Then Joshua secretly sent out two spies from the Israelite camp at Acacia Grove. He instructed them, “Scout out the land on the other side of the Jordan River, especially around Jericho.” So the two men set out and came to the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there that night.
Joshua 2:1 NLT
I judge people too quickly – stature, appearance, dress, speech, religion, weight, politics – anything can lead to my disapproval. More often than not it’s an automatic reaction and it’s done in an instant.
I look back at my university days when I would condemn anyone who would condemn anyone for their race. I was really quite left-wing then, and now I will judge anyone who is really left-wing now! So I used to judge people who judged, and I used to be someone I would judge now! It’s crazy, isn’t it? Double standards!
This story in Joshua shows how I can really mess up with the wrong attitude, and perhaps even have an effect on the future. These two spies went to the house of a prostitute, a Gentile prostitute. Their upbringing and culture would have said that she was right down at the bottom of society, a ripe candidate for judgement. Yet she risked her life for them, and the lives of her family. They didn’t judge her, but went so far as to promise her that they would guarantee her safety when the invasion came.
There are only two women named in the earthly genealogy of Christ in Matthew 1, and Rahab is one of them. It shows the danger of judging people and the benefit of leaving judgement to God because he know best.
I shall not judge!