Old Testament quiz questions and answers, from Genesis to Malachi

These 80 Old Testament quiz questions and answers follow the Bible's own order: the Law (Genesis to Deuteronomy), the history books (Joshua to Esther), the poetry and wisdom books (Job to Song of Songs), and the major and minor prophets. Every answer has a one-line explanation and its King James Version reference, so you can check it in seconds.

The Old Testament is three quarters of the Bible, and most quizzes only scratch Genesis, Exodus and David. This set reaches into Leviticus, Chronicles, Lamentations, Obadiah and Haggai too, because that's where real Bible knowledge shows.

Use the questions for a group quiz, a personal test, or a way to find which books you've never really read. Each section links to the full quiz for those books.

The Old Testament at a glance

Here's how the 39 books divide, counted from the KJV text. The section names follow the order of English Bibles; the Hebrew Bible groups the same books differently (Law, Prophets, Writings).

If you want a quiz that meets you where you are and moves up as you improve, the app has a path from beginner to expert on every Old Testament book, and every answer shows its verse.

Genesis quiz questions

More in the Genesis quiz.

1. On which day did God create man? Answer: The sixth day, along with the land animals (Genesis 1:27, 1:31).
2. From which tree did God forbid Adam to eat? Answer: The tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 2:17). See the fall in Eden.
3. What did God place at the east of the garden of Eden to guard the way to the tree of life? Answer: Cherubims and a flaming sword which turned every way (Genesis 3:24).
4. Who "walked with God: and he was not; for God took him"? Answer: Enoch (Genesis 5:24).
5. What were the names of Noah's three sons? Answer: Shem, Ham and Japheth (Genesis 6:10).
6. What happened to Lot's wife when she looked back toward Sodom? Answer: She became a pillar of salt (Genesis 19:26).
7. What did God provide as an offering in place of Isaac? Answer: A ram caught in a thicket by his horns (Genesis 22:13). Read the sacrifice of Isaac.
8. What did Jacob see in his dream at Bethel? Answer: A ladder reaching to heaven, with the angels of God ascending and descending on it (Genesis 28:12).
9. What new name did Jacob receive after wrestling until daybreak? Answer: Israel (Genesis 32:28).
10. For how many pieces of silver did Joseph's brothers sell him? Answer: Twenty, to Ishmeelite merchants (Genesis 37:28).

Exodus quiz questions

More in the Exodus quiz.

1. Who found the baby Moses in the ark of bulrushes? Answer: Pharaoh's daughter, who came down to wash at the river (Exodus 2:5-6).
2. What name did God give Moses at the burning bush? Answer: "I AM THAT I AM" (Exodus 3:14). See the burning bush.
3. Who did God appoint to speak for Moses? Answer: Aaron, his brother (Exodus 4:14-16).
4. What did the Israelites put on their doorposts at the first Passover? Answer: The blood of the lamb, so the LORD would pass over them (Exodus 12:7, 12:13).
5. What food did God give Israel from heaven in the wilderness? Answer: Manna, which tasted "like wafers made with honey" (Exodus 16:31).
6. Who held up Moses' hands until sunset during the battle with Amalek? Answer: Aaron and Hur (Exodus 17:12).
7. What did Aaron make while Moses was on the mountain with God? Answer: A calf made from the people's gold earrings; the KJV calls it "a molten calf" (Exodus 32:2-4). Read the golden calf.

Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy quiz questions

The three books most people skip. Try the Leviticus quiz, Numbers quiz and Deuteronomy quiz.

1. Which two sons of Aaron offered "strange fire" and died before the LORD? Answer: Nadab and Abihu (Leviticus 10:1-2).
2. Which command in Leviticus did Jesus later call the second great commandment? Answer: "Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself" (Leviticus 19:18; Matthew 22:39).
3. Which two spies said Israel could take the land? Answer: Joshua and Caleb (Numbers 14:6-9). See the twelve spies.
4. Whose rod budded, bloomed and yielded almonds? Answer: Aaron's, for the house of Levi (Numbers 17:8).
5. What did Moses set on a pole so that anyone bitten by the fiery serpents could look and live? Answer: A serpent of brass (Numbers 21:8-9).
6. Which book contains "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD"? Answer: Deuteronomy (Deuteronomy 6:4).
7. From which mountain did Moses see the promised land before he died? Answer: Mount Nebo, at the top of Pisgah (Deuteronomy 34:1).
8. How old was Moses when he died? Answer: 120 years, "his eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated" (Deuteronomy 34:7).

Joshua, Judges and Ruth quiz questions

See the Joshua quiz, Judges quiz and Ruth quiz.

1. What did Rahab tie in her window so her family would be spared? Answer: A line of scarlet thread (Joshua 2:18-21). Read Rahab and the spies.
2. What happened when the priests carrying the ark stepped into the Jordan? Answer: The waters coming down stood and rose up in a heap, and Israel crossed (Joshua 3:15-16).
3. Whose hidden plunder caused Israel's defeat at Ai? Answer: Achan's, who took a Babylonish garment, silver and gold (Joshua 7:20-21).
4. At Gibeon, what did Joshua command to stand still? Answer: The sun, and the moon in the valley of Ajalon (Joshua 10:12-13).
5. Which judge laid out a fleece of wool to ask God for a sign? Answer: Gideon (Judges 6:37).
6. Which woman killed the Canaanite commander Sisera with a tent nail? Answer: Jael, the wife of Heber (Judges 4:21).
7. What did Samson tell Delilah was the secret of his strength? Answer: No razor had come on his head, because he was a Nazarite from birth (Judges 16:17).
8. What was the name of Naomi's husband? Answer: Elimelech, who died in Moab (Ruth 1:2-3).
9. Ruth's son Obed was the grandfather of which king? Answer: David: Obed was "the father of Jesse, the father of David" (Ruth 4:17).

1 and 2 Samuel, Kings and Chronicles quiz questions

The story of Israel's kings. See the 1 Samuel quiz, 2 Samuel quiz, 1 Kings quiz and 2 Kings quiz.

1. Which priest at Shiloh raised the boy Samuel? Answer: Eli (1 Samuel 1:25-28, 3:1). See God calls Samuel.
2. What did the Philistines capture from Israel in battle? Answer: The ark of God, which brought plagues on them until they sent it back (1 Samuel 4:11, 5:6).
3. What was David doing when Samuel came to Bethlehem to anoint a king? Answer: Keeping the sheep; he was the youngest son of Jesse (1 Samuel 16:11-13).
4. Which son of Saul made a covenant with David? Answer: Jonathan, who "loved him as his own soul" (1 Samuel 18:3). Read about David and Jonathan.
5. Whom did Saul consult at Endor the night before his last battle? Answer: A woman that had a familiar spirit (1 Samuel 28:7).
6. Which prophet said to David, "Thou art the man"? Answer: Nathan, after telling the parable of the ewe lamb (2 Samuel 12:7).
7. Which son of David was caught by his head in an oak tree? Answer: Absalom (2 Samuel 18:9).
8. When two women claimed the same baby, what did Solomon call for? Answer: A sword, to divide the living child in two, which revealed the true mother (1 Kings 3:24-27).
9. When the kingdom split after Solomon, who became king of the ten northern tribes? Answer: Jeroboam (1 Kings 12:20).
10. What did Elijah hear on Horeb after the wind, the earthquake and the fire? Answer: "A still small voice" (1 Kings 19:11-12). See Elijah at Horeb.
11. What floated when Elisha cast a stick into the Jordan? Answer: A borrowed axe head: "the iron did swim" (2 Kings 6:5-6).
12. In which king of Babylon's reign was the temple in Jerusalem burned? Answer: Nebuchadnezzar, in his nineteenth year (2 Kings 25:8-9).
13. In 2 Chronicles 7:14, what does God promise if his people humble themselves, pray and turn from their wicked ways? Answer: "Then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land" (2 Chronicles 7:14).

Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther quiz questions

1. Which king of Persia allowed the Jews to return and build the house of the LORD? Answer: Cyrus (Ezra 1:1-3).
2. What was Nehemiah's job in the Persian court? Answer: He was the king's cupbearer (Nehemiah 1:11).
3. How long did it take to finish the wall of Jerusalem under Nehemiah? Answer: Fifty and two days (Nehemiah 6:15). See Nehemiah rebuilds the wall.
4. Who raised Esther after her parents died? Answer: Mordecai, her cousin ("his uncle's daughter") (Esther 2:7).
5. What happened to Haman? Answer: He was hanged on the gallows he had prepared for Mordecai (Esther 7:10).

Job, Psalms, Proverbs and Ecclesiastes quiz questions

The poetry books reward people who read slowly. Try the Psalms quiz and Proverbs quiz.

1. In which land did Job live? Answer: The land of Uz (Job 1:1).
2. How many sons and daughters did Job have at the start of the book? Answer: Seven sons and three daughters (Job 1:2).
3. From where did the LORD answer Job? Answer: "Out of the whirlwind" (Job 38:1).
4. Which psalm is headed "A Prayer of Moses the man of God"? Answer: Psalm 90 (Psalm 90:1).
5. Psalm 119 is divided into 22 sections. What are they headed by? Answer: The letters of the Hebrew alphabet, from ALEPH to TAU, one per eight verses (Psalm 119:1, 119:169).
6. Finish Proverbs 1:7: "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of…" Answer: "…knowledge" (Proverbs 1:7). Proverbs 9:10 says the same of "wisdom", a favorite trick question.
7. To which creature does Proverbs send the sluggard to learn? Answer: The ant: "consider her ways, and be wise" (Proverbs 6:6).
8. Finish Ecclesiastes 3:1: "To every thing there is a…" Answer: "…season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven" (Ecclesiastes 3:1).
9. What does the Preacher say at the start of Ecclesiastes? Answer: "Vanity of vanities; all is vanity" (Ecclesiastes 1:2).

Major prophets quiz questions

Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel and Daniel. See the Isaiah quiz and Daniel quiz.

1. What touched Isaiah's lips in his vision of the LORD? Answer: A live coal from the altar, carried by a seraph (Isaiah 6:6-7).
2. In Isaiah 7:14, what shall the virgin's son be called? Answer: Immanuel (Isaiah 7:14). Matthew applies this to Jesus (Matthew 1:23).
3. Finish Isaiah 53:5: "But he was wounded for our…" Answer: "…transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities" (Isaiah 53:5).
4. What did Jeremiah see at the potter's house? Answer: A marred vessel made again into another vessel, a picture of God and Israel (Jeremiah 18:3-6).
5. According to Lamentations 3, the LORD's compassions are new when? Answer: "Every morning: great is thy faithfulness" (Lamentations 3:22-23).
6. By which river was Ezekiel when the heavens opened and he saw visions of God? Answer: The river of Chebar, among the captives (Ezekiel 1:1).
7. What Babylonian names were given to Daniel's three friends? Answer: Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego (Daniel 1:7).
8. How many men did Nebuchadnezzar see walking in the fiery furnace? Answer: Four, "and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God" (Daniel 3:25). Read the fiery furnace.
9. What words did a hand write on the wall at Belshazzar's feast? Answer: MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN (Daniel 5:25).

Minor prophets quiz questions

Twelve short books, 67 chapters in all. Most people know Jonah and little else, which makes this the best round for separating teams. See the Jonah quiz, Micah quiz and Malachi quiz.

1. Which prophet wrote "I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh", quoted by Peter at Pentecost? Answer: Joel (Joel 2:28; Acts 2:16-17).
2. Against which nation is the book of Obadiah? Answer: Edom (Obadiah 1:1).
3. Where was Jonah when he prayed the prayer of Jonah 2? Answer: In the fish's belly (Jonah 2:1).
4. Which prophet foretold that a ruler of Israel would come out of Bethlehem Ephratah? Answer: Micah (Micah 5:2), quoted by the scribes to Herod (Matthew 2:5-6).
5. According to Micah 6:8, what does the LORD require of you? Answer: "To do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God" (Micah 6:8).
6. Which prophet was told, "Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables"? Answer: Habakkuk (Habakkuk 2:2).
7. Haggai rebuked the people for living in their own houses while what lay waste? Answer: The house of the LORD, the temple (Haggai 1:4).
8. In Zechariah 9:9, on what does Zion's king come riding? Answer: An ass, "a colt the foal of an ass", fulfilled at the triumphal entry (Zechariah 9:9; Matthew 21:4-5).
9. In Malachi, how does God say the people have robbed him? Answer: "In tithes and offerings" (Malachi 3:8).
10. Which prophet does Malachi say God will send "before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD"? Answer: Elijah the prophet (Malachi 4:5).

Here is a three-question sample 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.

Why Old Testament questions feel harder

Three reasons, and each one points to a fix.

The cast is bigger. Genesis alone has dozens of named people, and 1 and 2 Kings cover about four centuries of rulers, from Solomon to the exile. Keeping a short list of who's who helps. Our Bible characters pages give each major figure's life in order, for example Elijah or Esther.

The order isn't chronological. English Bibles group books by type, so Job, the prophets and Chronicles all overlap in time with earlier books. A chronological Bible reading plan fixes the confusion by reading the events in the order they happened.

Tradition gets mixed in. Many "facts" people remember aren't in the text. Genesis never calls the forbidden fruit an apple (Genesis 3:6). Jonah says "a great fish" (Jonah 1:17), although the KJV does use "whale" when Jesus refers to Jonah (Matthew 12:40). When in doubt, check the verse.

If you got most of these right, try the hard Bible trivia questions. If you want the stories behind them first, start with the most important Bible stories everyone should know. And for the New Testament side, our New Testament trivia questions use the same book-by-book format.

One verse explains why the Old Testament still matters to Christians, who read it as part of one story with the New:

For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.

How to study the Old Testament with a quiz

A quiz is most useful right after reading, not instead of it. Read a book, then test yourself on it the same day, and again a few days later. Missing a question tells you which chapter to reread. Psychologists call this retrieval practice, and our guide on how to remember what you read in the Bible explains how to use it.

The app is built around that loop. You read 1 to 5 chapters a day on a plan through all 929 Old Testament chapters and the rest of the Bible, then take a short quiz on what you just read.

Frequently asked questions

How many books are in the Old Testament?

Protestant Bibles have 39 Old Testament books: five books of the Law, twelve history books, five poetry and wisdom books, five major prophets and twelve minor prophets. In the King James Version they total 929 chapters and 23,145 verses. Catholic and Orthodox Bibles include additional books, often called the deuterocanonical books.

What is the longest book in the Old Testament?

Psalms is the longest by chapters and verses, with 150 chapters and 2,461 verses in the KJV. By word count it's close: Jeremiah is usually counted longest in the Hebrew text, while in our KJV count Psalms (about 43,800 words, including its titles) edges out Jeremiah (about 42,700). Genesis has the most verses of the five books of the Law, 1,533.

What is the shortest book in the Old Testament?

Obadiah is the shortest Old Testament book, with one chapter of 21 verses in the KJV. It is a prophecy against Edom, the nation descended from Esau. Haggai (2 chapters, 38 verses) and Nahum (3 chapters, 47 verses) are the next shortest by verse count.

What are easy Old Testament quiz questions for beginners?

Start with the best-known stories: creation in six days (Genesis 1), Noah's ark (Genesis 6–9), Moses and the burning bush (Exodus 3), David and Goliath (1 Samuel 17), and Daniel in the lions' den (Daniel 6). Each has one clear answer and is easy to look up.

What are the five books of the Law?

The five books of the Law, also called the Pentateuch or Torah, are Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. In the KJV they contain 187 chapters and 5,852 verses. Jewish and Christian tradition associates them with Moses, and Jesus refers to "the law of Moses" in Luke 24:44.