Riddle Me This

July 29, 2004 in Puzzles/Riddles with 8 Comments

As the legend goes, this puzzle was written by a lady in California in response to an offer from a gentleman in Philadelphia that he would pay anyone $1,000 who could write a puzzle he could not solve. He failed to do so and paid the $1,000. The answer is one word, and it appears only four times in the Bible (KJV).

Adam, God made out of dust
But thought it best to make me first.
So I was made before man
To answer God’s most Holy plan.
A living being I became
And Adam gave to me my name.
I from his presence withdrew
And more of Adam never knew.
I did my Maker’s law obey
Nor ever want from it astray.
Thousands of miles I go in fear
But seldom on earth appear.
For purpose wise which God did see,
He put a living soul in me.
A soul from me God did claim
And took from me the soul again.
So when from me the soul had fled
I was the same as when first made.
And without hands, or feet, or soul,
I travel on from pole to pole.
I labor hard by day, by night
To fallen man I give the great light.
Thousands of people, young and old
Will by my death great light behold.
No right or wrong can I conceive.
The scripture I can not believe
Although my name therein is found
They are to me an empty sound.
No fear of death doth trouble me
Real happiness I’ll never see.
To Heaven I shall never go
Or to Hell below.
Now when these lines you slowly read
Go search your Bible with all speed.
For that my name is written there
I do honestly to you declare.

NOTE: I haven’t verified that the word only appears four times. Found this on the web somewhere and I’m posting it as is…

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About Chris: Thirty-something, knowledge seeking, information devouring, Christian technophile living in Northern KY seeking to act justly, love mercy and walk humbly with my God.


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8 Responses to “Riddle Me This”

  1. Jeremy July 29, 2004 at 23:18 #

    Leslie and I both figured this one out. It’s a whale! Can’t believe a guy had to pay $1000 for that one.

  2. Jeremy July 29, 2004 at 23:20 #

    Oh yeah, after we figured it out we went to biblegateway.com and checked to see how many times it appears in the bible, 4.

  3. Chris July 29, 2004 at 23:42 #

    Good job! And thanks for verifying that it did appear 4 times.

  4. Jeff July 30, 2004 at 01:15 #

    I was told to not post, I’ve been banned from Riddle’s so I let this one go.

  5. Chris July 30, 2004 at 08:02 #

    Ah, you know I was just joking about that. I think you actually didn’t get this one first and are trying to cover now ;-)

  6. Jeff July 30, 2004 at 10:06 #

    I just was not home all day and night, so I missed it. It was already solved when I got here. I don’t care about solving them, I care about solving them FIRST.

  7. ISAAC October 6, 2004 at 11:35 #

    it’s not a a whale, it’s COMET
    (how did a whale have a soul?)

  8. Chris October 6, 2004 at 11:52 #

    The soul is referring to Jonah, who ended up in the belly of the whale. The riddle doesn’t exactly say the whale has a soul, but that God “put a living soul in me,” referring to Jonah