Joshua · Chapter 2

V. 1. Sent-Or, had sent: See note ... “Jos 1:11” Two men-Not twelve, as Moses did, because those were to view the whole land, these but a small parcel of it. To spy-That is, to learn the state of the land and people. It is evident Joshua did not this out of distrust; it is probable, he had God’s command and direction in it for the encouragement of himself and his army. Secretly-With reference not to his enemies, that being the practice of all spies, but to the Israelites; a good caution to prevent the inconveniency which possibly might have arisen, if their report had been discouraging. Jericho-That is, the land about Jericho, together with the city. Heb. The land and Jericho, that is, especially Jericho. Harlot’s-So the Hebrew word is used, Judges 11:1, and so it is rendered by two apostles, Hebrews 11:31 James 2:25, such she either now was, or rather, had been formerly. Lodged-Or, lay down; as the same word is rendered, Joshua 2:8, composed themselves to rest; but they were hindered from that intention.

Verse 1. Joshua-sent-two men to spy secretly] It is very likely that these spies had been sent out soon after the death of Moses, and therefore our marginal reading, had sent, is to be preferred. Secretly-It is very probable also that these were confidential persons, and that the transaction was between them and him alone. As they were to pass over the Jordan opposite to Jericho, it was necessary that they should have possession of this city, that in case of any reverses they might have no enemies in their rear. He sent the men, therefore, to see the state of the city, avenues of approach, fortifications, &c., that he might the better concert his mode of attack.

A harlot’s house] Harlots and inn-keepers seem to have been called by the same name, as no doubt many who followed this mode of life, from their exposed situation, were not the most correct in their morals. Among the ancients women generally kept houses of entertainment, and among the Egyptians and Greeks this was common. I shall subjoin a few proofs. HERODOTUS, speaking concerning the many differences between Egypt and other countries, and the peculiarity of their laws and customs, expressly says: en toisi ai men gunaikev agorazousi kai kaphleuousi, oi de andrev, katJ oikouv eontev, ufainousi. “Among the Egyptians the women carry on all commercial concerns, and keep taverns, while the men continue at home and weave.” Herod. in Euterp., c. xxxv. DIODORUS SICULUS, lib. i., s. 8, and c. xxvii., asserts that “the men were the slaves of the women in Egypt, and that it is stipulated in the marriage contract that the woman shall be the ruler of her husband, and that he shall obey her in all things.” The same historian supposes that women had these high privileges among the Egyptians, to perpetuate the memory of the beneficent administration of Isis, who was afterwards deified among them. NYMPHODORUS, quoted by the ancient scholiast on the Œdipus Coloneus of Sophocles, accounts for these customs: he says that “Sesostris, finding the population of Egypt rapidly increasing, fearing that he should not be able to govern the people or keep them united under one head, obliged the men to assume the occupations of women, in order that they might be rendered effeminate.”

Sophocles confirms the account given by Herodotus; speaking of Egypt he says:—

Ekei gar oi men arsenev kata stegav

Qakousin istourgountev ai de xunnomoi

Ta Jxw biou trofeia prosunousJ aei.

Œdip. Col. v. 352.

“There the men stay in their houses weaving cloth, while the women transact all business out of doors, provide food for the family,” &c. It is on this passage that the scholiast cites Nymphodorus for the information given above, and which he says is found in the 13th chapter of his work “On the Customs of

Barbarous Nations.”

That the same custom prevailed among the Greeks we have the following proof from APULEIUS: Ego vero quod primate ingressui stabulum conspicatus sum, accessi, et de QUADAM ANU CAUPONA illico percontor.-Aletam. lib. i., p. 18, Edit. Bip. “Having entered into the first inn I met with, and there seeing a certain OLD WOMAN, the INN-KEEPER, I inquired of her.”

It is very likely that women kept the places of public entertainment among the Philistines; and that it was with such a one, and not with a harlot, that Samson lodged; (see Judges 16:1, &c.;) for as this custom certainly did prevail among the Egyptians, of which we have the fullest proof above, we may naturally expect it to have prevailed also among the Canaanites and Philistines, as we find from Apuleius that it did afterwards among the Greeks. Besides there is more than presumptive proof that this custom obtained among the Israelites themselves, even in the most polished period of their history; for it is much more reasonable to suppose that the two women, who came to Solomon for judgment, relative to the dead child, (1 Kings 3:16, &c.,) were inn-keepers, than that they were harlots. It is well known that common prostitutes, from their abandoned course of life, scarcely ever have children; and the laws were so strict against such in Israel, (Deuteronomy 23:18,) that if these had been of that class it is not at all likely they would have dared to appear before Solomon. All these circumstances considered, I am fully satisfied that the term hnwz zonah in the text, which we translate harlot, should be rendered tavern or inn-keeper, or hostess. The spies who were sent out on this occasion were undoubtedly the most confidential persons that Joshua had in his host; they went on an errand of the most weighty importance, and which involved the greatest consequences. The risk they ran of losing their lives in this enterprise was extreme. Is it therefore likely that persons who could not escape apprehension and death, without the miraculous interference of God, should in despite of that law which at this time must have been so well known unto them, go into a place where they might expect, not the blessing, but the curse, of God? Is it not therefore more likely that they went rather to an inn to lodge than to a brothel? But what completes in my judgment the evidence on this point is, that this very Rahab, whom we call a harlot, was actually married to Salmon, a Jewish prince, see Matthew 1:5. And is it probable that a prince of Judah would have taken to wife such a person as our text represents Rahab to be? It is granted that the Septuagint, who are followed by Hebrews 11:31, and James 2:25, translate the Hebrew hnwz zonah by pornh, which generally signifies a prostitute; but it is not absolutely evident that the Septuagint used the word in this sense. Every scholar knows that the Greek word pornh comes from pernaw, to sell, as this does from peraw, to pass from one to another; transire facio a me ad alterum; DAMM. But may not this be spoken as well of the woman’s goods as of her person? In this sense the Chaldee Targum understood the term, and has therefore translated it atyqdnwp atta ittetha pundekitha, a woman, a TAVERN-KEEPER. That this is the true sense many eminent men are of opinion; and the preceding arguments render it at least very probable. To all this may be added, that as our blessed Lord came through the line of this woman, it cannot be a matter of little consequence to know what moral character she sustained; as an inn-keeper she might be respectable, if not honourable; as a public prostitute she could be neither; and it is not very likely that the providence of God would have suffered a person of such a notoriously bad character to enter into the sacred line of his genealogy. It is true that the cases of Tamar and Bathsheba may be thought sufficient to destroy this argument; but whoever considers these two cases maturely will see that they differ totally from that of Rahab, if we allow the word harlot to be legitimate. As to the objection that her husband is nowhere mentioned in the account here given; it appears to me to have little weight. She might have been either a single woman or a widow; and in either of these cases there could have been no mention of a husband; or if she even had a husband it is not likely he would have been mentioned on this occasion, as the secret seems to have been kept religiously between her and the spies. If she were a married woman her husband might be included in the general terms, all that she had, and all her kindred, Joshua 6:23. But it is most likely that she was a single woman or a widow, who got her bread honestly by keeping a house of entertainment for strangers. See below.

Verse 1. And Joshua sent — Or, had sent, before the directions mentioned in the preceding chapter (verses 10, 11,) were given to the officers. This best agrees with verse 22 of this chapter, and the rest of the narrative. Two men — Not twelve, as Moses did, because those were to view the whole land, these but a small parcel of it. To spy — That is, to learn the state of the land and people. It is evident Joshua did not this out of distrust; it is probable he had God’s command and direction in it, for the encouragement of himself and his army. Secretly — With reference not to his enemies, that being the practice of all spies, but to the Israelites; a good caution to prevent the inconvenience which possibly might have arisen if their report had been discouraging. Jericho — That is, the land about Jericho, together with the city. Hebrew, the land and Jericho; that is, especially Jericho. A harlot’s house — Although the Hebrew word hnwz, zonah, here rendered harlot, does also sometimes signify an innkeeper, or one who sells provisions; yet, as the former is certainly the common meaning of the term, and the sense in which it must frequently be necessarily taken, (see Genesis 34:31; Judges 11:1; Hosea 1:2,) and as Rahab is called a harlot by two apostles, (Hebrews 11:31; James 2:25,) who use an expression of no such equivocal meaning, it seems evident she had once been a harlot, though undoubtedly was now reformed. They lodged there — Or, lay down, as the same word is rendered verse 8, composed themselves to rest, but they were hindered from that intention.

Verse 1. Sent out two spies. Many read, “Joshua had sent out.” Being a wary general he would lose no time in gaining every kind of information.— A harlot’s house, named Rahab. The word is rendered hostess, or landlady, as well as harlot. She got her bread by keeping a sort of inn. Her subsequent marriage and issue, in the line of David, indicate that she was no prostitute. But the Greek and Latin fathers all use the term harlot. Josephus follows the LXX in reading, gunaikov pornhv, which must here be understood as landlady rather than harlot.

THE ADVENTURES OF THE TWO SPIES, 1-24.

[Some forty years before this date Moses had sent out from the wilderness of Paran twelve spies, and among them Joshua, to search the Land of Promise. It was not a secret movement then, but the chosen twelve were prominent chiefs, “heads of the children of Israel.” Numbers 13:3. Only two of the twelve brought back an encouraging report, and it is noticeable that Joshua, one of the old spies, and now Moses’ successor, sends only two to spy out Jericho. For so dangerous a mission two were better than twelve.

1. Sent out — Some render had sent, as in the margin, and suppose that the spies had been sent out some days before the events of the last chapter. But the vav consecutive with which this verse begins (jlvyw) is properly rendered Then sent Joshua, etc., and a pluperfect rendering will not materially relieve the difficulty stated in Joshua 1:11. “Even if the spies had been despatched before the events narrated in Joshua 1:10-18, it would not be grammatically correct to render jlvyw as a pluperfect; and much less is this allowable if such a supposition be unfounded.” — Keil.] Shittim — The plain of acacia shrubs at the foot of the mountains on the eastern side of the Jordan, directly opposite Jericho, in which Moses had last pitched the Israelitish camp. Numbers 25:1; 33:49. Secretly — The Masoretic conjunctive accent connects this word with saying, rather than with to spy, as is done in the English version; but the word is best understood as qualifying Joshua’s whole procedure. He communicated his orders to the two men, and also sent them out secretly in order to avoid betrayal by any evil-minded person in his own camp. All spying necessarily involves secrecy, and in this case the perilous business was a military necessity. An unexplored land was before them, and the number and spirit of the enemy, and his military preparations and plans, were utterly unknown to Joshua. Faith always uses means. Even Jericho — The command may be better rendered. Go view the land, and particularly Jericho. This ancient town, (called also the “City of Palm Trees,”) was situated in a plain of the same name about six miles west of the Jordan, near where it enters into the Dead Sea, and about nineteen miles northeast of Jerusalem. It was a walled city, rich and populous, having commerce with Babylon and the far East. According to Stanley it was the only important town in the Jordan valley, and its situation must always have rendered its occupation necessary to any invader from the east. “It was the key of western Palestine, as standing at the entrance of the two main passes into the central mountains. From the issues of the torrent Kelt, on the south, to the copious spring, afterwards called the ‘Fountain of Elisha,’ on the north, the ancient city ran along the base of the mountains, and thus commanded the oasis of the desert valley, the garden of verdure, which clustering around these waters has, through the various stages of its long existence, secured its prosperity and grandeur.” The modern village Rihah is, by some travellers, identified with ancient Jericho, and is described by Dr. Olin as one of the meanest and foulest of Palestine, containing about forty houses, with a sickly, indolent, and vicious population. Came into a harlot’s house — [Literally, into the house of a woman, a harlot. Their entrance into such a house would excite less suspicion, and, her house being upon the wall, (ver. 15,) their escape from the city in case of necessity would be more easy. Knobel supposes that, as it was evening twilight when the spies reached Jericho, the time when harlots were wont to walk the streets, (Job 24:15; Proverbs 7:9; Isaiah xxiii, 16,) they met with Rahab at some corner and followed her to her house.] Josephus and other Jewish writers, and also some Christian commentators, unwilling to believe that these spies, intrusted with such a responsible mission, would have gone to a harlot’s house, or that Rahab, who married Salmon and became an ancestress of our Lord, and is commended by an apostle, could have been a woman of ill-fame, maintain that she was not a harlot, but a hostess or inn-keeper. But the Hebrew word hnwz means always, elsewhere, a harlot, and is so rendered in the Septuagint and Vulgate. Also in the New Testament she is called emphatically the harlot, h pornh, (Hebrews 11:31; James 2:25.) And not only on philological grounds is the rendering hostess untenable, but oriental customs are against such an interpretation. In the east there are no proper inns, but as a kind of substitute there are khans or caravansaries (See note and cut at Luke 2:7.) It would have been a thing without parallel in that land for a single woman, or even a man, to be found keeping a public house. Rahab was probably unmarried; for though she had father and mother, brothers and sisters, (verse 13,) there is no hint that she had husband or child, and it is notorious that in the east rarely any but disreputable women remain single. On her falsehoods and her faith, see note on verse 5, Lodged there — Rather, they lay down there. Verse 8 shows that they ascended the house top to pass the night there.

V. 2. To night-This evening.

Verses 2, 3. To-night — This evening. Probably Israel had but one friend in all Jericho, and God directed them to her! Thus, what seems to be most accidental is often overruled to serve the great ends of Providence. And those that acknowledge God in their ways, he will guide them with his eye.

2. It was told the king — The chief of each great city, and even of each petty clan, is in the Old Testament dignified by the appellation of king. At this time of alarm, when the invading foe was only a few miles off, a shrewd king would naturally give orders to watch closely every suspicious-looking stranger. There came men… to search out the country — The peculiar Hebrew physiognomy of the two spies, and perhaps, also, their entering the eastern gate, were strong grounds of suspicion.

V. 3. Probably Israel had but one friend in all Jericho: and God directed them to her! Thus what seems to be most accidental, is often over-ruled, to serve the great ends of providence. And those that acknowledge God in their ways, he will guide them with his eye.

Verse 3. The king of Jericho sent unto Rahab] This appears to be a proof of the preceding opinion: had she been a prostitute or a person of ill fame he could at once have sent officers to have seized the persons lodged with her as vagabonds; but if she kept a house of entertainment, the persons under her roof were sacred, according to the universal custom of the Asiatics, and could not be molested on any trifling grounds. A guest or a friend is sacred in whatever house he may be received, in every part of the east to the present day.

Verses 2, 3. To-night — This evening. Probably Israel had but one friend in all Jericho, and God directed them to her! Thus, what seems to be most accidental is often overruled to serve the great ends of Providence. And those that acknowledge God in their ways, he will guide them with his eye.

3. Sent unto Rahab — The spies had been traced to the harlot’s house, and possibly Rahab had also, by open avowal of her belief in the approaching triumph of the Hebrews, already drawn suspicion on herself.

V. 4. And the woman-Or, But the woman had taken-and had hid them, before the messengers came from the king; as soon as she understood from her neighbours, that there was a suspicion of the matter, and guessed that search would be made. And this is justly mentioned as a great and generous act of faith, Hebrews 11:31, for she apparently ventured her life upon a steadfast persuasion of the truth of God’s word and promise given to the Israelites. Whence they were-Her answer contained in these and the following words, was false, and therefore unquestionably sinful; tho’ her intention was good therein. But it is very probable, she being an Heathen, might think, that an officious lie is not unlawful.

Verse 4. And hid them] Probably she secreted them for the time being in some private corner, till she had the opportunity of concealing them on the house-top in the manner mentioned Joshua 2:6.

Verse 4. And the woman — Or, But the woman; had taken and hid them — Before the messengers came from the king; as soon as she understood from her neighbours that there was a suspicion of the matter, and guessed that search would be made. And this is justly mentioned as a great and generous act of faith, (Hebrews 11:31,) for she apparently ventured her life upon a steadfast persuasion of the truth of God’s word and promise given to the Israelites. Whence they were — Her answer, contained in these and the following words, was false, and therefore unquestionably sinful; though her intention was good therein. But it is very probable she, being a heathen, might think that an officious lie was not unlawful.

4. Hid them — Literally, hid him. Hebrew usage shows many such sudden transitions from plural to singular. Perhaps we may see in this instance an intimation of the haste with which she concealed the men, hiding one of them herself with the flax (verse 6) and leaving the other to cover himself. Some think she had taken the precaution to conceal the men before the king’s messengers arrived, and verse 6 seems to favor the supposition. I wist not whence they were — Better, I knew not, for the verb wist is obsolete. Rahab could not safely deny that the men had entered her house, for other eyes than hers had seen them; but it is difficult to believe that she knew not whence they were. She may not, however, have had positive knowledge that they were spies.

Verse 5. When it was dark] So it appears that it was after night that the king of Jericho sent to Rahab, ordering her to produce the persons who lodged with her. The season itself was friendly to the whole plot: had these transactions taken place in daylight, it is scarcely possible that the spies could have escaped. But this is no excuse for the woman’s prevarication, for God could have saved his messengers independently of her falsity. God never says to any, Do evil that good may come of it. See at the end of the chapter.

Ver. 5. Whether the men went I wot [or know] not. Her motives were pure, but her words were not true. So it was with Abraham before Abimelech. The Holy Ghost having recorded the reproof which Abimelech gave Sarah, we ought not to defend the practice. Genesis 20:9. And if lying be reprehensible for the safety of life, how wicked must it be to lie in the common affairs of business and conversation.

5. [The men went out — This statement was a wilful falsehood, and cannot be justified by saying that oriental hospitality required a person to utter falsehood if necessary to defend a guest. It may, indeed, relieve the case somewhat to urge that before the Gospel strict truth, in Jew or heathen, was a virtue utterly unknown; but it is altogether superfluous to attempt either to apologize for Rahab’s previous harlotry or to justify her falsehoods. We must distinguish, however, between her vices and her virtues. The sacred writers record her vices without a word of comment or apology. Even with this alloy, however, they attest the justifying power of her faith. The epistle to the Hebrews (Hebrews 11:31) extols her faith in Israel’s God, and James (James 2:25) makes mention of her praiseworthy works of hospitality. The one declares that her faith saved her from perishing with the unbelieving inhabitants of Jericho; the other shows that her faith was not without its appropriate fruits.] {Verse 11, however, shows that Rahab had long entertained a sincere faith in Jehovah as the true God, and her conduct toward the spies was the imperfect manifestation of that faith which resulted in her true incorporation into Israel, and obtaining a place in the genealogy of the Messiah. Matthew 1:5. Her falsehood on the present occasion was far less condemning than that of Abraham on two occasions. Genesis 12:13; 20:2. It was also a stratagem of war, which even our Christian civilization has hardly attained the virtue of disusing.}

V. 6. Roof-Which was flat after their manner. Upon the roof-That they might be dried by the heat of the sun.

Verse 6. Hid then with the stalks of flax] It is a matter of little consequence whether we translate xy[h ytcp pistey haets stalks of flax, or stalks of hemp: the word x[ ets, which signifies wood, serves to show that whether it was hemp or flax, it was in its rough, unmanufactured state; and as this was about the season, viz., the end of March or the beginning of April, in which the flax is ripe in that country, consequently Rahab’s flax might have been recently pulled, and was now drying on the roof of her house. The reader may find some useful remarks upon this subject in Harmer’s Observations, vol. iv., p. 97, &c.

Upon the roof.] We have already seen that all the houses in the east were made flat-roofed; for which a law is given Deuteronomy 22:8. On these flat roofs the Asiatics to this day walk, converse, and oftentimes even sleep and pass the night. It is probable that this hiding was after that referred to in the fourth verse.

Verses 6, 7. Up to the roof — In those countries the roofs of the houses were made quite flat, and it is probable it might be customary to lay the stalks of flax upon them that they might be dried by the heat of the sun. Fords — Or, passages; that is, the places where people used to pass over Jordan, whether by boats or bridges. The gate — Of the city, to prevent the escape of the spies, if peradventure Rahab was mistaken, and they yet lurked therein.

6. She had brought them up to the roof of the house — This verse more fully explains verse 4, by detailing the place and manner of her concealing the spies. Eastern houses have flat roofs, surrounded with a parapet to prevent falling off. Deuteronomy 28:8. Here the family often sleep, sit, walk, and store such articles as will not be damaged by the exposure. Sometimes the roof is shaded by means of an awning supported by posts. See note on Acts 10:9. Stalks of flax — Hebrews flax of the tree; that is, flax in the tree or stalk. Some render these words stalks or pods of cotton, but without sufficient authority. Flax is said to grow in Egypt to a great size, and its stalks attain the thickness of a cane, and so it doubtless did in the rich plain of Jericho. To dry stalks of such thickness much exposure to the sun would be necessary, and they were laid out in such abundance on Rahab’s house that the two men could be easily concealed among them.

V. 7. Fords-Or passages, that is, the places where people used to pass over Jordan, whether by boats or bridges. The gate-Of the city, to prevent the escape of the spies, if peradventure Rahab was mistaken, and they yet lurked therein.

Verses 6, 7. Up to the roof — In those countries the roofs of the houses were made quite flat, and it is probable it might be customary to lay the stalks of flax upon them that they might be dried by the heat of the sun. Fords — Or, passages; that is, the places where people used to pass over Jordan, whether by boats or bridges. The gate — Of the city, to prevent the escape of the spies, if peradventure Rahab was mistaken, and they yet lurked therein.

7. The men pursued after them — That is, the men of Jericho pursued, as they thought, after the spies. The way to Jordan — The most direct way to the Jordan, the way which they naturally thought the spies, in their hasty flight, would take. Unto the fords — Hebrews, the crossing places; certain well-known places of shallow water where the Jordan might be waded. There is no intimation that the pursuers crossed the fords. As the plural is used, we infer that there were several places of this kind near Jericho, and that the pursuers took different routes to insure the capture of the fugitives. They shut the gate — To prevent the escape of the spies should they still be in the city, and to secure the city against the ingress of foes by night.

V. 8. Laid down-To sleep as they intended.

Verses 8-11. Before they were laid down — To sleep, as they intended. She came up unto them — Having got clear of the officers, to the roof of the house, where they lay hid. Here she informs them, 1st, That the report of the great things God had done for them had reached Jericho. Not only that they had had an account of their late victories, obtained over the Amorites in the neighbouring country, on the other side the river; but that their miraculous deliverance out of Egypt, and passage through the Red sea, which had taken place at a great distance, and forty years ago, were remembered and spoken of afresh in Jericho, to the amazement of every body. 2d, She tells them what impressions the tidings of these things had made upon the Canaanites; your terror is fallen, upon us, verse 9. Our hearts did melt, verse 11. If she kept a public house, that might have given her an opportunity of understanding the sense of various companies, and of travellers from other parts of the country; so that they could not have known this any way better than by her information; and it would greatly encourage Joshua and Israel to hear how their enemies were dispirited and cast down; especially as this was the accomplishment of a promise God had made them, that he would lay the fear and dread of them upon all this land, (Deuteronomy 9:25,) and so it would be an earnest of the accomplishment of all his other promises to them. 3d, She hereupon makes profession of her faith in God, and his promise; and perhaps there was not found so great faith, (all things considered,) no, not in Israel, as in this woman of Canaan. First, She believes God’s power and dominion over all the world, verse 11. Jehovah your God — Whom you worship and call upon, is so far above all gods that he is the only true God; for he is God in heaven above, and in earth beneath, and is served by all the hosts of both. Secondly, She believes his promise to his people Israel, verse 9; I know that the Lord hath given you the land — The king of Jericho had heard as much as she had of the great things God had done for Israel, yet he cannot infer from thence that the Lord had given them this land; but resolves to hold it out against them to the last extremity. For the most powerful means of conviction will not avail when despite is done to the Spirit of grace, and his influences are quenched or resisted. But Rahab the harlot, who had only heard of the wonders God had wrought, speaks with more assurance of the truth of the promise made to the fathers than all the elders of Israel had done, who were eye-witnesses of those wonders, many of whom perished through unbelief of this promise. Blessed are they who have not seen and yet have believed: so Rahab did. O woman, great is thy faith! Let those who ask, “On what principle she could receive into her house the known enemies of her country, conceal them from the searchers, and dismiss them in safety?” consider this her faith, and the foundation on which it was built, and they will be at no loss for an answer.

8. Before they were laid down — That is, to sleep. They had been hidden where it was uncomfortable to sleep; but now that their pursuers are put upon the wrong track, they come forth from their hiding places.

V. 9. Your terror-That is, the dread of you.

Verse 9. I know that the Lord hath given you the land] It is likely she had this only from conjecture, having heard of their successes against the Amorites, their prodigious numbers, and seeing the state of terror and dismay to which the inhabitants of her own land were reduced.

Verses 8-11. Before they were laid down — To sleep, as they intended. She came up unto them — Having got clear of the officers, to the roof of the house, where they lay hid. Here she informs them, 1st, That the report of the great things God had done for them had reached Jericho. Not only that they had had an account of their late victories, obtained over the Amorites in the neighbouring country, on the other side the river; but that their miraculous deliverance out of Egypt, and passage through the Red sea, which had taken place at a great distance, and forty years ago, were remembered and spoken of afresh in Jericho, to the amazement of every body. 2d, She tells them what impressions the tidings of these things had made upon the Canaanites; your terror is fallen, upon us, verse 9. Our hearts did melt, verse 11. If she kept a public house, that might have given her an opportunity of understanding the sense of various companies, and of travellers from other parts of the country; so that they could not have known this any way better than by her information; and it would greatly encourage Joshua and Israel to hear how their enemies were dispirited and cast down; especially as this was the accomplishment of a promise God had made them, that he would lay the fear and dread of them upon all this land, (Deuteronomy 9:25,) and so it would be an earnest of the accomplishment of all his other promises to them. 3d, She hereupon makes profession of her faith in God, and his promise; and perhaps there was not found so great faith, (all things considered,) no, not in Israel, as in this woman of Canaan. First, She believes God’s power and dominion over all the world, verse 11. Jehovah your God — Whom you worship and call upon, is so far above all gods that he is the only true God; for he is God in heaven above, and in earth beneath, and is served by all the hosts of both. Secondly, She believes his promise to his people Israel, verse 9; I know that the Lord hath given you the land — The king of Jericho had heard as much as she had of the great things God had done for Israel, yet he cannot infer from thence that the Lord had given them this land; but resolves to hold it out against them to the last extremity. For the most powerful means of conviction will not avail when despite is done to the Spirit of grace, and his influences are quenched or resisted. But Rahab the harlot, who had only heard of the wonders God had wrought, speaks with more assurance of the truth of the promise made to the fathers than all the elders of Israel had done, who were eye-witnesses of those wonders, many of whom perished through unbelief of this promise. Blessed are they who have not seen and yet have believed: so Rahab did. O woman, great is thy faith! Let those who ask, “On what principle she could receive into her house the known enemies of her country, conceal them from the searchers, and dismiss them in safety?” consider this her faith, and the foundation on which it was built, and they will be at no loss for an answer.

9. I know that the Lord hath given you the land — Mark the strength of her affirmation: not 1 believe, but I know. Rahab now discloses unto them the cause of her hospitality, her firm conviction that the Hebrews were destined to overthrow her people. This belief arose from the miraculous passage of the Red Sea, and the easy conquest of Eastern Palestine. With characteristic womanly penetration she had read the secret fears of her countrymen, and had interpreted them as tokens of coming defeat to her people. Thus the very knowledge which Joshua was most desirous of attaining, namely, the state of feeling among the Canaanites, is freely communicated to the spies. To dishearten a nation is to conquer it. Your terror — Fear of you has paralyzed us. Moses, in his last discourse, had predicted this result. Deuteronomy 2:25; 11:25. All the inhabitants of the land faint — For faint, the Hebrew reads, are melted; an expression showing the utter prostration of their confidence and resolution. This despair of the people, whether natural or supernatural, prevented them from making any combination to resist the invading host at the best place for such resistance — the passage of the Jordan.

Verses 8-11. Before they were laid down — To sleep, as they intended. She came up unto them — Having got clear of the officers, to the roof of the house, where they lay hid. Here she informs them, 1st, That the report of the great things God had done for them had reached Jericho. Not only that they had had an account of their late victories, obtained over the Amorites in the neighbouring country, on the other side the river; but that their miraculous deliverance out of Egypt, and passage through the Red sea, which had taken place at a great distance, and forty years ago, were remembered and spoken of afresh in Jericho, to the amazement of every body. 2d, She tells them what impressions the tidings of these things had made upon the Canaanites; your terror is fallen, upon us, verse 9. Our hearts did melt, verse 11. If she kept a public house, that might have given her an opportunity of understanding the sense of various companies, and of travellers from other parts of the country; so that they could not have known this any way better than by her information; and it would greatly encourage Joshua and Israel to hear how their enemies were dispirited and cast down; especially as this was the accomplishment of a promise God had made them, that he would lay the fear and dread of them upon all this land, (Deuteronomy 9:25,) and so it would be an earnest of the accomplishment of all his other promises to them. 3d, She hereupon makes profession of her faith in God, and his promise; and perhaps there was not found so great faith, (all things considered,) no, not in Israel, as in this woman of Canaan. First, She believes God’s power and dominion over all the world, verse 11. Jehovah your God — Whom you worship and call upon, is so far above all gods that he is the only true God; for he is God in heaven above, and in earth beneath, and is served by all the hosts of both. Secondly, She believes his promise to his people Israel, verse 9; I know that the Lord hath given you the land — The king of Jericho had heard as much as she had of the great things God had done for Israel, yet he cannot infer from thence that the Lord had given them this land; but resolves to hold it out against them to the last extremity. For the most powerful means of conviction will not avail when despite is done to the Spirit of grace, and his influences are quenched or resisted. But Rahab the harlot, who had only heard of the wonders God had wrought, speaks with more assurance of the truth of the promise made to the fathers than all the elders of Israel had done, who were eye-witnesses of those wonders, many of whom perished through unbelief of this promise. Blessed are they who have not seen and yet have believed: so Rahab did. O woman, great is thy faith! Let those who ask, “On what principle she could receive into her house the known enemies of her country, conceal them from the searchers, and dismiss them in safety?” consider this her faith, and the foundation on which it was built, and they will be at no loss for an answer.

10. We have heard — An event so wonderful filled the world with amazement. Traders and caravans passing from Egypt through the deserts would frequently pass through Jericho, and spread the tidings of the Hebrews’ triumphs. Of all the miracles which attended the exodus from Egypt, none was capable of producing so profound an impression upon all surrounding nations as the drying up of the Red Sea, the safe passage of the Israelites, and the destruction of the Egyptian host by the rolling back of the parted surges. Exodus 14:15-31. The lapse of forty years had not effaced that deep impression — an incidental proof of the magnitude of the miracle. Events more recent and nearer to them had increased their alarm. The Amorites east of the Jordan, who had evinced their martial prowess by conquering the king of Moab and seizing his land, were in turn subdued by the resistless arms of the Israelites. The Amorites were the most powerful and distinguished of the Canaanitish nations, and occupied a tract on both sides of the Jordan. Those on the east side were under two kings, Sihon and Og. The former refused passage to the Hebrews through his territory, came to Jahaz, fought, and was defeated. Og also gave battle at Edrei, and was totally routed. See on Numbers 21:21-35.

V. 11. Melted-That is, were dissolved, lost all courage.

Verse 11. He is God in heaven above, and to earth beneath.] This confession of the true God is amazingly full, and argues considerable light and information. As if she had said, “I know your God to be omnipotent and omnipresent:” and in consequence of this faith she hid the spies, and risked her own life in doing it. But how had she this clear knowledge of the Divine nature? 1. Possibly the knowledge of the true God was general in the earth at this time, though connected with much superstition and idolatry; the people believing that there was a god for every district, and for every people; for the mountains and for the valleys; see 1 Kings 20:23. 2. Or she received this instruction from the spies, with whom she appears to have had a good deal of conversation; or, 3. She had it from a supernatural influence of God upon her own soul. She probably made a better use of the light she had received than the rest of her countrymen, and God increased that light.

Verses 8-11. Before they were laid down — To sleep, as they intended. She came up unto them — Having got clear of the officers, to the roof of the house, where they lay hid. Here she informs them, 1st, That the report of the great things God had done for them had reached Jericho. Not only that they had had an account of their late victories, obtained over the Amorites in the neighbouring country, on the other side the river; but that their miraculous deliverance out of Egypt, and passage through the Red sea, which had taken place at a great distance, and forty years ago, were remembered and spoken of afresh in Jericho, to the amazement of every body. 2d, She tells them what impressions the tidings of these things had made upon the Canaanites; your terror is fallen, upon us, verse 9. Our hearts did melt, verse 11. If she kept a public house, that might have given her an opportunity of understanding the sense of various companies, and of travellers from other parts of the country; so that they could not have known this any way better than by her information; and it would greatly encourage Joshua and Israel to hear how their enemies were dispirited and cast down; especially as this was the accomplishment of a promise God had made them, that he would lay the fear and dread of them upon all this land, (Deuteronomy 9:25,) and so it would be an earnest of the accomplishment of all his other promises to them. 3d, She hereupon makes profession of her faith in God, and his promise; and perhaps there was not found so great faith, (all things considered,) no, not in Israel, as in this woman of Canaan. First, She believes God’s power and dominion over all the world, verse 11. Jehovah your God — Whom you worship and call upon, is so far above all gods that he is the only true God; for he is God in heaven above, and in earth beneath, and is served by all the hosts of both. Secondly, She believes his promise to his people Israel, verse 9; I know that the Lord hath given you the land — The king of Jericho had heard as much as she had of the great things God had done for Israel, yet he cannot infer from thence that the Lord had given them this land; but resolves to hold it out against them to the last extremity. For the most powerful means of conviction will not avail when despite is done to the Spirit of grace, and his influences are quenched or resisted. But Rahab the harlot, who had only heard of the wonders God had wrought, speaks with more assurance of the truth of the promise made to the fathers than all the elders of Israel had done, who were eye-witnesses of those wonders, many of whom perished through unbelief of this promise. Blessed are they who have not seen and yet have believed: so Rahab did. O woman, great is thy faith! Let those who ask, “On what principle she could receive into her house the known enemies of her country, conceal them from the searchers, and dismiss them in safety?” consider this her faith, and the foundation on which it was built, and they will be at no loss for an answer.

11. For the Lord your God, he is God in heaven above, and in earth beneath — This is the full profession of Rahab’s faith in the God of Israel. It was a complete renunciation of her idolatry and harlotry. It was a change in belief, feeling, will, and action, which brought her to the worship of the true God, and to a maternity of the Messiah in David’s royal line. However alloyed by one imperfection, it was a true faith working out its true results. And the wide-spread terror of these nations, as described in the last verse, and Rahab’s faith, were in accordance with God’s purpose in raising up Pharaoh and diffusing his “name.” Note on Romans 9:17.

V. 12. By the Lord-By your God who is the only true God: so she owns his worship, one eminent act whereof is swearing by his name. My father’s house-My near kindred, which she particularly names, Joshua 2:13, husband and children it seems she had none. And for herself, it was needless to speak, it being a plain and undeniable duty to save their preserver. True token-Either an assurance that you will preserve me and mine from the common ruin: or a token which I may produce as a witness of this agreement, and a means of my security. This is all that she asks. But God did for her more than she could ask or think. She was afterwards advanced to be a princess in Israel, the wife of Salmon and one of the ancestors of Christ.

Verse 12. Swear unto me by the Lord] This is a farther proof that this woman had received considerable instruction in the Jewish faith; she acknowledged the true God by his essential character Jehovah; and knew that an oath in his name was the deepest and most solemn obligation under which a Jew could possibly come. Does not this also refer to the command of God, Thou shalt fear the Lord, and shalt swear by his name? See Clarke’s note on “Deuteronomy 6:13”.

Verses 12, 13. Swear unto me by the Lord — Hebrew, by Jehovah, your God, who is the only true God: so she owns his worship, one eminent act whereof is, swearing by his name. My father’s house — My near kindred, which she particularly names, (verse 13,) husband and children, it seems, she had none. And for herself it was needless to speak, it being a plain and undeniable duty to save their preserver. True tokens — Either an assurance that you will preserve me and mine from the common ruin, or a token which I may produce as a witness of this agreement, and a means of my security. This is all that she asks. But God did for her more than she could ask or think. She was afterward advanced to be a princess in Israel, the wife of Salmon, and one of the ancestors of Christ. All that they have — That is, their children, as appears from Joshua 6:23.

Ver. 12. Swear unto me by the Lord. This was the ancient way of making covenants; and such covenants, whether relating to marriage or property, if holy and compatible with salvation, cannot be broken. He that sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth not, shall ascend into the hill of the Lord. Psalm 15:5.

12. Swear unto me — She gives still stronger proof of her confidence in the success of the Israelites by wishing to enter into covenant with the spies for the salvation of herself and her father’s family. She feels that if they swear by Israel’s mighty God they will not dare prove false. Her faith assumes a practical character, and shows itself by works. It impels her to bargain for her deliverance from the destruction which she sees impending over the city. Since I have showed you kindness — Rahab here makes a good application of the Golden Rule. Give me a true token — Some visible, material proof of the oath; some object which she may keep and produce as evidence that such a solemn compact has been entered into by the parties. This token was a substitute for a written covenant bearing their signatures.

V. 13. All that they have-That is, their children, as appears from Joshua 6:23.

Verse 13. Deliver our lives from death.] She had learned, either from the spies or otherwise, that all the inhabitants of the land were doomed to destruction, and therefore she obliges them to enter into a covenant with her for the preservation of herself and her household.

Verses 12, 13. Swear unto me by the Lord — Hebrew, by Jehovah, your God, who is the only true God: so she owns his worship, one eminent act whereof is, swearing by his name. My father’s house — My near kindred, which she particularly names, (verse 13,) husband and children, it seems, she had none. And for herself it was needless to speak, it being a plain and undeniable duty to save their preserver. True tokens — Either an assurance that you will preserve me and mine from the common ruin, or a token which I may produce as a witness of this agreement, and a means of my security. This is all that she asks. But God did for her more than she could ask or think. She was afterward advanced to be a princess in Israel, the wife of Salmon, and one of the ancestors of Christ. All that they have — That is, their children, as appears from Joshua 6:23.

13. And that ye will save alive my father — The English version wrongly supplies that. Read, And ye shall save alive, etc. She was by no means destitute of natural affection. That she does not stipulate for the salvation of the entire state of Jericho is no evidence of her want of patriotism. She was too deeply impressed with the belief of the coming overthrow to ask so much. Our ties of consanguinity should induce us to make extraordinary efforts for the conversion of our kindred to God. This is the highest purpose of the creation of such ties in the human soul. All that they have — It is not necessary to limit this clause to persons only; it may include portable possessions also. Comp. Joshua 6:23, note.

V. 14. For yours-We will venture our lives for the security of yours. Our business-That is, this agreement of ours, and the condition of it, lest others under this pretence, should secure themselves. By which they shew both their piety and prudence in managing their oath with so much circumspection, that neither their own consciences might be ensnared, nor the publick justice obstructed.

Verse 14. Our life for yours] “May our life be destroyed if we suffer yours to be injured!” This is what was anciently called in our country pledging-staking, a man’s life for that of his neighbour or friend.

Verse 14. Our life for yours — We will venture our lives for the security of yours. Our business — That is, this agreement of ours, and the condition of it, lest others, under this pretence, should secure themselves. By which they show both their piety and prudence in managing their oath with so much circumspection, that neither their own consciences might be insnared, nor the public justice obstructed.

14. Our life for yours — According to Osiander, this form of oath may be thus paraphrased: “We place our life and soul in the hand of God as a pledge for thee, in order that he may destroy us if any one injures thee or thine.” If ye utter not this our business — This is the indispensable condition on which their oath and her deliverance depend.

V. 15. Town-wall-Which gave her the opportunity of dismissing them when the gates were shut. Upon the wall-Her particular dwelling was there: which may possibly be added, because the other part of her house was reserved for the entertainment of strangers.

Verse 15. Then she let them down by a cord &c.] The natural place of this verse is after the first clause of Joshua 2:21; for it is certain that she did not let them down in the basket till all those circumstances marked from Joshua 2:16-20 inclusive had taken place.

She dwelt upon the wall.] That is, either the wall of the city made a part of her house or her house was built close to the wall, so that the top or battlements of it were above the wall with a window that looked out to the country. As the city gates were now shut there was no way for the spies to escape but through this window; and in order to this she let them down through the window in a basket suspended by a cord, till they reached the ground on the outside of the wall.

Verses 15, 16. Her house was upon the town-wall — Which gave her the opportunity of dismissing them when the gates were shut. She dwelt upon the wall — Her particular dwelling was there; which may possibly be added, because the other part of her house was reserved for the entertainment of strangers. Get you to the mountain — That is, to some of the mountains wherewith Jericho was encompassed, in which also there were many caves where they might lurk. Three days — Not three whole days, but one whole day, and part of two days.

Ver. 15. Window. The ancient houses in western Asia had a gloomy appearance; their construction exhibited the fears of the people. The windows were high, and many of them not larger than a loop-hole through which a man might pass. The scarlet thread seems to have been hanks of yarn which she was accustomed to spin and weave.

15. Then she let them downs by a cord — [Many interpreters are of opinion that there is a confusion in the order of verses here, and that this verse should follow the first sentence of verse 21. For it is improbable, they urge, that Rahab and the spies continued to converse after the latter were let down from the window, inasmuch as such conversation would have led to their detection and exposure. But against such an opinion are the words, Thou didst let us down, (verse 18;) and as for the confusion of verses, Keil well remarks that “the Hebrews often connect together the principal circumstances attending any particular event, and, after fully describing these, proceed to fill up the details of minor importance. This, however, is nor, a confusion in the order of events, but an anticipation of the result consequent upon a well-arranged division of the subject-matter.”] Some have thought that it was impossible that she could let them down alone, and they have furnished her with “friends or domestics” to assist her. But there is no need of this assistance. By fastening the cord to something within the room they could descend, sailor-like, even without aid from within. Paul was let down in a basket. (2 Corinthians 11:33.) Her house was upon the town wall — hmwjh ryqb, in the depth of the wall. Her house was so constructed that the city wall formed also the back wall of the house. She dwelt upon the wall — For her house was built on the wall, and projected beyond its outer edge, so that from one of its outer windows the men could be let down beyond the walls of the city. (See note on Acts 9:25.)

V. 16. The mountain-That is, to some of the mountains wherewith Jericho was encompassed, in which also there were many caves where they might lurk. Three days-Not three whole days, but one whole day, and part of two days.

Verse 16. Hide yourselves there three days] They were to travel by night, and hide themselves in the day-time; otherwise they might have been discovered by the pursuers who were in search of them.

Verses 15, 16. Her house was upon the town-wall — Which gave her the opportunity of dismissing them when the gates were shut. She dwelt upon the wall — Her particular dwelling was there; which may possibly be added, because the other part of her house was reserved for the entertainment of strangers. Get you to the mountain — That is, to some of the mountains wherewith Jericho was encompassed, in which also there were many caves where they might lurk. Three days — Not three whole days, but one whole day, and part of two days.

16. Get you to the mountain — Hebrews Mountainwards go ye. By the device of going westward to the mountains behind the city, instead of eastward toward the Jordan, they would avoid pursuit, and secure a hiding place in some of their caverns till the pursuers had returned.

V. 17. Said-Or, had said; namely, before she let them down; it being very improbable, either that she would dismiss them before the condition was agreed on; or that she would discourse with them, or they with her, about such secret and weighty things after they were let down, when others might overhear them. Blameless-That is, free from guilt or reproach if it be violated, namely, if the following condition be not observed.

Verse 17. The men said — Or, had said; namely, before she let them down; it being very improbable either that she would dismiss them before the condition was agreed on, or that she would discourse with them, or they with her, about such secret and weighty things after they were let down, when others might overhear them. Blameless — That is, free from guilt or reproach if it be violated; namely, if the following condition be not observed.

17. We will be blameless of this thine oath — That is, released from the oath which we have taken, provided you do not fulfil the following conditions.

V. 18. Into the land-That is, over Jordan, and near the city. This line of scarlet-Probably the same with which she was about to let them down. Window-That it may be easily discerned by our soldiers.

Verse 18. This line of scarlet thread] ynvh cwj twqt tikvath chut hashshani. Probably this may mean, this piece of scarlet cloth, or, this cloth (made) of scarlet thread. When the Israelites took the city this piece of red cloth seems to have been hung out of the window by way of flag; and this was the sign on which she and the spies had agreed.

Verse 18. When we come into the land — That is, over Jordan, and near the city. This line of scarlet — The Hebrew word, twqt, tickvath, more properly means, rope, riband, or web. Probably the same with which she was about to let them down. Window — That it may be easily discerned by our soldiers.

18. Thou shalt bind this line of scarlet thread in the window — A small rope or cord composed of crimson threads. The English version conveys the idea that this cord was used in letting down the spies. But the Hebrew, Septuagint, and Vulgate make the window the antecedent of which, thus — the window through which thou didst let us down. The scarlet cord was probably the token (ver. 12) given to Rahab in proof of their oath. But the scarlet of the thread by which she and her house were to be saved, though a suggestive emblem of the blood of the atonement, (as advanced by St. Clement,) can hardly be considered, like the blood of the paschal lamb on the door post, an appointed type. And thou shall bring thy father — The persons to whom deliverance is pledged must be separated front the mass of the people and gathered within the house of Rahab, otherwise they must perish in the impending universal destruction. So must those who hope to escape the general doom of this sinful world be gathered into the house of God, the Church of Jesus Christ.

V. 19. Upon his head-The blame of his death shall rest wholly upon himself, as being occasioned by his own neglect of the means of safety. Our head-We are willing to bear the sin, and shame, and punishment of it. Be upon him-So as to kill him.

Verse 19. Upon his head — The blame of his death shall rest wholly upon himself, as being occasioned by his own neglect of the means of safety. Our head — We are willing to bear the sin, and shame, and punishment of it. If any hand be upon him — So as to kill him.

19. [His blood shall be upon his head — A technical formula of retribution indicating the punishment of death when justly brought upon one’s self, and equivalent to, Let the guilt of his death fall back upon himself. See note on Acts 18:6.] If any hand be upon him — That is, to injure or to slay.

Verse 20. If thou utter this our business] It was prudent to make her life depend on her secresy; had it been otherwise she might have been tempted to give information, not only concerning the spies, but concerning the designs of the Israelites. But her life being at stake, added to every other motive, she kept the secret for the sake of her own personal safety and that of all her relatives.

20. Quit of thine oath — Released from its obligation. The condition mentioned in verse 14 is here repeated as if to give it emphasis.

V. 21. In the window-Forthwith, partly that the spies might see it hung out before their departure, and so the better know it at some distance; partly lest some accident might occasion a neglect about it.

Verse 21. In the window — Forthwith, partly that the spies might see it hung out before their departure, and so the better know it at some distance; partly lest some accident might occasion a neglect about it.

21. And she bound the scarlet line in the window — This statement is here made to complete the account, not to indicate that she bound the line in the window as soon as the spies were gone. She did this on the approach of the Hebrew host, in season to secure the deliverance of which this was the token. To have displayed it immediately would have been unnecessary, and would have incurred the suspicions of her watchful countrymen.

V. 22. Three days-Supporting themselves there with the provisions, which Rahab had furnished them with. The ways-That is, in the road to Jordan, and the places near it, but not in the mountains.

Verses 22, 23. Three days — Supporting themselves there with the provisions which Rahab had furnished them with. The way — That is, in the road to Jordan, and the places near it, but not in the mountains. Passed over — Jordan unto Joshua.

22. Abode there three days — In reckoning time, the Jews count as whole days the parts of days which may be included in a given period. Hence the body of Jesus was said to be in the tomb three days, though it was laid there on Friday evening and he came forth on Sunday morning — a space of thirty-six hours. See note on Matthew 12:40. [So these spies may have remained in the caverns of the mountains only parts of three days, and the entire time of their absence from the camp at Shittim fell within the three days at the end of which, if not before, Joshua intended to be on his march across the Jordan. See note on Joshua 1:11.]

V. 23. Passed over-Jordan unto Joshua.

Verse 23. So the two men returned] Having concealed themselves in the mountains that night, all the next day, and the night ensuing, on the third day they returned to Joshua.

Verses 22, 23. Three days — Supporting themselves there with the provisions which Rahab had furnished them with. The way — That is, in the road to Jordan, and the places near it, but not in the mountains. Passed over — Jordan unto Joshua.

23. Passed over — That is, Jordan. These scouts were probably expert in swimming, for the Jordan was then at its flood. Came to Joshua — It is not necessary to suppose that they returned to the camp at Shittim. But the history most naturally implies this.

Verse 24. Truly the Lord hath delivered into our hands all the land] How different was this report from that brought by the spies on a former occasion! They found that all the inhabitants of the land were panic-struck. The people had heard of the great exploits of the Israelites on the other side of Jordan; and as they had destroyed the potent kings of the Amorites, they took it for granted that nothing could stand before them. This information was necessary to Joshua to guide him in forming the plan of his campaign.

1. IT may be asked, Did not Rahab lie in the account she gave to the officers of the king of Jericho, (Joshua 2:4, 5,) There came men unto me, &c.? I answer, She certainly did; and the inspired writer sets down the fact merely as it stood, without making the Spirit of God responsible for the dissimulation of the woman. But was she not rewarded, &c.? Yes; for her hospitality and faith, not for her lie. But could she have saved the spies without telling a lie? Yes, she certainly might; but what notion could a woman of her occupation, though nothing worse than an inn-keeper, have of the nicer distinctions between truth and falsehood, living among a most profligate and depraved people, where truth could scarcely be known?

2. There is a lax morality in the world that recommends a lie rather than the truth, when the purposes of religion and humanity can be served by it. But when can this be? The religion of Christ is one eternal system of truth, and can neither be served by a lie nor admit one. On this vile subject fine words have been spoken. Tasso, in his elegant episode of Sophronia and Olindo, in the Gerusalemme Liberata, b. ii., v. 22, represents the former as telling a lie to Saladdin, relative to the stealing of an image, for which, as he could not discover the culprit, he doomed all the Christians in his power to death. Sophronia, a pious Christian virgin, getting into the presence of the tyrant, in order to save her people, accuses herself, though perfectly innocent, of the theft. Her conduct on this occasion the poet embellishes in the following manner, for which the religion of that time, which dealt in holy frauds, would no doubt applaud him.

‘Ed ella: il reo si trova al tuo cospetto;

Opra e il furto, Signor, di questa mano

Io l’ immagine tolsi; Io son colei

Che tu ricerchi, e me punir tu dei.

Cosi al pubblico fato il capo altero

Offerse, e ‘l volle in se sol racorre.

MAGNANIMA MENZOGNA! or quando e il VERO

SI BELLO, che si possa a te preporre?”

Then she: “Before thy sight the guilty stands;

The theft, O King, committed by these hands.

In me the thief who stole the image view!

To me the punishment decreed is due.”

Thus, filled with public zeal, the generous dame

A victim for her people’s ransom came.

O great deceit! O lie divinely fair!

What truth with such a falsehood can compare!

HOOLE.

Thus a lie is ornamented with splendid decorations both by the Italian and English poet, and the whole formed into an anti-apostolic maxim, Let us do EVIL, that GOOD may come of it.

A purer morality was taught by one of the most ancient heathen writers than is here preached by these demi-christians:—

Ecqrov gar moi keinov, omwv aidao pulhsin,

JOv cJ eteron men keuqei eni fresin, allo de bazei.

Iliad. l. ix., v. 312.

My soul detests him as the gates of hell,

Who knows the truth and dares a falsehood tell.

The following is the advice of a genuine Christian poet, and one of the holiest men of his time:—

LIE not; but let thy heart be true to God;

Thy tongue to it, thy actions to them both.

Cowards tell lies, and those who fear the rod;

The stormy working soul spits lies and froth.

DARE TO BE TRUE! nothing can NEED a lie.

The fault that needs it most grows TWO thereby.

HERBERT.

For other observations on this subject see Clarke’s notes on “Genesis 12:20”, at the end, and “Genesis 20:12”.

3. Though the hand of God was evidently in every thing that concerned the Israelites, and they were taught to consider that by his might alone they were to be put in possession of the promised land; yet they were as fully convinced that if they did not use the counsel, prudence, and strength which they had received from him, they should not succeed. Hence, while they depended on the Divine direction and power, they exercised their own prudence, and put forth their own strength; and thus they were workers together with him, and did not receive the grace of God in vain. The application of this maxim is easy; and we cannot expect any success, either in things spiritual or temporal, unless we walk by the same rule and mind the same thing.

JOSHUA

Ver. 24. The Lord hath delivered into our hands all the land. Those spies were believers; the ten spies forty years before were unbelievers, and perished in their sins; but these by faith obtained safety and salvation.

24. Truly the Lord hath delivered into our hands all the land — A nation palsied with despair is already conquered. The result of the mission of the spies was very encouraging to Joshua. The principal thing they reported, and probably that which it had been their chief object to ascertain, was the fear and trembling which prevailed among the idolatrous inhabitants of the land.