Companion: Deep Study
A condensed companion to the full study. For each section of the expanded outline: key insights, applications, and the application questions for discussion.
Section 1 — Sent Secretly to a Prostitute’s House (Joshua 2:1–3)
Key Insights
- Joshua holds God’s sure promise of the land and still sends spies, because faith uses means rather than replacing them (Joshua 1:3).
- Unlike the twelve spies at Kadesh, these two men go secretly and will report to Joshua alone, so that unbelief cannot spread through the camp (Numbers 13:31).
- The LORD’s providence guides the spies to the one house in Jericho where faith has been awakened, the house of a prostitute named Rahab (Proverbs 16:9).
- Calvin calls it a display of divine grace that could penetrate into a place of shame and draw a whole family out of it.
- Joshua means the LORD saves, and the greater Joshua, Jesus, came for sinners like Rahab and was welcomed by prostitutes while the respectable refused Him (Matthew 21:31).
Applications
- Pray earnestly and plan carefully, holding every plan under God’s promise.
- Refuse to write anyone off as too far from God, since no reputation sets the limits of His grace (1 Corinthians 6:11).
- Do not use God led me here to excuse entering places of sin or to baptize every choice after the fact.
Application Questions
- Where am I tempted either to treat careful planning as a substitute for trusting God, or to use trust in God as an excuse for not planning?
- Is there someone I have quietly written off as too far from God to be reached, and what would it look like to pray for that person by name this week?
Section 2 — Hidden on the Roof: Rahab’s Courage and Her Falsehood (Joshua 2:4–7)
Key Insights
- Rahab hides the spies under stalks of flax on her roof before the king’s men arrive, risking death for treason (Joshua 2:6).
- She sends the pursuers toward the Jordan with a falsehood, and the chapter records it without approving it.
- The Reformed commentators judge the lie a sin of weakness forgiven because of her faith, while commending the faith that moved her (Hebrews 11:31).
- Scripture praises what she did in receiving and sending out the messengers, not what she said (James 2:25).
- Jesus, unlike Rahab, told the truth to save His friends, and His spotless obedience covers the imperfect faith of His people (John 18:8).
Applications
- Stand with Christ’s people when it costs you something, because faith is seen when it becomes costly.
- Put away the small untruths that come dressed as kindness or prudence (Ephesians 4:25).
- Never cite Rahab as permission to lie for a good cause or to be disloyal to lawful authority.
Application Questions
- When standing with God’s people costs me something, what does my conduct show about where my loyalty really lies?
- Where do I excuse small untruths because my motive seems good or the stakes seem low?
Section 3 — Rahab’s Confession: The LORD Your God Is God (Joshua 2:8–11)
Key Insights
- Rahab speaks of the gift of the land as already done: “I know that the LORD has given you the land” (Joshua 2:9).
- Her words echo the Song of the Sea, showing that God has kept His promise to melt the hearts of Canaan (Exodus 15:15).
- Her faith came by hearing the report of the Red Sea and of Sihon and Og, not by seeing them (Romans 10:17).
- She confesses the creed Moses urged on Israel: “the LORD your God, he is God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath” (Joshua 2:11).
- All Jericho heard the same news, but only Rahab turned to God, a picture of grace that Christ blesses in those who believe without seeing (John 20:29).
Applications
- Do not mistake knowing about God, or fearing Him, for surrendering to Him (James 2:19).
- Speak freely of what God has done in Christ, since reports of His works are a means He uses to awaken faith.
- Warn of judgment as Scripture does, but always point people to the mercy of the God who saves.
Application Questions
- When I hear of God’s power and judgment, does it drive me only to fear, or to surrender and trust?
- Do I speak about what God has done, so that others might hear and believe as Rahab did?
Section 4 — Kindness for Kindness: The Plea and the Oath (Joshua 2:12–14)
Key Insights
- Rahab asks the spies to swear by the LORD, an act of worship that shows her conversion to Israel’s God (Joshua 2:12).
- She appeals to chesed, the loyal covenant kindness that describes the LORD Himself (Exodus 34:6).
- She asks nothing for herself but life, and she asks it first for her father’s household (Joshua 2:13).
- The spies answer with a self-curse, “Our life for yours even to death!” (Joshua 2:14).
- Their conditional pledge is a shadow of Christ, who gave His life as a ransom for many and paid it in full (Mark 10:45).
Applications
- Pray by name, and with persistence, for the salvation of your unbelieving relatives (Romans 10:1).
- Keep your promises as oaths made before God, even when keeping them costs you (Psalm 15:4).
- Remember that Rahab’s kindness was the fruit of her faith, not the price of her salvation.
Application Questions
- Am I as concerned for the salvation of my family as Rahab was for hers, and what am I actually doing about it?
- Do I keep my promises with the seriousness of an oath made before God, even when keeping them costs me?
Section 5 — The Scarlet Cord in the Window (Joshua 2:15–21)
Key Insights
- Rahab lets the spies down by a rope from her house in the wall and counsels them to hide in the hills for three days (Joshua 2:15).
- The oath sets three conditions: the scarlet cord in the window, the household gathered inside, and silence about the agreement.
- The scene repeats the Passover pattern of a marked house, a family gathered within, and death outside (Exodus 12:22).
- Rahab agrees at once and ties the scarlet cord in the window, an act of simple, obedient faith (Joshua 2:21).
- Christ is the true refuge, and those sheltered under His precious blood are safe in the day of judgment (1 Peter 1:19).
Applications
- Stay inside the house of refuge by abiding in Christ through the Word, prayer, the sacraments, and His church (1 John 2:28).
- Let your faith in Christ’s blood be visible, as the cord hung in a window and not in a closet (Matthew 10:32).
- Remember that the cord had no power in itself; safety lay in the sworn promise it signified.
Application Questions
- Am I living inside the house of refuge, abiding in Christ and His appointed means of grace, or drifting out into the street?
- Is my faith in Christ’s blood visible to those around me, like a scarlet cord hung in the window?
Section 6 — The Report: The LORD Has Given All the Land (Joshua 2:22–24)
Key Insights
- God hides the spies in the hills while the pursuers search every road and find nothing (Joshua 2:22).
- The spies return Rahab’s own words to Joshua as their report: “Truly the LORD has given all the land into our hands” (Joshua 2:24).
- Their faith-filled report reverses the report of the ten spies who saw themselves as grasshoppers (Numbers 13:33).
- Calvin notes that God is so indulgent to weakness that He confirms by experience what He has already promised.
- As Christ’s messengers returned to hear that Satan had fallen, the church goes out knowing the victory is already won (Luke 10:18).
Applications
- Describe hard realities through the lens of God’s promise, so that your words build faith rather than fear (1 John 4:4).
- Record and retell God’s confirmations of His promises as fuel for the next step of obedience.
- Do not turn confidence in God’s promise into presumption, or transfer Israel’s conquest to any modern nation or cause.
Application Questions
- When I describe the state of my church, family, or world, do my words build faith or spread fear?
- How has God confirmed His promises to me by experience, and do I give Him thanks and share those confirmations with others?
The LORD who judged Jericho spared a sinner who believed His word and hid under His appointed sign, and He still saves every sinner who takes refuge under the blood of Jesus Christ.
Leave a Reply