Book of Genesis Quiz: Noah and the Flood

1. The story of Cain and Abel reveals the first murder in scripture. Why did God reject Cain's offering but accept Abel's?

1. Abel brought the firstborn of his flock and the fat portions; the text implies Cain did not bring his best
2. Cain brought vegetables which are inferior to animal sacrifice; vegetables were not acceptable to God
3. Cain's heart was wrong — God looked at the heart, not the offering itself
4. The text does not specify — God's choice is presented as sovereign and the reason is not given

2. Before Cain killed Abel, God warned Cain about his anger. What famous image did God use?

1. 'A fool gives full vent to his rage — but a wise man keeps himself under control'
2. 'Anger is a fire — once lit it will consume everything around it if not quenched quickly'
3. 'Sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it'
4. 'The one who nurses anger against his brother will answer for it before God'

3. After killing Abel, Cain asked God 'Am I my brother's keeper?' What happened to Cain as punishment?

1. He was cursed to till the ground in agony for the rest of his life but allowed to remain in his land
2. He was exiled from the land and condemned to wander — the ground would no longer yield crops for him, and God put a mark on him to protect him from being killed
3. He was expelled from God's presence and his descendants were cursed for seven generations
4. He was put to death — his blood shed as Abel's blood had been shed

4. Genesis 5 contains the long genealogy from Adam to Noah. What is the recurring phrase in this chapter, and what is its theological significance?

1. 'And God was pleased with him' — distinguishing those who found favour before the flood
2. 'And he had sons and daughters' — emphasising the fulfilment of the creation mandate
3. 'And he walked with God' — marking out the especially righteous among Adam's descendants
4. 'And then he died' — underlining that the death sentence of Genesis 3 was being carried out on every generation

5. How old was Methuselah, the oldest person recorded in the Bible, when he died?

1. 900 years old
2. 930 years old
3. 950 years old
4. 969 years old

6. Genesis 6:5 describes the condition of humanity that prompted God to send the flood. What does it say?

1. 'Every living creature had corrupted its way on the earth, and the wickedness of man was great before the Lord'
2. 'Humanity had forsaken God completely and turned to the worship of false gods'
3. 'The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time'
4. 'Violence filled the earth and corruption was complete — not one person remained who sought God'

7. How did Noah find favour with God, and what were the dimensions of the ark God commanded him to build?

1. Noah alone still worshipped the true God; the ark was 300 cubits long, 40 cubits wide and 40 cubits high
2. Noah had never sinned; the ark was 400 cubits long, 50 cubits wide and 30 cubits high
3. Noah walked with God; the dimensions of the ark were left to Noah's own discretion under God's guidance
4. Noah was righteous and blameless among the people of his time; the ark was 300 cubits long, 50 cubits wide and 30 cubits high

8. God instructed Noah to bring animals into the ark. How many of each kind of animal was Noah told to bring?

1. Seven pairs of every animal and two of every bird
2. The text only specifies two of every kind, without distinguishing clean and unclean
3. Two of every kind — one male and one female
4. Two of every unclean animal but seven pairs of every clean animal and every bird

9. How many days and nights did it rain during the flood, and how high above the mountains did the waters rise?

1. 120 days and nights; the waters rose 30 cubits above the highest point on earth
2. 40 days and 40 nights; 15 cubits above the highest mountains
3. 40 days and 40 nights; the waters covered all the mountains that were under the entire heavens
4. 40 days of rain; then the waters continued for 150 days before beginning to recede

10. After the rain stopped and the waters began to recede, on what mountain range did the ark come to rest?

1. The mountains of Ararat
2. The mountains of Lebanon
3. The mountains of Sinai
4. The mountains of the Caucasus

11. Noah sent out two birds to determine if the waters had receded. What were they and what happened with each?

1. A dove and a raven — the raven flew back and forth but didn't return; the dove was sent three times: first it returned with nothing, then with an olive leaf, then it didn't return
2. A raven and a dove — the raven flew back and forth but returned; the dove returned the first time, then returned with an olive branch, then didn't return at all
3. A raven and a swallow — the raven eventually landed on dry land; the swallow brought back mud on its feet showing land was near
4. Two doves — the first returned because the waters were too high; the second returned with an olive leaf signalling the waters had receded

12. What was the first thing Noah did after leaving the ark?

1. He built an altar and sacrificed burnt offerings of clean animals and birds to God
2. He gave thanks to God and blessed his sons and their wives
3. He planted a vineyard to celebrate the new start
4. He surveyed the land God had given them and divided it among his family

13. What was the sign of the Noahic covenant, and what did God promise in this covenant?

1. A pillar of cloud — God promised never to destroy humanity by fire again
2. A rainbow — God promised never again to destroy all life on earth with a flood
3. The dove returning with an olive branch — God promised the seasons would continue forever
4. The stars of heaven — God promised to increase Noah's descendants beyond numbering

14. After the flood, God renewed the creation mandate but added something not present in Genesis 1. What new permission and new restriction did God give?

1. Permission to build cities and communities; restriction that no one may take another's life
2. Permission to eat all plants including those previously forbidden; restriction that no wine may be drunk
3. Permission to eat meat; restriction that blood must not be eaten — for life is in the blood
4. Permission to subdue the earth; restriction that the animals must not be mistreated

15. Genesis 9 includes a troubling episode involving Noah and his son Ham. What happened?

1. Ham found Noah drunk and naked in his tent and told his brothers — Noah later cursed Canaan, Ham's son
2. Ham sacrificed to false gods, breaking the covenant Noah had just made with the Lord
3. Ham stole Noah's blessing by disguising himself as his older brother
4. Ham took advantage of Noah's illness to claim leadership of the family for himself

16. Genesis 10 is the 'Table of Nations' — listing the descendants of Shem, Ham and Japheth who became the peoples of the world. Which of Noah's three sons became the ancestor of the Israelites?

1. All three lines eventually merged into the Israelite nation
2. Ham
3. Japheth
4. Shem

17. The Tower of Babel story (Genesis 11:1-9) explains the diversity of human languages. What was the people's stated goal in building the tower?

1. To build a city with a tower that reaches to the heavens so that they may make a name for themselves and not be scattered over the earth
2. To create a monument to their kings that would survive the ages
3. To demonstrate their skill and unity as a sign of their power over all other nations
4. To worship the God of heaven and offer sacrifices at the highest possible point

18. How did God respond to the building of the tower, and what was the result?

1. God came down, confused their language so they could not understand each other, and scattered them over the earth — they stopped building the city
2. God cursed the leaders of the project and all their descendants with confusion and wandering
3. God sent an angel to pull down the tower and warned the people never to build in pride again
4. God sent fire from heaven to destroy the tower and the people scattered in fear

19. Genesis 11 provides the genealogy from Shem to Abram. What key detail about Abram's father Terah do we learn?

1. Terah accompanied Abram all the way to Canaan before returning to Ur of the Chaldeans
2. Terah began the journey from Ur of the Chaldeans toward Canaan, but stopped and settled in Haran, where he died
3. Terah was a worshipper of the God of heaven who taught Abram the ways of righteousness
4. Terah was an idol maker — Joshua later reveals this — and Abram was called out of idolatry

20. Genesis 11 ends with Abram and his wife Sarai being introduced. What does the narrator record as a significant detail about Sarai?

1. 'Now Sarai was childless because she was not able to conceive'
2. She had followed a different god before Abram persuaded her to worship the Lord
3. She was exceptionally beautiful — 'the most beautiful woman in all the land of the Chaldeans'
4. She was younger than Abram by thirty years and came from a different family