Wednesday: By Faith Rahab and the Rest
Read Hebrews 11:31 and Joshua 2:9-11. Why was Rahab, a pagan prostitute, included in this text of sacred biblical characters?
Rahab is probably the most unexpected character whom we find in Hebrews 11:1-40. Rahab is one of two women mentioned by name. She is the tenth in the list, the first being forefathers and patriarchs of Israel, and each one was regarded as being righteous. When we come to her, we find that she is not only a woman but also a gentile prostitute.
Image © Kim Justinen at Goodsalt.com
The most surprising thing is that she is also the thematic center and climax of the chapter. The list is organized in a unique way. Each entry begins with the repetitive use of the phrase “by faith.” The basic pattern is “By faith So-and-so did such-and-thus” or “By faith such-and-thus happened to So-and-so.” This repetitive pattern increases the expectation in the reader to hear the climactic assertion that “by faith Joshua led the people into the promised land.”
But that’s not what the text says. Instead, Joshua is passed over, and the prostitute takes his place. After the mention of Rahab, the repetitive pattern ends abruptly with “and what more shall I say?” (Hebrews 11:32, NKJV). Then, Paul hurriedly lists some names and events that he does not explain in detail.
Rahab’s deed of faith was that she heard, believed, and obeyed, even though she did not see. She did not see the plagues of Egypt, or the deliverance in the Red Sea, or water flow from the rock, or bread descend from heaven; yet, she believed. She was a good exemplar for the audience of Hebrews, who did not hear Jesus preach or see Him do a miracle, and for us as well, who did not see any of these things, either.
“Rahab was a harlot who lived on the wall of Jericho. She hid the two Israelite spies sent to check out the defenses of that city. Because of her kindness to them, and her declaration of belief in God, the spies promised that the lives of Rahab and her family would be spared when the attack came on Jericho.” — Introduction to Rahab found in Daughters of God, p. 35.
Paul then continues (Hebrews 11:35-38) with a list of the hardships many faced. The phrase “refusing to accept release” (Hebrews 11:35, ESV) implies that they had the possibility to escape but chose not to, because their sight was on the reward of God.
| Though we have not seen any of these things happen (the six-day creation, the Exodus, the cross of Christ), why do we have so many good reasons for believing that they did? |
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Faith and prostitution are not ideas that we normally associate together. I know that the story of Rahab gets a bit of editing, particularly when it goes into children's books but the Bible insists on calling her Rahab the prostitute. No censorship here.
The facts of the story are simple. The spies came to stay with her in Jericho. She hid them from the city police and lied through her back teeth in the process. Then she helped them escape. Her house on the wall of Jericho was saved. She married into the children of Israel and became one of the ancestors listed in the genealogy of Jesus. ... and the writer of Hebrews mentions her as a person of faith.
We can make all sorts of conjecture about her mental attitude and spiritual intent but if we stick to the story, there are two lessons we can probably draw from this:
Firstly her faith was put into action. It wasn't just a mental assent but she was a woman of action. She saved the spies.
Secondly, faith is not just in the field of good well-behaved Seventh-day Adventists with a clear definition of the word "faith". It is not based on a world view that explains everything. It was the well-spring of action.
In today's society many associate the word "faith" with "religion" but perhaps we ought to stop doing that and start thinking of it as an action. Is our faith the sort of faith that hides spies, helps the needy, stands up for the oppressed, and gives a voice to the voiceless? Or is it just a definition that we use as an excuse to believe what we believe?
Thanks again Sir Maurice for reminding us that “Faith Without Works Is Dead”
Just a quick reference to James 2:14-21
14. What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? 15. If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, 16. and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? 17. Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
18. But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without [f]your works, and I will show you my faith by [g]my works. 19..You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! 20. But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead. 21. Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar?
I pray we can all have something to show for our faith. Amen 🙏
Rahab sold out her country and city to save her own skin. She wasn't a closet believer. What she did took a lot of faith. I wonder if she was intimidated by the spies into helping them?
Hebrews 11:31 says it was by faith she was not destroyed. I don’t think God recognizes it as faith if you were bullied into it.
Please, my Brothers,
Lord knows the heart.
Do not be her judge. The Bible spoke,period.
Peace and love!
And when you listen to what she says, it's clear she believes in God. But what I find amazing is that she believes that God will save her, despite who she is. She knows her people are to be destroyed, but she senses God is a God of mercy. That I find really impressive.
Rahab reminds me of the Passover. She believed the LORD was all powerful and that the Israelites would keep their promise to save her. She hung a red cord out of her window so she and everyone inside her house were saved from the destruction of the Canaanites. Like the Israelites trusted the word of the LORD and were saved by painting the blood on their doorposts so the Angel didn't destroy their firstborn like he did the Egyptian's firstborn.
What have I learned from Rahab? No matter my current character when I trust and believe in Jesus Christ's promises and rightousness and His Blood, He will transform me to be part of His family, to serve and worship Him.
Amen.
Thanks alot for sharing this
Yes, Rahab’s red rope hanging in the window reminds us of the Passover blood placed on the doorposts. Both point to Christ’s sacrifice for our sin. The red rope symbolized Rahab’s faith in action. I too hang on to a red rope of faith with all I have. What I learn and love about Rahab's story is how quickly she acted on her newfound faith and saved not only the spies but her household.
So, yeah - Rahab lied and was a Harlot. But, God’s church has also been a harlot, committing spiritual adultery. Still, God loves us and in our repentance forgives us and can change our hearts like Rahab. After her conversion the bible indicates she was a faithful child of God and in the ancestral line of Jesus. God is so good.
Heb.11:1KJV - ”Now faith is the 'substance' [or, ground, or confidence] of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." Based on this definition of ‘faith’, Rehab was one of those who acted 'wisely' upon that which she heared people say about the God of Israel who with a mighty and powerful hand performs tasks impossible for man to achieve – Jos.2:10-11.
Faith is a peculiar thing; though ‘invisible’ because it is a spiritual gift, it is given in order to manifest the Power of God through inspired, wise, interaction with others during the believer’s physical life.
When actual does living faith begin? Is it not when we begin to act upon that which we believe to be true? Rehab believed what she heard about this God of the Israelite’s - capable of wonders in heaven and earth - and acted upon this to the best of her heart's ability.
In my opinion, her choice to protect the spies shows, at the least, that she respected/feared Israel’s God. We do not know how her personal relationship with Him developed after gaining this initial awareness, but God protected her and her family and welcomed them to live peacably with the people who destroyed her city and homeland Canaan – evidence of a living faith!
This turn of events demonstrates our heavenly Father's ability to know the heart; inspiring those He calls upon to participate in His work of the salvation of mankind. Like the spies and those marching with the arc around the walls of Jericho, I see Rehab to be part of God’s plan to bring down its walls by faith. I do not think the meeting between the spies and Rehab to have been coincidental.
For those interested in learning more about ‘Rahab’, I suggest to read Wikipedia’s in-depth historical depictions by various scholars describing this ‘warrior’ employed for God’s cause – some depicting here a sinner others as a saint.