Rahab in the Bible: The Scarlet Cord Between Faith and Controversy

Key Takeaways

• Rahab in the Bible was a Canaanite woman described as a prostitute (zonah) who aided Israelite spies in Jericho, demonstrating remarkable faith in YHWH before Israel had even entered the Promised Land.
• Despite her status as a social outcast living on Jericho’s wall, Rahab’s courageous choice to hide the spies and declare faith in the God of Israel ultimately saved her family and earned her place in biblical history.
• The New Testament elevates Rahab’s story in Hebrews 11:31 and James 2:25, presenting her as an exemplar of faith in action and demonstrating how divine grace works through unexpected individuals.
• According to Matthew’s genealogy, Rahab became part of Jesus’ ancestral line through her son Boaz, making her one of only five women specifically mentioned in Christ’s lineage.
• Rahab’s transformation from Canaanite prostitute to biblical hero symbolizes God’s redemptive power that transcends ethnic, gender, and moral boundaries, challenging religious concepts of purity and exclusion.

Rahab the Harlot: From Outcast to Biblical Hero

Who Was Rahab in the Bible and Why Is Her Story So Pivotal?

The Hebrew text introduces Rahab in Joshua 2:1 as “אִשָּׁה זֹונָה” (ishah zonah), literally, “a woman, a zonah.” The word zonah (זֹונָה) traditionally translates as “prostitute” or “harlot,” though some rabbinic traditions suggest it might derive from a root meaning “to feed” or “to provide food,” positioning her perhaps as an innkeeper. What’s fascinating is that the text doesn’t linger on moral condemnation, it’s remarkably matter-of-fact about her status.

Rahab’s home sat physically integrated into Jericho’s defensive wall (Joshua 2:15), a brilliant narrative detail that places her simultaneously inside and outside the community structure. Archaeological excavations at Tell es-Sultan (ancient Jericho) reveal that city walls in Canaanite fortifications often incorporated residential structures, with the poorest and most marginalized citizens typically occupying these vulnerable boundary positions.

What makes her pivotal? She becomes the unexpected linchpin in Israel’s first conquest in the Promised Land. The entire military campaign hinges on this foreign woman’s decision to harbor enemy spies. The Israelites’ success doesn’t begin with their military might or even their covenant status, it begins with a Canaanite woman recognizing YHWH’s power before they’ve even entered the land.

What the Story of Rahab Reveals About Faith and Divine Mercy

Rahab’s declaration in Joshua 2:11 is extraordinary: “כִּי יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵיכֶם, הוּא אֱלֹהִים בַּשָּׁמַיִם מִמַּעַל, וְעַל-הָאָרֶץ מִתָּחַת” (“For YHWH your God, He is God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath”). This isn’t mere political calculation, it’s a profound theological confession that places her among the earliest non-Israelite monotheists in Scripture.

The rabbis of the Talmud (Zevachim 116a-b) note something remarkable: Rahab’s confession predates Israel’s own full theological understanding. While still wandering in the wilderness, many Israelites struggled with divided loyalties and incomplete faith, yet here’s a Canaanite woman making an unambiguous declaration of YHWH’s universal sovereignty.

The crimson cord (תִּקְוַת חוּט הַשָּׁנִי, tiqwat chut hashani) she hangs from her window becomes not just a practical marker for the invading army but a powerful symbol that resonates with the blood on Hebrew doorposts during the Exodus. The early Christian fathers weren’t wrong to see messianic significance here, blood marking those who would be spared in judgment, regardless of their ethnic identity or moral history.

How Rahab Feared God and Chose to Defy Her City

The Hebrew verb used for Rahab’s actions toward the spies is fascinating: וַתִּצְפְּנוֹ (vatitzpeno, “and she hid him”), the same root used in Exodus 2:2 when Moses’ mother hides him from Pharaoh’s decree. This linguistic connection links Rahab to another woman who defied an empire to preserve God’s redemptive plan.

Rahab’s decision wasn’t made in a vacuum. Joshua 2:9-10 reveals she was aware of Israel’s historical narrative, the Exodus, the defeat of Sihon and Og. Her defiance wasn’t blind: it was an informed theological choice based on what she knew of YHWH’s demonstrated power. She chose the God she had only heard about over the gods whose temples surrounded her daily life.

Her defiance cost her everything familiar. When Jericho fell, she left behind her cultural identity, religious system, economic security, and social networks. The Midrash Rabbah notes that Rahab’s conversion was complete, she didn’t merely acknowledge YHWH’s power: she abandoned her previous life entirely. The text says “she dwelt during Israel to this day” (Joshua 6:25), suggesting full community integration rather than marginalized tolerance.

The Story of Rahab in Historical and Cultural Context

Life in Jericho Before the Israelite Conquest

Jericho, Tell es-Sultan in archaeological terms, was no minor settlement. Carbon-14 dating and stratigraphic analysis reveal it as one of the world’s oldest continuously inhabited urban centers, with settlement layers dating back to 9,000 BCE. By the Late Bronze Age (when most scholars place Joshua’s conquest), Jericho stood as a fortified Canaanite city-state, roughly 6 acres (2.4 hectares) in size with imposing walls reaching 15 feet (4.5 meters) high.

The material culture excavated from Bronze Age Jericho reveals a society steeped in polytheistic worship. Archaeologists have uncovered fertility figurines, cultic stands, and ritual objects associated with the worship of Canaanite deities like Baal, Asherah, and Anat. These finds provide tangible evidence of the religious environment Rahab rejected when she aligned with YHWH.

Jericho’s strategic location, controlling access to the central hill country from the Jordan Valley, made it a critical first target for Israelite forces. The city functioned as a vassal to Egypt during much of the Late Bronze Age, with diplomatic correspondence found in the Amarna Letters (14th century BCE) revealing the complex political loyalties and fears of Canaanite rulers as they navigated relationships between Egypt and emerging regional powers.

What It Meant to Be a Harlot in Ancient Biblical Society

The Hebrew zonah (זֹונָה) exists in a complex semantic field. While primarily denoting commercial sexual activity, in ancient Near Eastern contexts, cult prostitution and hospitality services often overlapped. Rahab’s house location near the city wall suggests a business catering to travelers and merchants, typical for women in her profession throughout the ancient Near East.

Contrast Rahab with Tamar in Genesis 38, who disguised herself as a zonah but is actually described with the more specific term qedeshah (קְדֵשָׁה), often translated as “temple prostitute” or “cult prostitute.” The text doesn’t apply this religious prostitution term to Rahab, potentially indicating her work was commercial rather than cultic in nature.

The social position of a zonah in ancient Canaanite and Israelite society was paradoxical, simultaneously marginalized yet often economically independent. Unlike most women of her era, a zonah typically controlled her own household without male oversight, explaining how Rahab could independently negotiate with the spies and make decisions binding her entire family. This unusual agency makes her actions even more remarkable in context.

Why Rahab’s Allegiance to Israel Shocked Her People

Rahab’s declaration of allegiance to Israel represented a complete inversion of expected loyalties in ancient Near Eastern culture, where city-state identity was foundational to one’s social and religious existence. The Canaanite pantheon was directly tied to the prosperity and protection of Jericho, making her rejection of these gods tantamount to civic treason.

The text suggests Rahab understood something profound that her fellow citizens missed. While Jericho trembled in fear (Joshua 2:9), their response was to fortify walls and resist. Only Rahab recognized that resistance against YHWH was futile, demonstrating a theological insight even many Israelites struggled to maintain consistently.

The Hebrew narrative employs subtle irony: Jericho’s king sent messengers (מַלְאָכִים, mal’akhim) to Rahab demanding the surrender of the Israelite spies, using the same term used for divine messengers or angels. Meanwhile, Rahab recognized the true divine message carried by these foreign men, choosing heavenly authority over earthly power in a way that prefigures many later prophetic confrontations between God’s messengers and human kings.

Faith, Rahab, and Her Theological Legacy

What the New Testament Says About Rahab’s Faith and Works

In the New Testament’s Epistle to the Hebrews, Rahab’s story undergoes a remarkable transformation. Hebrews 11:31 states: “πίστει Ῥαὰβ ἡ πόρνη οὐ συναπώλετο τοῖς ἀπειθήσασιν” (“By faith Rahab the prostitute did not perish with those who were disobedient”). The Greek term πόρνη (pornē) unambiguously means prostitute, yet she stands among the heroes of faith, Abraham, Moses, and David.

The Epistle of James offers a complementary perspective in James 2:25, describing her as δικαιωθεῖσα ἐξ ἔργων (“justified by works”) when she received the messengers and sent them out another way. The Greek verb δικαιόω (dikaioō) carries profound theological significance, being the same term Paul uses extensively in discussions of justification by faith.

What’s striking is that both texts retain the label “prostitute” while simultaneously elevating her actions to exemplary status. Neither author attempts to sanitize or rewrite her background, instead, they emphasize how divine grace operates through the most unexpected vessels, creating a powerful theological paradox that challenges religious purity codes.

Rahab in Hebrews and James: Faith Put Into Action

The juxtaposition of Rahab in Hebrews and James creates a fascinating theological dialogue about faith and works. Hebrews emphasizes her faith (πίστις, pistis), while James highlights her works (ἔργα, erga). Yet neither presents these as contradictory, together they illustrate the seamless unity between belief and action that characterizes genuine faith.

In Hebrews 11:31, Rahab is contrasted with τοῖς ἀπειθήσασιν (“those who were disobedient”). The Greek ἀπειθέω (apeitheō) implies both disbelief and disobedience, suggesting that faith and obedience are inseparable. Rahab’s actions demonstrated her faith, while her fellow citizens’ inaction revealed their disbelief.

James introduces Rahab immediately after discussing Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice Isaac, creating a deliberate parallel between a revered patriarch and a foreign prostitute. Both demonstrated faith through concrete actions that involved significant personal risk. The Greek phrase ἐξ ἔργων ἐδικαιώθη (“justified by works”) in James 2:24-25 doesn’t promote works-righteousness but rather emphasizes that genuine faith inevitably produces visible action.

Inclusion in the Genealogy of Christ: A Harlot in the Messianic Line

Matthew’s genealogy in Matthew 1:5 makes the remarkable statement: “Σαλμὼν δὲ ἐγέννησεν τὸν Βόες ἐκ τῆς Ῥαχάβ” (“Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab”). This places Rahab as the mother of Boaz, who would later marry Ruth, another foreign woman incorporated into Israel’s covenant community, creating a direct ancestral line to King David and eventually to Jesus himself.

The inclusion of Rahab alongside Tamar, Ruth, and “the wife of Uriah” (Bathsheba) in Matthew’s genealogy has profound theological implications. All four women had irregular relationships by traditional standards, yet all became essential to the messianic lineage. Matthew appears to deliberately highlight these women to emphasize that God’s redemptive purposes work through human complexity, not even though it.

Talmudic tradition (Megillah 14b) suggests Rahab married Joshua himself, while other rabbinic sources identify her husband as Salmon of the tribe of Judah, aligning with Matthew’s genealogy. What’s significant is that Jewish tradition embraces her full integration into the community rather than relegating her to the margins based on her past or ethnicity. The Talmud even counts her among the most beautiful women in biblical history and as one of the four most significant female converts to Judaism.

Uncommon Perspectives and Overlooked Themes in the Rahab Narrative

Is Rahab’s Profession Misunderstood in Modern Readings?

Here’s what’s wild: the Hebrew term zonah (זֹונָה) appears alongside another fascinating linguistic possibility. The root זון (zun) can also refer to food or sustenance, leading some scholars to suggest Rahab may have been an innkeeper who provided food and lodging. The first-century Jewish historian Josephus adopts this interpretation in Antiquities 5.1.2, describing her as keeper of a καταγώγιον (katagōgion, “inn”).

The Targum Jonathan, an Aramaic translation and interpretation of the Hebrew Bible, similarly translates zonah as פונדקיתא (pundekita, “innkeeper”), attempting to rehabilitate Rahab’s image. But, these interpretations likely reflect later religious discomfort rather than linguistic accuracy, as biblical Hebrew has a specific term for innkeeper that isn’t used here.

The reality is likely more nuanced than either extreme. In ancient Near Eastern border towns, the categories of prostitute and innkeeper weren’t mutually exclusive, women providing food, shelter, and sexual services to travelers existed throughout the region. The biblical text doesn’t shy away from Rahab’s stigmatized status, instead emphasizing that divine purpose works through the marginalized, not even though their marginalization.

Why Rahab’s Mention in the Genealogy of Christ Defies Purity Laws

The inclusion of Rahab in Matthew’s genealogy represents a profound theological statement that directly challenges first-century Jewish purity codes. Deuteronomy 23:3 prohibited Moabites from entering the assembly of the Lord, yet Ruth the Moabitess appears in this lineage. Similarly, Deuteronomy 23:18 condemns the earnings of a prostitute (אֶתְנַן זֹונָה, etnan zonah), yet Rahab, explicitly labeled with the same term, becomes ancestral to the Messiah.

Matthew’s genealogy employs a literary device known as traumatic inclusion, deliberately naming persons whose presence creates theological tension. This technique signals to readers that God’s redemptive work transcends human categories of exclusion, functioning as a critique of religious boundary-marking that privileged purity over divine mercy.

Early Church Father Justin Martyr (Dialogue with Trypho, 111) saw Rahab’s scarlet cord as a prophetic symbol of Christ’s blood, writing that it marked “those who were once prostitutes and unrighteous from among all nations” who would be saved through Christ’s blood. This interpretation recognizes that her inclusion in the genealogy wasn’t accidental but theologically purposeful, indicating the scope of messianic redemption.

How Rahab Symbolizes the Nations Acknowledging God in Heaven

Rahab’s declaration that “YHWH your God is God in heaven above and on earth below” (Joshua 2:11) represents a profound theological statement from non-Israelite lips. Her confession prefigures prophetic visions of the nations acknowledging YHWH’s sovereignty, as expressed in Isaiah 45:23 and Zechariah 14:16, creating a narrative thread connecting Israel’s entry into Canaan with eschatological hopes.

The Christian tradition quickly recognized this symbolic dimension. Clement of Rome (c. 95 CE) in his First Epistle to the Corinthians (chapter 12) interprets Rahab’s scarlet cord as signifying redemption through Christ’s blood would extend beyond Israel to all who believe, regardless of their origin or moral history.

Interestingly, Islamic tradition preserves elements of this universalistic reading. While not mentioned by name in the Qur’an, commentators like al-Tabari (839-923 CE) recognized parallels between biblical Rahab and Qur’anic accounts of righteous non-believers who recognized divine truth when encountering it. This cross-traditional acknowledgment highlights how Rahab’s story resonated as a paradigm of faith transcending cultural and religious boundaries.

Diverging Interpretations of Rahab Among Religious Traditions

Rahab’s Redemption in Jewish and Early Christian Writings

In rabbinic literature, Rahab undergoes a remarkable transformation. Midrash Sifre Zuta suggests that after Jericho’s fall, she converted to Judaism and married Joshua himself. The Babylonian Talmud (Megillah 14b) counts her among Jewish history’s most significant female prophets, alongside figures like Sarah and Esther. This elevation from Canaanite prostitute to Jewish prophetess represents one of the most dramatic status reversals in rabbinic tradition.

By contrast, patristic Christian interpreters focused less on her marriage and more on her symbolic significance. Origen of Alexandria (c. 185-253 CE) in his Homilies on Joshua interprets Rahab as representing the Church gathered from among the Gentiles, with her scarlet cord prefiguring salvation through Christ’s blood. For early Christian writers, her ethnic and moral outsider status made her the perfect symbol of Gentile inclusion in the covenant.

Jewish mystical tradition takes yet another approach. The Zohar (13th century CE) connects Rahab’s name (רָחָב, “broad”) with divine mercy expanding beyond conventional boundaries. In Kabbalistic thought, her integration into Israel symbolizes the redemption of divine sparks trapped in impure vessels, a profound mystical reading of her rehabilitation.

Denominational Debates: Was Rahab Saved by Faith or Works?

The Reformation period intensified interpretive conflicts over Rahab’s story. Martin Luther, emphasizing sola fide (faith alone), focused on Hebrews 11:31, arguing that Rahab was saved exclusively through her faith in Israel’s God, with her actions merely demonstrating that faith.

Catholic interpreters, responding to Protestant emphases, highlighted James 2:25, where Rahab is explicitly described as “justified by works” (ἐξ ἔργων ἐδικαιώθη). The Council of Trent (1545-1563) specifically cited James 2 as evidence against the doctrine of sola fide, with Rahab becoming a central figure in these theological debates.

Eastern Orthodox tradition has generally maintained a more integrated view, seeing Rahab’s faith and works as inseparable aspects of her salvation story rather than competing principles. Greek Church Father John Chrysostom (c. 349-407 CE) in his homilies emphasizes how Rahab’s hospitality (philoxenia) toward the spies demonstrated authentic faith manifested through concrete action.

Rahab’s Place in Broader Theological Discussions of Grace

Rahab’s narrative raises profound questions about divine election and human response. Augustine of Hippo (354-430 CE) in On the Predestination of the Saints cites Rahab as evidence that God’s grace extends to those with no prior claim to covenant relationship, a foreigner and prostitute whose salvation demonstrates grace’s unconstrained character.

Reformed theological tradition has emphasized Rahab’s story as exemplifying unconditional election. John Calvin in his Commentary on Joshua notes that God “selected a woman who was not only a foreigner but a prostitute” to demonstrate that salvation comes not from human merit but divine choice.

Liberationist readings in contemporary theology see Rahab as embodying God’s preferential option for the marginalized. Her location on Jericho’s literal margins (the city wall) becomes symbolic of her social position, with her vindication representing divine solidarity with those exploited by systems of power. Brazilian theologian Ivoni Richter Reimer argues that Rahab represents an ancient example of a woman using limited agency to resist imperial and patriarchal structures, making her story resonant with contemporary liberation movements.

FAQ About Rahab in the Bible

Who Was Rahab to King David?

According to Matthew’s genealogy (Matthew 1:5-6), Rahab was King David’s great-great-grandmother. The genealogical sequence runs: Rahab → Boaz (her son) → Obed (via Ruth) → Jesse → David. This connection carries profound theological significance, as it places a former Canaanite prostitute in the direct ancestral line of Israel’s greatest king.

The Hebrew Bible doesn’t explicitly state this relationship, creating some chronological challenges. The conquest of Jericho traditionally dates to the late 15th or early 13th century BCE, while David’s reign began around 1000 BCE. This gap has led some scholars to suggest Matthew’s genealogy contains theological symbolism rather than comprehensive biological lineage, a common feature in ancient genealogical literature.

Rabbinic tradition embraces this genealogical connection. Midrash Ruth Rabbah 2:1 specifically celebrates how Ruth the Moabitess married into the family line of Rahab the Canaanite, emphasizing God’s inclusion of foreign women in the royal, and eventually messianic, lineage.

Who Is Rahab in Isaiah 51:9?

Here’s a fascinating linguistic complexity: the Rahab in Isaiah 51:9 (רַהַב, Rahab) differs from Joshua’s Rahab (רָחָב, Rachab) in both spelling and meaning, though English translations render both identically. Isaiah 51:9 reads: “Awake, awake, put on strength, O arm of the LORD. Awake as in days of old, the generations of long ago. Was it not you who cut Rahab in pieces, who pierced the dragon?”

This Rahab (רַהַב) refers not to the woman of Jericho but to a mythological sea monster representing chaos and Egypt. The parallelism with “dragon” (תַּנִּין, tannin) connects to ancient Near Eastern combat myths where a deity defeats primordial chaos creatures. Isaiah employs this imagery to recall YHWH’s victory over Egypt during the Exodus.

The semantic overlap between these two Rahabs creates a fascinating theological resonance. Just as YHWH defeated the primordial Rahab (Egypt/chaos), the Canaanite Rahab acknowledged YHWH’s supremacy and was incorporated into Israel. Early Christian commentators like Origen noted this connection, seeing spiritual significance in the shared name.

Was Rahab Married to Joshua?

No biblical text explicitly states Rahab married Joshua. Matthew 1:5 indicates she married Salmon from the tribe of Judah, becoming Boaz’s mother. But, Jewish tradition presents alternative accounts. The Talmud (Megillah 14b) suggests Rahab married Joshua himself, became a convert to Judaism, and produced eight priests and prophets among her descendants, including Jeremiah and Huldah.

Christian tradition generally follows Matthew’s genealogical account, seeing Rahab as Boaz’s mother via Salmon, so placing her in Jesus’ ancestry. The fifth-century Church Father Jerome, in his Commentary on Matthew, accepts this lineage while acknowledging its theological significance rather than focusing on historical precision.

The discrepancy between these traditions highlights how different communities developed Rahab’s story to emphasize different theological points: rabbinic Judaism focused on her conversion and integration into spiritual leadership, while Christian tradition emphasized her role in the messianic lineage.

What Is the Lesson of the Story of Rahab in the Bible?

Rahab’s narrative carries multiple theological lessons that have resonated across traditions. At its core, her story demonstrates that divine grace transcends human categories of exclusion based on ethnicity, gender, and moral history. Her inclusion in Israel and eventually in the messianic genealogy challenges religious boundary-marking that privileges purity over mercy.

The New Testament highlights complementary lessons about faith. Hebrews presents Rahab as exemplifying faith that recognizes divine reality based on evidence rather than direct experience, she believed based on what she had heard about YHWH’s mighty acts. James emphasizes how authentic faith necessarily produces concrete action, even at personal risk.

Perhaps most profoundly, Rahab’s story illustrates divine providence working through human choices. Her decision to hide the spies, motivated by theological insight rather than political calculation, becomes instrumental in fulfilling God’s covenant promises to Israel. This creates a powerful narrative of divine sovereignty operating not even though human agency but through it, a theme that resonates across Jewish, Christian, and Islamic theological traditions.