Joshua 2 Verses 1 to 21 Being Available to God August 6, 2023

Joshua 2 Verses 1 to 21 Being Available to God August 6, 2023

Class Presentation Notes AAAAA

Background Scripture:

Hebrews 11:31 (NASB) 31 By faith Rahab the harlot did not perish along with those who were disobedient, after she had welcomed the spies in peace.

Main Idea: To be used of God we must distance ourselves from our past and instead choose to be part of the family of God.

Study Aim: To understand we should be so concerned about our loved ones that we want to bring them into the shelter of salvation.

Create Interest:

· The Israelites were about to enter Canaan and claim their promised land. The first city they would have to face was the great walled city of Jericho. If they could take this city, they could easily split the country in two and then move from there to conquer the north and the south.

· Before they attack the city, Joshua sent two spies into the city to examine the mood of the people and to determine whether or not they were ready for the war that is coming. When these two men arrived in Jericho, they went to the home of a harlot. Their purpose in entering into a harlot’s home was not immoral. Their reasons were practical. The sight of men entering a harlot’s home would not attract too much attention.

· What they found when they entered the home of Rahab must have been a shock to the spies. They found a woman who had already been changed by the power of God. When they met Rahab, they found out that she wasn’t who she used to be!

· The story of the salvation of Rahab and her family from the destruction of Jericho is remarkable. The New Testament refers to it as an example of faith (Heb 11:31), and of justification by works (James 2:25). Rahab herself is brought into the genealogy of the Lord Jesus, as the mother of Boaz, the great-grandfather of David (Mt 1:5). The focus of the narrative now changes from Shittim to Jericho and from the leader of Israel to a Gentile harlot in Jericho.[1]

· Rahab is a demonstration of the power of God to transform lives. What I want you to see from this text is how the Lord takes sinners who will place their faith in Him and completely changes them by His power. Listen to the factsthat present themselves in this passage. As you do, if you are saved you should rejoice in the great change Jesus has made in your life. If you are not saved, listen to what the Lord did for Rahab, and consider coming to Jesus Christ that you might be saved and changed by His power.[2]

Lesson in Historical Context:

· The Book of Joshua, like several others of the historical books of Scripture, derives its name from its contents. It takes up the history of the chosen people at the death of Moses, and continues it in a systematic and orderly narrative, through the leadership and government of his successor. It records almost exclusively the acts of Joshua in fulfilment of the commission laid upon him from God by the hand of Moses (cp. Deut. 31:7, 8), and terminates with Joshua’s death and burial.

· The chronological dates presented in this book are few: Comparing 4:19 and 5:6, if the date of the Exodus be assumed to be b.c. 1490, that of the invasion of Canaan will be b.c.1450.

· The book of Joshua is repeatedly cited or referred to in the New Testament: cp. Acts 7:45; Heb. 3:5; 4:8; 11:30, 31; James 2:25.

· At the time of the Conquest, a variety of peoples were settled in smaller city-states in Canaan. The cities were well fortified, and the people warlike. But the design of the buildings, with established drainage systems, shows a high level of development. Also, the metalwork and pottery of the people were advanced. And they carried on extensive trade with other nations. Yet for all their material advancement, the religion and morals of Canaan were degraded. Deuteronomy 18:9–13 lists some of the religious practices for which this people must now be dispossessed.[3]

· The land of Canaan was given as a free gift by God to the Israelites—they took possession of it because He commanded them do so—and He no less commanded them to annihilate the Canaanite nations without mercy.

· The destruction of the Canaanites is always presented in Scripture as a judgment of God sent on them because of their wickedness.

o They had not only fallen into total apostacy from God, but into forms of idolatry of the most degrading kind.

o Their false religion cannot be regarded as a mere error of judgment; cruelty, the most atrocious, and unnatural crimes the most defiling were part and parcel of its observances.

o Moreover, they had proved themselves to be incorrigible. They had had not only the general warning of the Deluge, as had other nations of the earth, but the special one of the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah in the very midst of them.

o They had had also the example and instruction of Abraham and the patriarchs living for ages amongst them.

· The slaughter of the Canaanites served various important purposes besides the mere removal of them from the face of the earth.

o To make and keep the Jewish people as much as possible isolated, was a marked and vital principle of the Old Testament dispensation. No more effectual means could have been adopted for inspiring God’s people with an abhorrence for Canaanitic sins, to which they were not a little prone, than to make them the ministers of Divine vengeance for those sins.[4]

· Military history illustrates the importance of spies for gathering intelligence prior to battles, and army doctrine states that victory requires thorough reconnaissance. In the United States, General George Armstrong Custer shunned reconnaissance and lost his life and the lives of many troops at the battle of Little Big Horn.

· The Bible gives a mixed picture of the importance of spies for warfare. In the wilderness of Sinai, Moses sent spies to gather intelligence on Canaan, but fearfulness spread when the majority brought back a negative recommendation (Num. 21:32, Jazer; Num. 13; Deut. 1:22–23). At other times skillful reconnaissance provided opportunities for surprise in warfare and ensured victory (Judg. 7:10–11; 1 Sam. 26:6–7). Faulty reconnaissance (Josh. 7:3; 8:1) cost Joshua and the people the element of surprise, and disobedience cost them a victory at Ai (Josh. 7:1, 2–5, 10–12). Ultimately the support of the Lord, not clever reconnaissance, enabled the people to possess the land of Canaan. In the book of Joshua, intelligence gathering was a dangerous enterprise that produced mixed results.[5]

Bible Study:

Joshua 2:1 (NASB) 1 Then Joshua the son of Nun sent two men as spies secretly from Shittim, saying, "Go, view the land, especially Jericho." So they went and came into the house of a harlot whose name was Rahab, and lodged there.

· Two spies are secretly sent into the land of Canaan. Forty years earlier it was two of twelve spies that came back with a good report … Joshua and Caleb. The incident of the spies’ report pictures the Second Coming of Christ.

· Joshua means “Jesus” in the New Testament. In Deuteronomy, the kingdom message of Joshua was rejected.

o When Christ came the first time, His message of the kingdom of God was rejected. In Joshua, however, the message of the kingdom is obeyed. Joshua is a prophet and also has the authority of the leader or king of the nation and leads his people into God’s inheritance.

o When Christ returns, He will bring His kingdom with Him. He will be in charge like Joshua. He will return, not as a lamb, but the Lion of Judah.

· Why are they sending spies into the land? The information that Joshua had from his own survey of the land was forty years old and could have been out-of-date. He had a fair idea of what lay before them, as he directed the spies to not only “view the land” but, in particular, gain information about Jericho. Good intelligence is often viewed as one of the most important aspects of winning a battle and Joshua does what the Lord had commissioned him to do, taking steps to lead the nation according to the best of the ability and the experience that the Lord had given him.[6]

o We too need to learn to master the principles of God’s Word daily. Learning also comes before leadership. The spies were also sent for another reason.

§ God knew there was a woman who needed to be saved.

· The men are led to a harlot’s house named Rahab, not for sex, but for sleep. The Bible does not tell us whether these men knew Rahab had ever been a harlot. The inn was like a community bulletin board. Travelers would visit them to keep up on latest news. The story of Rahab is a story of God’s mercy and grace and God’s working in her life. Joshua is a book about God’s grace.[7]

Thoughts to Soak on

· How the spies got over Jordan we are not told; but into Jericho they came, which was about seven or eight miles from the river, and there seeking for a convenient inn were directed to the house of Rahab, here called a harlot, a woman that had formerly been of ill fame, the reproach of which stuck to her name, though of late she had repented and reformed.

· Simon the leper (Mt. 26:6), though cleansed from his leprosy, wore the reproach of it in his name as long as he lived; so, Rahab the harlot; and she is so called in the New Testament, where both her faith and her good works are praised, to teach us……………………………….

o That the greatness of sin is no bar to pardoning mercy if it be truly repented of in time. We read of publicans and harlots entering into the kingdom of the Messiah, and being welcomed to all the privileged of that kingdom, Mt. 21:31-32.

o That there are many who before their conversion were very wicked and vile, and yet afterwards come to great eminence in faith and holiness.

o That even those who through grace have repented of the sins of their youth must expect to bear the reproach of them, and when they hear of their old faults must renew their repentance, and, as an evidence of that, hear of them patiently.

· God’s Israel had but one well-wisher in all Jericho, and that was Rahab a harlot. God has often served his own purposes and his church’s interests by persons of different morals.

o Had these scouts gone to any other house than this they would certainly have been betrayed and put to death without mercy.

o But God knew where they had a friend that would be true to them, though they did not.

· Thus, that which seems to us most contingent and accidental is often over-ruled by the divine providence to serve His great ends. And those that faithfully acknowledge God in their ways, He will guide with his eye.[8]

Joshua 2:2-3 (NASB) 2 It was told the king of Jericho, saying, "Behold, men from the sons of Israel have come here tonight to search out the land." 3 And the king of Jericho sent word to Rahab, saying, "Bring out the men who have come to you, who have entered your house, for they have come to search out all the land."

· This was a public place that allowed agents of the local ruler to learn who the two men were and what their mission was. Their report to the ruler included the charge that the men had come to spy out(Heb. laḥpōr) the land. This verb is normally used to describe the digging of wells. Its one other occurrence with the sense of spying is in Deuteronomy 1:22, which relates the earlier sending of scouts to search out the land of Canaan. Repetition in this text emphasizes the key points of the narrative.

· The first repetition is the message that the spies had come to spy out the land. This is relayed to the king, and his servants are told to repeat it to Rahab.

o The text thus leads the reader to understand that the mission of the spies was known to the enemy at the highest levels.

o It was treason against Jericho and its king to aid these men. Rahab’s helpful deeds indicate her renunciation of allegiance to the Canaanites of Jericho and her acceptance of the rulership of Joshua and his agents.[9]

Joshua 2:4-7 (NASB) 4 But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them, and she said, "Yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they were from. 5 "It came about when it was time to shut the gate at dark, that the men went out; I do not know where the men went. Pursue them quickly, for you will overtake them." 6 But she had brought them up to the roof and hidden them in the stalks of flax which she had laid in order on the roof. 7 So the men pursued them on the road to the Jordan to the fords; and as soon as those who were pursuing them had gone out, they shut the gate.

· the woman had taken the two men and hidden them, —literally, “him,” that is, each of them in separate places, of course previous to the appearance of the royal messengers and in anticipation of a speedy search after her guests.

o According to Eastern manners, which pay an almost superstitious respect to a woman’s apartment, the royal messengers did not demand admittance to search but asked her to bring the foreigners out.

· when it was time to shut the gate at dark —The gates of all Oriental cities are closed at sunset, after which there is no possibility either of admission or egress.

· the men went out—This was a palpable deception. But, as lying is a common vice among heathen people, Rahab was probably unconscious of its moral guilt, especially as she resorted to it as a means for screening her guests; and she might deem herself bound to do it by the laws of Eastern hospitality, which make it a point of honor to preserve the greatest enemy, if he has once eaten one’s salt.

o Judged by the divine law, her answer was a sinful expedient; but her infirmity being united with faith, she was graciously pardoned and her service accepted.

§ James 2:25 (NASB) 25 In the same way, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way?

· she had brought them up to the roof of the house, and hid them with the stalks of flax—Flax, with other vegetable productions, is at a certain season spread out on the flat roofs of Eastern houses to be dried in the sun; and, after lying awhile, it is piled up in numerous little stacks, which, from the luxuriant growth of the flax, rise to a height of three or four feet. Behind some of these stacks Rahab concealed the spies.

· the men pursued after them the way to Jordan unto the fords —That river is crossed at several well-known fords. The first and second immediately below the sea of Galilee; the third and fourth immediately above and below the pilgrims’ bathing-place, opposite Jericho.

· as soon as those who were pursuing them had gone out, they shut the gate—This precaution was to ensure the capture of the spies, should they have been lurking in the city.[10]

Please do not skip over this next section!

Thoughts to soak on submitted by J. Vernon McGee and a suspected effect this had on Patrick Henry in 1775😊. Warren Wiersbe chimes in to join the discussion. This should invoke in-depth discussion.

· In our last Class Without Walls, members were very challenged by the thought of Abraham being asked to sacrifice Isaac. How do you know it is God talking, what if Abraham did not hear the angel who stopped him???? The Class has not come to a resolution in their hearts about this yet, but I am proud they are soaking on the issue.

· So here we are again arriving at a challenging life situation in this Rahab story.

· Let’s first hear from J. Vernon McGee😊. I will suggest that if this hangs up your class discussion, all the better…To quote our former Minister of Education, David Adams in 2001 in a conversation with JSJ.

o “finishing the lesson is not the goal…it is giving the class something to take with them through the week to improve their lives and that of others hopefully.” (some memory license is taken with this quote but the intent is accurate)

· J. Vernon McGee:

o “ “She told her king an outright lieto protect these men. And in doing so, she actually jeopardized her own life. Now why would she put her life on the line like this? She didn’t have to. She is in a business, by the way, where anything goes. Why did she lie to her own people and protect the enemy?

o Before we see the answer to that question, let me raise another question. Is it possible to condone Rahab’s action?

§ Scripture is very clear on the fact that we, as children of God, are to obey authority and those that have the rule over us.

📷 Rahab certainly did not do that. I do not think we could call her a child of God until sometime after this experience. That would be one explanation. However, there is another explanation that I consider meaningful to us today.

o A believer should certainly obey the authorities and those who have rule over us. A Christian should be the most law–abiding citizen in the land.

§ But when the laws of a state conflict with God’s revealed will, then the Christian has no choice but to obey the command of God. This was the experience of Peter and John when the authorities attempted to silence them in their witness for Christ, “… Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye. For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard” (Acts 4:19–20).

📷 The believer is to obey the Word of God today rather than the word of man. That should be our attitude as children of God.[11]””

· Patrick Henry was a profound believer in the divinity of Christianity and declared its necessity to nations and governments as well as to the salvation and happiness of the soul.

o In 1765, Henry noted, “Righteousness alone can exalt them as a nation. Reader, whoever thou art, remember this and in thy sphere practice virtue thyself and encourage it in others.”

o In April 1775 he uttered the following sentiments in an impassioned outburst of patriotism, “An appeal to arms and the God of Hosts is all that is left us. Nor shall we fight our battles alone. That God who presides over the destinies of nations will raise up friends for us.” (dig here for a clue to your discussion)

o Henry notes holding up the Bible, “This is a book worth more that all the other books every printed.”

o Noting in his last will and testimony to his children, “….there is one thing more I wish I could give them, and that is the Christian religion….if they had this they would be rich…or they would be poor if I have given them all the world.”

§ Reference is The Christian Life and Character of the Civil Institutions of the United States by Benjamin F. Morris 2007, pages 145-146.

· Warren Wiersbe : Lying is wrong (Prov. 12:22), and the fact that God had Rahab’s lies recorded in Scripture is no proof that He approved of them.

o However, let’s confess that most of us would hesitate to tell the truth if it really were a matter of life or death. It’s one thing for me to tell the truth about myself and suffer for it; but do I have the right to cause the death of others, especially those who have come under my roof for protection?

o Many people have been honored for deceiving the enemy during wartime and saving innocent lives, and this was war! Suppose we looked upon Rahab as a “freedom fighter”; would that change the picture at all?

o Ethical problems aside, the main lesson here is that Rahab’s faith was conspicuous, and she demonstrated it by receiving the spies and risking her life to protect them.

o James saw her actions as proof that she was truly a believer (James 2:25). Her faith wasn’t hidden; the spies could tell that she was indeed a believer.[12]

· Our challenge as students of the Bible as were Dr. McGee and Patrick Henry and Warren Wiersbe, how do learn from this and Rahab actions?…Imagine you are explaining it to your children😊. Note I am not giving answers but invoking questions to soak, ponder, chew on, discuss….give it a whirl and see what comes out.

Note before proceeding: If the above challenge is eating you up, go to pages 14 and 15 for a concise explanation from God’s point of view

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Now more thoughts to soak on since you have passed judgement on Rahab. Consider the following thoughts.

· Rahab risked her life to save the two Israelite spies. But this was not all: she was committing treason against her own people. Why? What would make her forsake her former life and turn to the Lord, becoming identified with the people of God?

· The answer to these questions will be seen in the rest of this Scripture; however, for now, the point to see is that she did forsake her former life. She made a courageous decision to turn away from the evil and corruption of the Canaanites, a courageous decision to turn to God and become identified with the people of God. Remember we are today with the N.Testament.

· Scripture is clear: we must forsake sin and turn to God. There has to be repentance in our lives, a point when we turn away from the sins of this world and turn to God.[13]

o Acts 17:30 (NASB) 30 "Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all peopleeverywhere should repent,

o Ephesians 4:22 (NASB) 22 that, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit,

o Hebrews 12:1 (NASB) 1 Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.

o 1 Peter 2:11 (NASB) 11 Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts which wage war against the soul.

Joshua 2:8-14 (NASB) 8 Now before they lay down, she came up to them on the roof, 9 and said to the men, "I know that the LORD has given you the land, and that the terror of you has fallen on us, and that all the inhabitants of the land have melted away before you. 10 "For we have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon and Og, whom you utterly destroyed. 11 "When we heard it, our hearts melted and no courage remained in any man any longer because of you; for the LORDyour God, He is God in heaven above and on earth beneath. 12 "Now therefore, please swear to me by the LORD, since I have dealt kindly with you, that you also will deal kindly with my father's household, and give me a pledge of truth, 13 and spare my father and my mother and my brothers and my sisters, with all who belong to them, and deliver our lives from death." 14 So the men said to her, "Our life for yours if you do not tell this business of ours; and it shall come about when the LORD gives us the land that we will deal kindly and faithfully with you."

· Rahab’s report that the hearts of the Canaanites were melting in fear (9) persuaded the spies that the Lord had defeated the land without them having to lift a sword (24; cf. 1:5; Ex. 15:13–16; 23:27; Dt. 2:25, 11:25). The courage of Israel’s new generation of fighting men (1:6–9) contrasted sharply with the preceding, timid generation (Nu. 13–14; cf. 1 Cor. 16:13; 1 Jn. 4:4)

· Vs. 11: Rahab expresses fear of Israel’s God, Yahweh, and acknowledges Him as God in heaven and on earth. In the context of ancient Near Eastern religious thought, this places Yahweh in the category of cosmic deity and recognizes Him as a powerful national patron god.

· The report the Canaanites have heard suggests that He/Yahweh can influence the weather as well as bodies of water, disease and the animal world. Though her confession expresses how impressed they all are with the range of Yahweh’s authority and power, it is far from an expression of monotheism.

· She has neither renounced her gods nor offered to dispose of them. She has not affirmed any loyalty to Yahweh but has requested his help.

· She shows no knowledge of the obligations of the law, and we have no reason to think she is aware of the revolutionary religious system that was developing in Israel.

o In short, her speech does not suggest that she has risen much above her polytheistic perspective—but she knows power when she sees it. The dread of a deity as a divine warrior was often believed to precede a powerful, successful army into battle. Egyptian texts attribute this terror to Amun-Re in the inscriptions of Thutmose III, and Hittite, Assyrian and Babylonian texts all have their divine warriors who strike terror into the hearts of the enemy.[14]

· After her confession of faith (9–11), the first in the Bible, Rahab sought salvation within the covenant community (12–13). In v 12 kindness(Heb. ḥesed) is a shorthand way of saying ‘unfailing help to a needy covenant partner’.

o God’s salvation is available to all who seek him. Characteristically, Rahab sought the salvation of her entire family (see 24:15). The sign she wanted was the oath the spies gave in v 14.

§ These circumcised men accepted this converted prostitute into the full fellowship of the covenant community, and were even willing to die for her and her family.

o The oath with the Gibeonites in Ch. 9 is another matter. They heard of the fame of Israel’s God, but they never confessed Him as their Lord.[15]

Joshua 2:15-20 (NASB) 15 Then she let them down by a rope through the window, for her house was on the city wall, so that she was living on the wall. 16 She said to them, "Go to the hill country, so that the pursuers will not happen upon you, and hide yourselves there for three days until the pursuers return. Then afterward you may go on your way." 17 The men said to her, "We shall be free from this oath to you which you have made us swear, 18 unless, when we come into the land, you tie this cord of scarlet thread in the window through which you let us down, and gather to yourself into the house your father and your mother and your brothers and all your father's household. 19 "It shall come about that anyone who goes out of the doors of your house into the street, his blood shall be on his own head, and we shall be free; but anyone who is with you in the house, his blood shall be on our head if a hand is laid on him. 20 "But if you tell this business of ours, then we shall be free from the oath which you have made us swear."

· Rahab had heard of the miracles the Lord wrought for Israel. She believed that his promises would certainly be fulfilled, and his threats take effect; and that there was no way of escape but by submitting to Him and joining with his people.

· The conduct of Rahab proved that she had the real principle of Divine faith. Observe the promises the spies made to her.

o The goodness of God is often expressed by his kindness and truth, Ps 117:2; in both these we must be followers of him. Those who will be conscientious in keeping promises, are cautious in making them. The spies make needful conditions.

o The scarlet cord, like the blood upon the doorpost at the Passover, recalls to remembrance the sinner’s security under the atoning blood of Christ; and that we are to flee thereto for refuge from the wrath of a justly offended God.

o The same cord Rahab used for the saving of these Israelites, was to be used for her own safety. What we serve and honor God with, we may expect He will bless, and make useful to us.[16]

§ Psalm 117:2 (NASB) 2 For His lovingkindness is great toward us, And the truth of the LORD is everlasting. Praise the LORD!

The Bible clearly condemns lying. Throughout the Old and New Testaments, commands forbid it, prophets condemn it, and godly people avoid doing it (Ex. 20:16; Jer. 9:4–9; Zech. 8:16; Eph. 4:25). Behind all these is God Himself, who cannot lie (Num. 23:19). But what about Rahab? She lied to protect the spies of Israel who had come to scout out the city of Jericho. The story of her heroics paint her in a very positive light; Joshua praised her efforts, and both Testaments of the Bible praise and honor Rahab for doing this(Josh. 6:22–25; Heb. 11:31; James 2:25). Her action made her part of God’s people, ultimately placing her in the line of ancestry to David and Jesus. Her lie was also part of the conquest of Canaan, a task that God commissioned and blessed. Does her example mean that lying can sometimes be an acceptable course of action?

· In Rahab’s case, there are three possibilities. Either her lie was not a sin, or it was a sin but excusable, or it was a sin and inexcusable. Those who say her lie was not a sin will sometimes say they believe that “the loving thing” is all that matters; a “little lie” told in the name of love is no sin. In fact, it is the right thing to do. · Others have said that Rahab’s sin was excusable because of a greater value—the lives of the spies. Those who hold this view believe that some sins are worse than others, and sometimes a person has to choose among them. In Rahab’s case, the necessity of preserving the lives of the spies had a higher value than the truth. She did the right thing in misdirecting the king’s men because it was more important to save their lives than to tell the king’s men where they were. · The third possibility is that a lie is a lie, and that even Rahab’s action was wrong. In this view, Rahab sinned no matter how noble her intentions. Of course, in her case, her sin is understandable because she lacked a complete knowledge of the living God. That is, what she did was wrong, but she did not know any better. · We must be careful to make a distinction between Rahab’s faith and the way Rahab expressed it. The Bible praises Rahab because of her faith in God, not because of her lying. That is, her actions would have been more noble had she protected the spies in some other fashion; as it is, she did the best she could. The Bible calls Rahab a prostitute, but we are not meant to take that as an endorsement for immorality. Rahab, like the rest of us, had a mixed character, but she believed in God and strove to honor Him and His people. That is what draws her praise.

· We should honor Rahab the way the Bible does. She was a great heroine of the faith, who came from the most surprising place. In time, her name would be honored not only for what she did for Israel, but for what she became—a mother in the line of Jesus (Ruth 4:18–22; Matt. 1:5).[17]

[1]S. Grant, C. T. Lacey, and J. M. Flaniga, Joshua, Judges and Ruth, ed. W. S. Stevely and D. E. West, What the Bible Teaches (John Ritchie, 2009), 32. [2]Alan Carr, “Rahab: Not Who She Used to Be (Joshua 2:1–24),”in The Sermon Notebook: Old Testament(Lenoir, NC: Alan Carr, 2015), 613. [3]Lawrence O. Richards, The Teacher’s Commentary (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1987), 163. [4]Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament: Exodus to Ruth, ed. F. C. Cook and J. M. Fuller (London: John Murray, 1879), 345–353. [5]J. Gordon Harris, “Joshua,” in Joshua, Judges, Ruth, ed. W. Ward Gasque, Robert L. Hubbard Jr., and Robert K. Johnston, Understanding the Bible Commentary Series (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2012), 27. [6]S. Grant, C. T. Lacey, and J. M. Flaniga, Joshua, Judges and Ruth, ed. W. S. Stevely and D. E. West, What the Bible Teaches (John Ritchie, 2009), 32. [7]Rod Mattoon, Treasures from Joshua, Treasures from Scripture Series (Springfield, IL: Rod Mattoon, 2002), 24–25. [8]Matthew Henry, Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible: Complete and Unabridged in One Volume(Peabody: Hendrickson, 1994), 292. [9]Richard S. Hess, Joshua: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 6, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1996), 93. [10]Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset, and David Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible, vol. 1 (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1997), 143–144. [11]J. Vernon McGee, Thru the Bible Commentary: History of Israel (Joshua/Judges), electronic ed., vol. 10 (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1991), 22–23. [12]Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Strong, “Be” Commentary Series (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1996), 37. [13]Leadership Ministries Worldwide, The Book of Joshua, The Preacher’s Outline & Sermon Bible (Chattanooga, TN: Leadership Ministries Worldwide, 2003), 24–25. [14]Victor Harold Matthews, Mark W. Chavalas, and John H. Walton, The IVP Bible Background Commentary: Old Testament, electronic ed. (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2000), Jos 2:11. [15]Bruce K. Waltke, “Joshua,” in New Bible Commentary: 21st Century Edition, ed. D. A. Carson et al., 4th ed. (Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press, 1994), 239. [16]Matthew Henry and Thomas Scott, Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, 1997), Jos 2:8. [17]Earl D. Radmacher, Ronald Barclay Allen, and H. Wayne House, The Nelson Study Bible: New King James Version(Nashville: T. Nelson Publishers, 1997), Jos 2:4–6.