What a woman! We talk of “Godly women” and cardigans, cup
cakes and demure might come to mind! But here we have a woman who completely
destroys that stereotype … her story challenges me to ask: “Would I have been
so courageous, so daring, knowing that aiding these men, and being found out,
would probably result in my death?” I am not so sure.
In this passage we have Rahab a
well-known prostitute and gentile being a key player in God’s plan as the
Israelite spies carry out their reconnaissance. It strikes me that Rahab had a
keen sense of her “King” – deceiving the King of the land and acknowledging the
God of the Israelites as “Lord”. Her fear was not of any earthly ruler but of
the God over the heavens and the earth. She was prepared to take massive risks
because she feared the Lord’s wrath, He who destroyed “the two kings of the
Amorites” (verse 10). Yet balancing this fear was an understanding of God’s
mercy and compassion, experienced by Rahab through the spies reciprocal
kindness – Rahab was kind to them, they would be kind to her when they invaded
offering her a place in their Promised Land.
She was resourceful – hiding the men
in her roof and lowering them down by rope – and confident – negotiating with
the spies to ensure the safety of her family and friends. Her faithfulness is
rewarded as the spies guarantee their safety if they do not betray them: “’Our lives for your lives!’ the men assured her” (verse
14).
We have all fallen short, broken vessels* like Rahab,
none of us fit on our own to serve God, but by God’s grace and through His Son
we can do all things.
(member of a homegroup)