View source for Rahab

{{short description|Biblical figure}}
{{other uses}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2020}}
[[File:Tissot The Harlot of Jericho and the Two Spies.jpg|thumb|right|220px|Rahab (''center'') in [[James Tissot]]'s ''The Harlot of Jericho and the Two Spies'']]
'''Rahab''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|r|eɪ|h|æ|b}}; {{langx|hbo|רָחָב|label=[[Biblical Hebrew|Hebrew]]|rtl=yes}}) was a prostitute from [[Tell es-Sultan|Jericho]] during the [[Conquest of Canaan|Israelite conquest of Canaan]]. In the [[Book of Joshua]] of the [[Hebrew Bible]], she is accredited with aiding the [[Israelites]] by hiding two spies who had been sent by [[Joshua]] to scout the city before the Israelite assault. Her actions led to the [[fall of Jericho]], during which Israelite fighters killed every Canaanite inhabitant of the city.

In the [[New Testament]], she is lauded both as an example of a saint who lived by faith,<ref name=Hebrews>{{bibleverse||Hebrews|11:31|NKJV}}</ref> and as someone "considered righteous" for her good works.<ref name=James>{{bibleverse||James|2:25|NIV}}</ref> According to biblical research, the narrative's author intended that she did not contribute to the fall of Jericho, but instead saved herself and her loved ones from certain death.<ref>Sherwood, A. A leader's Misleading and a Prostitute's Proffession: A Re-examination of Joshua 2, ''[[JSOT]]'', 31, 1, 2006, 43-61</ref><ref>Zakovitch, Y. Humor and Theology or the Successful Failure of Israelite Intelligence: A literary-Folkloric Approach to Joshua 2, Text and Tradition, S. Niditch (3d.), Atlanta, Georgia, 1990 75-98</ref>

The [[King James Version]] renders the name as ''Rachab'' after the spelling in [[Koine Greek]], which differs from the spelling for Rahab in the [[Epistle of James]] and the [[Epistle to the Hebrews]]. Most modern [[Bible translations]] render it as ''Rahab'', ignoring the distinction.<ref>{{cite web |title=Rahab meaning |url=https://www.abarim-publications.com/Meaning/Rahab.html#.XwTa5hNKjBJ |publisher=Abarim Publications}}</ref>

==Rahab's profession==
[[File:Schnorr von Carolsfeld Bibel in Bildern 1860 066.png|thumb|right|Rahab lets the spies escape in this 1860 woodcut by [[Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld]].]]

The Hebrew term {{lang|hbo|אשה זונה}} {{Lang|he-Latn|isshā zonā}}, used to describe Rahab in [[Joshua 2]]:1,<ref>{{bibleverse|Joshua|2:1|HE}}</ref> literally means "a [[prostitution|prostitute woman]]".<ref name="Boling_144_145"/> While the [[Talmud]] holds to that interpretation, some sources in [[Rabbinic literature]] insist she was an [[innkeeper]], based on [[Targum Jonathan]] and other texts ({{langx|tmr|פֻנדְקֵיתָא|translit=pundǝqeṯā}}.<ref>{{cite web |title=pwndqyt |url=https://cal.huc.edu/oneentry.php?lemma=pwndqyt+N&cits=all |website=cal.huc.edu |publisher=Comprehensive Aramaic Lexicon|quote=hostess  JLAtg, LJLA.  TgJ Jos2:1 : {{lang|tmr|וְעָלוּ לְבֵית אִיתְתָא פֻנדְקֵיתָא וֻשמַה רָחָב‏.}}  TgJ 1K3:16 : {{lang|tmr|תַרתֵין נְשִין פֻנדְקָאָן/פֻנדְקָוָן/פונדקין/ לִמדָן קֳדָם מַלכָא‏.}}  TgTosPr Judges.11:1 : {{lang|tmr|וכד הות איתתא דרחימא גברא דלא הוה משבטהא נפקא מבית אינשה בלא אחסנתא והוו אינשי קרן יתה פונדקיתא‏}}  when there was a woman who loved a man who was not of her tribe, she would leave her family without property rights; and people would call her "hostess" [MT זוֹנָה]. }}</ref>) Rahab's name is presumably the shortened form of a sentence-name ''rāḥāb-N'' ("the god ''N'' has opened/widened [the womb?])".<ref>Noth, Martin, "Israelitischer Personennamen im Rahmen der gemeinsemitischen Namengebung", Beiträge zur Wissenschaft vom Alten und Neuen Testament III,10, 193.</ref> The Hebrew term ''zonā'' may refer to secular or [[sacred prostitution]]; the latter was widely believed to have been an element of [[Canaanite religion]], although recent scholarship has disputed this.<ref name="Boling_144_145">Boling, Robert G. (1981). ''Joshua'', Vol. 6. Anchor Bible Series. pp 144-145.</ref> However, there was a separate word, ''qǝḏēšā'', that allegedly designated ritual prostitutes.<ref name="Boling_144_145"/>

[[Josephus]] mentions that Rahab kept an [[inn]] but is silent as to whether merely renting out rooms was her only source of [[income]].<ref>Josephus. [http://en.wikisource.org/w/index.php?title=The_Antiquities_of_the_Jews/Book_V ''The Antiquities of the Jews'']. 5.1.2. Hosted at Wikisource.</ref> It was not uncommon for both an inn and a [[brothel]] to operate within the same building; thus, entering Rahab's quarters was not necessarily a deviation from Joshua's orders. Indeed, as Robert Boling notes, such an establishment might have represented an ideal location for [[Spy|spies]] to gather intelligence.<ref name="Boling_144_145"/> Several scholars have noted that the narrator in Joshua 2 may have intended to remind the readers of the "immemorial symbiosis between [[military service]] and bawdy house".<ref name="Boling_144_145"/>

In the [[New Testament]], the [[Epistle of James]] and the [[Epistle to the Hebrews]] follow the tradition set by the translators of the [[Septuagint]] in using the Greek word {{lang|grc|πόρνη}} ''pórnē'', which is usually translated to English as "harlot, prostitute", to describe Rahab.<ref>[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=James%202:25&version=WHNU James 2:25], 1881 Westcott-Hort New Testament.</ref><ref>[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Hebrews%2011:31&version=WHNU Hebrews 11:31], 1881 Westcott-Hort New Testament.</ref><ref>[http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Jos&c=2&v=3&t=LXX Joshua 2], Greek Septuagint (LXX).</ref>

William L. Lyons observed that biblical interpreters have viewed Rahab as a model of hospitality, mercy, faith, patience, and repentance in her interaction with Joshua's spies. The harlot of Jericho became a paragon of virtue.<ref>Lyons, William L. (July 2008). [http://sbl-site.org/Article.aspx?ArticleID=786 "Rahab through the Ages: A Study of Christian Interpretation of Rahab"]. Society of Biblical Literature Forum.</ref>

== In the Hebrew Bible ==
[[File:Pickersgill Rahab.JPG|thumb|210px|''Rahab Receiveth and Concealeth the Spies'' by [[Frederick Richard Pickersgill]] (1881)]]
According to the book of Joshua,<ref>{{bibleverse||Joshua|2:1–7|HE}}</ref> when the [[Hebrews]] were encamped at [[Abila (Peraea)|Shittim]] in the [[Arabah]] or [[Jordan River|Jordan Valley]] opposite [[Tell es-Sultan|Jericho]], ready to cross the river, [[Joshua]], as a final preparation, sent out two spies to investigate the military strength of Jericho. The spies stayed in Rahab's house, which was built into the city wall. The soldiers sent to capture the spies asked Rahab to bring out the spies.<ref>{{bibleverse||Joshua|2:3|HE}}</ref> Instead, she hid them under bundles of [[flax]] on the roof. It was the time of the barley harvest, and flax and barley are ripe at the same time in the Jordan valley, so that "the bundles of flax stalks might have been expected to be drying just then".<ref>Geikie, John Cunningham (1881). [https://archive.org/details/HoursWithTheBible/page/n395 ''Hours with the Bible''], volume 2. London: S.W. Partridge & Co. p. 390.</ref>

Rahab told the spies: {{blockquote|She said to the men, “I know that [[Yahweh|GOD]] has given the country to you, because dread of you has fallen upon us, and all the inhabitants of the land are quaking before you. For we have heard how GOD dried up the waters of the [[Yam Suf|Sea of Reeds]] for you when [[the Exodus|you left Egypt]], and what you did to [[Sihon]] and [[Og]], the two [[Amorite]] kings across the Jordan, whom you doomed. When we heard about it, we lost heart, and no one had any more spirit left because of you; for [[Names of God in Judaism|the ETERNAL]] your God is the only God in heaven above and on earth below. Now, since I have shown loyalty to you, swear to me by GOD that you in turn will show loyalty to my family. Provide me with a reliable sign  that you will spare the lives of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them, and save us from death.”|Joshua 2:9–13<ref>{{cite web |title=Joshua 2:9-13 |url=https://www.sefaria.org/Joshua.2.9-13?lang=bi&with=all&lang2=en |website=www.sefaria.org}}</ref>}}

After escaping, the spies promised to spare Rahab and her family after taking the city, even if there should be a massacre, if she would mark her house by hanging a red cord out the window. Some have claimed that the symbol of the red cord is related to the practice of the [[red-light district]].<ref>{{cite book
  | last = Mobley
  | first = Gregory
  | title = The Return of the Chaos Monsters: And Other Backstories of the Bible
  | publisher = Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing
  | year = 2012
  | location = Grand Rapids, MI
  | page = 60 
  | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=ewbRlQRlgFgC&pg=PA60 
  | isbn = 978-0-8028-3746-2
}}</ref>

When the city of Jericho fell,<ref>{{cite web |title=Joshua 6:17-25 |url=https://www.sefaria.org/Joshua.6.17-25?lang=bi&with=all&lang2=en |website=www.sefaria.org}}</ref> Rahab and her whole family were preserved according to the promise of the spies and were counted among the Israelites. According to some rabbinic authorities, Rahab was treated as a [[beautiful captive woman]] in order to bring her into a marital union with Israel.<ref>{{cite book |author-last=Zechariah ha-Rofé |author-link=Zechariah ha-Rofé |editor-last=Havazelet |editor-first=Meir |title=Midrash ha-Ḥefetz |volume=2 |publisher=[[Mossad Harav Kook]] |location=Jerusalem|year=1992|page=417 (Deuteronomy 21:10) |language=he|oclc=23773577 |title-link=Midrash ha-Hefez}}</ref> (In siege warfare of antiquity, a city that fell after a prolonged siege was commonly subjected to a massacre and sack, while others were taken captive.)

[[Tikva Frymer-Kensky]] regards Rahab as "smart, proactive, tricky and unafraid to disobey and deceive her king". She also credits Rahab with being "one of Israel’s early saviors" due to "her allegiance to God and Israel".<ref name=":02">{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/readingwomenofbi00frym|title=Reading the women of the Bible|last=Frymer-Kensky, Tikva Simone.|date=2002|publisher=Schocken Books|isbn=0-8052-4121-3|edition=1st|location=New York|oclc=49823086|url-access=registration}}</ref> As the first non-Israelite person, and in particular the first [[Canaan]]ite woman, to ally with Israel, Rahab's convictions led her to protect the men sent by Joshua despite her background.<ref name=":02" />

[[Michael Coogan]] says the book of Joshua, more than any other book of the Bible, contains short [[etiological]] narratives that explain the origins of religious rituals, topographical features, genealogical relationships, and other aspects of ancient Israelite life, and that the legend of Rahab is such an example. The story of Rahab, as faithful, was counted as  an Israelite, and not part of the Deuteronomistic injunction to kill all Canaanites and not to intermarry with them.<ref>{{bibleverse||Deut|20:16–18|HE}}</ref><ref>{{bibleverse||Deut|7:1–4|HE}}</ref><ref>Coogan, Michael (2009). ''A Brief Introduction to the Old Testament''. Oxford University Press. pp. 162–164.</ref>

Some scholars see the parallels between Joshua 2 and Genesis 19, which narrates the fall of [[Sodom and Gomorrah]]. Like Sodom and Gomorrah, Jericho was presumed to be equally as wicked, with Rahab challenging Jericho's "oppressive establishment" by siding with Jericho's destroyers (i.e. the Israelites).<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Kozlova |first=Ekaterina E. |date=2020 |title=What is in a Name? Rahab, the Canaanite, and the Rhetoric of Liberation in the Hebrew Bible |url=https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/opth-2020-0106/html?lang=en |journal=Open Theology |volume=6 |issue=1 |pages=572–586 |doi=10.1515/opth-2020-0106 |via=De Gruyter|doi-access=free }}</ref> Coincidentally, these cities were believed to lie among a major fault line extending 1,100 kilometers from the Red Sea to Turkey.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Neev |first1=David |title=The Destruction of Sodom, Gomorrah, and Jericho: Geological, Climatological, and Archaeological Background |last2=Emery |first2=K.O. |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=1995 |isbn=978-0195090949 |edition=1st}}</ref>

== In rabbinic literature ==
In the [[midrash]], Rahab is named as one of the four most beautiful women the world has ever known, along with [[Sarah]], [[Abigail]], and [[Esther]]. In the [[Babylonian Talmud]], Rahab was so beautiful that the very mention of her name could cause arousal (''Megillah'' 15a). Rahab is said to have converted at the age of 50, after practising prostitution for 40 years, and repented according to three sins, saying:

{{blockquote|Master of the Universe! I have sinned with three things [with my eye, my thigh, and my stomach]. By the merit of three things pardon me: the rope, the window, and the wall [pardon me for engaging in harlotry because I endangered myself when I lowered the rope for the spies from the window in the wall]." (Babylonian Talmud, Zevahim 116a–b).}}

A similar tradition has Rahab declaring, "Pardon me by merit of the rope, the window, and the flaxen [the stalks of flax under which she concealed the spies]."

Because of this, rabbis interpret Biblical verses that talk about the citizens of Jericho "melting in fear", such as {{Bibleverse|Joshua|2:9-11}} and {{Bibleverse|Joshua|5:1}}, as describing their inability to maintain erections upon hearing Israelite military victories. Rahab knew this because "there was no minister or prince that did not pay a visit to Rahab the harlot".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Robertson |first=Amy Cooper |date=June 27, 2019 |title=Rahab the Faithful Harlot |url=https://www.thetorah.com/article/rahab-the-faithful-harlot |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240208015547/https://www.thetorah.com/article/rahab-the-faithful-harlot |archive-date=February 8, 2024 |website=TheTorah.com}}</ref>

The rabbis viewed Rahab as a worthy convert, and attested that following her conversion, Rahab married [[Joshua]],<ref>[https://www.sefaria.org/Kohelet_Rabbah.8.10.1?lang=bi "Eccl. Rabbah 8:10:1"]</ref> and their descendants included the prophets [[Jeremiah]], [[Hilkiah]], [[Seraiah]], Mahseiah, [[Baruch ben Neriah|Baruch]], [[Ezekiel]] and the prophetess [[Huldah|Hulda]],<ref>{{cite Talmud|b|Megillah||14b}}</ref> although there is no report in the book of Joshua of the leader marrying anyone, or having any family life.<ref>[https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/joshua.html "Joshua ben Nun"]. Jewish Virtual Library. Accessed 25 January 2021.</ref> Rahab often is mentioned alongside [[Jethro (biblical figure)|Jethro]] (Yitro) and [[Na'aman]] as "positive examples" of the converts who joined Israel,<ref>[http://jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/12535-rahab "Rahab"]. JewishEncyclopedia.com. Accessed 25 January 2021.</ref> and another midrash has Rahab acting as an advocate for all nations of the world.<ref>Assis, Elie (2004). "The Choice to Serve God and Assist His People: Rahab and Yael". ''Biblica''. '''85''' (1): 82–90. {{JSTOR|42614492}}</ref><ref>Baskin, Judith (1979). "The Rabbinic Transformations of Rahab the Harlot". ''Notre Dame English Journal''. '''11''' (2): 141–157. {{JSTOR|40062458}}</ref>

Some believe that the genealogies described in {{Bibleverse|Jeremiah|1:1}} and {{Bibleverse|Ezekiel|1:3}} served to dispel accusations that Jeremiah and Ezekiel were descendants of Rahab. At the time, the Israelites discriminated against these prophets for this alleged heritage.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kadari |first=Tamar |date=2024 |title=Rahab: Midrash and Aggadah |url=https://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/rahab-midrash-and-aggadah#pid-16543 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240208012103/https://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/rahab-midrash-and-aggadah#pid-16543 |archive-date=February 8, 2024 |website=Jewish Women's Archive}}</ref>

==In the New Testament==
In the New Testament, Rahab (Greek ''Ῥαάβ'') of the Book of Joshua is mentioned as an example of a person of faith<ref name=Hebrews /> and of good works.<ref name=James /> Rahab is referred to as "the harlot" in each of these passages.

A different spelling of the name, ''Rachab'' (as transliterated in the King James translation of the Greek ''Ῥαχάβ'') is mentioned in the [[Gospel of Matthew]] as one of the ancestors of [[Jesus]] ([[Matthew 1:5]]). She married [[Salmon (biblical)|Salmon]] of the [[Tribe of Judah]] and was the mother of [[Boaz]]. Most other [[Bible translations into English|English Bibles]] transcribe her name as ''Rahab''.

Some have conjectured that Jesus invoked the name of "Rahab" ({{Lang|he|רחב}}) by writing it in the sand when he protected the adulteress from stoning (John 8:6). Through this act he would have reminded the hypocritical Pharisees of the righteous prostitute in their own ancestry.

==In fiction==
* Rahab is depicted as a virtuous soul (in The Third Circle of Heaven) in [[Dante Alighieri|Dante]]'s ''[[Divine Comedy]]'' (Paradiso 9.112 ff.)
*Rahab is a figure in the mythos of [[William Blake]]. She is pictured as a harlot, akin to the [[whore of Babylon]], and figures alongside Blake's character of [[To Tirzah|Tirzah]], as representing materialism, false religion, and fallen sexuality. Rahab's embrace of Urizen, who loosely represents fallen reason, is seen as the consolidation of error necessary to bring about the Final Judgment.
* The claim of Hugh Broughton, a controversial historian, that Rahab was already "a harlot at ten years of age" is used by Humbert Humbert to explain or perhaps justify his attraction to young girls in Nabokov's ''[[Lolita]]''.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Nabokov |first=Vladimir |url=http://archive.org/details/lolita-penguin-modern-classics-by-vladimir-nabokov |title=Lolita (Penguin Modern Classics) |pages=12}}</ref>
'''Fictional accounts of Rahab's life'''
* Afshar, Tessa. ''Pearl in the Sand'' (2010), {{ISBN|978-0-8024-5881-0}}
* Burton, Anne.  ''Rahab's Story'' (2005), {{ISBN|0-451-21628-8}}; Book 2 in Burton's "Women of the Bible" series.
* Havel, Carlene and Faucheux, Sharon. ''The Scarlet Cord'' (2014), {{ISBN|1940099692}}
* MacFarlane, Hannah. ''The Scarlet Cord'' (2009), {{ISBN|1844273709}}
* Morris, Gilbert. ''Daughter of Deliverance''. {{ISBN|0-7642-2921-4}}; Book 6 of "Lions of Judah" Series.
* Rivers, Francine. ''Unashamed: Rahab'' (2000), {{ISBN|978-0842335966}}; Book 2 in Rivers' "[[A Lineage of Grace]]" series.
* Slaughter, Frank G. ''The Scarlet Cord: A Novel of the Woman of Jericho'' (1956), {{ISBN|0671774980}}
* Smith, Jill Eileen. ''The Crimson Cord: Rahab's Story (2015).'' {{ISBN|978 0 8007 2034 6}}; Book 1 in Smith's "Daughters of the Promised Land" series.
* Wolf, Joan. ''This Scarlet Cord: The Love Story of Rahab'' (2012), {{ISBN|1595548777}}
* Jennings, Jenifer. "Crimson Cord" (2017), {{ISBN|1954105061}}
* Craig, Naomi. "Rahab's Courage" (2021),
'''Television portrayals'''
*Rahab is portrayed by [[Myrna Fahey]] in the 1967 TV series ''[[The Time Tunnel]]'' in episode 20 entitled "The Walls of Jericho".
*Rahab is portrayed by [[Stephanie Leonidas]] in the 2013 TV miniseries ''[[The Bible (TV miniseries)|The Bible]].''

==See also==
{{Commons category|Rahab}}
{{Wikiquote}}
* [[Hooker with a heart of gold]]
* [[Rahab (term)]]
* [[Genetic studies of Jews]]

==References==
{{reflist}}
* {{EBD|wstitle=Rahab|ref=none}}

{{Authority control}}
{{Portalbar|Judaism|Christianity}}

[[Category:Converts to Judaism from paganism]]
[[Category:Female prostitutes]]
[[Category:Fall of Jericho]]
[[Category:Women in the Hebrew Bible]]
[[Category:Biblical women in ancient warfare]]
[[Category:Book of Joshua people]]
[[Category:Christian female saints from the Old Testament]]
[[Category:Christian saints from the Old Testament]]
[[Category:People in the catholic epistles]]
[[Category:People from Jericho]]
[[Category:Tribe of Judah]]
[[Category:People in the Gospel of Matthew]]