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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. The author describes the account of Jesus' life in this book as what?
(a) Speculative.
(b) Purely fictional.
(c) A mix of fact and fiction.
(d) Purely historical.

2. The author says that that Jesus cannot be considered a historical figure because of the non-existence of what?
(a) Oral traditions.
(b) Books written about him.
(c) Descendents.
(d) Surviving documents.

3. Around what year does the author believe Jesus was born?
(a) 5 B.C.E.
(b) 1 C.E.
(c) 1 B.C.E.
(d) 15 B.C.E.

4. What rural area did Jesus begin teaching in?
(a) Galilee.
(b) Jerusalem.
(c) Israel.
(d) Bethlehem.

5. What problem with the Gospels makes it hard to determine the date of Jesus' birth?
(a) They are often in conflict with each other.
(b) They are difficult to read.
(c) They have been revised to hide the date.
(d) They don't talk about Jesus' birth.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is the main problem historians have with the calendars used by the ancients?

2. How long did the Israelites wander the desert after fleeing Egypt?

3. About which people did Josephus write?

4. How many tribes of Israel were there in Jesus' time?

5. The Gospels are missing characteristics of what type of literature, which makes them problematic?

Short Essay Questions

1. Who were the two pairs of brothers that were disciples of Jesus?

2. What kind of ruler does Sanders say Antipas was in comparison to his father, Herod the Great?

3. What opposing view to Jesus' prediction at the Temple do some people have?

4. What did Jesus tell the apostles they would one day rule over?

5. What structures did archeologists find that dated back to 70 C.E., thus alleviating some of the controversy about where Jesus taught?

6. In "Miracles," Sanders poses two views of Jesus' ability to perform miracles. What are the two views?

7. What did Jesus promise to anyone who was willing to make a sacrifice and follow him as a disciple?

8. What does Sanders say Jesus' small following did in comparison to other movements throughout history?

9. What prompted Jesus to begin his ministry at around the age of 20?

10. Who do historians believed helped take care of the disciples since they no longer worked for a living after they began to follow Jesus?

(see the answer keys)

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