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50 free Surah Al-Baqarah trivia questions with answers — trivia quiz, new questions added Aug 2026.
Surah Al-Baqarah is the longest chapter of the Quran and the one most Muslims know best, from the opening letters to the two closing verses recited before sleep. It holds Ayat al-Kursi, the verse on loans, the change of qibla and the rulings on fasting and pilgrimage, alongside the stories of Adam, the Israelites, Abraham and Talut. This quiz works through the chapter in that order: the title story and the reason for its name, the famous verses and what they actually say, the laws, and the narratives. Every question points to a specific verse or a well-known hadith, with a short explanation that adds one more detail. It suits anyone revising the chapter, teachers setting a Ramadan activity, or quiz hosts looking for questions on the Quran that go beyond the basics.
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Q 01In which city was Surah Al-Baqarah revealed, over roughly ten years starting from 622?
Medina
Medina was the Prophet's home after the Hijra, which makes Al-Baqarah a Medinan chapter full of law and community rules rather than the short warnings of the Meccan years.
Q 02Which verse number of Surah Al-Baqarah is Ayat al-Kursi, the Throne Verse many Muslims recite before sleep?
255
Verse 255 is the Throne Verse, held in hadith to be the greatest verse in the Quran. It is also printed on its own in countless homes and pendants.
Q 03What subject does verse 282 of Surah Al-Baqarah, the longest single verse in the Quran, deal with?
Recording a debt
Recording a debt is the command: a fixed-term loan should be committed to writing by a scribe and witnessed, whether the sum is small or great.
Q 04According to a hadith quoted for Surah Al-Baqarah, who does not enter a house where the chapter is recited?
Satan
Satan stays out of a home where Al-Baqarah is recited, the Prophet said, adding 'do not turn your houses into graves'. The saying is recorded in Sahih Muslim.
Q 05A hadith in Sahih al-Bukhari says reciting the last two verses of Surah Al-Baqarah at night does what?
It suffices them
It suffices them, the hadith says, which is why many Muslims read verses 285 and 286 before sleeping. The exact wording is 'that will be sufficient for him'.
Q 06During which event, according to tradition, was the Prophet granted the final two verses of Surah Al-Baqarah?
The Night Journey
The Night Journey (Isra and Mi'raj) is when tradition says the Prophet received them, along with the five daily prayers. They are known as a treasure from beneath God's throne.
Q 07Which disconnected letters open Surah Al-Baqarah, a combination that also begins five other chapters?
Alif Lam Mim
Alif Lam Mim also opens Al Imran, Al-Ankabut, Ar-Rum, Luqman and As-Sajdah. Most Muslims hold that the meaning of these letters is known only to God.
Q 08What is the Arabic term for the disconnected letters that open Surah Al-Baqarah and 28 other chapters?
Muqatta'at
Muqatta'at, 'disjoined letters', are combinations of one to five Arabic letters placed at the start of 29 of the 114 chapters. Their meaning is widely held to be known only to God.
Q 09Who alone refused when the angels were commanded in Surah Al-Baqarah to prostrate before Adam?
Iblis
Iblis refused out of arrogance, and verse 34 says he thereby became one of the unfaithful. The episode is retold in six other chapters of the Quran.
Q 10What did God teach Adam in Surah Al-Baqarah that the angels then confessed they did not know?
The names of all things
The names of all things were taught to Adam, and when challenged the angels replied that they knew only what God had taught them. Adam then told them the names himself.
Q 11What does God announce He is placing on earth in Surah Al-Baqarah verse 30, prompting the angels' question?
A successor
A successor, 'khalifah' in Arabic, is the word used, and the angels asked whether this creature would shed blood and spread corruption. God answered, 'I know what you do not know.'
Q 12What were the Israelites told to say while entering a city's gate with humility in Surah Al-Baqarah verse 58?
Absolve us
'Absolve us', hittah in Arabic, was the required word, and the next verse says the wrongdoers swapped it for another. Forgiveness and extra reward were promised to those who obeyed.
Q 13What does Surah Al-Baqarah verse 63 say God raised above the Israelites while taking their covenant?
The mountain
Q 21Which group does Surah Al-Baqarah verse 62 name beside Jews and Christians as able to earn reward with God?
The Sabians
The Sabians are the fourth group listed, a community whose identity scholars still debate. The verse promises 'no fear for them, nor will they grieve'.
Q 22What does Surah Al-Baqarah verse 106 promise whenever a verse is abrogated or caused to be forgotten?
A better or similar one
A better or similar one replaces it, the verse says, giving scholars the scriptural basis for the doctrine of naskh, or abrogation. It ends by asking, 'Do you not know that Allah is Most Capable of everything?'
Q 23What did Abraham and Ishmael pray for in Surah Al-Baqarah while raising the foundations of the House?
The mountain hung over them as they were told to hold firmly to the scripture, an image the chapter repeats later. Tradition identifies it with Mount Sinai.
Q 14What did the Israelites worship in Surah Al-Baqarah while Moses was away for forty nights?
The calf
The calf was worshipped in his absence, an act verse 51 calls wrongdoing. The next verse adds that God pardoned them afterwards so they might be grateful.
Q 15How many springs gushed from the rock when Moses struck it with his staff in Surah Al-Baqarah?
Twelve
Twelve springs appeared, one for each tribe, so that 'each tribe knew its drinking place'. Moses had prayed for water for his people.
Q 16What did the Israelites demand in Surah Al-Baqarah instead of the single food they were given each day?
Herbs, lentils and onions
Herbs, lentils and onions, plus cucumbers and garlic, were what they asked for, and Moses replied, 'Do you exchange what is better for what is worse?'
Q 17What colour did the Israelites learn the sacrificial animal in Surah Al-Baqarah's title story had to be?
Yellow
Yellow, and 'bright yellow, pleasant to see', was the answer to their question about its colour. Each further question narrowed the choice until only one animal would do.
Q 18What did striking with part of the sacrificed animal achieve in Surah Al-Baqarah's title story?
It revived a murdered man
It revived a murdered man, exposing his killer after the people had disputed who was responsible. Verse 73 calls it a sign of how God brings the dead to life.
Q 19In which city does Surah Al-Baqarah place the two angels Harut and Marut, who taught magic as a test?
Babylon
Babylon is where the two angels were sent, and they warned every learner, 'We are only a test, so do not abandon your faith.' The verse also clears Solomon of any disbelief.
Q 20What rift did people learn to cause with the magic described in Surah Al-Baqarah verse 102?
Between husband and wife
Between husband and wife is the rift named, though the verse adds that such magic could harm no one except by God's will. Whoever buys into it, it warns, has no share in the Hereafter.
A messenger among them
A messenger among them is what they asked for: one who would recite God's revelations and teach 'the Book and wisdom'. Muslims read this as a prophecy of Muhammad.
Q 24What was Abraham told to take in Surah Al-Baqarah when he asked to see how God gives life to the dead?
Four birds
Four birds were to be trained, cut into pieces and scattered on separate hilltops, then called back to fly to him. Abraham said he believed already but wanted his heart reassured.
Q 25What challenge did Abraham set in Surah Al-Baqarah for the king who claimed he too gave life and death?
Make the sun rise westward
Make the sun rise westward was the dare, since God 'causes the sun to rise from the east', and the verse says the disbeliever was left dumbstruck. Tradition names the unnamed king as Nimrod.
Q 26For how long did God cause the traveller who passed a ruined city to die in Surah Al-Baqarah verse 259?
A hundred years
A hundred years passed, yet his food had not spoiled, while his donkey's bones were rebuilt and clothed with flesh before his eyes. He had guessed 'a day or part of a day'.
Q 27With what does Surah Al-Baqarah verse 253 say God supported Jesus, son of Mary, after giving him clear proofs?
The holy spirit
The holy spirit supported Jesus, in a verse that says God 'chose some of those messengers above others' and spoke directly to some. Most commentators identify the spirit with the angel Gabriel.
Q 28In Surah Al-Baqarah verse 261, spending in God's cause is likened to a grain that sprouts how many ears?
Seven
Seven ears, each heavy with 100 grains, and God multiplies the reward even more for whom He wills. The image makes charity a 700-fold investment.
Q 29Toward what does Surah Al-Baqarah verse 144 tell believers to turn their faces, wherever they are?
The Sacred Mosque
The Sacred Mosque in Mecca became the qibla with this verse, replacing the earlier direction toward Jerusalem. The command is repeated in verses 149 and 150.
Q 30Roughly how long had Muslims prayed toward Jerusalem when Surah Al-Baqarah's qibla verses were revealed?
About 16 months
About 16 months after the Hijra, in the second year, the verses came down in the month of Rajab or Sha'ban. Verse 143 calls the earlier direction a test of who would stay faithful.