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Bible Stumpers
Prayers Recorded in ScriptureScripture records many types of prayers. Some were spoken moments before death. Others rose from battlefields, wells, temple courts, and places of desperation. Some were only a sentence long. Others changed the course of nations. Below are 10 questions about prayers recorded in Scripture. How many people behind them can you identify before checking? Some are familiar. A few are surprisingly difficult. 1. Whose unnamed servant stood beside a well and prayed for a specific response from a woman to reveal she was the one chosen by God? Answer: Abraham’s servant Insight: Sent to find a wife for Isaac, Abraham’s servant prayed for providential guidance at a well. He asked that the chosen woman would offer water not only to him, but also to his camels. “By this I will know that You have shown kindness to my master.” (BSB) 2. Which man, after hearing his wife’s astonishing report, pleaded with God for instruction on how to raise the promised child who was destined to be a Nazirite? Answer: Manoah, Samson’s father Insight: After the Angel of the LORD announced Samson’s birth to Manoah’s wife, Manoah prayed for confirmation and guidance. His prayer revealed humility and concern for raising the child properly: “Please let the Man of God You sent us come again to teach us how to raise the boy who is to be born.” (BSB) 3. Which woman was so overwhelmed in her petition for a son that a priest mistakenly accused her of being drunk? Answer: Hannah, mother of Samuel Insight: In deep anguish over her barrenness, Hannah prayed silently before the LORD while her lips moved without sound. Eli misread her grief as drunkenness, but Hannah explained, “I have been pouring out my soul before the LORD.” (BSB) 4. Which newly minted monarch bypassed requests for wealth or the deaths of his enemies, instead asking for a “hearing heart” to discern between good and evil? Answer: Solomon Insight: When God invited Solomon to ask for anything, the young king requested wisdom instead of power or riches. Solomon prayed for “an understanding heart to judge Your people and to discern between good and evil.” (BSB) 5. Which prophet stretched himself over a widow’s dead son three times while praying that the child’s life would return to him? Answer: Elijah Insight: After the widow’s son stopped breathing, Elijah carried the boy upstairs, stretched himself over him three times, and cried out to God in desperate intercession. He prayed, “O LORD my God, please let this boy’s life return to him!” (BSB) The LORD answered, and the child revived. Years later, Elisha performed a remarkably similar act when praying over the Shunammite woman’s dead son (2 Kings 4:32-35). 6. Which Judean king took a blasphemous letter from an enemy king and physically spread it out before the Lord in the temple while praying for a rescue? Answer: Hezekiah Insight: When Assyria threatened Jerusalem, Hezekiah brought the enemy’s letter directly into the house of the LORD and laid it before Him in prayer. He pleaded, “Now, O LORD our God, please save us from his hand.” (BSB) 7. Faced with a vast army of Moabites and Ammonites, which king publicly confessed that Judah was powerless and did not know what to do, while turning his eyes toward God for help? Answer: Jehoshaphat Insight: When a massive enemy coalition marched against Judah, King Jehoshaphat gathered the nation for prayer and fasting. Rather than pretending confidence, he openly confessed their helplessness before God: “For we are powerless against this great multitude… We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon You.” (BSB) 8. Who concluded his book by praying that even if the fig tree did not blossom and the stalls were empty of cattle, he would still find joy in his salvation? Answer: Habakkuk Insight: Habakkuk closed his prophecy with one of Scripture’s most defiant declarations of faith. Even amid economic collapse and famine, he proclaimed: “Yet I will exult in the LORD; I will rejoice in the God of my salvation!” (BSB) 9. Which condemned man confessed that his punishment was just, then made a final plea to be remembered in the coming kingdom of God? Answer: The penitent thief (or “the thief on the cross”) Insight: One of the two criminals crucified beside Jesus openly confessed the justice of his own condemnation, saying, “We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve.” He then turned to Jesus and prayed, “Jesus, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.” (BSB) 10. Which apostle prayed that believers would be strengthened in their inner being and be able to comprehend the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge? Answer: Paul Insight: In a magnificent prayer, Paul asked that believers would be strengthened with power through the Holy Spirit in their inner being, that Christ would dwell in their hearts through faith, and that they, together with all the saints, would have power to grasp “the width and length and height and depth” of the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so they would be filled with all the fullness of God. (BSB) Bonus In a vision of the fifth seal, what group was seen beneath the heavenly altar crying out for God to judge and avenge their blood? Answer: The souls of the martyrs Insight: John saw the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for their testimony gathered beneath the heavenly altar. Together they cried out, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?” (BSB) Their prayer reflects both the anguish of martyrdom and confidence in God’s final justice. Beyond the trivia, these prayers reveal faith, fear, repentance, courage, and hope. Which prayer sounds closest to your own today? |
