Rahab and Achan -- The Outward Can be Deceiving


October 20, 2002 pm
Mike Blume



Joshua 2:1-14  And Joshua the son of Nun sent out of Shittim two men to spy secretly, saying, Go view the land, even Jericho. And they went, and came into an harlot's house, named Rahab, and lodged there.  (2)  And it was told the king of Jericho, saying, Behold, there came men in hither to night of the children of Israel to search out the country.  (3)  And the king of Jericho sent unto Rahab, saying, Bring forth the men that are come to thee, which are entered into thine house: for they be come to search out all the country.  (4)  And the woman took the two men, and hid them, and said thus, There came men unto me, but I wist not whence they were:  (5)  And it came to pass about the time of shutting of the gate, when it was dark, that the men went out: whither the men went I wot not: pursue after them quickly; for ye shall overtake them.  (6)  But she had brought them up to the roof of the house, and hid them with the stalks of flax, which she had laid in order upon the roof.  (7)  And the men pursued after them the way to Jordan unto the fords: and as soon as they which pursued after them were gone out, they shut the gate.  (8)  And before they were laid down, she came up unto them upon the roof;  (9)  And she said unto the men, I know that the LORD hath given you the land, and that your terror is fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land faint because of you.  (10)  For we have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red sea for you, when ye came out of Egypt; and what ye did unto the two kings of the Amorites, that were on the other side Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom ye utterly destroyed.  (11)  And as soon as we had heard these things, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more courage in any man, because of you: for the LORD your God, he is God in heaven above, and in earth beneath.  (12)  Now therefore, I pray you, swear unto me by the LORD, since I have shewed you kindness, that ye will also shew kindness unto my father's house, and give me a true token:  (13)  And that ye will save alive my father, and my mother, and my brethren, and my sisters, and all that they have, and deliver our lives from death.  (14)  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.

Joshua 6:17-19  And the city shall be accursed, even it, and all that are therein, to the LORD: only Rahab the harlot shall live, she and all that are with her in the house, because she hid the messengers that we sent.  (18)  And ye, in any wise keep yourselves from the accursed thing, lest ye make yourselves accursed, when ye take of the accursed thing, and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it.  (19)  But all the silver, and gold, and vessels of brass and iron, are consecrated unto the LORD: they shall come into the treasury of the LORD.

Joshua 7:1  But the children of Israel committed a trespass in the accursed thing: for Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took of the accursed thing: and the anger of the LORD was kindled against the children of Israel.

Joshua 7:16-22  So Joshua rose up early in the morning, and brought Israel by their tribes; and the tribe of Judah was taken:  (17)  And he brought the family of Judah; and he took the family of the Zarhites: and he brought the family of the Zarhites man by man; and Zabdi was taken:  (18)  And he brought his household man by man; and Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, was taken.  (19)  And Joshua said unto Achan, My son, give, I pray thee, glory to the LORD God of Israel, and make confession unto him; and tell me now what thou hast done; hide it not from me.  (20)  And Achan answered Joshua, and said, Indeed I have sinned against the LORD God of Israel, and thus and thus have I done:  (21)  When I saw among the spoils a goodly Babylonish garment, and two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold of fifty shekels weight, then I coveted them, and took them; and, behold, they are hid in the earth in the midst of my tent, and the silver under it.  (22)  So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran unto the tent; and, behold, it was hid in his tent, and the silver under it.

Joshua 7:25-26  And Joshua said, Why hast thou troubled us? the LORD shall trouble thee this day. And all Israel stoned him with stones, and burned them with fire, after they had stoned them with stones.  (26)  And they raised over him a great heap of stones unto this day. So the LORD turned from the fierceness of his anger. Wherefore the name of that place was called, The valley of Achor, unto this day.




Today I have stayed in the book of Joshua noting details that speak of the work of God in our lives as are on our ways to enjoy God's blessings and promises, as Israel proceeded to take the promised land.

The first two conquests in Canaan were those against Jericho and Ai.

And these two conquests and experiences of Israel also show us very contrasting pictures.
Rahab is a harlot who receives spies of Israel sent into her home.
This little lady lied, she was a harlot, and a heathen ignorant of the ways of God.
1 Samuel 16:7  But the LORD said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.

She may have been ignorant of Moses' law to not bear false witness and lie, making a living at committing adultery, but her heart reached out for the things of God.
Rahab had to cover up those spies because she was in peril from Jericho for harbouring enemy spies.
God was cleaning out the land of Canaan form all the accursed things.
As Rahab hid the messengers in her house, God's word tells us to hide His word in our hearts, so that we might not sin against Him.
In Joshua 6 we see Israel march to Jericho and conquer it.
Joshua 6:17-19  And the city shall be accursed, even it, and all that are therein, to the LORD: only Rahab the harlot shall live, she and all that are with her in the house, because she hid the messengers that we sent.  (18)  And ye, in any wise keep yourselves from the accursed thing, lest ye make yourselves accursed, when ye take of the accursed thing, and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it.  (19)  But all the silver, and gold, and vessels of brass and iron, are consecrated unto the LORD: they shall come into the treasury of the LORD.

After a woman is transformed from being accursed, as a citizen of the accursed people in the accursed city of Jericho, into a righteous woman whom we later learn came into the lineage of Jesus Christ(!), we read the exact opposite of Achan.

Achan for all intents and purposes was simply known to be an Israelite.
But just as Rahab hid something in her home, so did Achan hide something in his home.
If we'd stand Rahab and Achan side by side, we slap Achan on the back and shake his right hand in fellowship and say, "Praise the Lord, brother."
1 Samuel 16:7  But the LORD said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.

...beneath the tent floor of Achan was a robe that Israelites do not wear.
Achan hid these things in the earth in the midst of his tent -- in the floor.

Rahab hid the spies in the roof of her house beneath stalks of flax.

This is meaningful.
The roof is a covering.
Revelation 19:8  And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.

To hide something of God in your heart when you are an outright sinner, is to get ready for God to transform your life from an accursed citizenship of people bound for a fire and devil's hell, to the blessed citizenship of God's people who will live forever.

She came from being accursed to BLESSED!

But Achan....

Joshua 6:(18)  And ye, in any wise keep yourselves from the accursed thing, lest ye make yourselves accursed, when ye take of the accursed thing, and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it. 

He also was transformed.
God said you would be transformed into being accursed yourselves, if you take the accursed thing and poison the rest of the people because of it.
Joshua 6:21-25  And they utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, young and old, and ox, and sheep, and ass, with the edge of the sword.  (22)  But Joshua had said unto the two men that had spied out the country, Go into the harlot's house, and bring out thence the woman, and all that she hath, as ye sware unto her.  (23)  And the young men that were spies went in, and brought out Rahab, and her father, and her mother, and her brethren, and all that she had; and they brought out all her kindred, and left them without the camp of Israel.  (24)  And they burnt the city with fire, and all that was therein: only the silver, and the gold, and the vessels of brass and of iron, they put into the treasury of the house of the LORD.  (25)  And Joshua saved Rahab the harlot alive, and her father's household, and all that she had; and she dwelleth in Israel even unto this day; because she hid the messengers, which Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.

CONTRAST WITH....

Joshua 7:24-26  And Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, and the silver, and the garment, and the wedge of gold, and his sons, and his daughters, and his oxen, and his asses, and his sheep, and his tent, and all that he had: and they brought them unto the valley of Achor.  (25)  And Joshua said, Why hast thou troubled us? the LORD shall trouble thee this day. And all Israel stoned him with stones, and burned them with fire, after they had stoned them with stones.  (26)  And they raised over him a great heap of stones unto this day. So the LORD turned from the fierceness of his anger. Wherefore the name of that place was called, The valley of Achor, unto this day.

Rahab and all that she had was taken out and deemed no longer accursed, and spared to become part of the righteous people of God.

Achan and all that he had was taken out of Israel and deemed no longer of God, and accursed, and treated like the cities that were accursed by being stoned and buried under rubble.

BOTH ACCOUNTS SAY... UNTO THIS DAY.

UNTO THIS DAY she was alive. 

UNTO THIS DAY Achan was beneath a heap of stones.

In fact, ACHAN's name means TROUBLE.

Joshua 6:(18)  And ye, in any wise keep yourselves from the accursed thing, lest ye make yourselves accursed, when ye take of the accursed thing, and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it. 

Joshua repeated this.
Churches are mocked all the time by the world for harbouring hypocrites while some sinners are more kind and good-hearted who profess nothing about God.
Achan would never have been known to be so wicked by all appearances.
If we do not get that sin out of hearts, you're in for a "heap of trouble" one day.
On the other hand, if in your heart is a desire for God, and your sinful life is something you do not want to continue in any longer, God sees your desire hidden in the tent of your life.
Rahab's heart was dressed up in God's robes of righteousness.
Achan's heart was dressed up in the devil's robes.
Man looks on the outward, but God sees the heart!

Why fool man?