Multiple choice Bible quiz: 40 questions with answers and why the wrong options fool people

A multiple choice Bible quiz gives you a question and four possible answers, only one of them correct according to the text. This one has 40 questions in four levels, from easy to expert. Every answer comes with the King James Version verse that settles it, plus a short note on why the wrong options are tempting, because that's where the real learning happens.

Good wrong answers are not random. Most of them are true of someone else in the Bible: another prophet, another king, another number from a nearby chapter. When you see why a wrong option felt right, you remember the right one for good. If you'd rather answer yes or no, try our true or false Bible quiz with answers.

You can play alone, with a friend, or read it aloud to a small group. A pen helps.

How to play this multiple choice Bible quiz

Read the question, pick A, B, C or D, then read the Answer line. Each answer gives the reference and a line on the other options.

Score 1 point per correct answer:

• 35 to 40: you know the text well. Move on to our hard Bible trivia questions.
• 25 to 34: strong. Your misses are probably in Rounds 3 and 4.
• Under 25: normal for anyone who knows the stories better than the details. Try one question a day with the daily Bible quiz.

Playing with a group? Give everyone four cards marked A to D. Read the question, count to three, and everyone shows a card at the same time. Nobody copies, and the room usually splits on the hard ones, which starts the best conversations.

If you like learning from the explanation as much as the question, that's how the app works: thousands of multiple choice questions on every book, character and story, and every answer is explained with the verse it comes from.

Round 1: Easy (1–10)

Questions most people who grew up around church can answer. The wrong options are close enough to make you think.

1. On which day of creation did God make the sun, moon and stars?

• A. The first day
• B. The third day
• C. The fourth day
• D. The sixth day

Answer: C. God made "two great lights" and "the stars also," and "the evening and the morning were the fourth day" (Genesis 1:16, 1:19). Option A tempts people because light itself appears on the first day (Genesis 1:3-5), before the sun.

2. What did God use to form the first man?

• A. Clay
• B. The dust of the ground
• C. A rib
• D. Water

Answer: B. "The Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground" (Genesis 2:7). "Clay" comes from the potter picture in Isaiah 64:8, and the rib is how Eve was made (Genesis 2:21-22).

3. Who committed the first murder in the Bible?

• A. Abel
• B. Lamech
• C. Esau
• D. Cain

Answer: D. Cain "rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him" (Genesis 4:8). Lamech is a fair guess: a few verses later he boasts that he has "slain a man" (Genesis 4:23), but Cain was first.

4. How many sons did Jacob have?

• A. Seven
• B. Ten
• C. Twelve
• D. Thirteen

Answer: C. "Now the sons of Jacob were twelve" (Genesis 35:22). Thirteen catches people who count his daughter Dinah, or who think of Joseph's two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, as separate tribes.

5. Who interpreted Pharaoh's dreams of the fat and thin cows?

• A. Moses
• B. Daniel
• C. Joseph
• D. Aaron

Answer: C. "And Joseph said unto Pharaoh, The dream of Pharaoh is one" (Genesis 41:25). Daniel also interpreted a king's dream, but that king was Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon (Daniel 2). Read more about Joseph's life.

6. What was the name of Moses' brother?

• A. Aaron
• B. Hur
• C. Joshua
• D. Caleb

Answer: A. God asks Moses, "Is not Aaron the Levite thy brother?" (Exodus 4:14). Hur held up Moses' hands with Aaron (Exodus 17:12), and Joshua and Caleb were the two faithful spies.

7. Which city's walls fell after Israel marched around it?

• A. Ai
• B. Hebron
• C. Gaza
• D. Jericho

Answer: D. "I have given into thine hand Jericho" (Joshua 6:2), and when the people shouted, "the wall fell down flat" (Joshua 6:20). Ai was the next city, where Israel first lost (Joshua 7). The full account is in the fall of Jericho.

8. Who killed Goliath?

• A. Saul
• B. Jonathan
• C. Samson
• D. David

Answer: D. "David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone" (1 Samuel 17:50). Samson fought Philistines too, but he never faced Goliath. See David and Goliath.

9. Which king asked God for "an understanding heart"?

• A. David
• B. Solomon
• C. Hezekiah
• D. Josiah

Answer: B. Solomon prayed, "Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people" (1 Kings 3:9).

10. Who was swallowed by a great fish?

• A. Jonah
• B. Jeremiah
• C. Peter
• D. Elisha

Answer: A. "The Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah," and he was inside "three days and three nights" (Jonah 1:17). The text says "great fish," not whale.

Round 2: Medium (11–20)

Here the options start borrowing from stories right next door.

11. Who was Ruth's mother-in-law?

• A. Orpah
• B. Hannah
• C. Naomi
• D. Leah

Answer: C. Ruth married one of Naomi's two sons (Ruth 1:3-4) and came back with her as "Ruth the Moabitess, her daughter in law" (Ruth 1:22). Orpah was the other daughter-in-law, who stayed in Moab.

12. Which prophet went up to heaven by a whirlwind?

• A. Elisha
• B. Enoch
• C. Isaiah
• D. Elijah

Answer: D. "Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven" (2 Kings 2:11). Enoch is the classic trap: he also didn't die in the usual way, but Genesis says only "he was not; for God took him" (Genesis 5:24). Elisha was the one watching. See Elijah taken up to heaven.

13. Who was thrown into a den of lions?

• A. Daniel
• B. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego
• C. Jeremiah
• D. Samson

Answer: A. "They brought Daniel, and cast him into the den of lions" (Daniel 6:16). His three friends were thrown into "the burning fiery furnace" (Daniel 3:20). Jeremiah was let down into a dungeon full of mire (Jeremiah 38:6), and Samson killed a lion with his hands (Judges 14:6). See Daniel in the lions' den.

14. What did Esau trade his birthright for?

• A. A goat
• B. Bread and lentil stew
• C. Thirty pieces of silver
• D. A coat of many colors

Answer: B. "Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentiles; and he did eat and drink" (Genesis 25:34). The coat belongs to Joseph (Genesis 37:3) and the goat skins to Jacob's later disguise (Genesis 27:16).

15. On which mountain did Moses receive the two tablets of stone?

• A. Mount Carmel
• B. Mount Nebo
• C. Mount Sinai
• D. Mount Zion

Answer: C. God gave Moses "two tables of testimony" on "mount Sinai" (Exodus 31:18). Moses saw the promised land from Nebo before he died (Deuteronomy 34:1), and Carmel is where Elijah faced the prophets of Baal (1 Kings 18:19).

16. Who was the mother of the prophet Samuel?

• A. Hannah
• B. Peninnah
• C. Elisabeth
• D. Rachel

Answer: A. Hannah "bare a son, and called his name Samuel" (1 Samuel 1:20). Peninnah was the other wife of Elkanah (1 Samuel 1:2). Elisabeth is a good distractor: she was also childless for years, but her son was John the Baptist.

17. How long had Lazarus been in the tomb when Jesus arrived?

• A. Two days
• B. Three days
• C. Four days
• D. Seven days

Answer: C. Jesus "found that he had lain in the grave four days already" (John 11:17). Three is tempting because of Jonah and the resurrection. Read the raising of Lazarus.

18. Who baptized Jesus?

• A. Peter
• B. John the Baptist
• C. Andrew
• D. Philip

Answer: B. "Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him" (Matthew 3:13). Philip baptized the Ethiopian official later (Acts 8:38).

19. What was Matthew's work before he followed Jesus?

• A. Fisherman
• B. Tentmaker
• C. Tax collector
• D. Carpenter

Answer: C. Jesus saw him "sitting at the receipt of custom" (Matthew 9:9), and he is listed as "Matthew the publican" (Matthew 10:3), the KJV word for a tax collector. Tentmaking was Paul's trade (Acts 18:3).

20. For how many pieces of silver did Joseph's brothers sell him?

• A. Ten
• B. Twenty
• C. Thirty
• D. Forty

Answer: B. They "sold Joseph to the Ishmeelites for twenty pieces of silver" (Genesis 37:28). Thirty is what Judas was paid (Matthew 26:15), and it's the most common wrong answer.

Want to check how well you know the first book of the Bible? Here are three questions from the app's Genesis question bank:

Quick quiz: Genesis

How long did the rain of the flood fall on the earth?

7 days40 days150 days120 days

What did the LORD count to Abram as righteousness?

His circumcision at 99The tithe given to MelchizedekHis trust in the LORDHis departure for Canaan

What new name does Jacob receive after his wrestling at the ford of the Jabbok?

IsraelEdomBenjaminAbraham

Continue the quiz

There are many more questions like these in Bible Academy, each with its explanation and verse. Start free, no card needed.

Round 3: Hard (21–30)

Names and numbers. Most misses here come from mixing up two people in the same scene.

21. Who is the oldest person whose age is given in the Bible?

• A. Adam
• B. Noah
• C. Jared
• D. Methuselah

Answer: D. "All the days of Methuselah were nine hundred sixty and nine years" (Genesis 5:27). The others are close: Jared 962 (Genesis 5:20), Noah 950 (Genesis 9:29), Adam 930 (Genesis 5:5). The full list is in who was the oldest person in the Bible.

22. Which left-handed judge killed Eglon, king of Moab?

• A. Gideon
• B. Othniel
• C. Ehud
• D. Shamgar

Answer: C. God raised up "Ehud the son of Gera, a Benjamite, a man lefthanded" (Judges 3:15), who "put forth his left hand, and took the dagger from his right thigh" (Judges 3:21). Othniel was the judge just before him, Shamgar just after (Judges 3:31).

23. In what year did Isaiah see the Lord "high and lifted up"?

• A. The year king Uzziah died
• B. The year king Hezekiah fell sick
• C. The year Jerusalem fell
• D. The year king Ahaz was crowned

Answer: A. "In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up" (Isaiah 6:1). Hezekiah's sickness is a real Isaiah story too (Isaiah 38), just a different chapter.

24. How many years did David reign in all?

• A. Seven
• B. Thirty-three
• C. Forty
• D. Fifty

Answer: C. "The days that David reigned over Israel were forty years: seven years reigned he in Hebron, and thirty and three years reigned he in Jerusalem" (1 Kings 2:11). A and B are both in the same verse, which is why they fool people.

25. According to Matthew, to which high priest was Jesus first led after his arrest?

• A. Annas
• B. Caiaphas
• C. Eli
• D. Zadok

Answer: B. "They that had laid hold on Jesus led him away to Caiaphas the high priest" (Matthew 26:57). Careful: John's Gospel adds that they led Him "to Annas first," Caiaphas's father-in-law (John 18:13). The question says Matthew for that reason.

26. Where were the disciples first called Christians?

• A. Jerusalem
• B. Rome
• C. Corinth
• D. Antioch

Answer: D. "The disciples were called Christians first in Antioch" (Acts 11:26). Jerusalem is the natural guess, since the church began there (Acts 2).

27. Who was the first follower of Jesus put to death in the book of Acts?

• A. James the brother of John
• B. Stephen
• C. Peter
• D. Paul

Answer: B. "They stoned Stephen," who prayed, "Lord, lay not this sin to their charge" (Acts 7:59-60). James was the first apostle killed, later, "with the sword" (Acts 12:2). The deaths of Peter and Paul are not recorded in Acts. More on Stephen.

28. Which prophet married a woman named Gomer?

• A. Amos
• B. Hosea
• C. Micah
• D. Joel

Answer: B. Hosea "went and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim" (Hosea 1:3). Their marriage became a picture of God's faithful love for an unfaithful people.

29. How many people were saved in Noah's ark?

• A. Two
• B. Seven
• C. Eight
• D. Twelve

Answer: C. "Eight souls were saved by water" (1 Peter 3:20): Noah, his wife, his three sons and their wives (Genesis 7:13). Seven is tempting because clean animals went in "by sevens" (Genesis 7:2).

30. What was the name of the servant whose ear Peter cut off?

• A. Malchus
• B. Onesimus
• C. Rhoda
• D. Eutychus

Answer: A. Peter "smote the high priest's servant, and cut off his right ear. The servant's name was Malchus" (John 18:10). Only John gives his name. Onesimus was the runaway slave in Philemon, Rhoda the servant girl who answered Peter's knock (Acts 12:13), and Eutychus the young man who fell from a window (Acts 20:9).

Round 4: Expert (31–40)

Details you only catch by reading closely. If you get seven of these, you read the small print.

31. Where is the verse "Jesus wept"?

• A. Luke 19:41
• B. Mark 14:72
• C. John 11:35
• D. Matthew 26:75

Answer: C. "Jesus wept" is John 11:35, at the tomb of Lazarus. Luke 19:41 also has Jesus weeping, over Jerusalem: "he beheld the city, and wept over it." Mark 14:72 and Matthew 26:75 are Peter weeping after his denial. See the shortest verse in the Bible.

32. What was the name of Moses' father-in-law in Exodus 3?

• A. Laban
• B. Jethro
• C. Boaz
• D. Eli

Answer: B. "Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian" (Exodus 3:1). The same man is called Reuel a chapter earlier (Exodus 2:18). Laban was Jacob's father-in-law, which is why he's a good trap.

33. Which king saw a hand writing on the wall?

• A. Nebuchadnezzar
• B. Darius
• C. Cyrus
• D. Belshazzar

Answer: D. During the great feast of "Belshazzar the king," there "came forth fingers of a man's hand, and wrote" on the wall of the palace (Daniel 5:1, 5:5). Nebuchadnezzar is the usual wrong answer: the chapter calls him Belshazzar's father (Daniel 5:2). Darius takes the kingdom at the end of the chapter (Daniel 5:31).

34. What was the name of John the Baptist's father?

• A. Zacharias
• B. Joseph
• C. Simeon
• D. Zebedee

Answer: A. The angel said, "Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John" (Luke 1:13). Zebedee was the father of a different John, the apostle (Matthew 4:21), and Simeon held baby Jesus in the temple (Luke 2:25-28).

35. How many chapters are in the book of Psalms?

• A. 119
• B. 150
• C. 151
• D. 176

Answer: B. Psalms has 150 chapters (2,461 verses in the KJV). Psalm 119 is the longest chapter, with 176 verses (it ends at Psalm 119:176). Psalm 151 exists in some ancient Greek manuscripts but is not in the Protestant Bible. More in the longest chapter in the Bible.

36. Who replaced Judas Iscariot among the twelve apostles?

• A. Joseph Barsabas
• B. Barnabas
• C. Matthias
• D. Paul

Answer: C. Two men were put forward, "Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias" (Acts 1:23), and "the lot fell upon Matthias" (Acts 1:26). Option A was the runner-up.

37. To which church did Paul write "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me"?

• A. Rome
• B. Ephesus
• C. Corinth
• D. Philippi

Answer: D. It's Philippians 4:13, a letter "to all the saints in Christ Jesus which are at Philippi" (Philippians 1:1). Paul wrote it while in prison, speaking of "my bonds in Christ" (Philippians 1:13), which changes how the verse reads.

38. On which island was John when he received the visions of Revelation?

• A. Crete
• B. Cyprus
• C. Patmos
• D. Malta

Answer: C. John "was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God" (Revelation 1:9). Crete, Cyprus and Melita (Malta) all appear in Acts, on Paul's journeys.

39. What was Paul's name before he was known as Paul?

• A. Simon
• B. Silas
• C. Saul
• D. Barnabas

Answer: C. "Saul, (who also is called Paul,)" (Acts 13:9). Simon was Peter's name (Matthew 10:2), and Silas and Barnabas were Paul's traveling companions.

40. What is the last word of the King James Bible?

• A. Come
• B. Jesus
• C. Amen
• D. Grace

Answer: C. The Bible ends, "The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen." (Revelation 22:21). "Come" and "Jesus" appear in the verse just before: "Even so, come, Lord Jesus" (Revelation 22:20).

Here are three more from the app's John question bank, to finish on the Gospel:

Quick quiz: John

What is the first miracle of Jesus recorded by John?

The healing of a blind manWater turned into wineThe multiplication of the loavesThe miraculous catch of fish

Which Pharisee comes to Jesus by night and learns that one must be born again?

GamalielJoseph of ArimatheaNicodemusSimon the Pharisee

How does John the Baptist point out Jesus as he sees him coming to him?

“Behold the Lamb of God”“Behold the King of Israel”“Behold the Son of David”“Behold the prophet who was to come”

Continue the quiz

There are many more questions like these in Bible Academy, each with its explanation and verse. Start free, no card needed.

What makes a good multiple choice Bible question?

If you're writing your own quiz for a class, a youth group or a family night, the questions above follow four rules you can copy.

Two more tips. Avoid questions where the popular answer is tradition, like the number of wise men: the Bible never says three, so a multiple choice question with "three" as the right option teaches something the text doesn't say. Our true or false Bible quiz is built around those myths.

And keep the question short. If the question needs a paragraph of setup, it's testing reading speed, not Bible knowledge.

How to remember the answers you missed

Missing a question is useful only if you go back to the verse. A simple routine:

1. Write down the number of every question you missed.
2. Look up each reference and read the whole paragraph around it, not just the verse.
3. Write one sentence in your own words: "Elijah went up in a whirlwind; Enoch was taken."
4. Retake only those questions in three days.

That last step is the one most people skip, and it's the one that works. Coming back to a fact after a few days, right before you would forget it, is the idea behind spaced review (more in how to remember what you read in the Bible).

If you'd rather not track your misses on paper, the app does it for you: a quiz path at your level, with every answer explained by its verse.

Where to find more multiple choice Bible questions

• By book: every book of the Bible has its own free quiz on our Bible trivia hub, from Genesis to Acts.
• By person: the Joseph quiz and David quiz are good next steps after Rounds 1 and 2.
• More questions with answers: our big list of Bible trivia questions and answers and Bible trivia for adults.

Frequently asked questions

What is a multiple choice Bible quiz?

A multiple choice Bible quiz asks a question about the Bible and gives several possible answers, usually three or four, only one of which the text supports. The best ones include a verse reference with each answer, so you can check it yourself, and use wrong options drawn from related stories so you learn to tell similar people and events apart.

How many options should a multiple choice Bible question have?

Four options (A to D) is the most common format and works well. It keeps the chance of a lucky guess at one in four, while giving enough room for good distractors. Three options are fine for kids or quick group games. More than four slows the game down without making it much harder.

Are these Bible quiz answers based on the King James Version?

Yes. Every answer in this quiz is checked against the King James Version, and short quotations use KJV wording. Most answers are the same in modern translations like the NIV or ESV, though some words differ: the KJV says "publican" where modern versions say "tax collector," and "pottage of lentiles" where they say "lentil stew."

Can I use this quiz for a Bible study group or youth group?

Yes. Give each person cards marked A, B, C and D, read a question aloud, and have everyone reveal at once. Read the answer and the reference, and open a Bible to the verse when the group splits. Ten questions is a good warm-up for a study; all 40 fills a full game night.

What are good easy multiple choice Bible questions for beginners?

Start with the best-known stories: who built the ark, who killed Goliath, who was swallowed by a great fish, who baptized Jesus. Round 1 of this quiz is built that way. Even with easy questions, check the reference: many beginners learn, for example, that Jonah's "whale" is called a great fish in the text (Jonah 1:17).

How can I get better at Bible trivia?

Read whole books, not just favorite verses, and look up the reference behind every answer you miss. Most trivia mistakes come from mixing up two similar people or two numbers from the same passage. Reading a chapter a day and quizzing yourself on it afterward builds the kind of knowledge that multiple choice questions test.