Joshua, Rahab, and the Two Spies
by Sarah A. Keith

 

Joshua Chapters 1-6

Props: Name cards attached to players to identify them, a crown for the King, a staff for Joshua, binoculars or a magnifying glass for the spies, a shawl for Rahab, a piece of red yarn for Rahab (to be kept in her pocket till the appropriate time), swords for the soldiers of Jericho, a sign that says "Rooftop", and one that says "Window" (place the rooftop sign on a tabletop, and the window sign on the back of a chair).

Cast: A narrator (teacher), one child to be Joshua, two children to be the Israelite spies, one to be Rahab, one to be the King of Jericho and two children to be soldiers of Jericho. Have the children act out the motions while you read the following lines or you may have the children rehearse the skit before the lesson, or perform it impromptu. If the teacher is reading the lines for the children, he or she must say the name of the character before reading the lines so the children will know when it is their turn to perform.

Narrator: The Bible tells us that Moses and the Israelites wandered in the desert without reaching the Promise land for 40 years. After Moses died God told Joshua that he would become the new leader to fulfill God’s promise to his people, and he would lead them into the Promised Land.

So Joshua assembled the Israelites, and told them to get ready to cross the Jordan River to take over the land. Before they took over the land, Joshua chose two spies to check out one of the most wicked cities, Jericho. There the spies entered the house of a prostitute named, Rahab. The Bible tells us that Rahab and the people of that entire region had heard about the power of the God of Israel, and that she and they were very afraid. Because Rahab feared God, she wanted to help the spies by hiding them from the King of Jericho and his soldiers.

Joshua: (speaking to the spies) "Go look over the land God promised to us, especially Jericho. Then report back to me. And remember what God told me, ‘Be strong and courageous because the LORD your God is with you wherever you go!’ "

Two Israelite Spies: (sneaking away and finding Rahab) "Shalom! We are hiding from your King. Will you hide us and keep us safe?"

Rahab: "I have heard miraculous stories about how your God parted the Red Sea to help you escape from Egypt, and how your God defeated all the armies that came against you. I will hide you because I want to serve your God. Come get on my rooftop and I’ll cover you with this grain so no one will find you!

King of Jericho: (speaking to his soldiers) "I have heard that the Israelites are ready to take over our land. Go hunt their spies down and kill them before they have a chance to defeat us!"

Soldiers of Jericho: (Pretending to look for the spies but do not find them) "Oh spies, where are you?! If we find you we will kill you! Come out, come out wherever you are!"

Soldiers: (find Rahab and speak to her) "We have heard that you have helped those Israelite spies. Where are they? Tell us now!"

Rahab: "The spies were here but they left. I don’t know which way they went. Go after them quickly and you might catch them!"

Soldiers: "OK. Thanks!" (soldiers run away looking for the spies)

Rahab: "You-hoooo...spies...the coast is clear. You may come out!"

Two Israelite Spies: "Wow, that was close! Thank you for hiding us. We’ll be going now."

Rahab: "Wait a minute! Not so fast busters! Since I was kind to you, please protect my family and me from death."

Two Israelite Spies: Your lives for our lives! If you don’t tell on us, we will treat you kindly and protect you and your family when we invade Jericho and take it over.

Rahab: "Here, crawl down this rope through the window. Then run to the hills and hide there until the soldiers come back to the city. Then you will know that it is safe for you to return to your camp."

Two Israelite Spies: "As a sign of our promise to protect you, and your promise to not tell on us, when we enter the land to take it over, hang a scarlet colored cord in the window to show that you have kept your word. When we see the scarlet cord, we will know that you are on our side. God will then protect you and your family from death when Jericho is destroyed."

Rahab: I will do as you say. (Rahab ties the scarlet cord on the window [back of chair])

Two Israelite Spies: (reporting back to Joshua) "It is time to take over the land. Everyone is afraid of God’s army. The LORD has surely given them and the land into our hands!"

Joshua: "Let’s go and conquer the land that God promised to Abraham and all our descendants."

(Give the children applause and have them sit down for the rest of the story)

Narrator: Early the next morning the Bible tells us that Joshua and the leaders of Israel crossed the Jordan River in a miraculous way. God parted the water and led them through on dry land just like he did for Moses and the Israelites when they crossed the Red Sea to escape from Egypt. Then God told Joshua to do something very unusual. This is what he said:

"See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its king and its fighting men. March around the city once with all the armed men. Do this for six days. Have seven priests carry trumpets of rams' horns in front of the ark. On the seventh day, march around the city seven times, with the priests blowing the trumpets. When you hear them sound a long blast on the trumpets, have all the people give a loud shout; then the wall of the city will collapse and the people will go up, every man straight in."

The Bible tells us that the Israelites did as the LORD commanded and the city was utterly destroyed. Everyone and everything -men and women, young and old, cattle, sheep, and donkeys. Everyone except Rahab and her family because she had protected the spies and feared God. From that day on Rahab and her family lived among God’s people. In fact, the Bible tells us that she was a great, great, great...grandmother of King David, and that means she was an ancestor of Jesus! (see Matthew chapter 1)

-The End-

Memory Verse
"Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go." Joshua 1:9

Pray
Dear Jesus, help us to be strong and courageous like Joshua, Rahab and the two Israelite spies were. Help us to be willing to follow you no matter what the circumstances are. Amen.