Murmurs travel by day and by night of a nation closing in,
Of a God whose power is quite unlike the rest,
And on the edge of the city that has fallen to its knees
A scarlet cord hangs from a window.
The people tremble in terror,
Crippled by the powerlessness of their own little gods.
As though foreshadowing what is to come,
The citizens crumble as fear takes its hold.
But as for her,
She has heard of all the Lord had done, and she believes,
Exploited, afraid, but in distress emboldened,
She risks execution for the sake of two spies,
And the Lord considered her righteous,
For in the face of overwhelming fear she trusted in the sovereign God.
Pleading not only for her life but the lives of those whom she loves,
She waits for destruction, trusting that those she had protected,
Would remain true to their word.
She looks ahead with faith, not sight, to a saviour whose blood flowed red,
Like the cord that blew with the wind.
No longer imprisoned within the walls of a despairing nation,
She was spared for the love that she had shown,
And lived amongst the people that God had named his own.
For once, Israel, following God’s command,
Have welcomed the foreigner into the land.
For every messy life entrusted to God,
Is transformed, made holy.
And she, though labelled sinner and harlot,
Was brought into the very line of the promised saviour and king.
For by faith she risked her very life to welcome Israel’s spies,
By faith she trusted that the Lord was God in heaven and on earth,
By faith, and though afraid, I must cling to the promises of God,
By faith, and though broken, I rest on him to find my worth.
The Lilies of the Field 