What is the meaning of Joshua 6:17? Now the city and everything in it must be devoted to the LORD for destruction Jericho, the first Canaanite stronghold Israel encounters, is placed under ḥerem—total consecration to God that involves destruction (Deuteronomy 20:16-18; Leviticus 27:28-29). • The command is literal: every person, animal, and object (except the specified silver, gold, bronze, and iron, v. 19) belongs exclusively to the LORD. • Two purposes intertwine: – Judgment on a culture long steeped in idolatry and violence (Genesis 15:16). – Protection for Israel; eliminating idols and pagan influence preserves covenant purity (Deuteronomy 7:1-6). • Disobedience later brings swift discipline: “Israel has sinned… they have taken some of the devoted things” (Joshua 7:11). God’s holiness is non-negotiable. Only Rahab the prostitute From society’s margins, Rahab steps into God’s favor (Joshua 2). • Her label highlights grace: God rescues the unlikely. • Faith precedes rescue: “By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed” (Hebrews 11:31). • Her story foreshadows the gospel’s reach—she appears in Messiah’s lineage (Matthew 1:5). and all those with her in her house God’s mercy extends beyond the individual. • Rahab secures a household covenant; everyone under her roof shares the deliverance (Joshua 2:18-19). • Echoes of Passover: a marked house spared while judgment sweeps by (Exodus 12:23). • Pattern repeated in Acts: “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you and your household will be saved” (Acts 16:31). will live In a scene of total ruin, a pocket of life endures. • Physical survival mirrors spiritual salvation: “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life” (Romans 6:23). • Rahab’s family is gathered “outside the camp of Israel” before full inclusion (Joshua 6:23, 25), illustrating separation from judgment then assimilation into God’s people. • God delights to move from wrath to life for the repentant (Ezekiel 18:32). because she hid the spies we sent Her courageous deed validates genuine faith. • James underscores this link: “Was not even Rahab the prostitute justified by her actions when she welcomed the messengers and sent them out by another route?” (James 2:25). • Works do not earn grace; they express it. Rahab trusted the LORD first (Joshua 2:11) and proved that trust in a concrete risk. • The spies represent God’s mission; aiding them aligns her with Israel before a single stone falls. summary Joshua 6:17 captures two simultaneous truths: God’s uncompromising holiness demands judgment on unrepentant sin, and His boundless mercy rescues any who trust Him. Jericho’s total destruction warns against flirting with idolatry, while Rahab’s rescue promises hope to every outsider who believes. The verse calls readers to devote everything to the LORD, shun what He condemns, and cling to the saving faith that transforms outcasts into family. |
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