Promises Kept

Joshua 6:22-27

²²But to the two men who had spied out the land, Joshua said, “Go into the prostitute’s house and bring out from there the woman and all who belong to her, as you swore to her.” ²³So the young men who had been spies went in and brought out Rahab and her father and mother and brothers and all who belonged to her. And they brought all her relatives and put them outside the camp of Israel. ²⁴And they burned the city with fire, and everything in it. Only the silver and gold, and the vessels of bronze and of iron, they put into the treasury of the house of the Lord. ²⁵But Rahab the prostitute and her father’s household and all who belonged to her, Joshua saved alive. And she has lived in Israel to this day, because she hid the messengers whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho. ²⁶Joshua laid an oath on them at that time, saying, “Cursed before the Lord be the man who rises up and rebuilds this city, Jericho. At the cost of his firstborn shall he lay its foundation, and at the cost of his youngest son shall he set up its gates.” ²⁷So the Lord was with Joshua, and his fame was in all the land.

Jericho has fallen, flat to the ground. The city has been burned and the citizens killed, with the exception of Rahab and her entire family. She struck a good bargain with the spies and now Joshua honors that promise and saves her family. Before the violence, Rahab and her family are removed the situation and put into a place of safety.

The Bible is usually short on details when it comes to some of these stories. I have often wondered just when Rahab was removed from the city – before or after the walls fell. We know from previous chapters that she actually lived inside of the city wall, so did her particular portion of the wall remain standing long enough to get her out, or did they bring her out before the walls even came down? (I suspect the later – but God will have to clear that up when I get to His throne.) Regardless of when, we know that she was spared because of her faith in God and she even became a part of the ancestry of Jesus.

Joshua makes another prophecy about Jericho. He declares that the walls should not be rebuilt, as the city is under a curse from the Lord. Because of that curse, should anyone try to rebuild the walls, they will forfeit their youngest and oldest children. It’s a terrible curse. Hundreds of years later, when the Northern Kingdom is living in total apostasy, those walls are rebuilt (during the reign of the wicked King Ahab and even more wicked Queen Jezebel) and that prophecy is fulfilled.

1 Kings 16:34

In his days Hiel of Bethel built Jericho. He laid its foundation at the cost of Abiram his firstborn and set up its gates at the cost of his youngest son Segub, according to the word of the Lord, which he spoke by Joshua the son of Nun.

By that point, the people living in the Northern Kingdom cared not one little bit about God or all the things He had done to give them the land. They were open Baal worshipers and thumbed their nose at God on a regular basis.

As we see the entire population of Jericho destroyed, we must look at God and wonder about so much violence. That bloodshed and violence will be the tune during the rest of Joshua’s story. The taking of what would become Israel is steeped in bloodshed. What we learn from Rahab’s story is that anyone who is willing to accept that Yahweh is Lord will be spared. God continually seeks after people and when they turn to Him, they are saved. Ezekiel reports what the Lord told him about those Gentiles who turned to Him for salvation.

Ezekiel 33:11

Say to them, “As I live, declares the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live; turn back, turn back from your evil ways, for why will you die, O house of Israel?”

So while we pretend to stand in judgment of God when all these people die, we must also remember that He is just, holy, and fully prepared to receive anyone who turns to Him in repentance.