Joshua 2:18-19
"Behold, when we come into the land, thou shalt bind this line of scarlet thread in the window which thou didst let us down by: and thou shalt bring thy father, and thy mother, and thy brethren, and all thy father's household, home unto thee."
"And it shall be, that whosoever shall go out of the doors of thy house into the street, his blood shall be upon his head, and we will be guiltless: and whosoever shall be with thee in the house, his blood shall be on our head, if any hand be upon him". (RSB Bible 04th Edition)
What is the color of human blood as we see it?
We all humans, use an oxygen-carrying blood protein, known as hemoglobin, that contains iron. It's the iron that gives blood its dark red color in the body. When blood comes into contact with air, outside the body, it turns into the classic scarlet red color.
Scarlet Color and its Symbolism:
Scarlet is a brilliant red color, sometimes with a slightly orange tinge. ... Scarlet is also often associated with immorality and sin, particularly prostitution or adultery, largely because of a passage referring to "The Great Harlot", "dressed in purple and scarlet", in the Bible (Revelation 17:1–6).
Revelation 17:1 - "And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:"
17:2 - "With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication".
17:3 - "So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns".
17:4 - And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:
17:5 - "And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH".
17:6 - "And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Yahshua: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration".
How was the color Scarlet derived? (Easton's Bible Dictionary)
This dye was obtained by the Egyptians from the shell-fish Carthamus tinctorius; and by the Hebrews from the Coccus ilicis, an insect which infests oak trees, called kermes by the Arabians.
This color was early known (Genesis. 38:28). It was one of the colors of the ephod (Exodus. 28:6), the girdle (8), and the breastplate (15) of the high priest. It is also mentioned in various other connections (Joshua. 2:18; 2 Samuel. 1:24; Lamentations. 4:5; Nahum 2:3). A scarlet robe was in mockery placed on our Lord (Matthew. 27:28; Luke 23:11). "Sins as scarlet" (Isaiah. 1:18), i.e., as scarlet robes "glaring and habitual." Scarlet and crimson were the firmest of dyes, and thus not easily washed out.
During the Exodus, the wandering in the desert and the conquest of Canaan the Tabernacle was in part a portable tent, and in part a wooden enclosure draped with ten curtains, of indigo (tekhelet תְּכֵלֶת), purple (argaman אַרְגָּמָן), and scarlet (shani שָׁנִי) fabric.
Appearances of the color scarlet in the Bible:
In the King James Version Bible, the word 'scarlet' occurs fifty-two times, six of which are in the New Testament. The Hebrew words that together translate into this color's English name are tola (Strong's Concordance #H8438) and shaniy (#H8144). The Greek word in the New Testament is kokkinos (#G2847), which refers to the kernel shape of the insect from which this pigment is extracted.
Its use in Scripture can symbolically represent royalty (Daniel 5:7,16, 29, Matthew 27:28, Mark 15:17, 20, John 19:2) or the power to rule like a king (Revelation 17:4). It can also represent a person's sins and sinfulness (Isaiah 1:18), prosperity (2 Samuel 1:14, Proverbs 31:21, Lamentations 4:5, Revelation 18:12, 16) or dedication to opposing Elohim (Revelation 17:3).
It was used extensively in Elohim's wilderness tabernacle built by Moses (Exodus 25:4, 26:1, 31, 36, 27:16, 28:5 - 8, 15, etc.). It was also commonly found not only in Jerusalem's temple but also on the clothes worn to serve in it. It was an important part of the Temple rites that cleansed lepers (Leviticus 14) and in ceremonies of purification (Numbers19:6). The Bible also states that warriors wore clothes colored in it (Nahum 2:3).
Hang On, Have Faith in the Scarlet Rope. Have Faith in the Scarlet Stake.
Back in 1937 the Germans made an enormous airship called the Hindenburg-it was 804 feet long! One time they were getting ready to launch it, and they had about 100 men on the ground hanging onto the zeppelin's ropes, trying to maneuver it into its hanger. They don't know exactly what happened, but suddenly this enormous airship rose up with tremendous force.
As soon as it started shooting up, some of the men let go of the ropes, dropped to the ground, and didn't get hurt. Others waited until they were 50 or more feet off the ground before they let go, and when they fell they broke their ankles and legs. A few others panicked and instinctively tightened their grip. They kept going up with the balloon until soon they couldn't hang on any more, let go, and fell to their deaths.
Soon the Hindenburg began to hover and drift with the breeze several hundred feet up. One man remained. The people on the ground wondered how long he could last. They chased the airship for about three hours, and it eventually lost altitude until the man was able to let go and walk away.
The stunned onlookers asked. "How did you hang on for so long?" He said; "Once the blimp took off, I tightened my grip. Eventually I realized that I couldn't hold on forever. So I held on with one arm while I took my free arm and wrapped the remaining rope around my waste and tied a basic knot. For the last three hours I was just hanging up there, trusting the rope, and enjoying the view!"
Moral of the above story:
The Wise man put the Rope to use, put his faith on the Rope, put his trust on the Rope, he did not trust on the power of his own hands to help him hang for much long. Rahab had to put her faith and trust and hope on the Scarlet color Rope and the Redemption and Safety it represented and promised. Rahab had faith in the Scarlet Rope --------------- resembling promises of the 2 Hebrew Spies ---------------- representing the soon invading Hebrew Army ------------------ they reporting to their Earthly Commander Joshua -------------------- he under the directions of the Heavenly Commander Yeshua ------- the Messiah working under the El Shaddai Yahweh.
Rahab's red rope is ultimately a symbol of faith. We must tie a knot in the promises of Elohim Yahweh and hang on. Just hang on. Just endure till the end. Till death or his kingdom come.
The Scarlet Rope is also a symbol of the blood of Yeshua ha Messiah.
In Conclusion:
We've must have strong and wonderful faith in the Scarlet rope - the blood of our Messiah Yeshua that saves us and carries us to safety. This one thing will make the difference for everyone.
Even though Rahab was a professional prostitute, she was a serious sinner. Her sins were like Scarlet blood, but still Yahweh through her new found faith in this Hebrew Elohim, saved NOT only her, but her full family from getting perished and killed in the Jericho battle. Not only this, Rahab was considered so faithful, that she was considered worthy to be in the bloodline or genealogy of Yeshua. She was the great great great grandmother of Yeshua in flesh.
We all Sinners should remember the Scripture at Isiah 1: 18.
"Come now, and let us reason together, saith Yahweh: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool". (RSB Bible 04th Edition)
Like Rahab, we must receive the messengers that come from Joshua. Those two messengers represent the Word of Elohim today, the New (Greek Scriptures) and Old Testaments (Hebrew Scriptures), the two witnesses, the sword with two edges. As we hide Elohim's Word in our hearts, the Bible promises it will keep us away from sin (Psalm 119:11). Symbolically speaking, we have to tie the rope in our window (giving witness to all), then tell our friends and family to get into the House of Yahweh's faith, because the Second Joshua that is Yeshua is coming back soon with an army of angels to deliver the ones who have faith in the Scarlet rope (Yeshua's Blood Red Stake).
