Few things are more thrilling than the history of a siege. The endurance, courage, and skill called into exercise at such a time awaken our interest; while the privation, sorrow, and suffering that are entailed excite our sympathy.
History recounts many remarkable sieges—sieges in which extraordinary stratagems have been resorted to—yet it may be safely said that the siege of Jericho stands alone in the singular means employed for its overthrow by the besieging party.
Jericho was a city of Palestine standing a few miles distant from the banks of the Jordan. It was encompassed by a wall of considerable strength, which in those days might have been considered impregnable.
The people of Jericho had given up all fear of God and consequently had plunged into every species of vice and wickedness. So dreadful had their condition become that, after having in vain given them space for repentance, God in His righteous anger determined to destroy their city.
He ordered the Israelites,
His favored people among whom He dwelt, to besiege and take Jericho, extirpate its inhabitants, and afterward burn the city to the ground.
Now had the taking of Jericho depended upon the prowess of the Israelites, they might have had trouble enough.
However, the battle was not theirs, but the Lord's; therefore, they simply had to receive orders from Him, and abide by them. It is the peculiarity of these orders that renders the taking of Jericho so remarkable.
The men of Israel had merely to form a procession and march around Jericho accompanied by the ark of God and the priests blowing trumpets of rams' horns.
For six succeeding days they were to compass the city once; but on the seventh day they were to compass it seven times, after which they were to shout with a loud voice, and God would cause the walls to fall flat, so that without hindrance they might be able to accomplish their mission. And so it came to pass.
God's messengers of judgment then commenced their solemn work, and, without distinction, all the inhabitants of Jericho perished, with the exception of a few that had taken refuge in a house on the city wall.
Now we are not told that there was anything particularly noteworthy in the build or general appearance of this house—it was very similar to other houses of Jericho.
Yet, strange to say, instead of entering this house and putting its inmates to the sword, the Israelites kindly led them to a position of safety outside the city.
We might naturally suppose that it was the family of some very excellent man to whom such a merciful exception was made; but in this we should greatly err, for in the whole of Jericho there could not be found one godly individual.
No; those who were thus saved when Jericho was overthrown were a harlot named Rahab with her relations and friends.
It is possible that some readers may be quite at a loss to understand this matter, and therefore we will give a few words of explanation.
Previous to encompassing Jericho, Joshua had sent two spies into the city. Rahab received these into her house, sheltered them from their pursuers, and enabled them to escape by letting them down outside the city walls by a scarlet line from one of her windows.
She believed that God would deliver Jericho into the hands of the Israelites; and so she entreated the spies to remember her kindness to them, and to save her and her father's house. The spies entered into a solemn agreement to do this.
"And the men answered her, Our life for yours, if ye utter not this our business. And it shall be, when the LORD hath given us the land, that we will deal kindly and truly with thee.... And the men said unto her, We will be blameless of this thine oath which thou hast made us to swear. Behold, when we come into the land, thou shalt bind this line of scarlet thread in the window which thou didst let us down by: and thou shalt bring thy father, and thy mother, and thy brethren, and all thy father's household, home unto thee. And it shall be, that whosoever shall go out of the doors of thy house into the street, his blood shall be upon his head, and we will be guiltless: and whosoever shall be with thee in the house, his blood shall be on our head, if any hand be upon him. And if thou utter this our business, then we will be quit of thine oath which thou hast made us to swear. And she said, According unto your words, so be it. And she sent them away, and they departed: and she bound the scarlet line in the window." Josh. 2:14-2114And the men answered her, Our life for yours, if ye utter not this our business. And it shall be, when the Lord hath given us the land, that we will deal kindly and truly with thee. 15Then she let them down by a cord through the window: for her house was upon the town wall, and she dwelt upon the wall. 16And she said unto them, Get you to the mountain, lest the pursuers meet you; and hide yourselves there three days, until the pursuers be returned: and afterward may ye go your way. 17And the men said unto her, We will be blameless of this thine oath which thou hast made us swear. 18Behold, when we come into the land, thou shalt bind this line of scarlet thread in the window which thou didst let us down by: and thou shalt bring thy father, and thy mother, and thy brethren, and all thy father's household, home unto thee. 19And it shall be, that whosoever shall go out of the doors of thy house into the street, his blood shall be upon his head, and we will be guiltless: and whosoever shall be with thee in the house, his blood shall be on our head, if any hand be upon him. 20And if thou utter this our business, then we will be quit of thine oath which thou hast made us to swear. 21And she said, According unto your words, so be it. And she sent them away, and they departed: and she bound the scarlet line in the window. (Joshua 2:14‑21).
We believe the destruction of Jericho to be a solid historical fact. Yet none the less we may look upon this unhappy city, both in its moral condition and in the judgment which befell it, as a striking type of the world in which we live.
As to its moral condition, it was entirely obnoxious to God, and had not in it a single individual that pleased Him. And notwithstanding the enlightenment and civilization of this day, the world is entirely contrary to God, nor is there in it one person who by nature seeks after Him. God has not yet, it is true executed judgment upon the world, as He did upon Jericho of old; nevertheless, we read, "He hath appointed a day, in the which He will judge the world in righteousness"; and, "The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God." This is a matter that calls for the serious attention of every reader.
The harlot Rahab, having heard of approaching judgment, awoke to the gravity of her position. It was a real thing to her, and she could not rest until she had learned a way of escape.
Her safety lay in the simple obedience of faith. The scarlet line was to be bound in her window; and we may believe have to have been so in earnest, that the spies had not proceeded far from the house before she might have been seen eagerly carrying out the direction received.
Had any passer-by observed the line bound in her window, he might at most have thought it looked strange and untidy. But to Rahab, how precious was that scarlet line! Her life, and that of all her friends, depended on it.
There is but one way of escape, and that is being under the shelter of that of which the scarlet line is but a figure—even the precious blood of Christ.
We feel that we are speaking on a subject the importance of which cannot be overestimated, and we desire to be plain and simple.
God tells in His Word of a coming judgment; but it is His desire that sinners should escape from it. So great is His love that He gave His only begotten Son to die that they through Him might be saved. Christ suffered upon the cross, the just for the unjust. God is now able righteously to receive and bless every sinner who puts his trust in nothing but the blood of Jesus.
It is not enough to know about the blood.
Persons may be very orthodox in their views of the atonement, and yet not have taken shelter from the coming wrath. If Rahab had simply talked about the scarlet line and what had to be done with it, and had failed to bind it in the windows of her house, she would have perished miserably like the rest.
Having serious thoughts about death or coming judgment will not save.
Rahab was not alone in her fears. We read that the hearts of all the people of Jericho melted for fear, yet they were destroyed.
How was this? They were not under the shelter of the scarlet line. Many have been alarmed on hearing a stirring sermon, or moved to tears by the affectionate appeal of an earnest preacher; but unless that fear causes them to flee to Christ, they are as much exposed to the coming judgment as though they had never given the matter any consideration.
We would ask you to notice that those who escaped when Jericho was destroyed were not spared on account of any personal merit. Rahab's character had been bad, and in all probability her friends were of a character equally debased. The most amiable person in the city was destroyed if found outside the house to which the scarlet line was attached; but those within, though they may have been flagrant sinners, were carried into a place of safety.
There were then in Jericho two classes of persons—sinners that had faith, and sinners who believed not. There are but these two classes today.
Heaven with all its blessedness will be the portion of those that have faith in the blood of Christ, but there awaits the unbeliever an eternity of unutterable, indescribable woe in the lake of fire.
It is quite possible that some reader is trusting in nothing but the blood of Christ, and yet is afraid he does not belong to the class that has faith, because at times he feels uncertain as to his soul's safety, and is often alarmed at the thought of death.
We would ask such a one to notice that the only faith needed for Rahab's safety was a faith that would lead her to bind the scarlet line in the window of her house.
It mattered not whether she felt happy or miserable; if the scarlet line were bound in the window, the spies had solemnly sworn to save her.
Rahab's safety then depended upon the scarlet line. Now, Christ has pledged His word "that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." John 3:1616For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16). If your trust is in the blood of Christ, this is all that is needed to insure your safety; you have, as it were, bound the scarlet line to the window of your house; your safety therefore depends upon the blood. If, however, Rehab would be not only safe, but also happy, she must believe the words spoken to her by the spies.
As she saw the Israelites marching round the walls, she may sometimes have trembled, lest after all she would perish with the rest of the inhabitants of Jericho. She would then call to mind the words so solemnly uttered, "Our life for yours"; and as she pondered them, her doubts and fears would no doubt for a time be removed.
Yet it is possible that even till the walls of Jericho fell down, and the spies came to carry her away from the scene of judgment, she may have been tormented with secret misgivings. This, however, though it would make her extremely miserable, would in no way affect her safety.
Now, though your safety depends upon your having taken shelter from coming wrath by fleeing to Christ and putting your trust in His precious blood, your peace, like Rahab's, depends upon believing the word spoken. Our sins are forgiven as soon as we believe in the Lord Jesus; we know them forgiven when we rest upon God's Word: "If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God bath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved."