# Joshua 02 đź“–: Rahab Hides the Spies
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> [!info] Table of Contents
> [[#đź“ś Scripture Text (NET)]]
> [[#đź“– Verse-by-Verse Commentary]]
> [[#🤔 Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights]]
> [[#🧠Chapter Summary]]
> [[#✝️ Christ in This Chapter]]
> [[#🔎 Key Principles / 🛟 Life Application]]
> [[#đź’¬ Discussion Questions]]
> [[#✍️ Key Verses to Remember]]
> [[#đź”— Related Passages/Cross Reference]]
> [[#🙏 Devotional Reflection]]
> [[#đź“‚ Internal Notes]]
## đź“ś Scripture Text (NET)
(The NET Bible: New English Translation. Biblical Studies Press, 2005)
### Joshua Sends Spies into the Land
[[#Verse 01.]] Joshua son of Nun sent two spies out from Shittim secretly and instructed them: “Find out what you can about the land, especially Jericho.” They stopped at the house of a prostitute named Rahab and spent the night there.
[[#Verse 02.]] The king of Jericho received this report: “Note well! Israelite men have come here tonight to spy on the land.”Â
[[#Verse 03.]] So the king of Jericho sent this order to Rahab: “Turn over the men who came to you—the ones who came to your house—for they have come to spy on the whole land!”Â
[[#Verse 04.]] But the woman hid the two men and replied, “Yes, these men were clients of mine, but I didn’t know where they came from.
[[#Verse 05.]] When it was time to shut the city gate for the night, the men left. I don’t know where they were heading. Chase after them quickly, for you have time to catch them!”
[[#Verse 06.]] (Now she had taken them up to the roof and had hidden them in the stalks of flax she had spread out on the roof.)Â
[[#Verse 07.]] Meanwhile, the king’s men tried to find them on the road to the Jordan River near the fords. The city gate was shut as soon as they set out in pursuit of them.
[[#Verse 08.]] Now before the spies went to sleep, Rahab went up to the roof.Â
[[#Verse 09.]] She said to the men, “I know the Lord is handing this land over to you. We are absolutely terrified of you, and all who live in the land are cringing before you.Â
[[#Verse 10.]] For we heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea before you when you left Egypt and how you annihilated the two Amorite kings, Sihon and Og, on the other side of the Jordan.Â
[[#Verse 11.]] When we heard the news we lost our courage and no one could even breathe for fear of you. For the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on earth below!Â
[[#Verse 12.]] So now, promise me this with an oath sworn in the Lord’s name. Because I have shown allegiance to you, show allegiance to my family. Give me a solemn pledgeÂ
[[#Verse 13.]] that you will spare the lives of my father, mother, brothers, sisters, and all who belong to them, and will rescue us from death.”
[[#Verse 14.]] The men said to her, “If you die, may we die too! If you do not report what we’ve been up to, then we will show unswerving allegiance to you when the Lord hands the land over to us.”
[[#Verse 15.]] Then Rahab let them down by a rope through the window. (Her house was built as part of the city wall; she lived in the wall.)Â
[[#Verse 16.]] She told them, “Head to the hill country, so the ones chasing you don’t find you. Hide from them there for three days, long enough for those chasing you to return. Then you can be on your way.”Â
[[#Verse 17.]] The men said to her, “We are not bound by this oath you made us swear unless the following conditions are met:Â
[[#Verse 18.]] When we invade the land, tie this red rope in the window through which you let us down, and gather together in your house your father, mother, brothers, and all who live in your father’s house.Â
[[#Verse 19.]] Anyone who leaves your house will be responsible for his own death—we are innocent in that case! But if anyone with you in the house is harmed, we will be responsible.Â
[[#Verse 20.]] If you should report what we’ve been up to, we are not bound by this oath you made us swear.”Â
[[#Verse 21.]] She said, “I agree to these conditions.” She sent them on their way and then tied the red rope in the window.Â
[[#Verse 22.]] They went to the hill country and stayed there for three days, long enough for those chasing them to return. Their pursuers looked all along the way but did not find them.Â
[[#Verse 23.]] Then the two men returned—they came down from the hills, crossed the river, came to Joshua son of Nun, and reported to him all they had discovered.Â
[[#Verse 24.]] They told Joshua, “Surely the Lord is handing over all the land to us! All who live in the land are cringing before us!”
## đź“– Verse-by-Verse Commentary
###### Overall.
###### Verse 01.
###### Verse 02.
###### Verse 03.
###### Verse 04.
###### Verse 05.
###### Verse 06.
###### Verse 07.
###### Verse 08.
###### Verse 09.
###### Verse 10.
###### Verse 11.
###### Verse 12.
###### Verse 13.
###### Verse 14.
###### Verse 15.
###### Verse 16.
###### Verse 17.
###### Verse 18.
###### Verse 19.
###### Verse 20.
###### Verse 21.
###### Verse 22.
###### Verse 23.
###### Verse 24.
## 🤔 Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights
1. Israel was camped at Shittim (2:1), the same place where Israel sinned with the Moabite women (Numbers 25:1).
2. Rahab hid the spies under stalks of flax drying on her roof (2:6).
3. Rahab's house was built into the city wall (2:15).
4. Rahab had heard of the Red Sea crossing forty years earlier and of the defeat of Sihon and Og (2:10).
5. The fear that melted Jericho's heart (2:9, 11) fulfills the Song of Moses (Exodus 15:15-16).
6. Rahab uses the covenant name of God, the Lord (Yahweh), in her confession (2:9-11).
7. Rahab asks the spies to show her family *hesed* (2:12), the Hebrew word for loyal, covenant kindness.
8. The Hebrew word for the scarlet cord, *tiqvah*, is the same word often translated "hope" elsewhere in the Old Testament.
9. The spies hid in the hill country for three days before returning (2:16, 22).
10. Jericho sits more than 800 feet below sea level, near the Jordan River and the Dead Sea.
## 🧠Chapter Summary
> [!note] 🌱 Still growing. This section is on its way.
## ✝️ Christ in This Chapter
Christ is the Savior who rescues sinners who trust Him. Rahab was saved by faith under the sign of a scarlet cord (2:18-21), and she became an ancestor of Jesus (Matthew 1:5).
## 🔎 Key Principles / 🛟 Life Application
> [!note] 🌱 Still growing. This section is on its way.
## đź’¬ Discussion Questions
1. Rahab heard what the Lord had done and confessed that He is God in heaven and on earth (2:9-11). How did she come to faith with so little information?
2. How should we think about Rahab's deception (2:4-6) in light of the way the New Testament praises her faith (Hebrews 11:31; James 2:25)?
3. The scarlet cord marked Rahab's house for rescue (2:18-21). What other signs of rescue in Scripture does it remind you of?
## ✍️ Key Verses to Remember
- đź“– verse 9: Rahab knows the Lord has given Israel the land, and fear has fallen on Jericho.
- đź“– verse 11: Rahab confesses that the Lord is God in heaven above and on earth below.
- đź“– verse 18: The scarlet cord in the window marks Rahab's house for rescue.
## đź”— Related Passages/Cross Reference
- đź”— [[Hebrews 11#Verse 31.|Hebrews 11:31]] - By faith Rahab did not perish.
- đź”— [[James 02#Verse 25.|James 2:25]] - Rahab's faith shown by her actions.
- đź”— [[Matthew 01#Verse 05.|Matthew 1:5]] - Rahab in the genealogy of Jesus.
- đź”— [[Exodus 15#Verse 14.|Exodus 15:14-16]] - The nations tremble at the Lord.
- đź”— [[Exodus 12#Verse 13.|Exodus 12:13]] - The blood as a sign on the houses.
## 🙏 Devotional Reflection
đź“ť SOAP: [[Joshua 2 - SOAP|The Lord Prepares The Way]]
## đź“‚ Internal Notes