Jeremiah Bible Trivia: 40 Questions and Answers for Families

These 40 Jeremiah Bible trivia questions cover the story of the weeping prophet -- the potter's house, the burned scroll, the muddy cistern rescue, and the real story behind Jeremiah 29:11 -- sorted into easy, medium, and hard rounds. Answers with verse references follow every question.

Jeremiah is one of the most dramatic books in the Bible, which makes it perfect trivia material: a king slices up God's word with a knife, a false prophet drops dead on schedule, and the prophet himself gets hauled out of a mud pit with old rags under his armpits. Most families know one verse from this book; these questions will show them the other 51 chapters.

What Is the Book of Jeremiah About?

The book of Jeremiah records the forty-year ministry of the prophet Jeremiah, who warned Judah that Babylon would destroy Jerusalem because of the nation's sin -- and lived to see it happen in 586 BC. Jeremiah was the son of Hilkiah, a priest from the town of Anathoth (Jeremiah 1:1), called by God as a young man during King Josiah's reign and active through Judah's last kings until the city fell.

He's nicknamed "the weeping prophet" because he grieved openly over his people (Jeremiah 9:1) while they beat him, jailed him, and burned his scroll. But the book isn't gloom all the way down: it contains the famous promise of "plans to prosper you" (29:11) and the new covenant God would write on human hearts (31:31-34) -- the very covenant the New Testament says Jesus fulfilled.

Easy Jeremiah Trivia Questions (Ages 5-8)

1. What is Jeremiah's famous nickname? The weeping prophet (see Jeremiah 9:1)
2. What excuse did young Jeremiah give when God called him? "I am too young" -- and God said not to say that (Jeremiah 1:6-7)
3. What did God say he did before Jeremiah was even born? "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you" (Jeremiah 1:5)
4. Whose workshop did God send Jeremiah to, to watch clay being shaped? The potter's house (Jeremiah 18:1-3)
5. Finish the famous verse: "For I know the ___ I have for you," declares the LORD. Plans (Jeremiah 29:11)
6. Those plans are "to give you hope and a ___." Future (Jeremiah 29:11)
7. Who did God say is like clay in the potter's hand? His people, Israel (Jeremiah 18:6)
8. Which great city did Jeremiah warn would be destroyed? Jerusalem (Jeremiah 21:10)
9. Which empire carried God's people away as captives? Babylon (Jeremiah 25:11)
10. What spotted animal did Jeremiah say cannot change its spots? The leopard (Jeremiah 13:23)
11. The person who trusts in the LORD is like a tree planted by what? The water -- it never fails to bear fruit (Jeremiah 17:7-8)
12. "Call to me and I will ___ you and tell you great and unsearchable things." Answer (Jeremiah 33:3)
13. In the new covenant, where did God promise to write his law? On his people's hearts (Jeremiah 31:33)

Medium Jeremiah Trivia Questions (Ages 9-12)

1. Who was Jeremiah's father? Hilkiah, a priest (Jeremiah 1:1)
2. What was Jeremiah's hometown? Anathoth, in the territory of Benjamin (Jeremiah 1:1)
3. What two things did God show Jeremiah in his call vision? An almond branch and a boiling pot tilting from the north (Jeremiah 1:11-13)
4. How many years did Jeremiah say the exile in Babylon would last? Seventy (Jeremiah 25:11; 29:10)
5. Who was Jeremiah's faithful scribe, who wrote down his words? Baruch son of Neriah (Jeremiah 36:4)
6. What did King Jehoiakim do to Jeremiah's scroll as it was read to him? Cut it up with a scribe's knife and burned it in his firepot (Jeremiah 36:23)
7. What did Jeremiah do after the scroll was burned? Dictated the whole thing again -- with even more words added (Jeremiah 36:32)
8. Where was Jeremiah thrown and left to sink in the mud? A cistern (Jeremiah 38:6)
9. Who rescued Jeremiah from the cistern? Ebed-Melek the Cushite, a palace official (Jeremiah 38:7-13)
10. What did Ebed-Melek lower into the cistern so the ropes wouldn't hurt Jeremiah? Old rags and worn-out clothes to pad his armpits (Jeremiah 38:11-12)
11. What did Jeremiah wear on his neck as a sign that the nations should serve Babylon? A wooden yoke (Jeremiah 27:2)
12. Which false prophet broke Jeremiah's yoke -- and died that same year, just as Jeremiah said? Hananiah (Jeremiah 28:10-17)
13. What did Jeremiah buy during the siege of Jerusalem as a sign of hope? A field at Anathoth -- proof that fields would one day be bought again (Jeremiah 32:9, 15)
14. Which Babylonian king finally conquered Jerusalem? Nebuchadnezzar (Jeremiah 39:1)

Hard Jeremiah Trivia Questions (Teens and Adults)

1. Jeremiah 1:2-3 names three kings of Judah under whom he prophesied. Who were they? Josiah, Jehoiakim, and Zedekiah (Jeremiah 1:2-3)
2. Which priest beat Jeremiah and locked him in the stocks? Pashhur (Jeremiah 20:2)
3. Jeremiah said God's word, when he tried to stay silent, felt like what shut up in his bones? A fire (Jeremiah 20:9)
4. What ordinary part of life did God tell Jeremiah to give up as a sign? Marriage and children (Jeremiah 16:2)
5. What healing product made Jeremiah's most famous question: "Is there no ___ in Gilead?" Balm (Jeremiah 8:22)
6. What does Jeremiah 17:9 call "deceitful above all things"? The heart (Jeremiah 17:9)
7. Jeremiah 10:5 mocks idols by comparing them to what, standing in a melon patch? Scarecrows -- "they cannot speak; they must be carried" (Jeremiah 10:5)
8. God's word is like a hammer that does what? Breaks a rock in pieces (Jeremiah 23:29)
9. Which family clan did God hold up as an example because they kept their ancestor's command never to drink wine? The Recabites (Jeremiah 35)
10. Where was Jeremiah taken against his will after Jerusalem fell? Egypt (Jeremiah 43:6-7)
11. Which short book of funeral poems about Jerusalem's fall is traditionally attributed to Jeremiah? Lamentations
12. Which chapter contains the new covenant promise quoted at length in Hebrews 8? Jeremiah 31 (Jeremiah 31:31-34)
13. Counted by words in the original Hebrew, where does Jeremiah rank among all the books of the Bible? It's the longest book in the Bible -- Psalms has more chapters, but Jeremiah has more words

How to Use These Questions

Jeremiah's story questions work best told in order -- the call, the potter, the scroll, the cistern, the fall of Jerusalem -- so the medium round doubles as a story you can narrate on a car ride. Question 5 is also the perfect setup for a great dinner conversation: most kids have seen Jeremiah 29:11 on a poster, and almost none know it was written to exiles facing seventy years in Babylon. For team play and scoring, use our family Bible trivia night format, and teens who like the darker, more dramatic material will enjoy our Bible trivia for teens.

For background, read how Judah fell to Babylon -- the event Jeremiah spent forty years warning about -- along with the era of good kings and bad kings and the ending of the exile in Cyrus sets them free, which fulfilled Jeremiah's seventy-year prophecy. Our video lessons at Faithful Kids cover this whole prophets-and-exile arc with a quiz after every episode.

For a broader mix, fold your favorites into the big Old Testament trivia for kids list.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who wrote the book of Jeremiah?

The prophet Jeremiah, with the help of his scribe Baruch son of Neriah, who wrote the prophecies down as Jeremiah dictated them (Jeremiah 36:4). When King Jehoiakim burned the first scroll, Jeremiah dictated it all over again with more added (Jeremiah 36:32).

Why is Jeremiah called the weeping prophet?

Because he grieved openly over his people's sin and coming destruction -- "Oh, that my head were a spring of water and my eyes a fountain of tears! I would weep day and night for the slain of my people" (Jeremiah 9:1). He loved the nation he had to condemn, which is what makes his book so human.

How many chapters does Jeremiah have?

Jeremiah has 52 chapters, and measured by word count in the original Hebrew it is the longest book in the Bible. The final chapter is a historical appendix describing the fall of Jerusalem in 586 BC.

What does Jeremiah 29:11 really mean?

"For I know the plans I have for you... plans to give you hope and a future" was written to the exiles in Babylon, who had just been told the exile would last seventy years (Jeremiah 29:10). It's a promise of God's faithfulness through a long, hard season -- not a promise of instant success -- which honestly makes it better, not worse.

How did Jeremiah die?

The Bible doesn't say. The book ends with Jeremiah taken to Egypt against his will (Jeremiah 43:6-7), and a later tradition holds that he was stoned there by his own countrymen -- but that comes from tradition, not Scripture.

What age can kids start learning Jeremiah?

Ages 5-8 can start with the call story ("I am too young!") and the potter and the clay, which are made for kids. The scroll-burning, the cistern, and the fall of Jerusalem work well from about age 9, and the new covenant chapter (Jeremiah 31) is a rich study for teens.