The Faith of Rahab | Part One

Joshua 2

I believe that God is the perfect author, His work flawless. That being said, why is the story of Rahab in the Bible with such detail? He could have summed it up in one verse: "Joshua sent spies into the land and they returned with a favorable report". Instead, He used 24 to introduce Rahab, her occupation (harlotry), and actions.

In these posts, I will attempt to prove that the story of Rahab is included in the Bible because it is an especially accurate picture of saving faith. One that can help us evaluate our own faith.

First, let's get swept into the story itself:

Joshua is ready to respond to God's commission in chapter one. He sends two spies into the land, especially Jericho. Thought of as impenetrable, Jericho was surrounded by two 30 foot tall walls separated by acres of sharply inclined land.

Rahab’s house was built into the outer wall. The spies chose to stay with her, perhaps because it was good cover for two foreign men to stay with a harlot (probably happened all the time). Maybe Joshua even advised them to do this based on his experience spying out the land years earlier.

Somehow the king found out they were staying there and sent men to capture them. This is where it gets interesting. When Rahab opens her front door and is faced with the king’s officials, she lies to protect the spies. She lies to protect foreign invaders.

Then she approaches the spies where they're hiding (hearts pounding no doubt) and says: “I know that the LORD has given you the land..."

How unexpected this must have been! They surely were expecting to be among God's enemies, foreign people who would hate them and want them dead. And here's a pagan prostitute confessing, “[T]he LORD your God, He is God in heaven above and on earth beneath..."

God had said over and over again that He delivered Israel from Egypt with a mighty hand to show that He is God. Now these two spies are hearing the same testimony from a Jericho harlot, who then pleads for mercy.

She had saved their lives, so the spies work out a plan to save her life and the lives of her family. But it would be difficult to save one particular family during a huge battle; so they come up with a plan. Rahab would place a scarlet thread on her window. Israel's army would see the red over her window and pass over her house (sound familiar?).

So that's the story. How is it an especially accurate picture of saving faith? In the next post, we’ll let the New Testament writers explain it (they were inspired by the Holy Spirit after all).