Shincheonji Perspective

God promised to Abraham that his descendants will be enslaved in a gentile nation for 400 years and afterwards come out to conquer and inherit the land of Canaan (Gn 15:13 – 21). Jericho was part of this promised land (Dt 34:1 – 4). The leader of the Israelites (Joshua) secretly sent two spies to investigate Jericho. These two spies stayed with a gentile prostitute called Rahab (Jos 2:1). When the king of Jericho found out about the spies, he sent word to Rahab to bring them out. Rahab hid the two spies and lied to the king and his men saying that the two spies had already left (Jos 2:2 – 7). The reason why Rahab did this is because she believed that God was with the Israelites and that God would fulfill his promise to his people (Jos 2:8 – 11). Because of this action, Rahab and her family were saved when the Israelites conquered the land of Jericho (Jos 6:17). Rahab and her family were even allowed to live among the Israelites (Jos 6:22 – 25). Even though Rahab lied, she had faith that God acknowledged by believing in the promise that God made to Abraham (Heb 11:31). Even though she lied, her action was considered righteous from the viewpoint of God since it was in accordance with her faith in God’s promise (Jas 2:25). We can see that right and wrong from the viewpoint of God and from the viewpoint of man are two very different things. From the viewpoint of God this were not considered lying, but rather as wisdom to do the will of God.

There are many doctrinal issues with the above claim, and it is a misinterpretation of Rahab’s actions:

The text conflates Rahab’s faith with her lie, suggesting that God approved of her deception. While the Bible commends Rahab’s faith (Hebrews 11:31, James 2:25), it does not explicitly endorse her lie. Her faith is praised, not her method.

• Hebrews 11:31 – By faith Rahab the harlot did not perish along with those who were disobedient, after she had welcomed the spies in peace.
• James 2:25 – In the same way, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way?

When Shincheonji praises Rahab for lying, they’re adding and subtracting to God’s word.

This interpretation of lying can also lead to even more dangerous interpretations as the “ends justify the means”, and can be used to rationalize any unethical behavior.

Another thing to keep in mind is how Rahab the spy was a part of a foreign land, who came to know the LORD and had faith in a foreign God. She was willing to not only risk her own life by protecting the spies, but also risk the lives of her family.

More precisely, quoting:

Gleason L. Archer, New International Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties, Zondervan’s Understand the Bible Reference Series (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1982), 155–156.

The Context of Rahab

In Rahab’s case there were special factors that operated in her favor, and they should not be overlooked, even if they do not altogether excuse her mendacity. In this particular case the lie meant for her a step of faith that put her very life in jeopardy.

The safer thing for her to do was tell the truth and let the police officials of Jericho know that she had two Hebrew spies hidden under her piles of flax stalks drying under the sun on top of her roof. But she had given her solemn word, apparently, to the two fugitives that she would not betray them to the king’s agents. At any rate, she professed a very firm conviction that the Israelite forces would capture and destroy Jericho, even though from the standpoint of military science it looked as if Jericho was virtually impregnable. 

Joshua 2:11 – 12 – “The LORD your God, He is God in heaven above and on earth beneath. Now therefore, please swear to me by the LORD” 

For a woman of ill fame and a completely pagan upbringing to attain such a conviction concerning the one true God was a far more striking display of faith than was the case of the patriarchs and the people of Moses who had been brought up in the truth of God.

She had to turn her back on her own people and the cultural tradition in which she had been reared in order to take such a step as this and to throw in her lot with the covenant nation of Israel. 

She literally risked her life for the cause of the Lord, as she told that lie to the arresting officers. She might very easily have been discovered. A single sneeze or bodily movement on the part of the hidden spies would have sealed her doom—as well as theirs. Therefore we should recognize that there were very unusual extenuating factors involved in her deception.