Rahab: Finding Peace in Chaos

In the sense of the word peace we typically use, yes Rahab is in Jericho right before Joshua leads the Israelites to march around the walls and destroy the city.

But peace in the bible is the word Shalom, which means more than just the absence of conflict.

It means wholeness, harmony, and absence of chaos.

Peace is something we are all searching for, whether we know it or not, or whether we are willing to admit it or not.

We desire, deep in our hearts, to be at peace, physically, mentally, emotionally, and in every facet of our lives.

And so did Rahab...

Stand as I read from Joshua 2

Joshua 2 CSB

1 Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two men as spies from the Acacia Grove, saying, “Go and scout the land, especially Jericho.” So they left, and they came to the house of a prostitute named Rahab, and stayed there. 2 The king of Jericho was told, “Look, some of the Israelite men have come here tonight to investigate the land.” 3 Then the king of Jericho sent word to Rahab and said, “Bring out the men who came to you and entered your house, for they came to investigate the entire land.” 4 But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. So she said, “Yes, the men did come to me, but I didn’t know where they were from.

Joshua 2 CSB

5 At nightfall, when the city gate was about to close, the men went out, and I don’t know where they were going. Chase after them quickly, and you can catch up with them!” 6 But she had taken them up to the roof and hidden them among the stalks of flax that she had arranged on the roof. 7 The men pursued them along the road to the fords of the Jordan, and as soon as they left to pursue them, the city gate was shut. 8 Before the men fell asleep, she went up on the roof 9 and said to them, “I know that the Lord has given you this land and that the terror of you has fallen on us, and everyone who lives in the land is panicking because of you.

Joshua 2 CSB

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 Sihon and Og, the two Amorite kings you completely destroyed across the Jordan. 11 When we heard this, we lost heart, and everyone’s courage failed because of you, for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on earth below. 12 Now please swear to me by the Lord that you will also show kindness to my father’s family, because I showed kindness to you. Give me a sure sign13 that you will spare the lives of my father, mother, brothers, sisters, and all who belong to them, and save us from death.” 14 The men answered her, “We will give our lives for yours. If you don’t report our mission, we will show kindness and faithfulness to you when the Lord gives us the land.”

Joshua 2 CSB

15 Then she let them down by a rope through the window, since she lived in a house that was built into the wall of the city. 16 “Go to the hill country so that the men pursuing you won’t find you,” she said to them. “Hide there for three days until they return; afterward, go on your way.” 17 The men said to her, “We will be free from this oath you made us swear, 18 unless, when we enter the land, you tie this scarlet cord to the window through which you let us down. Bring your father, mother, brothers, and all your father’s family into your house. 19 If anyone goes out the doors of your house, his death will be his own fault, and we will be innocent. But if anyone with you in the house should be harmed, his death will be our fault.

Joshua 2 CSB

20 And if you report our mission, we are free from the oath you made us swear.” 21 “Let it be as you say,” she replied, and she sent them away. After they had gone, she tied the scarlet cord to the window. 22 So the two men went into the hill country and stayed there three days until the pursuers had returned. They searched all along the way, but did not find them. 23 Then the men returned, came down from the hill country, and crossed the Jordan. They went to Joshua son of Nun and reported everything that had happened to them. 24 They told Joshua, “The Lord has handed over the entire land to us. Everyone who lives in the land is also panicking because of us.”

Rahab’s story teaches us that true peace is:

We should catch up a bit on where we are at in the history of Israel.

God used Moses to lead His people out of slavery in Egypt and was leading them into the promised land, a land of abundance (flowing with milk and honey).

In Numbers 12-13, Moses sent 12 spies into the land to scout it out in order to plan their takeover.

That group consisted of Joshua and Caleb (very young at this stage).

The group saw some huge, strong people and fortified cities that seemed to them to be more than the meager Israelites could handle.

Cowering in fear, 10 of the 12 spies refused to go into the promised land as God had commanded them.

Only Joshua and Caleb trusted God's words that He would give them victory.

So those 10 spies and all the people living at that time among the Israelites were barred from entering the promised land.

They would live out their days in the wilderness, and the next generation would be the ones to enter.

All except Joshua and Caleb.

40 years have passed, those alive back in Numbers 12-13 are now gone, Moses has died, Joshua is the leader of God's people, and it is time to go back into the promised land and claim what God has given them.

So Joshua sends in a new group of spies.

Only 2 this time, and the first place they went was Jericho.

Jericho was an ancient, heavily fortified city with huge walls that surrounded it.

It was the gateway to Canaan, which made it an important city in the conquest that Joshua was leading.

The spies were supposed to enter the city secretly, but either they were really bad at covert ops, or the king of Jericho had some well-placed surveillance, because they were immediately found out, and the king sent his goons to find them and get rid of them.

The spies go to the house of a prostitute named Rahab.

The house was likely an inn (bed and breakfast), and Rahab operated the inn in addition to her other, more prominent occupation.

She would have had travelers in regularly in that case, so it would not have been odd for them to find the place.

It is pretty clear the spies didn't know Rahab before they showed up at her house, and it seems that they came there looking for a place of refuge, where they could possibly blend in.

But what they found was someone who knew who they were, why they came, and who was ready to help them.

God's hand is all over this story, isn't it?

He is guiding their steps and providing for them everywhere they go.

And Rahab, before ever meeting these men, has been longing for a different life.

Seeing the hopelessness of current situation and the emptiness of her future if things don't change.

She had heard how God had saved His people from Egypt, how He had brought them miraculously through the Red Sea. She had heard how God had already given them victory in their conquest, and she, and many others in Jericho, had come to fear the God they served.

Look at vs 11 Josh 2 11

Joshua 2:11 CSB

11 When we heard this, we lost heart, and everyone’s courage failed because of you, for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on earth below.

"for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below."

Fear had produced awe and worship in the heart of Rahab.

She feared a God who could crush her, and who was just and right to do so because of her sin.

She had come to fear a God who was righteous and powerful, and yet He loved His people so much that He would save them from the most powerful nation in the world and give them victory over their enemies, of which she and her people were.

And so, she asked them, and, ultimately, God, for mercy, grace, and salvation (vs 13).

She is seeking PEACE (rescue from chaos, corruption, and condemnation) and that desire is birthed in her fear.

True peace is...

1) Born in HOLY FEAR.

We struggle with the idea of “Fearing God”.

It is commonly explained that “fearing” God isn’t really being “afraid” of God, but more so “respecting” Him, or “revering” Him, and that is right, in a sense.

But let’s think of something many of us are really afraid of.

If you a lion walked through the doorway behind you right now I can guarantee you would be afraid right?

The reason you would be afraid is that you RESPECT the size of the claws and the teeth of the lion; you know that lions aren’t a docile creature that is looking for someone to pet them and snuggle with them. They are natural, apex predators that will kill and eat you.

So you RESPECT and REVERE them...you FEAR them.

We fear what the lion could, and likely would do to us.

In the same way we should fear God. Matthew 10:28

Matthew 10:28 CSB

28 Don’t fear those who kill the body but are not able to kill the soul; rather, fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.

Rahab isn't saying "your God is so cool! I want to follow him and be cool like him!"

She is saying "our hearts our melting and our courage is gone knowing who your God is and that we are the next in his sight."

We work too hard to make God attractive and culturally acceptable, but in our efforts to protect God, we are destroying holy fear of God.

You should be afraid of God if you have not given you life to Him. The people in Jericho were afraid because of what they had heard and yet only Rahab's turns to faith.

She understood what we need to understand.

God is to be feared, and because of that, he must also be worshipped;

Because next to his judgement, wrath, and anger are his grace mercy and love.

Next to his justice, righteousness, and holiness is his kindness, patience, and generosity.

Rahab’s faith made it into the hall of fame of faith in Hebrews 11.

Hebrews 11:31 CSB

31 By faith Rahab the prostitute welcomed the spies in peace and didn’t perish with those who disobeyed.

Rahab believed in him... And, like Abraham and David, it was credited to get as righteousness. Her fear led to faith which birthed peace in her heart and life.

Remember the shepherds when the angels announced the birth of Jesus?

Luke 2:9 CSB

9 Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.

They weren't saying, "look at the sweet fireworks show!" They were cowering in fear as the glory of the Lord shown around them.

and yet the PRINCE OF PEACE had been born...

Without the cross, God would be only a dreadful Judge of whom we would be afraid.

It is divine forgiveness and our justification by faith alone that turns our natural dread of God as sinners into the fearful, trembling adoration of beloved children.

“Oh! that a great God should be a good God, a good God to an unworthy, to an undeserving, and to a people that continually do what they can to provoke the eyes of his glory; this should make us tremble.”— John Bunyan

2) Follows WILLING SURRENDER.

Rahab’s fear led her to faith. She could have done like most of Jericho and froze.

She could have done like some likely did and ran away (flee).

Or She could have joined the soldiers who stood to fight.

But Rahab, in faith, chose to surrender in faith to the God she feared.

Her surrender showed up in obedience, which is far more than just believing in a story or making a statement of faith.

In her plea for mercy and salvation, the men work out a deal. If she helps them escape, they will spare her and her family when the city is being destroyed.

Faith isn’t just a feeling—it’s a force that leads us to obedience, even when risky.

Rahab’s trust in God didn’t leave her paralyzed. When the king’s men pounded on her door—“Bring out the men who came to you!” (Joshua 2:3)—she didn’t hesitate. She hid the spies under flax stalks on her roof, lied boldly to the guards, and sent them chasing ghosts toward the Jordan (Joshua 2:4–7).

Rahab’s faith, fueled by fear, led her to surrender in willing obedience.

This wasn’t forced, it wasn’t manipulation, nor was she guilted into it, Rahab willingly, and courageously, surrendered her life to God.

James points to Rahab as an example of faith that leads to works in James 2:25

James 2:25 CSB

25 In the same way, wasn’t Rahab the prostitute also justified by works in receiving the messengers and sending them out by a different route?

James is pushing against the idea that someone can have faith in God and yet it not make any difference in their lives.

James 2:14 CSB

14 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but does not have works? Can such faith save him?

James 2:18–19 CSB

18 But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without works, and I will show you faith by my works. 19 You believe that God is one. Good! Even the demons believe—and they shudder.

He then uses Abraham and Rahab as examples of faith that led to obedience.

The peace that Rahab was searching for was going to be found in surrendered obedience.

Following the instructions of the ones God has sent into her home.

This account falls right in the middle of the whole “march around the walls, play your instruments, and yell really loud” part of Joshua.

Remember how outrageous those instructions sounded, and yet “the wall came a tumblin’ down.”

We want the peace of God, but we don’t want to give Him our lives.

Philippians 4:9 ESV

9 What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.

Follow Rahab’s example…

Jesus's entire life, starting from His birth, models the surrender necessary for peace.

He is the Prince of Peace because He perfectly obeyed (surrendered to) the Father's will, ensuring peace with God for us (Romans 5:1).

Our surrender to Him follows His prior, perfect surrender for us.

3) The PROMISE of SECURITY.

It takes a few chapters in the book of Joshua for us to get the “rest of the story”.

Joshua leads the people across the Jordan river, much like his mentor Moses had done.

And then the day finally comes for the conquest to start.

Seven days, they march around the walls, blew the rams horns, and, on the seventh day, they shouted.

And the walls collapsed!

But... Joshua 6:22-25

Joshua 6:22–25 CSB

22 Joshua said to the two men who had scouted the land, “Go to the prostitute’s house and bring the woman out of there, and all who are with her, just as you swore to her.” 23 So the young men who had scouted went in and brought out Rahab and her father, mother, brothers, and all who belonged to her. They brought out her whole family and settled them outside the camp of Israel.

Joshua 6:22–25 CSB

24 They burned the city and everything in it, but they put the silver and gold and the articles of bronze and iron into the treasury of the Lord’s house. 25 However, Joshua spared Rahab the prostitute, her father’s family, and all who belonged to her, because she hid the messengers Joshua had sent to spy on Jericho, and she still lives in Israel today.

The whole “scarlet cord” thing can be overplayed a bit at times, but it isn’t without significance.

Remember Moses and the passover.

Blood on the door posts outside of the houses of the Israelites secured there children from death.

And now a blood-red cord hanging from the window of Rahab’s house secured her and her families salvation from destruction.

Blood is important in the bible…

Hebrews 9:22 ESV

22 Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.

Rahab’s salvation is pointing us to our own salvation in the death and resurrection of Jesus.

Her faith SAVED her, and our faith in Jesus is what SAVES us through His blood shed for us.

But she wasn’t JUST SAVED… look at verse 25 again Josh 6 25

Joshua 6:25 CSB

25 However, Joshua spared Rahab the prostitute, her father’s family, and all who belonged to her, because she hid the messengers Joshua had sent to spy on Jericho, and she still lives in Israel today.

“and she STILL lives in Israel today.”

She marries a man named Salmon and together they have a son named Boaz, who is a really good man (we will hear more about him next week).

Her grandson is Obed, and his son is Jesse, who fathers several sons, but one of them is named David, the one who becomes King.

And you know the rest of the story… from the line of David comes the King of Kings, Lord of Lord, and the Prince of… PEACE.

Jesus.

She isn’t just saved, she is adopted into the family of God!

Given a place in the lineage of the savior!

What a story right!?

A Canaanite prostitute in a town doomed to destruction becomes the great, great, great, great… grandmother to Jesus.

There is never someone too far gone, too broken, or too outside the reach of God’s amazing grace.

Peace is the promise of security for everyone who, out of holy fear, turns to faith, and surrenders their lives to the one who loved them enough to be born into our broken world, live a life we could never live, and die a death we deserve to die, and be raised to conquer an enemy for us that we were hopeless to overcome.

And He invites US...YOU to come.

Hark! The herald angels sing, “Glory to the newborn King; Peace on earth, and mercy mild, God and sinners reconciled!"

Invitation to Reflection

Some of you know what it is to fear God in the sense of knowing He is holy, He is just, He sees everything—and if you are honest, that thought unsettles you.

You know you can’t save yourself.

That fear can either drive you away or drive you to surrender.

Rahab shows a better way: let a right fear of God lead you to throw yourself on His mercy, to trust His promise, to come to Him and find peace.

If today you sense both the fear of God and the pull of His mercy, I invite you to respond like Rahab.

In your own words, pray something like: “God, I know You are holy and I have sinned. I cannot save myself. I surrender to You. I trust in Jesus—His death and resurrection—for my forgiveness. Take me into Your family and give me Your peace.”

Remember, in Christ, everyone who turns and trusts is welcomed fully and completely.

No past too dark. No wall too thick. The Prince of Peace delights to bring fearful hearts home.

Ask Him to renew in you a right fear of the Lord, to expose any area you’re holding back, and to let His peace rule your heart as you say a fresh ‘yes’ to Him this week (Colossians 3:15).

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