FAITHFULNESS IN PERSONS
FAITHFULNESS IN PERSONS
JT The point of interest is man in these historical books. The truth stands out in this chapter. We have the faithfulness of persons raised up in Old Testament times and reappearing in the New Testament. I suppose we might regard the book as a military one. Joshua was a military man in relation to the truth of the inheritance in securing it and laying hold of it. It is “the land”
Ques In Joshua 1 Jehovah’s word to Joshua was, “Be strong and courageous, for thou shalt cause this people to inherit the land which I have sworn unto their fathers to give them”; is it in your mind that as military leader he should bring them in?
JT I thought of that. It is most suitable for today, the first day of the week, to be occupied with the inheritance that God has given us. Men speak much of inheritances. The faithfulness of the spies was honoured by God, and Rahab was faithful, too, and true to an engagement and also to the family idea as we see in these verses, “And before they had lain down, she went up to them upon the roof; and said to the men, I know that Jehovah has given you the land, and that the dread of you has fallen on us, and that all the inhabitants of the land faint because of you. For we have heard that Jehovah dried up the waters of the Red sea before you when ye came out of Egypt; and what ye did to the two kings of the Amorites that were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon and to Og, whom ye utterly destroyed. We heard [of it], and our heart melted, and there remained no more spirit in any man because of you; for Jehovah your God, he is God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath. And now,
[p. 289] I pray you, swear to me by Jehovah, since I have dealt kindly with you, that ye will also deal kindly with my father’s house, and give me a certain sign, that ye will let my father live, and my mother, and my brethren, and my sisters, and all that belong to them, and deliver our souls from death”. It was remarkable faithfulness on her part, and the spies, too, who fulfilled the truth of the inheritance. God had promised to give it to them and was true to His word; it is especially for the young ones; the “you” (several times) is to be noted, it is the personal pronoun.
Rem She had taken account of what she had heard.
JT Yes. It is the gospel, the gospel of truth, and by taking account of it we come into the good of it.
PL “Let my father live”, and Rahab and all her family were saved alive; it is really the gospel.
JT Yes. The Old Testament is strewn with gospel texts showing the means of the way of salvation to men who were appreciative of the gospel.
Rem Rahab was the kind of person that is produced by the gospel; she was righteous as having faith, and is commended in the New Testament.
JT She is mentioned in Hebrews 11.
Rem Yes, and in James, too.
JT In each case she is spoken of as “Rahab the harlot”.
Rem She “did not perish along with the unbelieving, having received the spies in peace”, Hebrews 11:31.
JT She was a disreputable person, yet she received the testimony that God was true and every man a liar; Romans 3:4.
Rem She distinguished between what God did and what had been done by Israel.
JT Just so. There is much that is unsuitable [p. 290] to the truth in what is set out, so such a chapter as this should be noticed, as real results flowed from it. This was also seen in Jonah’s history.
Rem James speaks of her reception of the messengers, “and put them forth by another way” (James 2:25); faith is always active.
JT Yes; this is the gospel dispensation, and salvation is a very real matter, it is to be appropriated by everyone; we are to learn to be true; and to “repent and believe in the glad tidings”, Mark 1:15. The note says, ‘(It refers to believing in the truth of the substance of a thing)’.
Ques Does she show where she is, for she says, “Jehovah your God, he is God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath”?
JT Men say that we will have the earth, and leave heaven to God, but He claims both.
Rem She does not ask anything for herself, but for the persons that they may live; such a person would value the inheritance of God.
JT “And the men said to her, We will be quit of this thine oath which thou hast made us swear. Behold, when we come into the land, thou shalt bind in the window this line of scarlet thread by which thou hast let us down; and thou shalt gather to thee in the house thy father, and thy mother, and thy brethren, and all thy father’s household; and it shall be, that whoever shall go out of the doors of thy house into the street — his blood shall be upon his head, and we shall be innocent; but every one who shall be with thee in the house, his blood shall be upon our head, if any hand be upon him. And if thou make known this our business, we will be quit of thine oath which thou hast made us swear. And she said, According to your words, so be it. And she sent them away, and they departed. And she bound the scarlet line in the window” (verses 17 - 21). That is, however disreputable she had been, she is true now.
[p. 291] It is very important to be true to commitments, especially divine ones, for “God is faithful”, 1 Corinthians 1:9.
Rem In the sixth chapter it says of her, “she dwelt in the midst of Israel to this day”, Joshua 6:25.
Rem God often uses means like this to conceal and hide His people.
JT So the Reformation was a great testing time for people were concealing things, but God would have the truth in its entirety.
Rem It says of Paul in Acts 15:41, “And he passed through Syria and Cilicia, confirming the assemblies”.
JT Just so. “Every scripture is divinely inspired, and profitable for teaching, for conviction, for correction, for instruction in righteousness”, 2 Timothy 3:16.
Rem So in Acts 17:2 he “reasoned with them from the scriptures, opening and laying down that the Christ must have suffered and risen up from among the dead”.
JT Just so. He was opening and laying down with authority. There is what is opened up, and also laying down, that is with authority; so, “Every scripture is divinely inspired, and profitable for teaching”.
Ques Are we to be on the look-out for such material as Rahab?
JT Just so. She was a sinner, and God saves sinners.
Rem And adds them to His people as we see in Matthew 1:5.
JT There is plenty of material to establish the truth. Matthew is the gospel of the assembly to confirm the saints; it is all based on the history of the forty-two generations. So Rahab is a reliable person, in contrast with what she had been. It is a question of what you are doing [p. 292] now,
Rem She brings in wisdom and advice.
JT She put the spies “forth by another way”, James 2:25. She wished to be confirmed; that was the ‘life way’, as over against the usual way. She gave them the right way.
Ques How did she come to have flax?
JT In commerce, if selling goods, make sure you have the right goods, and be truthful.
Rem Transparency comes to light early, like the repentant malefactor in Luke 23:40; he condemns the system he was connected with. So there is nothing uncertain about Rahab; she does not just assent, but is true to the test.
JT The truth was there, and, as now, we are searching for the truth. It is a question of what God is saying, “but let God be true”, Romans 3:4.
Rem “That thou mayest be justified when thou speakest, be clear when thou judgest”, Psalm 51:4.
JT Just so.
Rem In Colossians 1:21 it says, “And you, who once were alienated and enemies in mind by wicked works”; she was that.
JT So Colossians 1 goes on to say we are not to be “moved away from the hope of the glad tidings” (verse 23). There are about one hundred religious titles in Christendom; they are those who have moved away. She became a good and well-known sister.
Rem It is an exercise about our relatives.
JT Relatives are much stressed in the Scriptures. There is “Paul’s sister’s son” in Acts 23:16.
Rem Verse 3 must have been a test, when the king of Jericho sent to Rahab.
JT She stood firm, that all her family might be brought in; a very great service.
Rem The gospels have an embracing effect.
JT All waited for Paul, a reliable man, though not always, for he had been an enemy, but as [p. 293] converted, he became fully reliable. The question is, How was he converted?
Rem “Faithful is the word, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the first. But for this reason mercy was shewn me”, 1 Timothy 1:15,16.
JT You could not get a better word.
Rem Yes, God patiently waited for Paul.
JT How Paul spoke of his conversion, and how he sets out the gospel in the epistle to the Romans!
Ques Do these family affections enter into the inheritance?
JT Verse 13 reads, “that ye will let my father live, and my mother, and my brethren, and my sisters, and all that belong to them, and deliver our souls from death”; see what a variety she has, and what a clear gospel testimony, for natural relationships are honoured by God.
Rem She intended to have her house full.
Rem Andrew “first finds his own brother Simon”, John 1:41.
Rem How near the gospel is to the assembly!
JT God is concerned most about the assembly.
Rem She became a preacher like the woman of Samaria; she was not like Lot in Sodom, “he was as if he jested, in the sight of his sons-in-law”, Genesis 19:14. She had moral power and was attractive in herself; we may not have power with our relatives, and they may be lost.
JT If worthy of being relatives they need to be saved, ‘saved for glory’, and then get them into the assembly, where people are loved and worth loving.
Rem “Mary the mother of Jesus” and His brethren were all secured; Acts 1:14.
JT “Mary the mother of Jesus”; think of such an expression! How real the manhood of Jesus was.
Ques Why did you stress the word ‘saved’?
JT [p. 294] Well, how many gospel preachers are there still here, and what are they going to preach?
Rem Paul speaks of “my glad tidings”, 2 Timothy 2:8.
JT “My gospel”, that speaks of the divine selection made by the Lord. That is why Paul was so needed by the Lord; he was so useful, and had such sufferings, such imprisonments, such severity, in order to be a witness. What treasures we have in earthen vessels; the vessel has to be broken that the light may shine; (2 Corinthians 4:7).
Ques Had Paul this in mind with the jailor in Acts 16?
JT Yes, indeed; and the Lord says to him in Acts 9, “Saul, Saul, why dost thou persecute me? ... I am Jesus, whom thou persecutest”. He puts a great emphasis on the personal pronouns.
Rem In verse 19 the spies speak of the salvation in Rahab’s house.
JT Yes; she had to be true, and she would get what she wanted. The Lord is pressing the question of the house.
Rem It says in verse 15, “for her house was upon the city-wall, and she dwelt upon the wall”. She would be very separate.
JT Young people go into worldly houses and get damaged.
PL Deuteronomy 22:8 says, “When thou buildest a new house, thou shalt make a parapet for thy roof, that thou bring not blood upon thy house, if anyone should in any wise fall from it”.
JT That implies that worldly things are contained in households.
Rem There was genuineness seen in Rahab. Many lack this feature.
JT Those who are reliable visit and see if people are genuine. All of us in fellowship are concerned as to what is in every household.
Ques Why does she mention “my father’s house” in verse 12?
JT Because she valued him and had respect for him, a very needed thing.
Rem If the Lord gets a foothold in a house, He will not rest until He has it all.
JT Just so.
Rem It says in Acts 16:32, “And they spoke to him the word of the Lord, with all that were in his house”.
Ques She begins with the Red sea in verse 10. Is that the beginning, deliverance from Egypt? In verse 9 she says, “I know that Jehovah has given you the land”.
JT Noah “prepared an ark for the saving of his house”, Hebrews 11:7. It is the same principle from the first day until now.
Rem The first verse of this chapter shows that; it speaks of “Joshua the son of Nun”, ‘Nun’ means continuance.
JT What a first day for her! She would never forget it; every day got better.
Rem Her faith confirms the brethren in verse 24.
JT Just so, a very fine verse.
Rem They convey her testimony to Joshua.
JT So it reads (verse 22), “And they went, and came to the mountain, and remained there three days, until the pursuers had returned; and the pursuers sought them all the way, and found them not. And the two men returned and came down from the mountain, and went over and came to Joshua the son of Nun, and related to him everything that had happened to them” That is it: “everything that happened to them”. It goes on to say, “and they said to Joshua, Of a surety Jehovah has given the whole land into our hands, and even all the inhabitants [p. 296] of the land faint because of us”, that is, the brethren, those in fellowship, really in the assembly, worth being with. It is a great thing and very prominent in this chapter.
Rem You mean it brings out the place the fellowship has.
Rem She became a worshipper “in spirit and truth”, John 4:23,24. It is a question of being inwardly affected; Rahab was that.
JT Just so, and that such a woman should be turned into a minister of the gospel. She is a most remarkable woman.