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In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
Then Joshua, son of Nun, secretly sent two spies from Shittim. "Go, look
over the land," he said, "especially Jericho." So they went and
entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there.
The king of Jericho was
told, "Look! Some of the Israelites have come here tonight to spy out the
land." So the king of Jericho sent this message to Rahab: "Bring out
the men who came to you and entered your house, because they have come to spy
out the whole land."
But the woman had taken
the two men and hidden them. She said, "Yes, the men came to me, but I did
not know where they had come from. At dusk, when it was time to close the city
gate, the men left. I don't know which way they went. Go after them quickly.
You may catch up with them." (But she had taken them up to the roof and
hidden them under the stalks of flax she had laid out on the roof.)
So the men set out in
pursuit of the spies on the road that leads to the fords of the Jordan, and as
soon as the pursuers had gone out, the gate was shut.
Before the spies lay
down for the night, she went up on the roof and said to them, "I know that
the Lord has given this land to you and that a great fear of you has fallen on
us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you. We
have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came
out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites
east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed. When we heard of it, our
hearts melted and everyone's courage failed because of you, for the Lord your
God is God in Heaven above and on the earth below. Now then, please swear to me
by the Lord that you will show kindness to my family, because I have shown
kindness to you. Give me a sure sign that you will spare the lives of my father
and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them, and that you
will save us from death."
"Our lives for your
lives!" the men assured her. "If you don't tell what we are doing, we
will treat you kindly and faithfully when the Lord gives us the land."
So she let them down by
a rope through the window, for the house she lived in was part of the city
wall. Now she had said to them, "Go to the hills so the pursuers will not
find you. Hide yourselves there three days until they return, and then go on
your way."
The men said to her,
"This oath you made us swear will not be binding on us unless, when we
enter the land, you have tied this scarlet cord in the window through which you
let us down, and unless you have brought your father and mother, your brothers
and all your family into your house. If anyone goes outside your house into the
street, his blood will be on his own head; we will not be responsible. As for
anyone who is in the house with you, his blood will be on our head if a hand is
laid on him. But if you tell what we are doing, we will be released from the
oath you made us swear."
"Agreed," she
replied. "Let it be as you say." So she sent them away and they
departed. And she tied the scarlet cord in the window.
When they left, they
went into the hills and stayed there three days, until the pursuers had
searched all along the road and returned without finding them. Then the two men
started back. They went down out of the hills, forded the river and came to
Joshua, son of Nun, and told him everything that had happened to them. They
said to Joshua, "The Lord has surely given the whole land into our hands;
all the people are melting in fear because of us."
Joshua 2
This ends our reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
As we get to the second
chapter of Joshua, we find Israel’s new leader deciding to secretly send two
spies across the Jordan and into Canaan to “look over the land…especially
Jericho”. In our passage for today, we find that the two spies do as Joshua
commands and the scriptures tell us they entered “the house of a prostitute
named Rahab” where they stayed.
Of interest, although
the spies believed they had entered Canaan undetected, we read where the king
of Jericho somehow finds out about them, sending the following message to Rahab:
“Bring
out the men who came to you and entered your house, because they have come to
spy out the whole land."
How did Rahab respond?
Well, we see where she had
no intention of blowing the spies’ cover. Instead, she hid them under the
stalks of flax on the roof of her home before saying this to the king’s men:
"Yes,
the men came to me, but I did not know where they had come from. At dusk, when
it was time to close the city gate, the men left. I don't know which way they
went. Go after them quickly. You may catch up with them."
With this, we see where
the king’s men believed Rahab and “set out in pursuit of the spies” traveling “the
road that leads to the fords of the Jordan”. The gate of the city was shut “as
soon as the pursuers had gone out”.
So for now, the spies
were safe but there was now some urgency for them to depart before the king’s
men returned. This is why we find Rahab going to them before they “lay down for
the night”, saying:
“I
know that the Lord has given this land to you and that a great fear of you has
fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because
of you. We have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for you
when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of
the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed. When we heard
of it, our hearts melted and everyone's courage failed because of you, for the
Lord your God is God in Heaven above and on the earth below. Now then, please
swear to me by the Lord that you will show kindness to my family, because I
have shown kindness to you. Give me a sure sign that you will spare the lives
of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them,
and that you will save us from death."
The words of Rahab
reflected her faith in the God of Israel. She knew of God and what He had done,
believing that He could indeed do all that she had heard and more. This is why
she feared the Lord, begging the two Israelite spies to intercede for her and
her family. Specifically, she asked that their lives might be spared in similar
fashion to how she had made the way for the spies to avoid death at the hands
of the Jericho king. Note that the spies agree to honor her request but only if
she continues to conceal them and not report them to the Jericho authorities.
And so Rahab lowers the spies
“down by a rope through the window, for the house she lived in was part before
giving them the following guidance:
“Go
to the hills so the pursuers will not find you. Hide yourselves there three
days until they return, and then go on your way."
We read where the spies
agreed to honor Rahab’s request, ensuring her that she and her family would be protected
when Israel entered with one condition. She had to tie a “scarlet cord in the
window through which (she) let (them) down”. She was then required to have her
entire family in the house because it was the only way they would be safe. If anyone
chose to leave the home and go outside, the promise would be broken and no
fault would fall on the spies for their deadly decision.
With this, Rahab sent the
spies on their way before tying the scarlet cord in her window as requested.
The spies followed Rahab’s direction and “went into the hills” where they “stayed…three
days” until their “pursuers had searched all along the road” before returning
to Jericho “without finding them”. The spies then “started back”, going “down
out of the hills” where they “forded the river and came to Joshua, son of Nun”,
telling “him everything that had happened to them”. Then, they added these
words of assurance to their leader:
"The
Lord has surely given the whole land into our hands; all the people are melting
in fear because of us."
As we close this passage,
we need to keep in mind that the Israelite spies only were able to return to
Joshua because of the actions taken by Rahab who was willing to harbor and
protect them. This made her an important player in God’s overall plan, even
though she was a prostitute by trade.
Overall, this is an
amazing story in Israelite history and lore. Through it, we learn two important
things:
First, we should never
underestimate what God might do to fulfill His plan.
If someone would have
been asked to guess who the hero or heroine might have been who saved the two
Israelite spies, I’m pretty sure Rahab the prostitute wouldn’t have been in the
top 100. And yet, God used her in powerful ways for His glory and to ensure His
will and way were done.
In the end, she and her
family become part of the Israelite family.
Today, as we ponder what
God might do in our lives or the lives of others, we should do so understanding
that all options are open and all people are instruments for God to use. In
Rahab, we see how our Lord truly transforms people from the inside
out…especially when they acknowledge and revere Him like she did.
Second, never rule out
who God might use for His awesome purposes.
When we look at the New
Testament outside of the Gospels, the person most mentioned is the Apostle
Paul. His writings dominate that part of the Bible and this might lead someone
to think Paul had been the epitome of faithful servitude and holiness his
entire life but it wasn’t so. For before Paul the apostle came along, he was
Saul the persecutor and killer of Christians…that is until he encountered Jesus
in a big way while traveling the road to Damascus. That engagement set in
motion the steps that would transform Paul forever, diverting him towards the cause
of Christ.
Rahab just serves as
another example as God chose to use her for His purposes although she had
represented the highest levels of sexual immorality. He transformed and changed
her heart to not only serve Him and His people but earn her way into His family
of faith.
If you’re like me, I’m
sure you have looked at someone in society and judges them, perhaps even
thinking that the act they committed had left them in a place that was beyond
forgiveness. We are very adept in society at labeling people for the crimes
they commit, labeling them with the crime they carried out. Some of those
labels might be murderer, rapist, thief, child molester, abuser…and in today’s
scripture, prostitute.
But here’s the thing
about labeling…we’re not as good at labeling ourselves, are we?
What we are good at is
giving ourselves a pass when we don’t do the same for others. In fact, we tend
to view ourselves as somehow being better than others who have committed
greater sins than we have. In some extreme case, people can judge while giving
the impression that they had never sinned before, although the Bible makes it
clear that every single person is a sinner that falls short of the Lord’s glory
(Romans 3:23).
It’s equally true that no
one is beyond the transforming, reforming work of the Holy Spirit and this
means there is hope for anyone who would choose to repent, turn from their
wicked ways, and commit themselves to the Lord’s service. This is what Rahab
did…it’s what Paul did…it’s what every single Christ believer has done…and it’s
what anyone else can do too, now and in the future.
And so let this be our
prayer for all people everywhere…that they would turn from their sin and
exchange their old life for a new one in Christ Jesus, a new life that will be
dictated by God’s desire for their lives. For our scripture passage for today reminds
us that the Lord can and will change anyone so to fulfill His plan, a plan
which will ultimately lead to His glory.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel
might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.
