JAMB Christian Religious Knowledge 1984

42 reviewed questions with answers and explanations.

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Question 1

After the Flood, God allowed all food to be eaten except

  1. olive leaves.
  2. flesh with its blood in it.
  3. animals with cloven hooves.
  4. reptiles.
  5. birds of prey.
Answer and explanation

B: flesh with its blood in it.

Genesis 9:3-4 permits animals as food but excludes flesh with its life, identified as its blood. This is the restriction stated after the Flood.

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Question 3

The wife of Moses was

  1. Esther
  2. Zipporah
  3. Hagar
  4. Michal
  5. Ruth.
Answer and explanation

B: Zipporah

Exodus 2:21 records that Moses married Zipporah, the daughter of the man with whom he stayed in Midian. The other named women belong to different narratives.

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Question 4

‘... I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments’. This statement was made by God when

  1. He gave the Ten Commandments to Moses.
  2. the Israelites disobeyed God’s commandments.
  3. the family of Aaron was elected to the priesthood.
  4. He commanded Moses to go to meet Pharaoh.
  5. the Israelites had settled in the Promised Land.
Answer and explanation

A: He gave the Ten Commandments to Moses.

Exodus 20:5-6 places these words within the commandments given at Sinai. They accompany the prohibition against making and worshipping idols.

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Question 5

The three sons of Noah were Shem, Ham and

  1. Lot
  2. Hirah
  3. Cain
  4. Japheth
  5. Eber.
Answer and explanation

D: Japheth

Genesis 6:10 lists Noah’s sons as Shem, Ham and Japheth. Japheth therefore completes the list given in the question.

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Question 7

For rebelling against Moses and God, the Israelites were bitten by the fiery snakes. The cure for the snakebites was

  1. a drink of the water from the rock
  2. anointing the affected part of the body with oil
  3. to call on the name of Yahweh
  4. a herbal preparation by Aaron
  5. a look at the bronze serpent.
Answer and explanation

E: a look at the bronze serpent.

Numbers 21:9 says people who had been bitten lived when they looked at the bronze serpent. The account does not prescribe oil or a herbal preparation.

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Question 8

Joshua was appointed to lead the Israelites to the Promised Land because

  1. Moses was too old to lead them there
  2. the Israelites preferred Joshua to Moses
  3. Moses never returned from Mount Sinai
  4. of Moses’ rebellion in the wilderness of Zin
  5. he was a powerful soldier.
Answer and explanation

D: of Moses’ rebellion in the wilderness of Zin

Numbers 27:12-14 links Moses’ exclusion from the land to rebellion in the wilderness of Zin. The appointment of Joshua follows Moses’ request for a successor.

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Question 9

The covenant was renewed on Mount Sinai because

  1. there was a new generation which did not remember the first
  2. the people had taken part in Korah’s rebellion
  3. the people had demanded water from the rock
  4. Aaron had made a golden calf
  5. the people had wanted to return to Egypt.
Answer and explanation

D: Aaron had made a golden calf

Exodus 32 describes the golden calf and Moses breaking the tablets. Exodus 34 then records replacement tablets and renewal of the covenant.

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Question 10

Those inspired by God to lead the tribes of Israel in battle were the

  1. judges
  2. captains of the Guard
  3. priests
  4. prophets
  5. Levites.
Answer and explanation

A: judges

Judges 2:16-18 describes God raising judges to deliver Israel from its oppressors. This is the leadership role asked about here.

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Question 11

Each of the spies sent out by Moses on God’s command to report on the nature of the Promised Land was a

  1. great warrior
  2. wise Judge
  3. priest
  4. Levite
  5. leader in his own tribe.
Answer and explanation

E: leader in his own tribe.

Numbers 13:2-3 requires one man from each ancestral tribe, each a leader among them. Membership of a priestly office is not the stated qualification.

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Question 13

The sun stood still when

  1. Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt
  2. Jericho fell to the army of Joshua
  3. Noah came out of the ark
  4. Joshua defeated the Amorites at Gibeon
  5. Moses came down from the mountain with the table of the law.
Answer and explanation

D: Joshua defeated the Amorites at Gibeon

Joshua 10:12-14 describes the sun standing still during the battle involving the Amorite kings at Gibeon. This is distinct from the earlier capture of Jericho.

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Question 14

‘I repent that I made Saul king’. What incident does this refer to?

  1. The anointing of Saul
  2. When Saul failed to pray
  3. During Saul’s encounter with the Ammonites.
  4. When Saul was offering sacrifice to God.
  5. When Saul disobeyed God over Amalek.
Answer and explanation

E: When Saul disobeyed God over Amalek.

First Samuel 15:11 contains the statement after Saul spares Agag and the best livestock instead of carrying out the command concerning Amalek.

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Question 16

‘If he (Baal) is a god, let him contend for himself because his altar has been pulled down’. Who pulled down the altar?

  1. Moses
  2. Joshua
  3. Gideon
  4. Samson
  5. Joash
Answer and explanation

C: Gideon

Judges 6:25-32 identifies Gideon as the person who pulled down Baal’s altar. His father Joash makes the statement defending him afterwards.

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Question 17

Hannah prayed to God at Shiloh for a son because.

  1. Elkanah hated her for being barren
  2. Peninnah provoked her sorely
  3. She had sinned against the Lord
  4. She had only daughters
  5. She wanted her son to succeed Eli.
Answer and explanation

B: Peninnah provoked her sorely

First Samuel 1:6-7 describes Peninnah provoking Hannah because she had no child. Hannah’s distress leads into her prayer at Shiloh.

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Question 18

God pronounced utter destruction on the Amalekites because

  1. they were hostile to the Kenites who lived among them
  2. they were hostile neighbours of Israel like the Philistines
  3. Saul desired to acquire the Amalekite territory
  4. they opposed Israel on their way from Egypt to the promised land
  5. God wanted to wipe out every element of Baal Worship in Canaan.
Answer and explanation

D: they opposed Israel on their way from Egypt to the promised land

First Samuel 15:2 states that the command concerns Amalek’s opposition to Israel on the journey out of Egypt. The answer follows the reason given in that narrative.

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Question 19

As David was about to die, he charged Solomon to keep God’s statutes, commandments, ordinances and testimonies, so that he, Solomon, might.

  1. prosper and the Davidic dynasty be preserved forever
  2. receive his father’s blessing
  3. have children who would succeed him
  4. avenge the enemies of David
  5. complete the temple project.
Answer and explanation

A: prosper and the Davidic dynasty be preserved forever

In 1 Kings 2:3-4, David links obedience with Solomon’s success and the continuation of the royal line under the stated condition of faithfulness.

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Question 20

In the trade treaty between king Solomon and Hiram of Lebanon, Solomon was to supply wheat and oil while Hiram was to supply.

  1. grains only
  2. precious stones
  3. wheat and oil
  4. timber
  5. silver
Answer and explanation

D: timber

First Kings 5:8-11 describes Hiram supplying cedar and cypress timber while Solomon supplies food for Hiram’s household. Timber completes the exchange.

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Question 21

To whom was this addressed? ‘Your father made our yoke heavy. Now therefore lighten the hard service of your father and his heavy yoke upon us and we will serve you’.

  1. Jeroboam
  2. Nebat
  3. Solomon
  4. Rehoboam
  5. Ahijah
Answer and explanation

D: Rehoboam

First Kings 12:1-4 places this request before Rehoboam after Solomon’s death. The people ask the new king to reduce the burden imposed by his father.

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Question 22

‘I have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts’ for the people of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I even I only, am left; and they seek my life to take it away. ‘ This was said by

  1. Jeremiah before the Temple
  2. Elijah at a cave in Mount Carmel
  3. Moses at a cave in Mount Horeb
  4. Elisha at a cave in Mount Nebo
  5. Elijah at a cave in Mount Horeb
Answer and explanation

E: Elijah at a cave in Mount Horeb

First Kings 19:8-10 places Elijah at Horeb, where he enters a cave and makes this complaint. Mount Carmel belongs to the earlier confrontation with Baal’s prophets.

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Question 23

‘Thus saith the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel, Amend your ways and your doings. Trust not in lying words saying: “The temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord”. This message was given by

  1. Amos
  2. Micah
  3. Jeremiah
  4. Uzziah
  5. Ezekiel.
Answer and explanation

C: Jeremiah

Jeremiah 7:1-4 gives this message at the temple gate. It calls for changed conduct rather than relying on repeated claims about the temple.

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Question 24

Which prophet gave this cry? ‘Woe is me! For I am lost, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips’.

  1. Hosea
  2. Jeremiah
  3. Isaiah
  4. Amos
  5. Haggai
Answer and explanation

C: Isaiah

Isaiah 6:5 records the prophet’s cry about unclean lips during his vision of the Lord. The chapter’s opening identifies the speaker as Isaiah.

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Question 25

The prophet who proclaimed a new covenant of God with Israel and Judah was

  1. Ezekiel
  2. Jeremiah
  3. Hosea
  4. Micah
  5. Haggai.
Answer and explanation

B: Jeremiah

Jeremiah 31:31 announces a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. The following verses describe the law being written on their hearts.

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Question 26

The synoptic gospels refer to the

  1. books of the New Testament
  2. first four books of the New Testament
  3. first three books of the New Testament
  4. first five books of the Bible
  5. Didache.
Answer and explanation

C: first three books of the New Testament

The Synoptic Gospels are Matthew, Mark and Luke, the first three New Testament books. They are studied together because of their closely related accounts.

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Question 27

‘And he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children’. The person whose future work was being described here was

  1. Zachariah
  2. John the Baptist
  3. Paul
  4. Jesus Christ
  5. Joseph
Answer and explanation

B: John the Baptist

Luke 1:13 names the promised son John. Verse 17 then describes his work in the spirit and power of Elijah, preparing people for the Lord.

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Question 28

He said therefore to the multitudes ... ‘You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?’ Who was the speaker?

  1. John the son of Zachariah.
  2. John the son of Zebedee
  3. John Mark
  4. Jesus Christ
  5. Simon Peter
Answer and explanation

A: John the son of Zachariah.

Luke 3 identifies John, son of Zechariah, as the preacher who calls the approaching crowds a brood of vipers. This is John the Baptist, not John son of Zebedee.

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Question 29

‘You shall not tempt the Lord your God’ was said by Jesus to

  1. Peter after his confession
  2. the leper who asked to be cleansed
  3. Caiaphas at his trial
  4. the devil in the wilderness
  5. the sons of Zebedee who demanded the best seats in the kingdom.
Answer and explanation

D: the devil in the wilderness

Matthew 4:5-7 records Jesus giving this answer to the devil during the temptation at the temple. It rejects the proposed test of divine protection.

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Question 30

The people of Nazareth found it difficult to believe what Jesus preached to them because they

  1. were idolaters
  2. were stubborn
  3. knew him from childhood.
  4. had been scolded by him
  5. could not understand his doctrine.
Answer and explanation

C: knew him from childhood.

Mark 6:2-4 shows the listeners naming Jesus’ familiar occupation and family before taking offence. Their familiarity with him is the point represented in option C.

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Question 31

In the parable of the sower, the seeds on the good ground are meant to represent those who

  1. accept and live by God’s word
  2. feed the poor
  3. have and love riches
  4. give alms in market places
  5. preach the words of God.
Answer and explanation

A: accept and live by God’s word

Luke 8:15 describes the good soil as people who hear the word, hold it firmly and bear fruit with perseverance. Receiving and living by the word captures that description.

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Question 32

Who is being referred to here? ‘But he went out and began to talk freely about it, and to spread the news, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter a town, but was out in the country; and people came to him from every quarter.

  1. the Gerasene demoniac
  2. The leper from Galilee
  3. Jairus
  4. The blind man of Jericho
  5. The demoniac of Capernaum.
Answer and explanation

B: The leper from Galilee

Mark 1:40-45 describes the man with leprosy whom Jesus cleanses and asks to remain quiet. His spreading the news explains why Jesus stays outside towns.

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Question 33

‘An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign shall be given to it except the sign of Jonah,’ According to St. Matthew, Jesus said this to the

  1. disciple of John the Baptist
  2. multitude of people
  3. lawyers and the scribes
  4. Sadducees and the Zealots
  5. Pharisees and the Sadducees.
Answer and explanation

E: Pharisees and the Sadducees.

Matthew 16:1 identifies the Pharisees and Sadducees as the group requesting a sign. Jesus’ reply about the sign of Jonah follows in verse 4.

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Question 34

And Jesus said to them, ‘Follow me and I will make you fishers of men. ‘This was addressed to

  1. Simon Peter and James
  2. James and John
  3. Simon Peter and John
  4. Andrew and James
  5. Simon Peter and Andrew.
Answer and explanation

E: Simon Peter and Andrew.

Matthew 4:18 names the two brothers as Simon, called Peter, and Andrew. The invitation to become fishers of people follows immediately.

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Question 35

Hosanna means

  1. ride on in majesty
  2. ride on in glory
  3. ride on to die
  4. ride on to Calvary
  5. save now.
Answer and explanation

E: save now.

Hosanna is a plea for salvation, used as an acclamation in the entry into Jerusalem. Save now expresses the underlying request also found in Psalm 118:25.

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Question 36

One of the reasons why Jesus denounced the Scribes and Pharisees was that they

  1. did not make many converts
  2. did not practice what they preached
  3. did not preach regularly in the temple
  4. took great care of the tombs of their ancestors
  5. often appeared in the market-place.
Answer and explanation

B: did not practice what they preached

Matthew 23:3 says that the scribes and Pharisees say things but do not do them. Jesus warns listeners not to imitate that mismatch between teaching and conduct.

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Question 37

Simon the Cananaean was

  1. the original name of Peter
  2. one of the twelve
  3. the Pharisee in whose house the woman anointed Jesus
  4. the one who carried Jesus’ cross
  5. one of the brothers of Jesus.
Answer and explanation

B: one of the twelve

Matthew 10:2-4 includes this Simon among the twelve; some translations call him Simon the Zealot. He is distinct from Simon Peter, who appears separately in the list.

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Question 38

The reason why Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Salome went to where Jesus was buried on the third day after the burial was to

  1. plead with the soldiers who were keeping watch there
  2. anoint the body of Jesus
  3. see if the body of Jesus was still there
  4. see if Jesus had risen from the dead
  5. weep at the tomb according to the custom of the Jews.
Answer and explanation

B: anoint the body of Jesus

Mark 16:1 names Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Salome, and says they bought spices to anoint Jesus. That stated purpose answers the question.

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Question 39

To some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and despised others, Jesus told the parable of the

  1. rich man and Lazarus
  2. Pharisee and the tax-collectors
  3. wise and foolish virgins
  4. prodigal son
  5. good Samaritan.
Answer and explanation

B: Pharisee and the tax-collectors

Luke 18:9 introduces the parable as a response to people who trust in their own righteousness and despise others. The story then contrasts a Pharisee and a tax collector.

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Question 40

The main reason why Peter and John were arrested by the officers of the Temple after they had cured the lame man at the gate called beautiful was that they

  1. healed the sick
  2. proclaimed in Jesus the resurrection
  3. incited the people to revolt
  4. abused the elders of the people
  5. disapproved of worship in the temple
Answer and explanation

B: proclaimed in Jesus the resurrection

Acts 4:1-3 says the authorities were disturbed because the apostles taught the people and proclaimed resurrection in Jesus. They then arrested them.

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Question 41

The conversion of Paul was made possible by

  1. Simon
  2. Zacchaeus
  3. The risen Jesus
  4. Matthew
  5. Barnabas
Answer and explanation

C: The risen Jesus

Acts 9:3-6 presents Jesus addressing Saul on the road. This encounter initiates the change that the question calls Paul’s conversion.

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Question 43

Which of the following was NOT one of the decisions of the Jerusalem Council communicated to Gentile Christians?

  1. Abstinence from eating meat offered to idols.
  2. Compliance with circumcision rites.
  3. Avoidance of eating meat with blood in it.
  4. Abstinence from eating strangled animals’ flesh.
  5. Avoidance of fornication.
Answer and explanation

B: Compliance with circumcision rites.

Acts 15:28-29 lists abstention from idol offerings, blood, strangled animals and sexual immorality. It does not require Gentile converts to undergo circumcision.

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Question 44

The proconsul before whom Paul was brought during his stay in Corinth was called

  1. Festus
  2. Pontius Pilate
  3. Gallio
  4. Agrippa
  5. Felix
Answer and explanation

C: Gallio

Acts 18:12 names Gallio as proconsul of Achaia when Paul is brought before the judgement seat during his residence in Corinth.

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Question 46

The seven deacons were appointed to

  1. conduct a mission to the Gentiles
  2. replace the twelve
  3. lead the Church in Jerusalem
  4. help in the distribution of food
  5. preach the Gospel.
Answer and explanation

D: help in the distribution of food

Acts 6 describes the seven being selected after a complaint about the daily distribution. Their immediate assigned task concerns that practical service.

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Question 48

When Paul arrived in Rome, the people he first addressed were

  1. the local leaders of the Jews
  2. the early Roman Christians
  3. The Roman soldiers who were guarding him
  4. The pagans whom he wanted to convert
  5. Apollos and his followers who were expecting his arrival.
Answer and explanation

A: the local leaders of the Jews

Acts 28:17 records Paul summoning the local Jewish leaders after reaching Rome. His first recorded address in the city is to that group.

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Question 49

‘For I am ready not only to be imprisoned but even to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus. ‘Who was this devoted person?

  1. Stephen
  2. James
  3. Peter
  4. Paul
  5. Barnabas
Answer and explanation

D: Paul

Acts 21:13 attributes this declaration to Paul. He speaks after the warning about what may happen to him in Jerusalem.

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