Introduction: This second chapter of Joshua has the record of two spies, sent by Joshua, to get as much information about Jericho as they could. This chapter also has the account of how Rahab, a Canaanitess and native of Jericho, had come to believe in the God of Israel. Rahab protected the two spies and received a tremendous reward for doing this. The spies made it back to the camp of Israel and gave Joshua some information, but maybe not what he expected to hear!
1 What Rahab did for the spies
A Protection from the king of Jericho
Text, Joshua 2:1-7, KJV: 1 And Joshua the son of Nun sent out of Shittim two men to spy secretly, saying, Go view the land, even Jericho. And they went, and came into an harlot's house, named Rahab, and lodged there. 2 And it was told the king of Jericho, saying, Behold, there came men in hither to night of the children of Israel to search out the country. 3 And the king of Jericho sent unto Rahab, saying, Bring forth the men that are come to thee, which are entered into thine house: for they be come to search out all the country. 4 And the woman took the two men, and hid them, and said thus, There came men unto me, but I wist not whence they were: 5 And it came to pass about the time of shutting of the gate, when it was dark, that the men went out: whither the men went I wot not: pursue after them quickly; for ye shall overtake them. 6 But she had brought them up to the roof of the house, and hid them with the stalks of flax, which she had laid in order upon the roof. 7 And the men pursued after them the way to Jordan unto the fords: and as soon as they which pursued after them were gone out, they shut the gate.
How many of us have heard or seen the slogan, “Knowledge is power”? Joshua, Israel’s new leader, probably knew that he didn’t know enough about the new task at hand. That task was to lead an entire nation of nearly two million people into the land of their inheritance. Of course, we don’t know how much Joshua knew about Canaan in general and Jericho in particular and that uncertainty was probably the driving reason why he sent the two spies into Jericho. Any knowledge he could gain would be to Joshua’s advantage, then.
The text doesn’t have anything about Joshua’s instructions to the spies except, “Go, view the land, even Jericho.” Maybe there were more instructions we don’t have but the idea was clear: find out as much as you can about Jericho.
Now, to get to Jericho the spies would have had to swim across the Jordan River, navigate through some unfamiliar land, and then find a place where they could gather information or “intel”, to use a military term. Commentators and Bible teachers give various estimates as to the size, population, and military strength of Jericho but all agree—it was formidable.
And when they got to Jericho, I’ve always wondered how they met Rahab in the first place, and then, why they went to her house! Dr. Daniel Whedon suggests the spies arrived when harlots—and there was no doubt Rahab was one—began their trade of the evening and followed her to her house (https://bibleportal.com/commentary/section/whedon-s-commentary-on-the-bible/478650). Thomas Coke alluded to Serrarius that Rahab may have served as a “temple prostitute” for the god of Jericho (https://bibleportal.com/commentary/section/thomas-coke-commentary-on-the-holy-bible/111054) And “The Biblical Illustrator” has a number of articles about Rahab, how that she may have left her old life to become an honest inn-keeper: note that she had stalks of flax on her house’s roof, but then again, flax was one of the items Gomer received as rewards from her lovers (Hosea 2:5, KJV).
It’s clear, though, that the two spies had enough of God’s “go-ahead” to follow Rahab to her house and lodged there. “Lodged” meant “lay down (https://biblehub.com/hebrew/7901.htm)”, so this may be a sign they got to Rahab’s house close to sundown. At any rate, they were probably very tired and just wanted to get some rest!
But while they were up on the roof, Rahab was in some very hot water, so to speak. The king of Jericho had sent “some (we’re not told who or how many)” to get information from Rahab! These guards, let’s call them that, wanted her to hand over the men as they somehow figured out these two were indeed spies who had come to “search out all the country (verse 3)”.
What was she going to do now? Was she going to betray the two spies? Would she put her own life, and maybe that of her extended family, at risk because she allowed two foreign men into her house? Would she honor the king and his officers, or would she defend the Hebrew men no matter what the cost would be?
Rahab’s response has been debated for many years, including many of the standard commentaries. The reality is that she first confirmed the truth of their accusation (Where are those men? We know you have them!), then she told a falsehood, “I don’t know where they were from (“wist” and ”wot” are obsolete words for “know”), and I don’t know where they’re going, but if you take off after them now, you’ll find them.” I don’t have an easy way to pull this all together, but Dr. Arthur W. Pink has an explanation that is one of the best I’ve seen (available on-line at https://godrules.net/library/pink/43pink_d4.htm).
The king’s officers believed her and pursued the spies (so they thought) all the way to the Jordan River. Once these officers left, “they (probably the gatekeepers) shut the gate”.
If this was a movie or production, this would be a good place to end Act 1 and prepare for Act 2. Here in this first section we saw the two spies entering the city, finding an unexpected ally, and also protection. If you’re like me, you’re probably wondering what’s going to happen next?
Those who don’t know the story, or don’t know it very well, might be in for a surprise!
B Profession of faith to the spies
Text, Joshua 2:8-14 8 And before they were laid down, she came up unto them upon the roof; 9 And she said unto the men, I know that the LORD hath given you the land, and that your terror is fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land faint because of you. 10 For we have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red sea for you, when ye came out of Egypt; and what ye did unto the two kings of the Amorites, that were on the other side Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom ye utterly destroyed. 11 And as soon as we had heard these things, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more courage in any man, because of you: for the LORD your God, he is God in heaven above, and in earth beneath. 12 Now therefore, I pray you, swear unto me by the LORD, since I have shewed you kindness, that ye will also shew kindness unto my father's house, and give me a true token: 13 And that ye will save alive my father, and my mother, and my brethren, and my sisters, and all that they have, and deliver our lives from death. 14 And the men answered her, Our life for yours, if ye utter not this our business. And it shall be, when the LORD hath given us the land, that we will deal kindly and truly with thee.
Rahab had sent the king’s officers, guards, whomever, off on a “wild goose chase” in order to protect the two Hebrew spies hiding in her house. Once the king’s men were gone, Rahab gave one of the clearest confessions of faith to be found in the Old Testament. Remember, she had grown up as a pagan, and she had worked as a harlot or “sex worker”, as the trade is known these days, but she had seen and heard things that absolutely changed her life—or would, before long.
First, she flat-out told them, “I know the LORD has given you this land”. She wasn’t going to fight them, or try to betray them, because she knew that in some way she’d be fighting against God Himself, the God of Israel!
She didn’t stop there, either. Imagine the emotion in her voice as she tells them what they may not have realized: “we’re all terrified of you!” She added how she and all the rest of Jericho’s people had heard about Israel’s departure from Egypt, the parting of the Red Sea—and that, 40 years in the past!—to the recent events of the battles (and victories) with Sihon and Og (Numbers 21:21-35 tells the story).
For some, these reports might have resulted in a “yeah, so what” kind of response. After all, those battles were quite some distance from Jericho and had happened in the past. Not this time, though—Rahab confirmed the hearts of all the people “melted”; not literally, of course, but this meant the people of Jericho were completely discouraged.
They were in trouble, and they all knew it.
Now, there were two ways to deal with this news and this knowledge. The vast majority of them did nothing except, maybe, pray more intently to their idols—which accomplished nothing—and hope they would be delivered from the Hebrew invaders. Or, as only Rahab and maybe a few others, decided, they would put their faith in the God of Israel. Rahab had done this, and her testimony or statement of faith proved it to the spies.
She had already acknowledged the role of the LORD in the previous victories by Israel over various enemies. Then she quotes, invokes, or repeats a phrase Moses himself had used to instruct Israel in Deuteronomy 4:39. We’re never told how Rahab had heard this phrase or concept, or what role this “text” had in her conversion to faith in the God of Israel, but one thing was for sure: she heard this phrase, she believed it, and she quoted it to the spies.
That was proof enough for the spies that Rahab had become a believer in the God of Israel.
Still more proof of her new faith was that she was concerned about her family. Rahab asked for a sign or “true token” or pledge that the spies, and Israel, by extension, would show kindness to her family once, as she knew, Israel would conquer Jericho. War was awful and cruel, especially in those days, and captives would seldom have much to look forward to. This concern about others, and not just herself, was another evidence that she was no ordinary Canaanite.
The spies then again promised Rahab they would honor her request but only if she kept silent about this situation. Their mission was almost finished, but Rahab gave them some sound advice.
What the spies promised to do for Rahab
Text, Joshua 2:15-22, KJV: 15 Then she let them down by a cord through the window: for her house was upon the town wall, and she dwelt upon the wall. 16 And she said unto them, Get you to the mountain, lest the pursuers meet you; and hide yourselves there three days, until the pursuers be returned: and afterward may ye go your way. 17 And the men said unto her, We will be blameless of this thine oath which thou hast made us swear. 18 Behold, when we come into the land, thou shalt bind this line of scarlet thread in the window which thou didst let us down by: and thou shalt bring thy father, and thy mother, and thy brethren, and all thy father's household, home unto thee. 19 And it shall be, that whosoever shall go out of the doors of thy house into the street, his blood shall be upon his head, and we will be guiltless: and whosoever shall be with thee in the house, his blood shall be on our head, if any hand be upon him. 20 And if thou utter this our business, then we will be quit of thine oath which thou hast made us to swear. 21 And she said, According unto your words, so be it. And she sent them away, and they departed: and she bound the scarlet line in the window. 22 And they went, and came unto the mountain, and abode there three days, until the pursuers were returned: and the pursuers sought them throughout all the way, but found them not.
This section could truly be a summary or conclusion of what happened in Jericho. The spies sought knowledge and information, but didn’t seem to find anything except a believer in the God of Israel—and in a pagan city like Jericho of all places! If I read the text correctly, the two spies lay down on Rahab’s roof, under stalks of flax, but it’s anybody’s guess how much sleep they actually got during this time. They may have arrived at one night and left just hours later.
But before they returned to Joshua and Israel at Shittim, the spies made a promise to Rahab. She had first told them to hide in the mountains for three days, until the search party gave up and returned to Jericho. Then the spies would be in the clear to get back to Israel’s campsite. The spies agreed, and gave Rahab a way to prove her devotion and loyalty to Israel.
This “proof” was a “line of scarlet thread” which Rahab would leave in her house’s window. “Thread” really means something much stronger: when many of us think of “thread” we might be thinking of a very thin, nearly invisible (especially when one tries to thread the needle!) piece of whatever it is to sew buttons on pockets, or any other means of tailoring. Here, “thread” means “cord (per Strong's concordance)”; at the very least, it was sturdy enough for two grown men to exit Rahab’s house by climbing down the rope. Think of “rappelling” from, say, a second story window; I doubt anyone would need a rope if they escaped out the ground floor window!
Further, the burden was on Rahab to get word to her family that if they wanted to survive, they had to get into, and stay in, Rahab’s house. The promise was that anyone who stayed in the house would be spared; if they left, they would not be spared. It was as simple as that.
The spies departed and Rahab went back to doing whatever she did. She had become a believer in the God of Israel; now it was up to her to get the message to her family. As verse 21 says, Rahab left that scarlet cord/line/thread in the window so that there would be no doubt when the time came. The spies did as she suggested, spending three days in the mountain, and then returned to Israel’s site.
The debriefing (?)
Text, Joshua 2:23-24, KJV: 23 So the two men returned, and descended from the mountain, and passed over, and came to Joshua the son of Nun, and told him all things that befell them: 24 And they said unto Joshua, Truly the LORD hath delivered into our hands all the land; for even all the inhabitants of the country do faint because of us.
Not much needs to be added here except that the spies told Joshua what they found and what they had experienced. Unlike the other Ten Spies of Numbers 13, these men had faith as well as facts about Jericho. Their last words spoke volumes to Joshua: they “do faint because of us”.
The battle for Jericho hadn’t even begun, but Joshua must have had faith that this battle was over before the first soldier saw Jericho. The chapter ends here, but there was a lot more to come.
And the “more to come” was going to happen sooner than they thought!
Scripture quotations taken from the King James Version of the Bible (KJV)
