Why were Rahab and her family spared according to Joshua 6:22? Historical and Scriptural Frame Joshua 6 recounts Israel’s first engagement in Canaan. After six silent marches around Jericho and a climactic seventh-day circuit, “the wall collapsed” (Joshua 6:20). Verse 22 immediately records a deviation from universal destruction: “Joshua told the two men who had spied out the land, ‘Go to the prostitute’s house and bring the woman out, and all who belong to her, just as you promised her.’” The sparing of Rahab and her family rests on earlier events in Joshua 2 and on God’s own character as faithful to covenant promises. The Covenant Oath: Legal Basis for Rescue In Joshua 2:12-14 Rahab extracted a sworn oath (Hebrew šĕbûʿâ) from the spies: “Now therefore, please swear to me by the LORD that you will show kindness to my family… ‘Our lives for yours!’ the men replied. ‘If you do not report us, we will treat you kindly and faithfully when the LORD gives us the land.’” Ancient Near-Eastern treaties treated an oath invoking a deity as irrevocable (cf. Numbers 30:2). To violate it would invite divine wrath (Joshua 9:20). Thus, Joshua 6:22 fulfills a binding covenant contracted under Yahweh’s name. Rahab’s Confession of Faith Rahab’s plea was not mere self-interest; it was rooted in belief. She testifies, “I know that the LORD has given you this land… for the LORD your God, He is God in heaven above and on the earth below” (Joshua 2:9-11). This confession distinguishes her from the city’s inhabitants who “were disobedient” (Hebrews 11:31). Scripture consistently spares those who repent and acknowledge Yahweh (e.g., Nineveh in Jonah 3). Works Demonstrating Faith Hebrews 11:31 and James 2:25 join Scripture’s twin witness: genuine faith evidences itself in action. Rahab risked her life, hid the spies, and followed instructions further by tying the scarlet cord. Her deeds authenticated her belief, satisfying the biblical principle that saving faith is active, not passive. The Scarlet Cord: Covenant Sign and Typology of Redemption The spies required Rahab to display “this scarlet cord in the window” (Joshua 2:18). Visually it echoed the Passover blood on doorposts (Exodus 12:13) and prefigures Christ’s atoning blood (cf. 1 Peter 1:18-19). Her entire household sheltered under a red sign of deliverance, an Old Testament foreshadowing of New Testament salvation. Divine Justice and Mercy Jericho was subject to ḥērem—the ban (Joshua 6:17)—a judgment comparable to the Flood or Sodom. Yet God’s character includes mercy toward repentant outsiders (Exodus 34:6-7). Sparing Rahab upheld both His justice (destruction of persistent rebellion) and His mercy (deliverance of believing penitents). Household Solidarity: Family Inclusion Near-Eastern culture viewed the family as a corporate unit. The spies’ oath extended to “her father, mother, brothers, and everyone who belonged to her” (Joshua 6:22-23). Scripture often links the faith of a household head to wider rescue (Genesis 7:1; Acts 16:31-34). Rahab’s decision created a zone of covenant safety for her kin. Rahab in Salvation History Matthew 1:5 lists “Salmon fathered Boaz by Rahab,” inserting a Canaanite woman into Messiah’s genealogy. Her preservation was indispensable to the lineage culminating in Jesus, demonstrating God’s sovereign orchestration of history and His intention to bless “all nations” (Genesis 12:3). Archaeological Corroboration • Excavations at Tell es-Sultan (Jericho) by Garstang (1930-36) and re-analysis by Wood (1990) show a collapsed mud-brick wall forming a ramp, matching Joshua 6:20. • Kenyon (1952-58) documented a preserved northern wall section with adjoining domestic structures—precisely where Rahab’s house “was built into the wall” (Joshua 2:15). • Burn layers and grain stores confirm sudden destruction after spring harvest (cf. Joshua 3:15; 5:10). These data strengthen the historical credibility of Rahab’s rescue. Concise Answer Rahab and her family were spared because she had entered a binding oath with the spies, confessed faith in Yahweh, demonstrated that faith through protective actions, displayed the stipulated scarlet covenant sign, and thus came under God’s mercy amid judicial destruction. Her deliverance preserved a repentant believer, incorporated a Gentile family into Israel, and advanced the messianic line—all in perfect consistency with God’s covenant faithfulness and redemptive plan. |
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