A Faithful Lie

Nov. 10

Read: Joshua 2:1-24; Hebrews 11:31

A Faithful Lie

“And as soon as we heard it, our hearts melted, and there was no spirit left in any man because of you, for the LORD your God, he is God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath.” - Rehab (2:11)

It is wild to think about how the first specific example we have of strength, courage, and obedience in action is a prostitute named Rehab from the midst of the people in Jericho. While the rest of her city was responding in fear, she responds by boldly giving shelter and protection to the Israelite spies. What was it that caused Rahab to respond the way that she did? She recognized that the Lord our God is “God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath.” Rehab understood that YHWH was the Lord over all… and that her gods paled in comparison to him. She ultimately places her trust and belief in him and pledges her loyalty to the Lord through her actions with these spies. Rehab had FAITH in YHWH / God Most High. Hebrews 11:31 says this:

“By faith Rahab the prostitute did not perish with those who were disobedient, because she had given a friendly welcome to the spies.”

If you go back and read the rest of Hebrews 11, you will see that this verse is part of a longer chronological list of names that are given highlighting people of faith. Rahab’s name is listed immediately after Moses in this section… which means the scriptures skipped over Joshua and listed Rahab instead! Stew on that for a minute. What is even more interesting is that Rahab would go on to become a part of both King David and JESUS’ LINEAGE and genealogy… Rahab is a part of the bloodline of Christ… the once pagan, non-Israelite, prostitute now folded in to the story of Jesus our Lord. (cf. Matt 1:5)

Rehab was not simply a person of faith, she was also a person of ACTION… one who was obedient to the calling of the Lord. James 2:24-25 says:

“You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way?”

Rehab is given as a direct example of Faith in action… strength, courage, and obedience. Of all the biblical woman listed, she has a very unique position and calling. It is hard to imagine a more favorable outcome really… folded into the lineage of the Christ, cited as an example of faith and obedience, commended by the Lord in thew scriptures for doing so.

But what about her deception? Her story is used all of the time to work out ethics and morals in classrooms around the world. Was it wrong for her to lie? Was it even a lie at all? Are we missing the point of the story when we hone in on this one facet? I do not think that Rahab lacked “faith” and therefore used deception instead… it would seem odd to get called out for having faith later on in Hebrews if that was the case. It does not seem as though the Lord shuns her actions or rebukes her for what she did… in fact quite the opposite. In the end, it is worth noting that she is commended for how she treated the spies, not specifically for her deception. I will leave you to mull this over with the Lord… but there is no denying that Rahab is powerful example of strength, courage, obedience and action that echos forward in the scriptures. She is a woman of faith. Her actions brought redemption and rescue for her entire family. She is a hero form the least likely origins - this is a theme multiplied 100’s of times over throughout the scriptures. She trusted God Most High and placed her loyalty, belief, and life to him… the “God in the heavens above and the earth below.” Love you guys. -JDP