In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction? [James 2:25 NIV]
James has already provided one example to illustrate his point that genuine faith and good deeds go hand in hand. He has deliberately chosen Abraham as his first example because of his standing among his Jewish readers / listeners. Now he chooses another example - a Gentile. Notice that the verse above begins with "In the same way, so that the example of Rahab is linked to the previous example of Abraham. If we are being very precise, Abraham was not really a Jew or an Israelite - he came from a family who did not know Yahweh, the One God. But his choice of second example cannot claim favour with God because of birth because Rahab was a citizen of the city of Jericho and was an enemy of the Israelites who were conquering her land. The city of Jericho was completely destroyed and its people were slaughtered - apart from one family. Rahab's house was built in the walls of the city so her situation was very vulnerable as these walls would miraculously be reduced to rubble. But Rahab and her family survived all because of Rahab's faith in Yahweh - the God of her enemy who were attacking her city. Rahab had heard from visitors to her home of the amazing victories achieved by their God. And she came to believe in this God and this belief was not an intellectual exercise - she committed her future into the hands of the God of the Israelites. Here is the passage from the Book of Joshua:
Before the spies lay down for the night, she went up on the roof and said to them, “I know that the Lord has given you this land and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you. We have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed. When we heard of it, our hearts melted in fear and everyone’s courage failed because of you, for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below. “Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that you will show kindness to my family, because I have shown kindness to you. Give me a sure sign that you will spare the lives of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them—and that you will save us from death.” [Joshua 2:8-13 NIV]
This remarkable passage provides some insight of the impact made on the heathen nations by God's miraculous dealings with His own people. But Rahab the prostitute went much further than her neighbours. They were afraid of this powerful, yet invisible, God. But they did not follow Rahab's example and demonstrate her faith by her actions. That was exactly what Rahab did. James tells us that she did two things:
She gave lodging to the spies. It was not unusual for men to lodge in Rahab's home but she was taking a huge risk by taking sides with the enemy and giving Joshua and Caleb shelter under her roof.
She sent them off in a different direction. Some of her neighbours must have 'grassed' on Rahab. They had reported her actions to the city officials and soldiers were sent to raid the lodging house on the wall. Rahab hid the two Israelites under bales of flax and the enemy soldiers did not find them. When it was safe for the men to come out of hiding, Rahab told them to run to the hills so that the pursuers would not find them. She told them to hide for three days before returning to their own people. In short, these two men owed their lives to Rahab. If she had not taken such risky steps to keep them safe, they would have been killed by the soldiers.
Rahab was demonstrating that her faith was real. Before the spies left her home. Rahab made them give her an assurance that her life would be spared as well as those of her family sheltering in this home. She even worked out a way of identifying her house - a scarlet cord. There may be significance in the choice of this colour. It was the colour of the rope that she had used to lower the men down from her window to the ground so that they could escape to safety. She would display this same rope from her window as a sign that she was trusting in their mercy and integrity. This is faith in action. She is trusting enemy spies whom she had never met before and knew very little about - apart from the reports of the amazing things their God had done for them. Read the story of Rahab in Joshua chapter 2 to see for yourself how faith and works went hand in hand in the incident described there. Rahab became an Israelite by adoption and she is listed in the family tree of Joseph, the husband of Mary and mother of Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:5). Rahab was not included in the nation of Israel - on the grounds of her faith in God which was demonstrated in her acts of kindness towards spies from an enemy nation.
We pay tribute to our late Queen Elizabeth II who was a great example of faith and deeds. Her constant Christian character and remarkable dedication and humility was the product of a sincere faith in Jesus Christ.
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