34 Bible Verses about Riddles

Then went Samson and his father and his mother down to Timnah. And when they came to the vineyards of Timnah, behold, a young lion roared upon him. And the spirit of the LORD came upon him. And he tare him, as a man would rent a kid, and yet had nothing in his hand. Nevertheless he told not his father and mother what he had done. And he went down and talked with the woman, which seemed well favoured in the sight of Samson.read more.
And within a short space after, as he went thither again to take her to wife, he turned out of the way, to see the carcass of the Lion. And behold, there was a swarm of bees in the carcass of the Lion and honey. And he took of the honey in his hands and went eating, and came to his father and mother, and gave them also. And they did eat. But he told them not, that he had taken the honey out of the carcass of the Lion. And when his father was come unto the woman, Samson made there a feast, for so used the young men to do. And when her friends saw him, they brought thirty companions to bear fellowship. And Samson said unto them, "I will put forth a riddle unto you. And if you can declare it within seven days of the feast and find it out, I will give you thirty shirts and thirty changes of garments: But and if you cannot declare it me, then shall ye give me thirty shirts and thirty changes of garments." And they answered him, "Put forth thy riddle and let us hear it." And he said unto them, "Out of the eater came meat: and out of the strong came sweetness." And they could not in three days expound the riddle.

And when the seventh day was come, they said unto Samson's wife, "Flatter with thine husband, that he may declare us thy riddle, or else we will burn thee and thy father's house with fire: have ye called us to make us beggars? Or not?" Then Samson's wife wept unto him and said, "It cannot be but that thou hatest me and lovest me not: for thou hast put forth a riddle unto the children of my folk and wilt not tell me what it meaneth." And he said, "Behold, I have not told it my father, nor my mother, and should I tell it thee?" And she wept unto him seven days, while the feast lasted. And the seventh day he told her, because she lay so sore upon him. And she told it the children of her folk.read more.
And the men of the city said unto him the seventh day before the sun went down, "What is sweeter than honey? And what is stronger than a Lion?" Then said he unto them, "If ye had not ploughed with my calf, ye had not found out my riddle." Then the spirit of the LORD came upon him. And he went down to Ashkelon, and slew thirty men of them and spoiled them, and gave their garments unto them which expounded the riddle. And he was wroth and went up to his father's house. But Samson's wife was given to one of his companions that bare him company.

Moreover, Joseph dreamed a dream and told it his brethren: wherefore they hated him yet the more. And he said unto them, "Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed. Behold, we were making sheaves in the field: and lo, my sheaf arose and stood upright, and yours stood round about and made obeisance to my sheaf."read more.
Then said his brethren unto him, "What, shalt thou be our king or shalt thou reign over us?" And they hated him yet the more, because of his dream and of his words. And he dreamed yet another dream and told it his brethren, saying, "Behold, I have had one dream more: me thought the sun and the moon and eleven stars made obeisance to me."

And they dreamed, either of them, in one night: both the butler and the baker of the king of Egypt which were bound in the prison house, either of them his dream, and each man's dream of a sundry interpretation. When Joseph came in unto them in the morning, and looked upon them: behold, they were sad. And he asked them, saying, "Wherefore look ye so sadly today?"read more.
They answered him, "We have dreamed a dream, and have no man to declare it." And Joseph said unto them, "Interpreting belongeth to God, but tell me yet."

And it fortuned, at two years' end, that Pharaoh dreamed; and thought that he stood by a river's side, and that there came out of the river seven goodly cows and fat fleshed, and fed in a meadow. And him thought that seven other cows came up after them out of the river; evil favored and lean fleshed and stood by the other upon the brink of the river.read more.
And the evil favored and lean fleshed cows ate up the seven well favored and fat cows: and he awoke therewith. And he slept again and dreamed the second time, that seven ears of corn grew upon one stalk, rank and goodly. And that seven thin ears, blasted with the wind, sprang up after them: and that the seven thin ears devoured the seven rank and full ears. And then Pharaoh awaked: and see, here is his dream. When the morning came, his spirit was troubled. And he sent and called for all the soothsayers of Egypt and all the wise men thereof, and told them his dream: but there was none of them that could interpret it unto Pharaoh.

In the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, had Nebuchadnezzar a dream, wherethrough his spirit was vexed, and his sleep brake from him. Then the king commanded to call together all the soothsayers, charmers, witches and Chaldeans, for to show the king his dream. So they came, and stood before the king. And the king said unto them, "I have dreamed a dream, and my spirit was so troubled therewith, that I have clean forgotten what I dreamed."

There be three things too high for me, and as for the fourth, it passeth my knowledge. The way of an Eagle in the air, the way of a serpent over a stone, the way of a ship in the sea, and the way of a man with a young woman.

"Thou son of man, put forth a dark speaking and a parable unto the house of Israel, and say, 'Thus sayeth the LORD God: There came a great Eagle with great wings; yea, with mighty long wings, full of feathers of divers colours; upon the mount of Lebanon, and took a branch from a Cedar tree, and brake off the top of his twig, and carried it into the land of Canaan, and set it in a city of merchants.read more.
He took also a branch of the land, and planted it in a fruitful ground, he brought it unto great waters, and set it as a willow tree thereby. Then did it grow, and was a great vine stock, but low by the ground: thus there came of it a vine, and it brought forth blossoms, and spread out branches. But there was another Eagle, a great one, which had great wings and many feathers: and behold, the roots of this vine had a hunger after him, and spread out his branches toward him, to water his fruits. Nevertheless it was planted upon a good ground beside great waters: so that by reason it should have brought out branches and fruit, and have been a goodly vine.'

In the very same hour there appeared fingers, as it had been of a man's hand writing, right over against the candlestick upon the plain wall in the king's palace: and the king saw the palm of the hand that wrote. Then changed the king his countenance, and his thoughts troubled him, so that the joints of his body shook, and his knees smote one against another. Wherefore the king cried mightily, that they should bring him the charmers, Chaldeans, and the conjurers of devils. The king spake also to the wise men of Babylon, and said, "Whoso can read this writing, and show me the plain meaning thereof: shall be clothed with purple, have a chain of gold about his neck, and rule the third part of my kingdom."read more.
Upon this, came all the king's wise men: but they could neither read the writing, nor show the king what it signified. Then was the king sore afraid in so much, that his color changed, and his lords were sore vexed.

These things have I spoken unto you in proverbs. The time will come when I shall no more speak to you in proverbs: but I shall show you plainly from my father.

Jesus answered, and said unto them, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will rear it up again."

"After a while ye shall not see me, and again after a while ye shall see me: For I go to the father." Then said some of his disciples between themselves, "What is this that he saith unto us, 'After a while ye shall not see me, and again after a while ye shall see me: and that I go to the father?'" They said therefore, "What is this that he saith, 'After a while?' We cannot tell what he saith."read more.
Jesus perceived that they would ask him, and said unto them, "This is it that ye enquire of between yourselves, that I said, 'After a while ye shall not see me, and again after a while ye shall see me.'

Here is wisdom. Let him that hath wit count the number of the beast. For it is the number of a man, and his number is six hundred, threescore and six.

And the angel said unto me, "Wherefore marvellest thou? I will show thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that beareth her, which hath seven heads, and ten horns. The beast that thou seest, was, and is not, and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and shall go into perdition, and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder - whose names are not written in the book of life from he beginning of the world - when they behold the beast that was, and is not. And here is a mind that hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth:

And he said, "Hear my words. If there be a prophet of the LORD's among you, I will show myself unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream. But my servant Moses is not so, which is faithful in all mine house. Unto him I speak mouth to mouth and he seeth the sight and the fashion of the LORD, and not through riddles. Wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?"

But there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face;

Now we see in a glass, even in a dark speaking: but then shall we see face to face. Now I know unperfectly: but then shall I know even as I am known.

Of which salvation have the prophets enquired, and searched, which prophesied of the grace that should come unto you; searching when, or at what time, the spirit of Christ which was in them should signify - which spirit testified before - the passions that should come unto Christ, and the glory that should follow after.

"Judah, thy brethren shall praise thee, and thine hand shall be in the neck of thine enemies, and thy father's children shall stoop unto thee. Judah is a lion's whelp. From spoil, my son, thou art come on high: he laid him down and couched himself as a lion, and as a lioness. Who dare stir him up? The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a ruler from between his legs, until Shiloh come, unto whom the people shall hearken.read more.
He shall bind his foal unto the vine, and his ass's colt unto the vine branch, and shall wash his garment in wine and his mantle in the blood of grapes:

There shall come a rod out of the stock of Jesse, and a branch shall spring out of his root.

He came up as a spray before him, and as a root out of a dry land. There was neither fashion or beauty on him. And when we looked on him, there was no godliness that we should lust after him.

My mouth shall speak of wisdom, and my heart shall muse of understanding. I will incline mine ear to the parable, and show my dark speech upon the harp.

And Solomon expounded her all her questions, that there was not one thing hid from the king which he expounded her not.

And Solomon told her all her questions, that there was nothing hid from Solomon which he told her not.

because that such an abundant spirit, knowledge and wisdom, to expound dreams, open secrets, and to declare hard doubts, was found in him. Yea, even in Daniel, whom the king named Balteshazzar. Let this same Daniel be sent for, and he shall tell what it meaneth."

The proverbs of Solomon, the son of David king of Israel: To learn wisdom, instruction, understanding, prudence, righteousness, judgment and equity.read more.
That the very babes might have wit, and that young men might have knowledge and understanding. By hearing, the wise man shall come by more wisdom: and he that is endued with understanding shall obtain wit to perceive a parable, and the interpretation thereof; the words of the wise, and the dark speeches of the same.

Go to the Emmet, thou sluggard: consider her ways, and learn to be wise. She hath no guide, no teacher, no leader: yet in the summer she provideth her meat, and gathereth her food together in the harvest.

Like as snow is not mete in summer, nor rain in harvest; even so is worship unseemly for a fool. Like as the bird, and the swallow take their flight and flee here and there; so the curse that is given in vain, shall not light upon a man.

I will open my mouth in similitudes, and will speak forth things which have been kept secret from the beginning of the world;

And when it was told Jotham, he went and stood in the top of mount Gerizim, and lift up his voice and called, and said unto them, "Hearken unto me you citizens of Shechem, that God may hearken unto you. The trees went to anoint a king over them, and said unto the olive tree, 'Reign over us.' But the olive tree said unto them, 'Should I leave my fatness which both God and man praiseth in me, and go to be promoted over the trees?'read more.
Then said the trees to the fig tree, 'Come thou and be king over us.' And the fig tree answered them, 'Should I forsake my sweetness and my good fruit, and should go to be promoted over the trees?' Then said the trees unto the vine, 'Come thou and be king over us.' And the vine answered, 'Should I leave my wine that cheereth both God and man, and go to be promoted over the trees?' Then said all the trees unto the furze-bush, 'Come thou and reign over us.' And the furze bush said unto the trees, "If it will be true that ye will anoint me king over you, then come and rest under my shadow, and ye shall see that a fire shall come out of the furze-bush and waste the cypress trees of Lebanon!'

And the LORD sent Nathan unto David. And he came unto him and said unto him, "There were two men in one city, a rich and a poor. And the rich had exceeding great abundance of sheep and oxen. But the poor had nothing, save one little lamb which he bought and nourished up. And it grew up with him and his children, and did eat of his own meat and drank of his own cup, and slept in his bosom, and was as dear unto him as his daughter.read more.
And there came a stranger unto the rich man. And he could not find in his heart to take of his own sheep nor of his beasts to dress for the stranger that was come unto him. But took the poor man's lamb and dressed it for the man that was come to him."

Now will I sing my beloved friend a song of his vineyard. My beloved friend hath a vineyard in a very fruitful plenteous ground. This he hedged, this he walled round about, and planted it with goodly grapes. In the midst of it builded he a tower, and made a wine press therein. And afterward when he looked that it should bring him grapes, it brought forth thorns.

Moreover, thus said the LORD unto me, "Go thy way, and get thee a linen breech, and gird it about thy loins, and let it not be wet." Then I got me a breech, according to the commandment of the LORD, and put it about my loins. After this, the LORD spake unto me again,read more.
"Take the breech that thou hast prepared and put it about thee, and get thee up, and go unto Euphrates, and hide it in a hole of the rock." So went I, and hid it, as the LORD commanded me. And it happened, long after this, that the LORD spake unto me, "Up, and get thee to Euphrates, and fetch the breech from thence, which I commanded thee to hide there." Then went I to Euphrates, and digged up, and took the breech from the place where I had hid it: and, behold, the breech was corrupt, so that it was profitable for nothing.

All these things spake Jesus unto the people by similitudes, and with out similitudes spake he nothing to them, to fulfill that which was spoken by the prophet saying, "I will open my mouth in similitudes, and will speak forth things which have been kept secret from the beginning of the world."