Why did Rahab let the spies stay with her?
Dec 01, 2020 · She then pleaded with the men to return her kindness. Just as she spared their lives by hiding them from the king, she asked that her life and the lives of her family would be spared when the city was destroyed. Joshua 2:14. The spies replied with an oath that indeed the armies of Israel would exempt her and her family from the slaughter.
Who let the spies stay at her house?
Rahab has heard stories of the Hebrews who have been encamped just across Jordan in Shittim. She had heard of their God and the miracles he has performed on behalf of his people. She makes her choice and hides the spies. This act clearly indicates Rahab's faith.
Why did Rahab hide in the House of Rahab?
Abib 3-5 Spies in hiding outside Jericho (2:16, 22) Abib 6 Spies return and report to Joshua (2:23-24) ... and now she demonstrated her faith by protecting the spies and then asking them for protection in return (Hebrews 11:31; James 2:25). The spies evidently did not know the manner in which Jericho would be destroyed. Otherwise, they probably ...
How does Joshua honor the spies'oath to Rahab?
The Israelite spies lay very still in their hiding place. Soon Rahab returned. The two men asked her why she had risked her life to protect two foreign enemies. “I will tell you why,” she said. “I know the Lord has promised you this land and most of my people are afraid of your people.
What did Rahab say?
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.
What did the spies bring back from Canaan?
The Grapes of Canaan by James Tissot. Although the spies brought back a cluster of grapes so large that it took two men to carry it (Numbers 13:23), only two of the twelve brought back a good report of the land.
How long did Rahab hide the spies?
three daysRahab followed their instructions to the letter, just as the spies followed Rahab's advice. After hiding for three days in the hills, the spies escaped detection and returned safely to Joshua, reporting to him what had transpired and what they had observed.
Why did Rahab hide the Israelites?
Before the Israelites cross the Jordan, Joshua sends men to scout out the land. Arriving in Jericho, they decide to spend the night at the house of the prostitute Rahab. When Jericho's ruler tries to apprehend them, Rahab hides them and then helps them escape through the window, thus saving their lives.Nov 15, 2017
How far did the 12 spies travel?
Before entering that land, the Lord told Moses to send some men to explore the land of Canaan. Moses chose 12 men, one from each tribe, “every one a ruler among them,” into the land (Num. 13:2). They searched it from the south to the north and back again, a distance of about 250 miles each way, for 40 days.
Is Rahab the mother of Boaz?
A different spelling of the name, Rachab (as transliterated in the King James translation of the Greek Ῥαχάβ) is mentioned in the Gospel of Matthew as one of the ancestors of Jesus (Matthew 1:5). She married Salmon of the Tribe of Judah and was the mother of Boaz. Most other English Bibles transcribe her name as Rahab.
How old was Rahab?
The Rabbis describe how Rahab was ten years old at the time of the Exodus from Egypt. She engaged in prostitution during the forty years of the Israelites' wanderings in the wilderness, until the age of fifty.
Who seduced Samson?
Delilah, also spelled Dalila, in the Old Testament, the central figure of Samson's last love story (Judges 16). She was a Philistine who, bribed to entrap Samson, coaxed him into revealing that the secret of his strength was his long hair, whereupon she took advantage of his confidence to betray him to his enemies.Mar 11, 2022
What does Rahab tell the spies?
Rahab tells the spies what they must do to escape the king's men searching for them, but before she sends them off, she bargains with them -- with her life and their lives in the balance. There is no room for deceit here! She calls on them to swear an oath of truthfulness and faithfulness in the name of their God.
Who sent word to Rahab to produce the spies?
So the king of Jericho sends word to Rahab to produce the spies -- no doubt by armed soldiers appearing at her door to enforce the king's edict. The true identity of the Israelites is quickly discerned by Rahab. Jericho is a small, compact city, and Rahab knows all the residents by sight, especially the men.
What is Rahab's faith?
Rahab's Faith (2:9-11) Rahab has heard stories of the Hebrews who have been encamped just across Jordan in Shittim. She had heard of their God and the miracles he has performed on behalf of his people. She makes her choice and hides the spies. This act clearly indicates Rahab's faith.
Why is Rahab commended?
Rahab is commended for "welcoming the spies" (Hebrews 11:31) and helping them "when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction" (James 2:25). She is not commended for her lie. However, consider that in everyday life we commonly place limits on truthfulness.
What did the spies do in Jericho?
The spies have discerned the morale in Jericho. They have heard Rahab's faith and have seen God's hand in the whole adventure. Joshua honors the spies' oath to Rahab. During the Battle of Jericho, Joshua commands the two spies to find Rahab and give her safe passage.
What does the flax on Rahab's roof mean?
The flax drying on her roof indicates that she prepares linen thread, and perhaps clothing, in a cottage industry, like the virtuous woman of Proverbs 31:24.
What does Rahab call God?
Incidentally, Rahab calls God by his given name Yahweh. "The LORD your God is God in heaven above and on earth below" (2:11) As you are probably aware, whenever in your English Bible you see "LORD" in small caps rather than in upper and lower case, it refers to the name Yahweh.
Who sent the spies to rescue Rahab?
Moreover, rather than just any Israelite soldiers being the ones to spare Rahab and her family, Joshua sent in the spies themselves—who would actually recognize Rahab—to retrieve them (verses 22-23).
How did God back up Rahab's faith?
God Himself backed up the oath, and Rahab's faith, by miraculously keeping her portion of the wall from falling flat, making identification quite simple. (This is obvious from the fact that her house, which, again, was built into the city wall, still stood after the wall as a whole fell, according to 6:22.)
Why should we honor Rahab?
We should honor Rahab the way the Bible does. She was a great heroine of faith, who came from a most surprising place. In time, her name would be honored not only for what she did for Israel, but for what she became—a mother in the line of Jesus" ("In Depth: Lying").
Why is Rahab's sin understandable?
Of course, in her case, her sin is understandable because she lacked complete knowledge of the living God. That is, what she did was wrong, but she did not know any better. We must be careful to make a distinction between Rahab's faith and the way Rahab expressed it.
Where were the Amorites camped in the Red Sea?
Within the past few months the Israelites had completely destroyed the Amorites just east of the Jordan (verse 10). And now they were camped on Jericho's doorstep.
Is Rahab a prostitute?
The Bible calls Rahab a prostitute, but we are not meant to take that as an endorsement for immorality. Rahab, like the rest of us, had a mixed character, but she believed in God and strove to honor Him and His people. That is what draws her praise. We should honor Rahab the way the Bible does.
What did Rahab hear about the spies?
She had heard about how the Lord dried up the Red Sea and how the Israelites conquered many cities east of the Jordan River. She heard about these things and decided to help the spies.
Where did the spies sneak into?
They were to sneak into the large city of Jericho and see how strong the enemy was. The men pretended to be ordinary travellers. Once inside Jericho they looked for a place to stay. The two spies found their way to the house of a woman named Rahab.
What did the spies say about the scarlet cord?
They said that the people of Jericho were afraid of Israel.
Why did Joshua send two spies to Jericho?
The Lord had chosen Joshua to conquer the land of Canaan. Joshua wanted to form a battle plan so he sent two spies over the Jordan River to the city of Jericho. Rahab, a woman of the city, let the spies stay at her house. When the city officials searched for them, she hid them on her rooftop under stalks of flax.
Why was Rahab's house built into the wall?
Rahab’s house was built into the city wall so she was able to let the men down out of a window so they could leave the city. As they were leaving they told her that she would only be saved in she tied a scarlet cord to her window. That way the spies would know where Rahab was when they took over the city.
Why did the king's men not look on the roof?
The king’s men did not even look on the roof, however, because Rahab gave them a false lead. She told them that two men had been there, but they had left the city at dark. She encouraged the men of the city to pursue them, saying that they should be able to overtake them.
How many spies did Joshua send?
Joshua sent two spies to scout the land. This must have been an exciting time for him. He was sending spies into a land that he, himself, had spied on forty years before. In Jericho, the spies lodged in the home of Rahab. She was a prostitute in Jericho. The historian Josephus refers to her as an innkeeper.
Where did Rahab hide the spies?
Rahab Hid the Spies. When the Israelite spies went to the city of Jericho, they stayed at the house of a woman named Rahab. The king of Jericho found out and sent soldiers to Rahab’s house. She hid the two spies on the roof and sent the soldiers in another direction.
What did the spies tell Rahab?
The spies told Rahab: ‘We promise that no one inside your house will be hurt.’. They said: ‘Tie a red cord in your window, and your family will be spared.’. Rahab let the spies down by a rope from her window. They went to the mountains and hid for three days before going back to Joshua.
How long did the spies stay in the mountains?
The spies escaped from the city. They hid in the mountains for three days until the king’s men quit looking for them. Then they returned to Joshua and told him all that had happened to them. They said, “God has delivered all the land into our hands.
Who sent spies to Jericho?
Joshua sends spies to Jericho. Joshua sent two men to search out the land, especially Jericho. They came to the house of Rahab and stayed there. (Rahab was not living the right way at this time, but God was planning to use her for a special purpose.) Someone in Jericho noticed the spies.
Why did Joshua remember Rahab?
Joshua remembered the promise to Rahab. He sent the two spies to her house and brought her and her family safely out of Jericho. Rahab was allowed to live peacefully in Israel the rest of her life because she protected the spies. She helped Israel come into the Promised Land.
Why did the men tell Rahab to hang a scarlet cord in the window?
The spies climbed down and were able to escape. The men told Rahab to hang a scarlet cord in the window so they would know which house was hers. They said, “Bring your family into your home.”.
What did Rahab tell Jericho about Israel?
She told them that Jericho’s people had heard about Israel. They heard how God had delivered His people from Egypt and dried up the Red Sea so Israel could cross over.
What did Rahab tell the King's men?
Rahab had taken the two men up on the roof and hidden them under some stalks of flax. She told the king’s men, “Yes, the men came to me. I didn’t know where they were from. They left when it was dark. I don’t know where they went, but if you hurry, you may catch them.”. The king’s men left to try to find the two spies.
Where did Rahab live?
Rahab lived in Jericho, but she feared the God of Israel. She protected the Israelite spies and asked them to remember and protect her family. God led Israel around in the wilderness for 40 years. During that time, the generation that had disobeyed God after leaving Egypt died.
Why did Rahab not perish?
Rahab and the Spies. “By faith Rahab the prostitute did not perish with those who were disobedient, because she had given a friendly welcome to the spies ” (Heb. 11:31). As Christians we are well-informed about the necessity of faith. We are justified by faith alone. We persevere in salvation through faith alone.
Who was the woman who hid Israelites spying on the city of Jericho?
Hebrews 11 lists many of these examples for us. Today’s passage discusses the faith of Rahab, the woman who hid Israelites spying on the city of Jericho shortly before the conquest of Canaan (Josh. 2). It took great faith for her to risk her own safety and hide the spies.
How do we persevere in salvation?
We persevere in salvation through faith alone. Our glorification comes only after living of a life of faith. Even though we know that faith is absolutely necessary if we are to please God (Heb. 11:6), sometimes we have trouble understanding exactly what true faith looks like. Happily, God, in His providence, has provided examples ...
Was Rahab a Gentile?
Rahab’s prominence is also markedly displayed in Matthew 1 where she is only one of two women mentioned in the genealogy of Christ. Rahab was also a Gentile. She was not one of Abraham’s physical descendants and yet was accepted into Israel, God’s people.
Why did the spies visit Rahab's house?
The spies specifically visited her house because she was frequented by the aristocracy of the land, which made her an important source of intelligence.
Who saved the spies?
Rahab Saves the Spies. The spies came to the city and went to the home of a certain “ Rahab the zonah .”. The commentaries differ as to the meaning of this word, which usually means “a prostitute.”. Rashi, following Targum, sees this word as rooted in the Hebrew word mezonot , meaning “sustenance” or “food.”.
How long did the spies hide in the city of Israel?
Rahab advised the spies to escape via a window of her house (which was built into a wall of the city), and to hide for three days.
Why did Rahab send orders to the authorities?
Orders were sent to Rahab to deliver her visitors to the authorities. Raha b quickly hid the men, and then opened the door to the messengers. She admitted to have been visited by two strangers, but claimed that the men had already left the city. She suggested that they be pursued, as they could not have gone far.
What did Rahab suggest to the messengers?
She suggested that they be pursued, as they could not have gone far. The messengers heeded her advice, and the wild goose chase began. Meanwhile Rahab returned to the roof, where she had hidden the men, and began describing to them the great fear in which the inhabitants of the land were living.
What were the two spies sent by Joshua?
Spiritually, their mission encapsulated this great plan of fusing the physical and G‑dly. The two spies sent by Joshua signified the spiritual (Pinchas) and the physical (Caleb). Body and soul. The Levite and the Israelite.
Why did the tribe of Levi not receive an independent portion of the land?
The only reason the tribe of Levi did not receive an independent portion in the land was because they had to be separated from amongst the people to serve as their spiritual guides. This is a necessity at a time when the physical and material world are at least perceived to be in contrast to the G‑dly reality.
What was the significance of Rahab's assistance to the spies?
As it turned out, the spies’ choice of a hiding place was God-ordained. Rahab’s assistance to these spies was of tremendous importance. She hid the spies on her roof, and, when the king’s guards came to her house, she sent the guards in a different direction.
Why did Joshua send two spies into the city?
Before Israel’s battle against the city of Jericho, Joshua sent two spies into the city to investigate ( Joshua 2 ). When these two spies’ presence was discovered, the spies hid in Rahab the harlot’s house to avoid capture.
What happened at the Battle of Jericho?
At the battle of Jericho, the walls of the city fell down, and the people of Jericho were defeated. Rahab’s family, however, was spared: “But Joshua spared Rahab the prostitute, with her family and all who belonged to her, because she hid the men Joshua had sent as spies to Jericho—and she lives among the Israelites to this day” ( Joshua 6:25 ).
Why was the house of a harlot a good place to escape detection?
The house of a harlot was probably a good place to avoid detection—a couple of travelers entering such a house would probably not arouse much suspicion. The spies, seeking anonymity, figured a house of prostitution would be a good place to find it. Also, Rahab’s house was situated on the city wall ( Joshua 2:15 ), providing an escape route.
Was Rahab a direct ancestor of Jesus?
More importantly, Rahab was a direct ancestor of Jesus Christ. Rahab is mentioned in the “hall of faith” of Hebrews 11. Verse 31 notes, “By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient.”.