Joshua 2:17-24
Jos 2:17
And the men said unto her, We will be blameless of
this thine oath which thou hast made us swear.
Then the men stated to Rahab that they would be blameless
of the oath of Rahab if any of the conditions are not met which follows.
Jos 2:18
Behold, when we come into the land, thou shalt
bind this line of scarlet thread in the window which thou didst let us down by:
and thou shalt bring thy father, and thy mother, and thy brethren, and all thy
father's household, home unto thee.
Then they told her the conditions upon which their part
of the oath would be honored.
First, they were to bind a scarlet thread in the window which they came down
from. It is like the blood they
placed on the sides and lintel of the doors of the houses in Egypt when the
final plagued came upon Egypt.
Secondly, she was to bring her immediate family to her house and her extended
family was also to join them. The
scarlet thread is also a name for the person of Christ appearing in every book
of the Bible, even if his name is not mentioned.
Jos 2:19
And it shall be, that whosoever shall go out of
the doors of thy house into the street, his blood shall be upon his head,
and we will be guiltless: and whosoever shall be with thee in the house,
his blood shall be on our head, if any hand be upon him.
When the battle begins, all the members of the family are
to stay inside the house but if anyone ventures out in the streets, even to
watch the battle, their lives will be in danger and if they die, then it is on
their own head which means it will be their fault and the Israelites will be
guiltless in the matter. On the
other hand, if anyone is injured or killed in the house of Rahab, then the
Israelites will bear responsibility for that.
Jos 2:20
And if thou utter this our business, then we will be quit
of thine oath which thou hast made us to swear.
Then if anyone in the house of Rahab and especially Rahab
mentions any of the plans that the Israelites have and they are openly known in
Jericho, then the Israelites are free of the oath and the house of Rahab could
be killed along with the others.
Jos 2:21
And she said, According unto your words, so be it.
And she sent them away, and they departed: and she bound the scarlet line in the
window.
Then Rahab agreed and the spies were then sent away to
the mountains for three days of hiding from the pursuers.
Then once the spies departed, Rahab hung the scarlet thread from the
window not knowing when the attack would happen and this way her house would be
protected when it did occur.
Jos 2:22
And they went, and came unto the mountain, and abode
there three days, until the pursuers were returned: and the pursuers sought
them throughout all the way, but found them not.
It seems that Rahab had received a word from the Lord
concerning the three days in which time the pursuers had returned to Jericho
without finding the spies. The
pursuers had done a thorough search for them but they did not find them.
While they were searching for them, they had gone to the mountains and
when the pursuers returned, then the spies left the mountains and went back to
the Israelite camp across Jordan unhindered.
Jos 2:23
So the two men returned, and descended from the mountain,
and passed over, and came to Joshua the son of Nun, and told him all things
that befell them:
So the two spies returned to Joshua unharmed as God went
before them and provided a safe haven for them in the person of Rahab.
And the LORD, he
it is that doth go before thee;
he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not,
neither be dismayed. (Deuteronomy 31:8)
Deuteronomy 31:8 should be a great comfort to all Christians since it
teaches us that wherever we go, God has already gone before us.
Just as he protected the spies in Jericho, if he sends us on a mission or
a journey, he will pave the way for us.
The two spies then filled Joshua in on everything that happened to them
including their ally Rahab and the pursuers plus the King of Jericho already
knew that an attack was imminent as he knew the Israelites were already at the
border.
Jos 2:24
And they said unto Joshua, Truly the LORD hath delivered
into our hands all the land; for even all the inhabitants of the country do
faint because of us.