The 2nd Espionage

Who, What, When, Where, and How tool

We have Joshua in this passage. He has recently been made the leader of the over 1 million Israelites to lead them to the promised land. Now they were on the verge of crossing the Jordan river to enter.Joshua who was one of the 12 spies publicly sent by Moses about 40 years earlier now is sending just 2 spies secretlyThe spies crossed the Jordan river and spied out the land, especially Jericho. Where they encountered an innkeeper. Who hid them on her rooftop behind flax. Gave them the load down of the state of Jericho. This innkeeper professed her faith in Yahweh and made an oath with them to save her family.Rahab the innkeeper was also a prostitute: her keen eyes were able to recognize the spies. She hid them from the king’s army and formed an alliance to save her family. She let the spies down through a scarlet rope from her windows which was part of the walls of Jericho.

Using the – What does it mean tool?

Joshua: A former spy and now leader used the lesson from what happened 40 years previous in sending 2 spies and doing so secretly. Israel entering the promised land meant they would be at war. While he knew God was fighting for them Joshua still did his due diligence before going to war. To access his opposition.Jericho is known for the walls that surround the city. As these spies moved around they came upon Rahab, an innkeeper and prostitute. The first thing Rahab does was to hide these men on the roof. And shortly afterwards the king’s security came to ask for the men. She sent them on a wild goose chase. She hid the spies which is a great risk to her own life if the army or the king were to discover.Raheb testifies that it was common knowledge that the God of Israel fought for Israel.The state of mind of the Jerichoans. Her own personal conviction that the God of Israel was the only true God indicates the reason why she got involved in the spy expedition.

Spy Report to Joshua

The spies repeated Rahab’s testimony of their victory and the power behind them the Israelites were known to their enemies even more than the Israelites knew. They also informed him of the oath they had made to Rahab as we would see in Joshua 6:17 –

How does it apply to me today?

Due diligence: While we have God’s promises and help and God will do His part, so we need to do ours. We need to do a comprehensive appraisal of the situation and evaluateRaheb recounts Israel victory one after the other and states that they had already won. The whole of Jericho was already afraid of the intending war. Just like the scriptures says1 John 4:4 – Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.He who is in us is greater than he who is in the world. – Do we know this and act according or are we acting based on just our physical strengthRahab acted on her conviction. She aligns herself and her family with the God of Israel. Her testimony forms part of the spies report. The spies report was not based on the produce or the military might or the walls of Jericho, rather it was based on the testimonies of the victories the Lord had secured for Israel which even their enemies knew about.The scriptures tells us in Revelation 12:11And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.Recount the testimonies of the Lord over and over. Count your blessing over and over and experience your overcoming. Let your previous testimony swing you to action.