1 Samuel Bible Trivia: 38 Questions and Answers for Families

These 38 1 Samuel Bible trivia questions cover the whole book -- Hannah's prayer, the boy who heard God's voice at night, Israel's first king, and the most famous underdog fight in history. Answers with verse references are included after every question, sorted into easy, medium, and hard rounds by age.

1 Samuel is prime trivia territory because everyone knows David and Goliath, but the book is packed with details even Bible-reading adults forget: golden rats, a statue that kept falling on its face, and a king hiding in the luggage on his own coronation day.

What Is the Book of 1 Samuel About?

The book of 1 Samuel tells how Israel changed from a loose nation led by judges into a kingdom -- through three lives: Samuel the last judge and prophet, Saul the first king who started well and fell hard, and David the shepherd boy God chose to replace him. The book is anonymous; Jewish tradition attributes part of it to Samuel himself, and 1 Chronicles 29:29 mentions records kept by Samuel, Nathan, and Gad -- though Samuel dies in chapter 25, so he cannot have written it all.

The story runs from about 1100 to 1010 BC, ending with Saul's death at Mount Gilboa. It matters because its central sentence explains how God picks people: "People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart" (1 Samuel 16:7). Nearly every story in the book -- from a barren woman's answered prayer to a giant's defeat -- is that sentence acted out.

Easy 1 Samuel Trivia Questions (Ages 5-8)

1. Who defeated the giant Goliath? David (1 Samuel 17:50)
2. What did David use to defeat Goliath? A sling and a stone (1 Samuel 17:49-50)
3. Who was Israel's very first king? Saul (1 Samuel 10:24)
4. Who was Samuel's mother, who prayed and prayed for a baby? Hannah (1 Samuel 1:20)
5. Who was calling Samuel's name when he woke up at night in the tabernacle? God -- the LORD (1 Samuel 3:4-10)
6. What did Samuel say when he finally answered God's voice? "Speak, for your servant is listening" (1 Samuel 3:10)
7. What was David's job before he became famous? He was a shepherd, watching his father's sheep (1 Samuel 17:15, 34)
8. How many smooth stones did David pick up from the stream? Five (1 Samuel 17:40)
9. What did David play to make King Saul feel better? The lyre (a small harp) (1 Samuel 16:23)
10. Who was David's best friend, the king's own son? Jonathan (1 Samuel 18:1-3)
11. Who was David's father? Jesse of Bethlehem (1 Samuel 17:12)
12. Which prophet anointed both Saul and David with oil? Samuel (1 Samuel 10:1; 16:13)

Medium 1 Samuel Trivia Questions (Ages 9-12)

1. Where did Hannah pray for a son, and which priest watched her? At the LORD's house in Shiloh, watched by Eli (1 Samuel 1:9-12)
2. What did Eli wrongly think Hannah was doing as she prayed? He thought she was drunk, because her lips moved but no sound came out (1 Samuel 1:13-14)
3. What promise did Hannah make about her son? She would give him to the LORD for all his life, and no razor would touch his head (1 Samuel 1:11)
4. What was Saul doing when he first met Samuel? Searching for his father's lost donkeys (1 Samuel 9:3-6, 15-17)
5. What made Saul stand out physically from every other Israelite? He was a head taller than anyone else (1 Samuel 9:2)
6. Where was Saul found when it was time to announce him as king? Hiding among the supplies (the baggage) (1 Samuel 10:22)
7. What did Israel's elders demand that made Samuel so upset? A king, "such as all the other nations have" (1 Samuel 8:5)
8. What happened to the idol Dagon when the captured ark sat in its temple? It fell face-down before the ark -- twice, and the second time its head and hands broke off (1 Samuel 5:3-4)
9. How tall was Goliath? Six cubits and a span -- over nine feet tall (1 Samuel 17:4)
10. What city was Goliath from? Gath (1 Samuel 17:4)
11. For how many days did Goliath taunt Israel's army? Forty days, every morning and evening (1 Samuel 17:16)
12. What song did the women sing that made Saul furious with jealousy? "Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands" (1 Samuel 18:7)
13. What did Saul hurl at David while David played music for him? A spear (1 Samuel 18:10-11)

Hard 1 Samuel Trivia Questions (Teens and Adults)

1. Finish God's words to Samuel: "People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at..." "the heart" (1 Samuel 16:7)
2. What were the names of Eli's two wicked sons who died in one day? Hophni and Phinehas (1 Samuel 2:12; 4:11)
3. What name, meaning "The Glory has departed," was given to Eli's grandson? Ichabod (1 Samuel 4:21)
4. What golden objects did the Philistines send back with the ark as a guilt offering? Five gold tumors and five gold rats (1 Samuel 6:4)
5. What did Samuel name the memorial stone after God routed the Philistines, and what does it mean? Ebenezer -- "Thus far the LORD has helped us" (1 Samuel 7:12)
6. Which enemy king and which animals did Saul spare against God's direct command? Agag, king of the Amalekites, plus the best of the sheep and cattle (1 Samuel 15:8-9)
7. Complete Samuel's famous rebuke: "To obey is better than..." "sacrifice" (1 Samuel 15:22)
8. How many of Jesse's sons passed before Samuel before David was even sent for? Seven (1 Samuel 16:10-11)
9. What did David secretly cut off in the cave at En Gedi instead of killing Saul? The corner of Saul's robe (1 Samuel 24:4)
10. What two items did David take from Saul's camp while everyone slept, to prove he'd spared him again? Saul's spear and his water jug (1 Samuel 26:11-12)
11. Who was the wise, quick-thinking wife of Nabal who stopped David from taking revenge -- and later married him? Abigail (1 Samuel 25:23-35, 42)
12. Whom did Saul secretly visit at night to try to speak with the dead prophet Samuel? The medium at Endor (1 Samuel 28:7-8)
13. Where and how did King Saul die? On Mount Gilboa -- badly wounded, he fell on his own sword (1 Samuel 31:4)

How to Use These Questions

The easy round is basically the David and Goliath story plus Samuel's childhood -- perfect for dinner-table play with young kids. Save the hard round for teens and adults, and expect question 29 (the golden rats) to produce the best reactions of the night. For team formats and scoring ideas, see our family Bible trivia night guide.

If your kids need story prep, the fastest catch-up is who was David, plus the episode-length stories of Hannah's prayer, God calling Samuel, and David and Goliath. Our video lessons at Faithful Kids cover the whole 1 Samuel storyline as a series, with a quiz after every episode -- kids who finish it will sweep this list.

For more questions in this era, try our Old Testament trivia for kids.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who wrote the book of 1 Samuel?

The book of 1 Samuel is anonymous. Jewish tradition connects it to the prophet Samuel, and 1 Chronicles 29:29 mentions written records by Samuel, Nathan, and Gad -- but since Samuel's death is reported in 1 Samuel 25:1, other hands clearly completed the book.

How many chapters does 1 Samuel have?

1 Samuel has 31 chapters. Chapters 1-7 cover Samuel's birth and leadership, chapters 8-15 cover Saul's rise and rejection, and chapters 16-31 follow David's anointing, Goliath, and his years on the run until Saul's death.

What is the most famous story in 1 Samuel?

David and Goliath (1 Samuel 17) is the most famous story in the book -- and one of the most famous in the entire Bible. A shepherd boy with a sling defeats a nine-foot champion because he comes "in the name of the LORD Almighty" (1 Samuel 17:45).

Why were 1 and 2 Samuel split into two books?

They were originally one book in the Hebrew Bible, split when the Greek translation (the Septuagint) needed two scrolls for the longer translated text. The break falls naturally at Saul's death: 1 Samuel ends at Mount Gilboa, and 2 Samuel opens with David learning the news.

What age can kids start learning 1 Samuel?

Ages 5-8 can start right away with Hannah, young Samuel, and David and Goliath -- three of the most kid-friendly stories in Scripture. The later chapters (Saul's jealousy, the medium at Endor, Saul's death) deal with darker themes better suited to ages 9 and up.

What is the main lesson of 1 Samuel?

The main lesson of 1 Samuel is that God chooses and judges by the heart, not by appearances or resumes (1 Samuel 16:7). Saul looked like a king and lost the kingdom through disobedience; David looked like nobody's first pick and became Israel's greatest king because "the LORD was with him."