Rahab and Achan:
Written: June 2010

This is a Bible reading that recounts the lives of Rahab the Canaanite harlot, and Achan the Jew. They are very different people with what might have been, to those who knew them, unexpected outcomes for their lives. Each, however, brought about their own blessings or death, based on actions resulting from their faith in our Creator, or their lack of it. The Bible accounts of them and their contemporaries teach us many wonderful things about God. The drama that enveloped their lives took place about 1500 years before the birth of Christ. They knew, or at least knew about, each other. Their life story begins after the Jewish nation had been freed from Egyptian slavery and were led by Joshua to enter the land God had, some 500 years earlier, promised their patriarch Abraham. In Joshua day, the land God had promised Abraham was occupied by people who worshiped false gods, and were thus guilty of such demonistic practices as child sacrifice. Because of the badness of those nations, and because of the promises יהוה made to "save all redeemable mankind" by means of Abraham, [ יהוה is the original language Old Testament Hebrew name of Almighty God] to save them by using the Jewish Nation that were Abraham's descendants, (Gen 22:18 of 15-18) [those nations were not being destroyed because of the Jew's goodness, but because they were descendants of God's friend Abraham, (Isa 41:8)] God was giving the land then occupied by those demon worshipers to the Jews. (Deu 9:4-6) had made himself famous among all those ancient nations, which meant they were free to join themselves to the Jews as proselytes; and thus to become blessed as worshipers of the one true God. As this Bible reading reveals, some individuals among those wicked nations did express faith in God, and some among them gained their very lives as a result. Rahab is one example! Use these scriptures to help you always remember and have faith: God's eyes are roving about in all the earth to show his power in behalf of those upright in heart. (2 Chron 16:9)

Reading these real life examples, about the details of how God loved and cared for those who loved him, should make us happy. (John 15:11-12) Seeing and thinking about how God maneuvered the intricate details surrounding their lives to bless and protect them, according to their faith, should present as a "bright spot" in your faith to give you hope! Realize: We today can have a personal relationship with   יהוה   based on our faith in Christ Jesus as our savior; made happy (John 15:11) by our faith in what Jesus came to teach. (John 17:3) We live today in the tribulation or even the start of Armageddon... Carefully heed what that means: You are witness to, or you are now seeing, the beginning of the destruction of this old wicked world system of ungodly men. (2 Pet 3:5-7) To survive, we require protection like Rahab and Ruth and Noah and Lot received. (Luke 17:26-30) Reading scriptural accounts like these about Rahab and Ruth can help us have real hope in God's promises that He will help us! (Mal 3:16-4:3; Job 33:13-30) And, we can share that hope, in or as "shared or common faith bright spots," with other lovers of God's word... Not members of our sect, but with other sincere Bible Students.

While we can learn much about our Creator from these accounts of the Jews, we must remember those ancient Jews were in a very different relationship with יהוה from the one we Christian Bible Students are favored to have. We know יהוה as his sons and daughters (Gal 3:26-29; Gal 3:7-9) through our knowledge of and faith in, the teachings of God's Son Jesus Christ. (2 Cor 3:4-6; 1 John 2:8; John 13:34-35; John 6:28-29; Rom 8:1-4) Those ancient Jews, however, were under a covenant relationship with through the Law Code given them through Moses. They, as a nation of people, swore to obey that Law Covenant; (Exo 19:3-8) and the relationship that resulted included every member of the nation as a unit. The "whole" nation received the rewards of that covenant. But, if one member of the nation broke the law, it was broken by all... And, "all" shared in the responsibility and the punishment. Today, under our arrangement of friendship with God through faith in what Christ Jesus taught, (John 15:14-15) each one stands or falls on his or her own merit. (Rom 14:10-13; Rom 14:1-4) We also learn, from Bible examples like that of Rahab and Ruth, how wisdom  will  "must" manifest itself in those who have faith in   יהוה . Because the Jewish nation and it's God were famous throughout the earth in their day, all the nations, including Rahab and her city, had heard of and the powerful works he was doing in behalf of his people. Based on that knowledge, Rahab acted in harmony with her faith in the true God, and so brought salvation to herself and to all her father's household, all at the hand of the God of the Jews. (Joshua 2:1-6:25)

Achan, on the opposite hand, was a Jew who lived under that covenant relationship with . He was trained in Judaism and well knew about the Red Sea being split, and many other miracles God performed in behalf of the Jews. He was present and walked across on dry ground when   יהוה   dried up the Jordan river at flood stage so his nation could cross. [Rahab knew about that too. That miraculous crossing gave the Jews access to her city.] Even though Achan was blessed with all that knowledge, he still pushed ahead to steal something belonging to . The whole nation, being in the same covenant relationship with God as Achan, was punished for Achan's sin. His household would have known the bad committed by Achan. By hiding Achan's sin, they shared in his punishment. How, please, could they not all have known better? Since the whole nation was profaned by their bad act, they brought harm not only to themselves but to others as well. (Joshua 7:4-26) That "group responsibility" is in part why the Law Code was only a "tutor" leading to the Christ. The Law could never have produced righteousness through love for God, and the obedience that results from that love. (Heb 7:11-28) Mankind needed, not a commandment, but a change of heart!

Rahab and Achan, and then Rahab and Ruth, are examples that should provide a shared "bright spot" in our faith. Rahab had great faith, while Achan apparently had no real faith at all. The bright spot comes from our knowing how perfectly God protected and took care of Rahab, because of her demonstrated faith! [To learn more about the bright light shared among all sincere lovers of God's word, read the section below in blue text.] Even though Rahab was part of a nation of false worshipers and had not been trained from the Hebrew Scriptures about יהוה God, Rahab went against her nation to protect the Jewish spies; putting her very life at risk. She took that brave stand because she knew from what she had heard about the true God's activities among the nations to protect his people; supporting them was both right and wise! Even though Achan had every reason to have faith, it was all meaningless to him. While Rahab had been a member of a Pagan nation and without God's Law, just from what she heard about his activities among the nations, she took action to serve what she reasoned out to be the one true God. The reward she received is nearly incomprehensible! (Joshua 2:1-6:25) She was miraculously spared destruction with her wicked city. She was adopted into the true God's nation where she could learn about and worship Him. And, she was used by our Creator as an ancestress of the Messiah God was at that time producing; using Rahab in among those other faithful ancestors of Jesus; like Ruth. (Mat 1:1-6) For all eternity, everyone will know Rahab! What about "your" faith? Do you have faith strong enough to protect you alive during the tribulation we are enduring? Jesus said the "truth" of the Bible was a treasure more valuable than anything. (Mat 13:44-50) Knowledge of "truth" does also bring responsibility. As did Rahab, we must act in harmony with the knowledge we gain. Loving our Creator, and our neighbor as ourselves, is one test of whether we are doing so. (John 13:34-35) Having faith to grant us protection and salvation is another test of who we are. Knowledge of 's great love for us, as revealed largely in the Bible, can impel us toward having that love in ourselves. This Bible reading takes a few minutes, but the reward is great.

Take a few moments, then, no matter what religion you might be associated with, to share a "bright spot," a bolt of light of "shared true faith" with me; shared as Christians... [See the section below in blue text.] (Mat 24:27 of 23-28; Acts 11:26) We take up this wonderful bible account of Rahab and Achan, and our shared consideration for Ruth and Rahab, where Joshua sends spies into Jericho before the invasion.

Joshua 2:1-24 GNB . . . Then Joshua sent two spies from the camp at Acacia with orders to go and secretly explore the land of Canaan, especially the city of Jericho. When they came to the city, they went to spend the night in the house of a prostitute named Rahab. (2) The king of Jericho heard that some Israelites had come that night to spy out the country, (3) so he sent word to Rahab: "The men in your house have come to spy out the whole country! Bring them out!" (4) "Some men did come to my house," she answered, "but I don't know where they were from. They left at sundown before the city gate was closed. I didn't find out where they were going, but if you start after them quickly, you can catch them." (Now Rahab had taken the two spies up on the roof and hidden them under some stalks of flax that she had put there.) (5) (SEE 2:4) (6) (SEE 2:4) (7) The king's men left the city, and then the gate was shut. They went looking for the Israelite spies as far as the place where the road crosses the Jordan. (8) Before the spies settled down for the night, Rahab went up on the roof (9) and said to them, "I know that the LORD  () has given you this land. Everyone in the country is terrified of you. (10) We have heard how the LORD  () dried up the Red Sea in front of you when you were leaving Egypt. We have also heard how you killed Sihon and Og, the two Amorite kings east of the Jordan. (11) We were afraid as soon as we heard about it; we have all lost our courage because of you. The LORD  () your God is God in heaven above and here on earth. (12) Now swear by him that you will treat my family as kindly as I have treated you, and give me some sign that I can trust you. (13) Promise me that you will save my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all their families! Don't let us be killed!" (14) The men said to her, "May God take our lives if we don't do as we say! If you do not tell anyone what we have been doing, we promise you that when the LORD  () gives us this land, we will treat you well." (15) Rahab lived in a house built into the city wall, so she let the men down from the window by a rope. (16) "Go into the hill country," she said, "or the king's men will find you. Hide there for three days until they come back. After that, you can go on your way." (17) The men said to her, "We will keep the promise that you have made us give. (18) This is what you must do. When we invade your land, tie this red cord to the window you let us down from. Get your father and mother, your brothers, and all your father's family together in your house. (19) If anyone goes out of the house, his death will be his own fault, and we will not be responsible; but if anyone in the house with you is harmed, then we will be responsible. (20) However, if you tell anyone what we have been doing, then we will not have to keep our promise which you have made us give you." (21) She agreed and sent them away. When they had gone, she tied the red cord to the window. (22) The spies went into the hills and hid. The king's men looked for them all over the countryside for three days, but they did not find them, so they returned to Jericho. (23) Then the two spies came down from the hills, crossed the river, and went back to Joshua. They told him everything that had happened, (24) and then said, "We are sure that the LORD  () has given us the whole country. All the people there are terrified of us."

Joshua 3:1-17 GNB . . . The next morning Joshua and all the people of Israel got up early, left the camp at Acacia, and went to the Jordan, where they camped while waiting to cross it. (2) Three days later the leaders went through the camp (3) and told the people, "When you see the priests carrying the Covenant Box (The Ark of the Covenant - it was about 4 feet by 2 feet by 2 feet, carried on poles so as not to be touched, and contained the ten commandments.) of the LORD  () your God, break camp and follow them. (4) You have never been here before, so they will show you the way to go. But do not get near the Covenant Box; stay about half a mile behind it." (5) Joshua told the people, "Purify yourselves, because tomorrow the LORD  () will perform miracles among you." (6) Then he told the priests to take the Covenant Box and go with it ahead of the people. They did as he said. (7) The LORD  () said to Joshua, "What I do today will make all the people of Israel begin to honor you as a great man, and they will realize that I am with you as I was with Moses. (8) Tell the priests carrying the Covenant Box that when they reach the river, they must wade in and stand near the bank." (9) Then Joshua said to the people, "Come here and listen to what the LORD  () your God has to say. (10) As you advance, he will surely drive out the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Hivites, the Perizzites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, and the Jebusites. You will know that the living God is among you (11) when the Covenant Box of the Lord of all the earth crosses the Jordan ahead of you. (12) Now choose twelve men, one from each of the tribes of Israel. (13) When the priests who carry the Covenant Box of the LORD  () of all the earth put their feet in the water, the Jordan will stop flowing, and the water coming downstream will pile up in one place." (14) It was harvest time, and the river was in flood. When the people left the camp to cross the Jordan, the priests went ahead of them, carrying the Covenant Box. As soon as the priests stepped into the river, (15) (SEE 3:14) (16) the water stopped flowing and piled up, far upstream at Adam, the city beside Zarethan. The flow downstream to the Dead Sea was completely cut off, and the people were able to cross over near Jericho. (17) While the people walked across on dry ground, the priests carrying the LORD's  ('s) Covenant Box stood on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan until all the people had crossed over.

Joshua 4:1-24 GNB . . . When the whole nation had crossed the Jordan, the LORD  () said to Joshua, (2) "Choose twelve men, one from each tribe, (3) and command them to take twelve stones out of the middle of the Jordan, from the very place where the priests were standing. Tell them to carry these stones with them and to put them down where you camp tonight." (4) Then Joshua called the twelve men he had chosen, (5) and he told them, "Go into the Jordan ahead of the Covenant Box of the LORD  () your God. Each one of you take a stone on your shoulder, one for each of the tribes of Israel. (6) These stones will remind the people of what the LORD  () has done. In the future, when your children ask what these stones mean to you, (7) you will tell them that the water of the Jordan stopped flowing when the LORD  ()'s Covenant Box crossed the river. These stones will always remind the people of Israel of what happened here." (8) The men followed Joshua's orders. As the LORD  () had commanded Joshua, they took twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, one for each of the tribes of Israel, carried them to the camping place, and put them down there. (9) Joshua also set up twelve stones in the middle of the Jordan, where the priests carrying the Covenant Box had stood. (Those stones are still there.) (10) The priests stood in the middle of the Jordan until everything had been done that the LORD  () ordered Joshua to tell the people to do. This is what Moses had commanded. The people hurried across the river. (11) When they were all on the other side, the priests with the LORD's  ('s) Covenant Box went on ahead of the people. (12) The men of the tribes of Reuben and Gad and of half the tribe of Manasseh, ready for battle, crossed ahead of the rest of the people, as Moses had told them to do. (13) In the presence of the LORD  () about forty thousand men ready for war crossed over to the plain near Jericho. (14) What the LORD  () did that day made the people of Israel consider Joshua a great man. They honored him all his life, just as they had honored Moses. (15) Then the LORD  () told Joshua (16) to command the priests carrying the Covenant Box to come up out of the Jordan. (17) Joshua did so, (18) and when the priests reached the riverbank, the river began flowing once more and flooded its banks again. (19) The people crossed the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month and camped at Gilgal, east of Jericho. (20) There Joshua set up the twelve stones taken from the Jordan. (21) And he said to the people of Israel, "In the future, when your children ask you what these stones mean, (22) you will tell them about the time when Israel crossed the Jordan on dry ground. (23) Tell them that the LORD  () your God dried up the water of the Jordan for you until you had crossed, just as he dried up the Red Sea for us. (24) Because of this everyone on earth will know how great the LORD's  ('s) power is, and you will honor the LORD  () your God forever."

Joshua 5:1-2 GNB . . . All the Amorite kings west of the Jordan and all the Canaanite kings along the Mediterranean Sea heard that the LORD  () had dried up the Jordan until the people of Israel had crossed it. They became afraid and lost their courage because of the Israelites. (2) Then the LORD  () told Joshua, "Make some knives out of flint and circumcise the Israelites."

Joshua 6:1-25 GNB . . . The gates of Jericho were kept shut and guarded to keep the Israelites out. No one could enter or leave the city. (2) The LORD  () said to Joshua, "I am putting into your hands Jericho, with its king and all its brave soldiers. (3) You and your soldiers are to march around the city once a day for six days. (4) Seven priests, each carrying a trumpet, are to go in front of the Covenant Box. On the seventh day you and your soldiers are to march around the city seven times while the priests blow the trumpets. (5) Then they are to sound one long note. As soon as you hear it, all the people are to give a loud shout, and the city walls will collapse. Then the whole army will go straight into the city." (6) Joshua called the priests and told them, "Take the Covenant Box, and seven of you go in front of it, carrying trumpets." (7) Then he ordered the people to start marching around the city, with an advance guard going on ahead of the LORD's  ('s) Covenant Box. (8) So, just as Joshua had ordered, an advance guard started out ahead of the priests who were blowing trumpets; behind these came the priests who were carrying the Covenant Box, followed by a rear guard. All this time the trumpets were sounding. (9) (SEE 6:8) (10) But Joshua had ordered the people not to shout, not to say a word until he gave the order. (11) So he had this group of men take the LORD's  ('s) Covenant Box around the city one time. Then they came back to camp and spent the night there. (12) Joshua got up early the next morning, and for the second time the priests and soldiers marched around the city in the same order as the day before: first, the advance guard; next, the seven priests blowing the seven trumpets; then, the priests carrying the LORD's  ('s) Covenant Box; and finally, the rear guard. All this time the trumpets were sounding. (13) (SEE 6:12) (14) On this second day they again marched around the city one time and then returned to camp. They did this for six days. (15) On the seventh day they got up at daybreak and marched seven times around the city in the same way---this was the only day that they marched around it seven times. (16) The seventh time around, when the priests were about to sound the trumpets, Joshua ordered the people to shout, and he said, "The LORD  () has given you the city! (17) The city and everything in it must be totally destroyed as an offering to the LORD  (). Only the prostitute Rahab and her household will be spared, because she hid our spies. (18) But you are not to take anything that is to be destroyed; if you do, you will bring trouble and destruction on the Israelite camp. (19) Everything made of silver, gold, bronze, or iron is set apart for the LORD  (). It is to be put in the LORD's  ('s) treasury." (20) So the priests blew the trumpets. As soon as the people heard it, they gave a loud shout, and the walls collapsed. Then all the army went straight up the hill into the city and captured it. (21) With their swords they killed everyone in the city, men and women, young and old. They also killed the cattle, sheep, and donkeys. (22) Joshua then told the two men who had served as spies, "Go into the prostitute's house, and bring her and her family out, as you promised her." (23) So they went and brought Rahab out, along with her father and mother, her brothers, and the rest of her family. They took them all, family and slaves, to safety near the Israelite camp. (24) Then they set fire to the city and burned it to the ground, along with everything in it, except the things made of gold, silver, bronze, and iron, which they took and put in the LORD  ()'s treasury. (25) But Joshua spared the lives of the prostitute Rahab and all her relatives, because she had hidden the two spies that he had sent to Jericho. (Her descendants have lived in Israel to this day.)

Rahab and all her father's household were spared alive because of "her" faith; that because of her actions based on what she knew through faith to be "truth." We see 's loving kindness toward both her and toward those Jews who made promises to spare her. It is unlikely the spies who made promises to her knew was going to knock down the wall of the city when they told her to take refuge in that wall; with the scarlet cord hanging from her window... took both her wellbeing and their promises into account as He left that small section of the wall standing, while he knocked the rest down. Surely He is a God to protect us, worthy or our love and trust and worship.

Bright spots of shared light and/or shared faith!
Shared or even known only by true Christians!
Wonderful details about our Father's love!
Fun facts about Rahab and Ruth...
Why do you love God?
Because He first loved you? (1 John 4:7-19)

Knowing and appreciating the details of how our Father cares for and protects those who love him; can't help but draw us to him like an unbreakable cord! (Hosea 11:3-4) To fuel your love for יהוה, there are ten ancient people you should know, nine of them faithful; and, we should know unfaithful Achan as well. Several of those faithful are contemporaries, and they are all there together in the lineage of the Christ: The first we consider is Rahab. [Go to: "JustBibleTruth.com" ->Select: "Rahab And Achan?"] In the days we herein consider from the Bible, the Jewish Nation was about to destroy the demon worshipping city of Jericho. (Joshua 2:1-6:25) Shortly before Achan marched around the city walls of Jericho, in preparation for God knocking those walls down, Achan being a member of his nation of fellow Jewish worshipers attacking the city, Rahab had taken a stand in support of יהוה and his Jewish Nation. Rahab had made the choice, at risk of her life, to protect the Jewish spies who came into her city. As explained earlier in this webpage, "Rahab And Achan?", Achan proved himself a faithless thief who was destroyed by God. The foreign woman Rahab's faith and love toward the true God, whom she recognized from his activities among her surrounding nations, preserved herself and all her father's household alive. When the protective walls of Jericho fell down flat, God preserved the small section of that city wall where Rahab's apartment was, thus protecting her and her whole family... After escaping the destruction of Jericho, Rahab lived in Israel and worshipped יהוה as an alien resident. She married a Jewish man named Salmon and they had a son named Boaz.

It is wonderful to know that while all that was happening, seeming unrelated to humans, a faithful Jewish woman named Naomi and her husband and their two sons left Israel during time of famine and moved to Moab. Naomi's two sons married Moabite women. Then, Naomi's husband and sons died, leaving her a widow in a foreign land. Naomi determined to return to Israel, to her God and to her people. Ruth was one of Naomi's daughters-in-law, having been married to Naomi's now dead son. Similar to Rahab, Ruth was a foreign woman who wisely displayed unflinching faith in the God of the Jews. Naomi told Ruth to go back to the life she had before Naomi's family arrived in Moab, to stay with her people and her Gods. Ruth, however, had come to love יהוה and her mother-in-law as well. Ruth would have none of abandoning Naomi. Ruth is the one who has fame even today for the words she spoke to her mother-in-law Naomi: ~(Ruth 1:16-17) "Do not plead with me to abandon you, to turn back from accompanying you. Where you go I shall go, and where you spend the night I will spend the night. Your people will be my people and your God my God. Where you die, I shall die and there is where I shall be buried. So may יהוה do to me and so may He add to it if anything but death should make a separation between me and you."~ When Ruth and Naomi returned to Israel, Ruth, and once again similar to Rahab, married a Jewish man. Ruth married Boaz, who was, do you remember, the son of Rahab? Ruth and Boaz then had a son named Obed; the father to Jesse and grandfather to King David. (Mat 1:4-6) So, you see, Rahab the Canaanite survivor of Jericho, was mother-in-law to Ruth the Moabite... Just think about that. In the midst of the Jewish nation, sometimes known to be judgmentally prejudice against foreigners, both those faithful non-Jewish women were there together as family to comfort and strengthen each other. And, God further blessed them as both those foreign women were used by יהוה as ancestress's of Jesus Christ; our Lord and Savior. (Mat 1:1-6) What an honor. What a wondrous eternal honor! Faithful Naomi was blessed as well, as she resided in Ruth's household helping care for Ruth's son Obed. One reason we love God, perhaps the primary reason, is because of his Goodness: (Heb 11:6) Because He first loved us! (1 John 4:19) Just run your mind over how God brought those faithful people together and protected and blessed them. He is the God, not of the dead, but of the living. (Luke 20:37-38) They will soon be resurrected and so are good as alive... Have you pondered these scriptures so you already know these friends of God? Do you love them? Knowledge of the details of how our Father cares for the people he loves, like these nine faithful ones, draws us to him. (Hos 11:3-4) Everyone who shares a love for these women, and for how God loves and cares for them, shares a bright spot of love and faith between them. That is Christianity! That faith is shared among all peoples of this world who love God's word.

Our world is burning up around us; being consumed in it's own hatred and violence and absolute lack of respect and love for God! (2 Pet 3:10-14; 2 Pet 3:14-18) Even while many supposed news reporters assure you not to worry becasue there is more good news than bad; world problems continue to escalate rapidly: (Luke 21:25-28) While Jews and Muslims kill each other in the name of their God... While Catholics and Protestants hate and kill each other in the name of Christ [All non-Catholic Christendom religions are Protestant.]... While all this world's religions segregate themselves to judge others using their doctrine; to judge non-members apostate or lost to God... In the midst of all that hate, are true Christians; the awakening of real Christian Bible students! Everyone who knows and loves יהוה, based in knowledge they received from Jesus out of the Bible, (John 17:3) they all share a new language of Bible principles. Their shared or common knowledge of the Bible's accounts of God's manifest love, such as displayed surrounding Rahab and Ruth, affords them "all" a shared love for our Father. They live in those bright spots of shared faith and appreciation for God's love. They are real boys and girls: Real sons and daughters of our Father. (Mat 5:9; Gal 3:5-9; Gal 3:26-29) They share a love that rises above and negates the religious divisions of this world; and brings peace and happiness. That, is Christianity!

The awakening: The "bright spots" in your faith? What we see happening today is the revelation of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ. (Mat 25:31-34 & 41) Soon, the Kingdom will rule all the earth openly! (1 Cor 15:12-28) Right now, it is ruling in the minds and hearts of faithful individuals only, as Jesus temporarily goes subduing "in the midst" of his enemies. (Psa 110:1-3) Soon, all those enemies will be destroyed and only peace will remain. (Psa 37:10-11; Mal 3:16-4:3) Most all the varied religious sects believe or at least teach, from their asserted study of the Bible, we soon face some cataclysmic change in the earth and in our affairs; similar to the days of Noah and Lot and Rahab. (Luke 17:26-30) None of those Religionists can agree on how that might happen, or even what it means. That is because all the churches are divided by their sectarian doctrines of faith. They condemn and judge each other out of those doctrines of membership, and all in the name of Christ. I believe: The only "bright spots" of peace and true love that exist among humankind; come from a sharing of Bible principles like the ones God teaches us using Rahab and Ruth and Boaz and David. Those were people put together in their life's drama, at least in part, to build faith in us who come after. We see God's love for us in our understanding of how He dealt with them! My daughter, who is a devout member of a church, just helped me understand "bright spots" and how to share them... When I shared this drama about Rahab and Ruth with her, and before that with two other people who each have strong faith in a different and opposing church from that of my daughter, I first recognized what I now know to be bright spots of shared faith. It is hard for me to have a real scriptural conversation with my own daughter, or any of the other people in this account or who are strongly religious. The religious doctrine of all such people keeps them separated and isolated to their sect. It is normally hard for religious people to hear that or to listen to me, being a nonmember of their sect. It is hard for any of them to hear and get the sense of what I was trying to share about Rahab and Ruth. One said, "Why are you saying this to me. It hurts my head! I've never heard anything like this before." Finally, all these three people from differing religious backgrounds did hear, and I believe, understood the wonder in these words of God. It's interesting; even though each person agrees I am right about the other religions I expose, (Mat 7:15-23) they each feel I am wrong about "their" religion and it is God's chosen. That tends to make, in their mind, what I say an attack on "their" faith. This joint understanding of the principles revealed through Rahab and Ruth, however, and a sharing of faith and appreciation for God's goodness revealed in them, produced a wonderful "shared faith" between all four of us. That shared faith, those bright spots shared among those who love God's Word, is real love. That's where God and Christ live in us... (John 17:25-26; Eph 3:14-21; John 14:23; 1 John 2:24) They live in those bright spots of shared love, existing where all, where everyone who lives there, appreciates what God has done for us; (Isa 11:9 of 1-13) in part by our just knowing about how He cared for and helped those He loved in the past. Our faith, developed in part from those bright flashes of shared Bible truth, is what will preserve us alive as God's children! (Mat 25:31-34; Mal 3:16-4:3) That shared appreciation for Bible truth, can't you now see, transcends and rises above sectarian religious judgment and hate. It is your faith in Jesus Christ and your love for God, don't you see, that can protect and preserve you alive. No church membership can help! The approval and praise of groups of men is usually a bad thing. (Luke 6:26; John 5:44 of 39-44)

We continue on in this Bible account as Achan decides to steal what had devoted to destruction. Remember, this man was a Jew who well knew the stories of what had done for he and his nation as God's chosen people. He had just personally crossed the mighty Jordan river on dry ground as God held back those waters. He had just seen the walls of Jericho fall down as Rahab and her family were spared. He was very much aware what said was to be done with the things he disobeyed to steal. He was not [or should not have been] ignorant; and so, he was responsible for his actions. His family was aware of what he did as well. They should have exposed him. The whole nation, jointly in the covenant relationship along with Achan, were made guilty and suffered because of his badness.

Joshua 7:1-26 GNB . . . The LORD's  ('s) command to Israel not to take from Jericho anything that was to be destroyed was not obeyed. A man named Achan disobeyed that order, and so the LORD  () was furious with the Israelites. (Achan was the son of Carmi and grandson of Zabdi, and belonged to the clan of Zerah, a part of the tribe of Judah.) (2) Joshua sent some men from Jericho to Ai, a city east of Bethel, near Bethaven, with orders to go and explore the land. When they had done so, (3) they reported back to Joshua: "There is no need for everyone to attack Ai. Send only about two or three thousand men. Don't send the whole army up there to fight; it is not a large city." (4) So about three thousand Israelites made the attack, but they were forced to retreat. (5) The men of Ai chased them from the city gate as far as some quarries and killed about thirty-six of them on the way down the hill. Then the Israelites lost their courage and were afraid. (6) Joshua and the leaders of Israel tore their clothes in grief, threw themselves to the ground before the LORD's  ('s) Covenant Box, and lay there till evening, with dust on their heads to show their sorrow. (7) And Joshua said, "Sovereign LORD  ()! Why did you bring us across the Jordan at all? To turn us over to the Amorites? To destroy us? Why didn't we just stay on the other side of the Jordan? (8) What can I say, O LORD  (), now that Israel has retreated from the enemy? (9) The Canaanites and everyone else in the country will hear about it. They will surround us and kill every one of us! And then what will you do to protect your honor?" (10) The LORD  () said to Joshua, "Get up! Why are you lying on the ground like this? (11) Israel has sinned! They have broken the agreement with me that I ordered them to keep. They have taken some of the things condemned to destruction. They stole them, lied about it, and put them with their own things. (12) This is why the Israelites cannot stand against their enemies. They retreat from them because they themselves have now been condemned to destruction! I will not stay with you any longer unless you destroy the things you were ordered not to take! (13) Get up! Purify the people and get them ready to come before me. Tell them to be ready tomorrow, because I, the LORD  () God of Israel, have this to say: 'Israel, you have in your possession some things that I ordered you to destroy! You cannot stand against your enemies until you get rid of these things!' (14) So tell them that in the morning they will be brought forward, tribe by tribe. The tribe that I pick out will then come forward, clan by clan. The clan that I pick out will come forward, family by family. The family that I pick out will come forward, one by one. (15) The one who is then picked out and found with the condemned goods will be burned, along with his family and everything he owns, for he has brought terrible shame on Israel and has broken my covenant." (16) Early the next morning Joshua brought Israel forward, tribe by tribe, and the tribe of Judah was picked out. (17) He brought the tribe of Judah forward, clan by clan, and the clan of Zerah was picked out. Then he brought the clan of Zerah forward, family by family, and the family of Zabdi was picked out. (18) He then brought Zabdi's family forward, one by one, and Achan, the son of Carmi and grandson of Zabdi, was picked out. (19) Joshua said to him, "My son, tell the truth here before the LORD  (), the God of Israel, and confess. Tell me now what you have done. Don't try to hide it from me." (20) "It's true," Achan answered. "I have sinned against the LORD  (), Israel's God, and this is what I did. (21) Among the things we seized I saw a beautiful Babylonian cloak, about five pounds of silver, and a bar of gold weighing over one pound. I wanted them so much that I took them. You will find them buried inside my tent, with the silver at the bottom." (22) So Joshua sent some men, who ran to the tent and found that the condemned things really were buried there, with the silver at the bottom. (23) They brought them out of the tent, took them to Joshua and all the Israelites, and laid them down in the presence of the LORD  (). (24) Joshua, along with all the people of Israel, seized Achan, the silver, the cloak, the bar of gold, together with Achan's sons and daughters, his cattle, donkeys, and sheep, his tent, and everything else he owned; and they took them to Trouble Valley. (25) And Joshua said, "Why have you brought such trouble on us? The LORD  () will now bring trouble on you!" All the people then stoned Achan to death; they also stoned and burned his family and possessions. (26) They put a huge pile of stones over him, which is there to this day. That is why that place is still called Trouble Valley. Then the LORD  () was no longer furious.

Don't be a foolish person. Nothing is ever hid from him with whom we have an accounting. (Hebrews 4:13) Let us do our utmost to be upright before him, and before all. The rewards are great indeed, and, he is worthy! (Revelation 4:11) If you prove yourself a righteous person [one expressing faith in his Son (John 3:16-21)], He will help and protect you; always.

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