The Pulpit Commentary — Joshua — Section 94

in the light of the dispensation of the Spirit. either find or raise up friends to His own ·we may take, asan instance of what that tone oauses and scrv&nts?" (Bp. H&ll.) To the of feeling was, even before lsrMl bad been roof of the house. The flat roofs ol Oriental, corrupted by their sojourn in Ero1it, the nar- and even of Greek and Italian houses, are rati,·e in Gen. xxx,-iii. And we may be sure used for all kinds of purposes, especially for that in a l'h<I'nician city the tone was many drying corn and other things for domestic degrees lower still. Rnhab, therefore, was use (see 1 Sam. ix. 25, 26 ; 2 Sam. xi. no doubt absoh1tel,· ignorant that there was 2 ; xvi. 22 ; 2 Kings xxiii. 12. Also Acts x. any sin. either in her mode of !h;ng or in 9, where the roof is used as n place of retire the lie she told to save the men's lives. She ment and repose). Stalks of fla.x. Literally, acted from e. twofold motive, and her course, flax of the tree. The word translated fla1. both of thought and action, was a most sur- is used either of the raw material or of the prising instance of faith and insight, in one linen made from it. Here it must mean brought up as she had been. She not only flax as it came cut from the field; that is, followed an instinct of humanity, at a time as our version translates it, the stalks of fla~ when human life was thought of little value, (Xwo,caAa/"1, LXX.), which grows in Egypt in presen-ing the lives of the men who he,d to a height of three feet, and may be pre- sought shelter under her roof, but she could sumed to have attained a height not much discern in the wonderful successes of Israel less at Jericho. The word TW which signi- the hand ol n higher power than that of the fies to lay in a row, and is used of the wood gods whom she had been brought up to wor- OD the altar in Gen. xxii. 9, and of the ship. In her subsequent conduct she be- shew-bree.d in Levit. xxiv. 6, confirms this trayed an affection for her kindred somewhat view. It is obvious that this would have uncommon in persons situated similarly to formed a most sufficient hiding-place for the herself. Aud we may be sure, from the fact fugitives. " Either faith or friendship are that she was chosen to be a " mother in not tried but in extremities. To show coun- Israel,,. that she forsook the sins of her tenauce to the messengers of God while the country and her education as soon as she publique face of the State smiles upon them, came ";thin the range of a higher light (see is but a courtesie of course; but to hide our Heh. xi 31 and James ii. 25). From what own lives in theirs when they are persecuted has been said we may learn the.t, though is an act which looks for e. reward" (Bp. Tui.hab' s faith was " as a grain of mustard Hall). seed," her conduct showed that she possessed Ver. 7.-Unto the fords. There were it; and in hers, as in every case, to walk by several of these fords. One near Jericho the light she had was a sure prelude to the (cf. Judges iii. 28; xii. 5, 6; 2 Sam. xvii. possession of more. And as regards her de- 22, 24 ; xix. 16, 19, 39) ; one at Bethseau, parture from truth here, it must be shown, be- now Beisau, leading to Succoth (Judges fore she can be blamed, that she had any idea viii. 4 ; cf. Gen. xxxii. 22; xxxiii. 17. See that truthfulness was a duty. Such a duty Robinson, ' Biblical Researches' ii. 497 ; does not appear to have been clearly recog- Ritter 'Geography of Palestine') ; beside nised until He who was Himself the truth others' uot meutioned in Scripture. A vivid came among men. " However the guilt of description of the crossing the Jordan at the Rabab ·s falsehood may be extenuated, it seems fords uear Jericho is to be found in Tris- best to ad!Illt nothing which may tend to ex- tram's ' Laud of Israel,' p. 520. The ford is plain it away. We are sure that God discrimi- almost certainly the one mentiouecl here, nated between what was good in her conduct since an hour or two's ride brought the party and what was bad; rewarding the former, to Shittim. These fords were easy to cross and pardoning the latter. Her views of the save when the Jorclau, 11s was now the case Di,-ine law must have been exceedingly dim (eh. iii. 15), overflowed its banks. This and contracted. A similar falsehood, told by may have been the reason why the pursuers those who enjoy the light of revelation, how- did not cross the fords, but they pursued the ever laudable the motive, would of course apiea to the fords, hoping to find their retreat desen·e a much heavier censure" (Matthew cut off. This ia rendered more probable by Henry). So also Cah-in ;n loc., "Viti.um the fact (ver. 22) that the pursuera appe11~ to virtuti admistum non imputatur." have continued their search after leavmg Yer. 6.-But she ha.d brought them up. the fords. Literally, and she caused them to ascend; Ver. B.-Alld before they were la.l.d down, Lut our version has very properly (see ver. 4) i.e., to sleep on the roof, a common practice given tlie preterite the pluperfect seuse here. in the East iu summer. "Two strangers, Israelites, apies, have a Ver. 9.-Bath given. R11hab's faith ia safe harbour provided them, eveu amongst shown by this expression. Wh11t Goel willed their enunies, against the proclamation of a she regarded 11s already done. To speak of kiug." "Where cannot the God of heaveu the tuture as of II past already fulfilled is OIi. II. 1-12.] THE BOOK OF JOSHUA. 29