The International Bible Quiz for Youth, held every Independence Day, returned to an almost normal format following the corona pandemic this year and was won by Gilad Abrahomov, 16, of Yeshivat Bnei Akiva in Netanya.
In second place was Dvir Barchad, a student at the Kiryat Ata Yeshiva, and in third place Benjamin Rom from the US.
Although this year saw the return of an audience, participants from abroad were still unable to attend in person and had to make do with attending remotely by video link.
As ever, the participants had to contend with the most detailed minutiae from the Bible, answering questions spanning the entire biblical canon from the first Five Books of the Torah, the prophets, and the books of the “Ketuvim,” such as Psalms and Job.
The contestants were peppered with questions such as where did the false prophet Hananya Ben Azor, in the time of King Hezekiah, live? (Givon); how much money did the mother of Micha the prophet give a goldsmith? (200 shekels); and how many years did Jacob spend in the house of Lavan? (20 years).
The 16 participants, who hailed from Israel and around the Jewish world from Argentina to Canada and South Africa to Mexico, dealt admirably with the questions and demonstrated a remarkable grasp of detail of the Hebrew Bible.
The contest was held in the presence of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Education Minister Yoav Gallant, and Chairman of the Jewish Agency Isaac Herzog, among other dignitaries.
As he has done on several occasions during the period of national memorial and celebration days, Netanyahu spoke of the vaccination program that has transformed the country since last Independence Day.
“The Prophet Isaiah used the expression ‘Hosen yeshuot’ in which he was referring to the wisdom of the Jewish people and its faith, but today those words have another meaning,” he said. “Due to the covid vaccination operation we brought salvation from the global pandemic, we have returned to life, and to my joy we have returned to a Bible Quiz in an almost normal format,” adding that he hoped next year international participants would be able to attend in person.
“The Bible is a mighty treasury of spirit, values, identity, love of man, love of the land, faith, and a call for continuity,” he continued. “Every generation is required to add chapters to the amazing story of our people, whose resurrection in the Land of Israel is a wonder among the nations.”
Gallant, whose Education Ministry sponsors the Bible Quiz, also spoke, saying that the Jewish people had “no greater inspiration” than from the Bible.
“We have no deeper roots than those in the Bible, and we have no purpose or hope without the foundational values of the Bible,” said Gallant. “The people of the book is first and foremost the people of the book of books – a nation that is being formed and strengthened from between the pages of the Bible, a nation that has established an identity upon the yoke of Torah, a nation whose highs and lows are also well reflected in Bible stories. Precisely because of this, a day of contentment is upon us.”