As Joshua led the Israelites in the conquest of the land, his strategy involved systematically capturing and destroying the largest cities, starting with Jericho, and followed in succession by Jerusalem, Lachish, Hazor, and Shechem
The tribal inheritance that was sandwiched in between Judah and Ephraim was Benjamin
The two and one-half tribes who settled east of the Jordan Valley included Asher, Reuben, and the half tribe of Manasseh
Two of the five Philistine cities, Gath and Ekron, were located somewhat inland closer to Israelite territory and they both experienced the power of the LORD as the ark of the covenant slowly made its way from Philistine territory back to the Israelites
Control of the strategic plateau area north of Jerusalem was achieved when the Israelites, who had just gained control of the region around Bethel and Ai, made a treaty with the city of Gibeon and three other cities on that plateau.
The three cities of refuge west of the Jordan River were Hebron, Shechem, and Kedesh, and they were relatively evenly spaced in order to be within “fleeing distance” for a person who had unintentionally killed another individual and was being pursued by the avenger of blood.
During the period of the Judges, the most prominent enemy whom God used to bring judgment on His disobedient people was the nation of Egypt.
The city that led the northern coalition against Joshua and the Israelites and later against Deborah and Barak was Hazor.
The ark of the covenant rested in the Tabernacle at Shiloh during the period of the Judges and in the early years of Samuel the prophet because Shiloh was high in the hill country of Ephraim and was protected.
We learn that in the ongoing crises between the Israelites and Philistines that the latter had control of the production of iron which gave them a specific military advantage.
David first ruled in the city of Jerusalem which allowed him to gain favor with Saul’s tribe of Benjamin right across the border to the north.
The ‘apiru seem to have been a rather widely spread group functioning as rebel mercenary soldiers who contributed to a significant state of social unrest in the land of Canaan during and after the period of time often associated with the conquest of the land.
The Amarna letters were written by Pharaoh to governors of cities in the land of Canaan pleading with them to maintain control over the commercial and military routes which Egypt needed in order to sustain its dominance over the region
When Elimelekh and his family left Jerusalem because of a famine, they moved to the coastal plain because there was food there
The tribe of Simeon was scattered throughout the eastern half of Manasseh, fulfilling the prophetic blessing in Genesis 49.
What does the word herem mean and how does it relate to the conquest of Jericho?
it means “blessed by God” and refers to the preservation of one family in Jericho
it means “given over to destruction” and was what happened to those who demonstrated their outright rejection of God, of which Jericho was representative
it means “exalted” and refers to the exaltation of Joshua and the Israelites in the eyes of the Canaanite population
it means the group of women that kings in the Ancient Near East kept in their palaces and refers to Rahab’s establishment
it means “the walls will fall” and is a prophecy about the way Jericho would meet its end
What is the Deuteronomic History?
it is the recapitulation of Israel’s history in the first four chapters of Deuteronomy
it refers to those historical books from Joshua to 2 Kings that present the history of God’s people in terms of whether or not they were obedient to the covenant as it had been articulated in the book of Deuteronomy.
it is what David wrote when he was installed as the king in Jerusalem after the ark of the covenant had been brought to the city
it was the priestly recital of the history of the people every seven years at the Feast of Tabernacles when the people gathered together to celebrate what God had done on their behalf
none of the above
What reason is given in the text of Deuteronomy for the extermination of the people of Canaan as the Israelites entered the Promised Land?
the ancestors of these people had excluded Abraham and his family from the land
the peoples of Canaan were Hittites and Philistines, both enemies
otherwise the Israelites would intermarry and fall into their idolatrous ways
the Israelites were never commanded to exterminate the people of Canaan
A brief extra-biblical text that describes the agricultural produce of Israel in conjunction with the harvest months is the
Akhnaton Almanac (Calendar)
Cheops Calendar (or Almanac)
Gezer Calendar (or Almanac)
Jerusalem Almanac
What thematic differences characterize the books of 1-2 Chronicles in contrast to 1-2 Samuel and 1-2 Kings?
because they were written later, they emphasize the importance of getting the historical details correct, something with which earlier records were less concerned
they were written by the court clerks in Jerusalem and reflect the dislike of the royalty for the commoners that lived outside the Jerusalem beltway
they were written later and focus more on the issues of priesthood, Temple, and Davidic dynasty
they are much more concerned with justice for the poor, knowledge of Torah, and rights of marginalized peoples
Which of the following was not part of the Israelites’ preparation to conquer Jericho and the Land?
All males were circumcised
They sent spies to the city of Jericho
They celebrated Passover
They went to Shechem and renewed the covenant
All of the above were part of the preparation
What spiritual “cycle” characterized the period of the Judges?
child sacrifice, repentance, building of altars and temples, reverting to sacrifice
belief, doubt, apostasy, atheism
apostasy, oppression, repentance, deliverance, repetition
apostasy, heresy, apathy, enthusiasm, repetition
What incident demonstrates the lack of proper knowledge of Torah near the end of the book of Judges?
Jephthah thought he was doing the right thing when he offered his daughter as a burnt offering
the ephod was brought out to the city square of Gibeah and each person was told to make an offering to the Lord from the family inheritance
the king of Moab introduced the worship of the sun god to the tribes settled across the Jordan and there was no one to protest the idolatry
the priests sent the ark of the covenant back to Sinai thinking its power needed to be restored
None of the above
When the ark of the Lord was captured by the Philistines, how was the superiority of the God of the Israelites over Dagon, one of the gods of the Philistines, demonstrated?
The ark moved to the threshold of the Philistine temple in Ashdod and broke the doorposts of the temple
In the presence of the ark, the image of Dagon fell over and broke
The idol of Dagon vanished into thin air in every temple to which the ark was brought
The priests of Dagon, when they looked into the ark, were killed
According to the biblical text, for what two reasons did Saul forfeit the kingship?
He persecuted David and lied to Jonathan
He banned witchcraft from the land and then went to consult the witch at En-Dor
He took a rash vow and almost jeopardized his son’s life, and he arranged for the murder of the Gibeonites
He did not wait for Samuel but presumptuously offered a sacrifice at Gilgal and he did not obey the Lord and entirely destroy the Amalekites
After the conquest and tribal allotments, this man called the Israelites together, challenged them to obey the Lord, and declared that he and his household would serve the Lord
Achan
Joshua
Jabin
Nathan
Saul
Because this individual kept silver, gold, and a robe from Jericho and buried them in his tent instead of destroying them as commanded by the Lord, he was responsible for the deaths of Israelites in the next battle at Ai. As a result, he was executed.
Abimelekh
Agag
Abigail
Bathsheba
This woman was a prostitute in Jericho whose establishment was visited by the Israelite spies; she saved their lives because she had heard of the miraculous interventions of God on behalf of Israel
Micah
Jephthah
Rahab
Achish
The woman served as a judge and a prophet and told Barak of God’s command to go and fight the enemy army under the command of Sisera
Deborah
Naomi
Hannah
Hushai
This man was the king of Hazor.
Jonathan
Mephibosheth
Ish-boshet
This man was a left-handed judge from the tribe of Benjamin who killed Eglon, king of Moab, by running him through with a sword in his private rooms and then escaping – fast!
Ehud
Amnon
The man who, sufficiently scared by his mother’s curse against the person who stole her silver to confess that it was he, made that silver into an idol and set it up in his own shrine with his own priest, expecting that God would bless him for his religious fervor
Abner
This man, whose name means “my father is king,” was made king by the citizens of Shechem but they later rose up against him and, in the aftermath, he died after a woman dropped a millstone on his head.
Samson
Samuel
Goliath
An angel of the LORD initially met up with this judge as he was threshing his grain in a winepress because of his fear that the Midianite hoards would steal it away. He was plagued with doubt and asked God to give him two signs based on wet and dry pieces of fleece. Eventually, he conquered the Midianites with an army of 300 men, “armed” with torches and trumpets, an echo of the appearance of God at Sinai.
Gideon
After attempting to negotiate with his Ammonite enemies, this judge made a rash vow that the first thing that came out of his house after he returned victorious from fighting the Ammonites would be offered as a burnt offering.
Jesse
Uriah
This judge was the son of Manoah and his birth and dedication as a Nazirite were announced by an angel who visited Manoah’s wife
Joab
After a series of episodes when Samson was used by God to confront and defeat the Philistines in spite of his weakness for Philistine women and his vengeful spirit, this woman arranged for his downfall by talking him into telling her the secret of his strength
Delilah
This woman was the mother-in-law of Ruth who initially urged her daughters-in-law to return to their people and to their gods.
This woman, the wife of Elkanah, was barren and as she was praying at the tabernacle, she vowed that if God would give her a son, she would give him back to the Lord as a Nazirite all his life.
This prophet, priest, and judge warned the people what would happen as a result of their folly in asking for a king “to be like all the other nations,” but he also vowed to continue to pray for them.
Eli
Because the sons of this priest abused the Lord’s holy offerings and slept with women at the entrance to the tent of meeting, he was told that his family priestly line would be cut off.
This man initially came to Samuel because he and his servant were looking for his father’s lost donkeys but the outcome was that Samuel anointed him king in private and he was later chosen by lot in a public confirmation.
This man and his armor-bearer single-handedly fought a Philistine garrison and beat them but he almost lost his life because he ate honey when his father had put the whole army under a vow not to eat.
This was the Amalekite king who was cut to shreds by Samuel after Saul’s disobedience in not giving the Amalekites over to destruction as God had commanded.
This man was from Bethlehem and, when the Philistines were attacking the central part of the tribe of Judah, sent his youngest son down to the battle to see how his brothers were faring.
At the command of the Lord, this prophet anointed David as king in a ceremony in Bethlehem.
This Philistine king was initially suspicious of David but later gave David the responsibility of overseeing the town of Ziklag in the southern area of the country.
Gad
As his introduction to the military aspects of Saul’s kingdom, David killed this Philistine giant and beheaded him with the giant’s sword.
This woman intervened to keep David from taking revenge against the household of Nabal because Nabal foolishly refused to give payment to David and his men for their protection of his shepherds and flocks.
After the death of Saul and Jonathan, and the defeat of the Israelite army at the hands of the Philistines, this son of Jonathan who was injured in his feet was cared for by David.
This man was, in effect, murdered by David after David committed adultery with his wife and was unable to cover it up effectively.
The prophet who confronted David with his sin of adultery and warned him that the sword would not depart from his house and that he would indeed suffer measure-for-measure in the same way that he had sinner
This man was the commander of the forces of Saul’s household but he was deceptively lured into the city gate and killed when he came to Hebron to make peace with David.
The son of Saul who took over the northern tribes for a very brief period after the deaths of Saul and Jonathan on Mt. Gilboa
This person asked the witch at En-Dor to raise up for him Samuel.
Jess
This woman was the wife of the Hittite and it was she with whom David committed adultery
When Absalom set up the plan to overthrow his father David, this man infiltrated the ranks of advisors around Absalom and managed to buy enough time for David to get away to a secure place and regroup with his forces.
This man brutally killed the commander of the forces of Saul’s household, and also arranged for the return of David’s spoiled son, Absalom.
This was David’s firstborn son who was assassinated by his half-brother, Absalom, because he had raped Absalom’s sister
After David numbered the men of Israel this prophet came to him and told him he could choose to suffer famine three years, endure enemies for three months, or fall prey to plague for three days.
Which of the following is not among the defining characteristics of God in the Psalms?
God as Creator, in the face of idolatrous surrounding cultures
God as King and Judge who maintains proper order
Covenant Lord and Father who binds Himself to His covenant people
Redeemer and Deliverer
All of the above are
Which of the following best summarizes the suggested purposes of acrostics?
bringing definition to otherwise ambiguous concepts
enabling the hearer to learn to distinguish between opposite qualities
creating a second level in the rhythm of the poetry
demonstrating skill in the construction of a memory aid that also symbolizes completeness (totality) and closure
Which of the following is the best example of antithetical parallelism?
Shout before the Lord, all the earth; Serve the Lord with gladness; Come before Him with joyful songs.
No one who practices deceit will dwell in my house; No one who speaks falsely will stand in my presence.
May his days be few; may another take his place of leadership.
The Lord watches over the way of the righteous, But the way of the wicked will perish.
Which two thematic emphases appear in messianic psalms?
thanksgiving for victory and a recital of Israel’s history
the value of wisdom and the need for a pure heart
in times of despair, God may be trusted and sorrow at the sins of others
pronouncement of curses against the disobedient and God’s care for the humble of heart
the suffering of God’s Chosen One and His kingly reign
Psalm 78, a salvation history psalm, is best characterized by which of the following?
a recital of the events from the Exodus from Egypt and the wilderness wanderings to God’s choice of David as king
a prophetic statement about the salvation that will be found in the Son of David
allusions to the covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, fathers of all who believe
descriptions of the beauty of the Tabernacle as it represents the place where God chose to dwell with His people and bring their salvation to its culmination
Psalm 51 might be best categorized as a
wisdom psalm
salvation history psalm
hymn of praise
penitential psalm
The beginning of the book of Joshua and the first psalm are both characterized by their strong emphasis on
the importance of meditation on the Torah
the detrimental effects of worry and anxiety
the impending wrath of God
the promise of victory in Jesus
Psalm 110 is an example of a
messianic psalm
thanksgiving psalm
none of these
Which of the following is a specific result of parallelism in biblical poetry?
the sounds of the poetry are repeated giving an extra non-verbal emphasis
there is conceptual repetition as the second line intensifies and introduces new perspective on the matter at hand
each line represents a new voice in a dialogue, thus creating poetic ambiguity
Which of the following statements best represents biblical worship?
coming together to appreciate and enjoy fellowship in the community of like-minded believers and to experience joy and emotional restoration
gathering together to praise God for His gracious provision, stand in awe of His majesty, rejoice in His unfailing promises, and serve wholeheartedly
offer sacrifices either in the form of shed blood or the figurative contrite heart in order to assure God’s blessing
engage in established traditional practices without modification so as to ensure appropriate approach to God
