“But Rahab the prostitute and her father’s household and all who belonged to her, Joshua saved alive.”
- Joshua 6:25
It’s evidence of God’s acceptance of all who will believe that Rahab the prostitute, a dweller of Jericho, was saved from that city’s destruction. When in Joshua 2 she hid the spies and saved them from their own deaths, they told her to tie a scarlet cord outside her window to ensure her safety when God gave the city over to the Israelites. She was to be spared. The scarlet cord would be the sign of her faith. All who hid inside her home marked by the cord would likewise be saved.
How did Rahab know to trust in God? In partial fulfillment of God’s plan to let the nations know who he is through his mighty works, Rahab said “for we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea…” Rahab is evidence of God’s fame spreading across the dry lands as the waters cover the seas (Hab. 2:14).
But if we peer back behind the simple story of faith and salvation, we see that this account sets up a pattern: those who are hide in God will be saved. For Rahab, the sign of her faith was a scarlet cord. We shouldn’t miss the symbolism conveyed through the color of the cord. It calls to mind a previous salvation. During Israel’s slavery in Egypt, God sent death to visit every home: every home without the scarlet blood of the Passover Lamb. Those who trusted in God sacrificed a lamb and spread its blood across the doorposts of their homes (Exodus 12). When the Lord “passed through,” he “passed over” the homes who symbolized their faith with the blood.
Both of these stories set us up to see a greater salvation that is offered to all who likewise respond in faith in God.
Just as Rahab hid herself in her home marked by the scarlet cord. . .
Just as the believing Israelites hid themselves under the blood of the Passover lamb. . .
So can all who hide themselves under the scarlet blood of the perfect lamb, Jesus Christ, be saved in eternity.
The salvation sought by Rahab was a physical salvation from a physical destruction. Likewise, the salvation of the Israelites at Passover saved them on that one night. But those who hide themselves in Christ and in his finished work on their behalf can be saved fully. They can receive a full remission for sins. Their salvation is true and better. Their salvation pertains to an eternal escape from an eternal destruction. And that salvation is offered to all who will believe (John 3:16).