FIVE COMPETITIONS AND SPORTS MENTIONED IN THE BIBLE
NUMBER 5 - ROMAN SOLDIERS CAST LOTS FOR A GAME OF CASTING LOTS (John 19:24)
Before the dice was invented there were lots. Lots were sticks , cards, coins, knuckle bones from sheep, pottery, stones or other devices - each crudely designed with letters and symbols. Priests, leaders, and common folk cast lots to determine God's will in decision making with such things as choosing a king (1 Samuel 10-20-24), replacing Judas (Acts1:26), dividing land (Numbers 26:52-56), and ending strife (Proverbs 18:18).
When Jesus was hanging on a cross, the soldiers who put him on the wooden bars divided his clothes among themselves. But there was one piece of clothing Jesus had that was special, so they cast lots to decide who got to keep it.
NUMBER 4 - SAMSON LOSES IN A GAME OF RIDDLES (Judges 14:14)
Creating and solving riddles was a very competitive game in the ancient world. In a world where poems and music were the centers of many competitions (eventually included in the Olympics), there was one riddler who stands out in the Bible as one of the best.
Samson challenged 30 Philistines to a contest of riddles. After both sides agreed to the rules and awards, Samson presented the riddle:
"Out of the eater, something to eat;
Out of the strong, something sweet."
The Philistines had seven days to solve the riddle and whoever lost would have to provide 30 expensive garments to the winner.
The solution to the riddle was based on Samson's own experience. Samson had found honey from a beehive that was built inside a lion's corpse. So the solution to the riddle was:
"What is sweeter than honey?"
"What is stronger than a lion?"
The Philistines couldn't think of an answer, so they turned to Samson's fiance who was also a Philistine and they threatened her. Samson's girlfriend harassed harassed him over and over until he broke down and Samson gave her the answer - of course he told her not to tell anyone - but she told one of the Philistines; and when the seven days were up, the 30 Philistines provided the right answer to Samson who lost the contest. To get the 30 garments, Samson killed 30 other Philistines and took their clothes.
NUMBER 3 - NEW TESTAMENT WRITERS USE GREEK COMPETITIONS AS ILLUSTRATIONS OF CHRISTIAN FAITH (HEBREWS 12:1-2)
The Olympic styled games were considered taboo by many Jews because of the violence, the nudity of those competing, and most of all because they came from the Roman/Greek world. Nevertheless at least 2 of the New Testament writers knew quite a bit about the games and used them as illustrations in their writings. It is very possible that Paul and the writer of Hebrews attended one or more of the games.
Hebrews 12:1-2 compares the Christian walk to running in a foot race. The crowd of onlookers are compared to those men and women of faith who lived and died in the past. Removing sin that slows down the Christian walk is illustrated by weights used for training that must be removed for the real competition. The mental focus needed to run was compared to the Christian life of keeping one's focus on Jesus.
The Apostle Paul often used illustrations of boxing and running in his writings, illustrating the importance of discipline, following the rules (Galatians 2:2, 2 Timothy 2:5), striving to be the best Christian possible (Philippians 3:13-15), the importance of training, self control, and reaching for a prize that is better than the honor of receiving a wreath made from an olive branch (1 Corinthians 9:25-27).
NUMBER 2 - ESTHER WINS A BEAUTY CONTEST (ESTHER 2:1-17)
Today's beauty contests are highly competitive venues focusing on talent, intelligence, and beauty. Winners of these contests move on to other contests, win cash prizes, local or national recognition, college tuition, and a host of other awards.
2,500 years ago a powerful Middle Eastern king held his own beauty contest bringing in the most beautiful women from all over the world.
These women spent one year being pampered and covered in oil and spices to prepare them for one special night each woman could spend the night having sex with the king who was the one and only judge. Night after night the king took one of the contestants into his chambers and had sex with her to see if she would win the contest. If he liked her, the king would bring her a second or third time in his chambers,. When the king was content after having sex with all the girls, he made the decision and the winner became the queen.
Among the contestants was a young woman named "Esther," who was a Jew. She was simple, humble, and incredibly good looking. She won the contest and became the queen.
As a queen she lived well off in the palace, able to respond to every wish the king desired; and if she wanted to see her husband, she was able to take her life into her own hands and request to see him. If her husband was in a good mood (which was not easy to predict), if the king was in a good mood, he wouldn't behead the queen for troubling him.
NUMBER 1 - WAR GAMES - FRIENDLY COMPETITION GOES BAD (2 Samuel 2:12-17)
Just after King Saul's death, two Israeli generals (Abner and Joab) and their armies met face to face and agreed to a contest. Each group brought 12 men to the contest with no prize in mind, the contest was simply for entertainment - the 24 men were there simply to entertain the troupes and the generals.
As soon as the game began, both sides could easily see that the soldiers were trained in the same school; for each man on both sides grabbed his opponent by the head and speared the other with his sword. In seconds the game was finished with a tie. All 24 competitors lay on the ground dead. Seeing this, the fans went wild and turned on each other. Total chaos followed with fans on both sides slaughtering opposing fans. In the end it looked like a European football (socker) game.
CONCLUSION
These are the top five sports I see as mentioned in the bible. Do you see something else?
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