In keeping with tradition, the annual international Bible Contest was held on Tuesday in Jerusalem. But this time, there was a surprise, with two winners instead of one: Yishai Eisenberg, 15, an American Jew, and Elior Babian, 16, from Beit Shemesh. Yishai Eisenberg hails from Passaic, New Jersey and is a student of Yeshivat Beit Hillel of Passaic-Hillel. Elior Babian, the son of an underprivileged family, succeeded against the odds. He attends the Shaalei Torah yeshiva high school in Beit Shemesh.
In the final head-to-head battle, both contestants answered all questions correctly, repeatedly completing verses from the Bible. Eisenberg was asked to complete the verse: "The king establishes the land by justice," "But he who receives bribes overthrows it," Eisenberg chirped in, completing the Biblical verse. Babian was asked to complete another proverb, "Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint." "But happy is he who keeps the law," said Babian. When the increasingly difficult questions failed to trip up either contestant, the panel of judges at first called for a three-question tie-breaker. But ultimately, the panel of judges decided that both had displayed such extraordinary knowledge that Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein had no choice but to crown them both laureates. Second place was taken by Liora Braverman of Petach Tikva. "Our amazement at the wonderful mastery of Bible verses plants a great hope in each of our hearts," said Education Minister Rabbi Shai Peron. "It raises the expectation that these verses and chapters will turn into your road map," he said. Fifty-eight young people from 26 countries took part in all stages of the international contest, including Turkey, the United States, Brazil, South Africa and Germany. The Israel Prize awards ceremony also took place on Tuesday evening in Jerusalem. This year's recipients were: