Bible Quiz
Perchance to Dream
1. Who dreamed first about cows and then about ears of grain?
2. Soon after Jesus’ birth, an angel appeared to Joseph in a dream. What did the angel tell him to do?
3. Name the military leader who was encouraged when he overheard an enemy soldier’s dream.
4. What group of travelers changed its itinerary after receiving instructions in a dream?
5. What king insisted that his magicians and wise men tell him his dream as well as its interpretation?
6. Who had a dream that might have reversed the outcome of a trial?
7. Whose dream led to the establishment of Bethel, which later became an important sanctuary?
8. Who said that God “terrifies men with warnings” given in dreams?
9. To whom did God appear in a dream and say, “Ask what I shall give you.”
10. With whom does God speak in dreams?
Prepared by Michael L. Sherer, director of communication for Northwestern Ohio Synod, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and part-time pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church, Elida, Ohio.
Answers
1. Pharaoh. In Pharaoh’s first dream, seven fat cows emerged from the Nile and fed in the grass, but they were eaten by seven lean cows that came out of the river after them. In his second dream, seven plump and good ears of grain that grew on one stalk were swallowed by seven thin and blighted ears that sprouted next. When his magicians failed to interpret the dreams, Pharaoh summoned Joseph, who explained, “The dream of Pharaoh is one; God has revealed … what he is about to do” (Genesis 41:25). The plump cows and ears of grain symbolize seven years of great plenty in the land of Egypt, and the thin cows and ears represent seven years of famine that will follow (Genesis 41:26–31). Joseph told Pharaoh that surplus food should be stored during the prosperity to be ready for the famine. Pharaoh believed Joseph and placed him in charge of preparing all of Egypt for the coming famine.
2. Flee to Egypt. After the departure of the wise men, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him” (Matthew 2:13). Joseph obeyed and took his family to Egypt, where they remained until Herod’s death.
3. Gideon. The Lord promised Gideon and the Israelites victory over the marauding Midianites, but, recognizing Gideon’s fear, he offered him a means of encouragement. Following God’s instructions, Gideon crept down to an enemy outpost. There he heard two Midianites discussing a strange dream in which “a cake of barley bread tumbled into the camp of Midian, and came to the tent, and struck it so that it fell” (Judges 7:13). The dreamer’s comrade answered, “This is no other than the sword of Gideon … into his hand God has given Midian and all the host” (Judges 7:14).
4. The wise men. When wise men came from the East to pay homage to the infant Jesus, King Herod tried to trick them, saying, “when you have found him bring me word, that I too may come and worship him” (Matthew 2:8). After worshipping Jesus and offering him their gifts, the wise men were warned in a dream not to return to King Herod. Instead, they “departed to their own country by another way” (Matthew 2:12).
5. Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon. Reasoning that whoever could interpret his dream correctly should also have the power to know the dream itself, Nebuchadnezzar put his wise men to the test. When the wise men argued that only the gods could possibly know his dream, the king became enraged and ordered their destruction. The prophet Daniel and his companions learned that they too were to be slain and thus sought “mercy of the God of heaven concerning this mystery,” which was then “revealed to Daniel in a vision of the night” (Daniel 2:18–19). After Daniel told Nebuchadnezzar the dream and its interpretation, the king fell at his feet and said, “Truly your God is God of gods and Lord of kings” (Daniel 2:47).
6. Pilate’s wife. As Pilate was “sitting on the judgment seat,” trying to decide what to do with Jesus, “his wife sent word to him, ‘Have nothing to do with that righteous man, for I have suffered much over him today in a dream’ ” (Matthew 27:19). Pilate yielded to the mob, however, and handed Jesus over for crucifixion.
7. Jacob’s. On his way to Paddan-aram to find a wife among his uncle Laban’s daughters, Jacob slept one night on the ground and dreamed of a ladder, reaching from earth to heaven, on which angels ascended and descended. God himself appeared and told Jacob, “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father …. I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land” (Genesis 28:13–15). Afterward Jacob declared, “How awesome is this place!” (Genesis 28:17), and the next morning he set up a pillar and named the place Bethel, meaning “house of God.”
8. Elihu. After listening to the speeches of Job’s three friends, Elihu “Was angry at Job because he justified himself rather than God” and “was angry also at Job’s three friends because they had found no answer” to Job’s arguments (Job 32:2–3). Then Elihu gave his own speech to justify God’s actions, in the course of which he said, “In a dream, in a vision of the night … [God] opens the ears of men and terrifies them with warnings, that he may turn man aside from his deed, and cut off pride from man” (Job 33:15–17).
9. Solomon. God appeared and made his offer to Solomon in a dream at Gibeon. Solomon asked to be given “an understanding mind to govern thy people, that I may discern between good and evil” (1 Kings 3:9). God was pleased that Solomon had chosen wisdom rather than long life or riches.
10. Prophets other than Moses. When Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because he had married a Cushite woman, God appeared in a pillar of cloud and reaffirmed Moses’ unique position: “If there is a prophet among you, I the Lord make myself known to him in a vision, I speak with him in a dream. Not so with my servant Moses …. With him I speak mouth to mouth” (Numbers 12:6–8).