Rahab: A Woman of Faith

10/10/24 • 4 min

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READ: JOSHUA 2; HEBREWS 11:29-31; JAMES 2:25

Rahab is one of my favorite people in the Old Testament of the Bible. We remember her because of her faith in God. Though she was not an Israelite by birth, her faith in the God of Israel prompted her to hide two Israelite spies in her home within the walls of Jericho. As a result of this act of faith, Rahab and her family were spared when the Israelite army conquered Jericho.

The Bible notes that not only was Rahab a Canaanite, but she was also a prostitute. We might be tempted to think of Rahab as “worse of a sinner” than other people—after all, she performed sexual acts for a living, something detestable in the sight of the Lord because He created sex to be shared faithfully by a husband and wife. But the truth is, all sin is heinous in God’s sight. Yet, because of God’s mercy, Rahab was the woman He chose to be the great, great-grandmother of King David, a direct ancestor of Jesus Christ the Messiah (Matthew 1:5).

Rahab became a believer in Yahweh, and this is what set her apart from everyone else in Jericho. They had all heard of the miraculous deeds of Yahweh—how He parted the Red Sea to deliver the Israelites from slavery in Egypt and then gave them victory over their enemies in Canaan—but only Rahab had the faith to act on her belief and say to the Israelite spies, “The LORD your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below” (Joshua 2:11). One person in the midst of thousands of pagans put her trust in a God she knew of only through the words of others.

In addition to being honored with a place in Christ’s lineage, Rahab was also included in Hebrews 11, which recounts stories of people who acted in faith, so that her faith could be a testimony to others. And James 2:25 says Rahab was “considered righteous.” Rahab probably had no idea the blessings God would bestow upon her and how she would be remembered by Jews and Gentiles alike for thousands of years to come. Perhaps God includes this story of one woman’s steadfast conviction to show the riches of His grace and point forward to Jesus. Just as Rahab had faith in the one true God and was saved when Jericho fell, so now anyone who has faith in Jesus is saved from sin and death, made righteous in God’s sight, welcomed into His family, and will one day dwell with God and His people forever. • Eliana Canfield

• Have you ever felt disqualified to serve God because of your past? How might Rahab’s story speak into this? (If you want to dig deeper, read Matthew 21:28-32; 1 Thessalonians 1:3; 1 Peter 1:8.)

By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient. Hebrews 11:31 (NIV)

READ: JOSHUA 2; HEBREWS 11:29-31; JAMES 2:25

• Have you ever felt disqualified to serve God because of your past? How might Rahab’s story speak into this? (If you want to dig deeper, read Matthew 21:28-32; 1 Thessalonians 1:3; 1 Peter 1:8.)

By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient. Hebrews 11:31 (NIV)

Previous Episode

When You Pray

READ: PSALM 145:17-19; ACTS 12:5-17

After we ask God for something in prayer, it can be easy to just move on without actually looking for His answer. We can get distracted by a thousand different things that steal our attention away—meanwhile His answer to our prayer is right in front of us.

We find an example of this when Peter is thrown in prison and the believers begin earnestly praying for him. God answers their prayers by sending an angel to free Peter and lead him right out of the jail. But when Peter gets to the house where they’re all still praying for him, they can’t believe it’s Peter at the door! Finally they let him in, amazed at what God had done.

Sometimes, when we don’t notice God’s answers to our prayers, we can get into trouble by trying to answer our own prayers. If God is telling us to wait on Him to work, and we insist on manufacturing our own solutions instead, it can only lead to trouble.

When we pray, how often do we look and listen for God’s answers? As people who’ve put our trust in Jesus, we have His Holy Spirit living in us. That means we can be in constant communication with God through prayer, and we can always expect some kind of answer when we pray. But it can be difficult to see those answers sometimes. Especially when we expect—or want—a certain answer and we’re not willing to accept any other. But maybe God will show us there’s something unexpected we can do about a situation that concerns us. Maybe He’ll show us an area of sin in our lives that we need to confess and give over to Him. Maybe He’ll simply offer us comfort. When we trust the Holy Spirit to help us be open to whatever answer God gives, we’re better equipped to notice what He’s doing in and around us. • A. W. Smith

• Can you think of a time you saw God answer prayer in an unexpected way? What happened?

• Jesus is with us in all our pain and concerns. He cares about us and promises to make all things new one day. How can remembering His faithful love help us listen and wait for His answers?

For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer. 1 Peter 3:12 (NIV)

Next Episode

Just as You Are

READ: LUKE 19:1-10; ROMANS 15:7

Sometimes I find it difficult to take feedback from others. I put a lot of effort into what I do, so it can be hard to hear notes and criticism about the work I’m doing, whether it’s about my job, writing, singing, or just my personal life. And it’s even worse when the feedback comes with a rejection—like when I haven’t done x, y, or z, so I’m not qualified for whatever I was pursuing.

Back when I was looking for a job, I would hear phrases like, “Sorry, you don’t have the right experience,” or “We’re looking for someone with a different degree,” or “You should have become more specialized in this area.” Those rejections combined with negative feedback really stung.

But, despite knowing I will face rejection in life, I can take comfort in the fact that Jesus’s way is totally the opposite. Jesus loves us first. He doesn’t require us to do x, y, or z before He accepts us. His love for us goes all the way to death on a cross— and resurrection three days later. When Jesus was passing through the city of Jericho and He encountered a wealthy tax collector named Zacchaeus who cheated people out of their money, Jesus didn’t say to him, “Get your life together, change your career, and build a better reputation, and then maybe I’ll come over to your house for dinner.”

Absolutely not! Jesus said to Zacchaeus, “I must stay at your house today” (Luke 19:5). Jesus loves us as we are. When we put our trust in Him, He sets us apart as holy. As we follow Him, He works in us to make us more like Him, but different people have all sorts of starting points on their faith journeys, and at the beginning of all these journeys is the love, mercy, and grace of Jesus, given freely. Jesus loves you as you are, each and every day. • Naomi Zylstra

• Can you think of a time you faced rejection or harsh feedback? How did you deal with it? Sometimes feedback is helpful, sometimes it’s hurtful, and sometimes it’s a bit of both. Jesus wants to help us heal and grow through these experiences, and often He helps us through other Christians. Who is someone in your life who can help you sort through difficult feedback?

• How can knowing that Jesus loves us and accepts us first, before we could even love Him back, affect the way we love Him now? What about how we love and accept others? (Romans 15:7)

• What did Zacchaeus do after Jesus came to his house? How did Jesus’s loveaffect Zacchaeus?

We love because he first loved us. 1 John 4:19 (NIV)