killed in battle by a Philistine soldier

Answer

He was assassinated by his brothers who survived his earlier purge

Answer

He was struck by lightning during a storm

Question 14

Samson killed 1,000 Philistines single-handedly. What weapon did he use?

Accepted Answer

The jawbone of a donkey

Answer

A sword he took from a Philistine soldier

Answer

A large wooden beam from the city gate

Answer

His bare hands

Question 15

The book of Ruth is set during the period of the judges. Ruth was from which nation?

Accepted Answer

Moab

Answer

Ammon

Answer

Edom

Answer

Midian

Question 16

Deborah's victory song (Judges 5) is considered one of the oldest pieces of poetry in the Bible. Who does the song most harshly criticise?

Accepted Answer

The tribes of Israel who refused to join the battle

Answer

The Philistines who had oppressed Israel

Answer

Sisera the Canaanite commander who fled from battle

Answer

The Israelites who had worshipped Baal

Question 17

The angel of the LORD appeared to Gideon while he was doing what?

Accepted Answer

Threshing wheat in a winepress, hiding it from the Midianites

Answer

Ploughing his father's field at dawn

Answer

Sleeping under a broom tree, exhausted from fleeing enemies

Answer

Praying at the city gate at sunset

Question 18

After Samson's hair was cut, he woke and said he would escape as before and shake himself free. What had he not realised?

Accepted Answer

The LORD had left him

Answer

His legs had been chained while he slept

Answer

Delilah had already alerted the Philistine soldiers

Answer

It was still dark and his sense of direction was gone

Question 19

How many judges are named in the book of Judges?

Accepted Answer

12

Answer

7

Answer

10

Answer

15

Question 20

The book of Judges ends with the repeated phrase that summarises why Israel kept falling into sin. What is it?

Accepted Answer

'In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as they saw fit'

Answer

'The people did not know the LORD or remember the works He had done for Israel'

Answer

'The Israelites forgot the LORD their God and served the Baals and the Asherahs'

Answer

'There arose another generation who did not know the LORD or the works He had done for Israel'