Jericho innkeeper/prostitute who sheltered Israelite spies and became an ancestor of David and Jesus
Rahab
RAY-hab
A Canaanite woman in Jericho who hid Israel's spies and switched allegiance to Israel's God before the city fell — later remembered in Jewish and Christian tradition as a model of faith and, according to Matthew's genealogy, an ancestress of King David and Jesus.
Life and work
Rahab ran a house built into Jericho's city wall, described in the text as a prostitute (zonah), when Joshua's two spies came to her seeking lodging and reconnaissance. When the king of Jericho's men came looking for the spies, Rahab hid them under stalks of flax on her roof and misdirected the search (Joshua 2:1-7).
Speaking to the spies, Rahab explained that Jericho already knew of Israel's God — the Red Sea crossing and the defeat of the Amorite kings Sihon and Og had reached them, and "our hearts did melt" — and declared, "the LORD your God, he is God in heaven above, and in earth beneath" (Joshua 2:8-11). In exchange for her help, she asked the spies to spare her and her family when Jericho fell; they agreed on condition she tie a scarlet cord in her window and gather her family inside her house (Joshua 2:12-21).
When Jericho's walls fell after Israel's seven-day march, Joshua's men spared Rahab and her family as promised, and she "dwelleth in Israel even unto this day," as the text of Joshua puts it (Joshua 6:22-25).
The genealogy in Matthew 1 names Rahab as the wife of Salmon and mother of Boaz — placing her, a Canaanite outsider, directly in the ancestral line of David and, in Matthew's telling, of Jesus (Matthew 1:5). The New Testament separately holds her up twice as an exemplar: Hebrews cites her faith ("by faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them that believed not"), and James cites her works ("was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had received the messengers, and had sent them out another way?") as a case study of faith proven through action (Hebrews 11:31; James 2:25).
- Occupation
- Innkeeper (the biblical text describes her plainly as a prostitute, zonah)
- Places
- Jericho; integrated into Israel after the city's fall
Extra-biblical evidence
No archaeological find or extrabiblical inscription names Rahab individually. The dating and destruction layers of Jericho itself are subject to ongoing archaeological debate (see the Joshua entry), but that debate concerns the city's fall generally, not Rahab as a person.
Scripture references
- Joshua 2 — Hides the Israelite spies and negotiates protection for her family
- Joshua 6:22-25 — Spared when Jericho falls; integrated into Israel
- Matthew 1:5 — Named in Jesus's genealogy as the wife of Salmon and mother of Boaz
- Hebrews 11:31 — Held up as an example of faith among the "great cloud of witnesses"
- James 2:25 — Cited as an example of faith demonstrated through works
Further reading
Reflect
Rahab acted on the little she knew about God, and it rerouted her whole story — are you waiting to know more before acting on what you already know?
Capstone Bible is a free interactive study app — a map of every place in this library, a zoomable timeline of biblical and church history, the Bible text with every name in it linked to its article, reading plans and personal notes.
Open Capstone Bible