A riddle is a word puzzle that asks people to find a hidden meaning. People in the ancient world enjoyed riddles both for fun and as a way to test wisdom. Unlike fables (stories that teach obvious lessons), riddles were meant to be challenging to solve.
Riddles in the Old Testament
Fables in the Bible often used stories about plants or animals to teach clear lessons. For example, Jotham told a story about plants choosing a king (Judges 9:7–15). The meaning of his story was easy to understand. Sometimes, it can be hard to tell if something is a riddle or a fable. For instance, Ezekiel wrote what some people call a riddle about plants (Ezekiel 17), but others think it is more like a fable because its meaning is clearer than most riddles.
Samson’s riddle at his wedding feast is the most famous riddle in the Bible (Judges 14). People often shared riddles at celebrations like this (verses 12–13). Samson's riddle had two lines (called a couplet): "From the one who eats came something to eat; out of the strong came something sweet" (verse 14). The answer came from an earlier event when Samson had killed a lion and later found honey in its body. The thirty young men at the feast threatened Samson's future wife to get her to find out the answer from him. They answered his riddle by asking: "What is sweeter than honey? What is stronger than a lion?" (verse 18).
King Solomon’s wisdom was demonstrated by his ability to answer the queen of Sheba's "difficult questions" (1 Kings 10:1–4). A Jewish text called Sirach (also known as Ecclesiasticus) praises Solomon, saying: "Your soul covered the earth, and you filled it with parables and riddles" (Sirach 47:15).
A Jewish historian named Josephus wrote about a contest between Solomon and King Hiram where they exchanged riddles. Solomon won most of the time, but Hiram finally won one round by getting help from others (Antiquities 8.5.5). The wise people of Israel often claimed they could solve riddles (for example, Psalms 49:4; Proverbs 1:6). The book of Daniel mentions riddles several times. It describes a future ruler as "skilled in intrigue" (literally, "one who understands riddles") who would rise to power (Daniel 8:23–24). Daniel could also "interpret dreams, explain riddles, and solve difficult problems” (Daniel 5:12).
Riddles in the New Testament
The New Testament has fewer riddles. The various "hard sayings" of Jesus (for example, John 6:60) are difficult to accept and just as hard to understand. Perhaps the only true riddle is the number of the beast, 666 (Revelation 13:18). Many scholars think this number might refer to the Roman Emperor Nero, as this kind of number code was common in ancient writing.