(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)
Joshua 2:8–21, “And before they were laid down, she came up unto them upon the roof; 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. 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. 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. 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: 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. 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. 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. 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. And the men said unto her, We will be blameless of this thine oath which thou hast made us swear. 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. 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. And if thou utter this our business, then we will be quit of thine oath which thou hast made us to swear. 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.”
Rahab spoke to the spies and told them about the situation in Jericho at that time. This was very important information for the spies for they didn’t only want to know about the physical nature of the land, they also wanted to know about the morale of the people. They found out that the people in Jericho still remembered how the Lord had dried up the Red Sea so that they could escape from the Egyptians. This had happened over forty years before but it was still fresh in their collective memories. It is interesting to note that the people in the Promised Land were afraid of Israel at the same time that Israel was afraid to take possession of the Land because of the giants. Not only were there events from over forty years before that troubles the people in Jericho they had heard of the recent battles where Israel had soundly defeated two mighty kingdoms of the Amorites on the other side of the River Jordan. Rahab was so afraid of the Israeli armies that she begged the spies to save her and her family from the Lord’s judgment that was coming to Jericho. As Rahab lived in a house built into the city wall, she let the spies out of the city by lowering them on a scarlet rope and allowing them to escape. The spies promised Rahab that the Lord would protect her if she left the scarlet rope hanging from her window when Israel finally attacked Jericho. There was no doubt in their minds that they would triumph over Jericho because the Lord had promised them that they would.
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