The Rabbis apply to Jeremiah, who was descended from Rahab, the proverb: The son of the corrupted one who mended her ways will come and reproach the son of the fit one who had gone astraythe son of Rahab, who was a prostitute who had mended her ways, shall rebuke the Israelites, of proper lineage, who had degenerated (Pesikta de-Rav Kahana, op cit., 13:4). When she reported to the spies who came to her house: no man had any more spirit left because of you(Josh. Rahab is portrayed by Stephanie Leonidas in the 2013 TV miniseries The Bible See also [ edit] Wikimedia Commons has media related to Rahab. In many midrashim Rahab comes to symbolize the positive influence Israel exerts on the surrounding Gentile nations, as well as successful conversion. Indeed,we see an unclean genealogy but our King Jesus is born out of the unclean genealogy.We too can come out of our sins. Then Joshua the son of Nun sent two men as spies secretly from Shittim, saying, Go, view the land, especially Jericho. So they went and came into the house of a harlot whose name was Rahab, and lodged there. 6:25]: Only Rahab the harlot and her fathers family were spared by Joshua, along with all that belonged to her. Even if there were two hundred people in her family, and they went and adhered to two hundred additional families, they were saved by her merit. Your email address will not be published. Jennings, Jenifer. The soldiers sent to capture the spies asked Rahab to bring out the spies. The letter read: 2 "You are in charge of the king's descendants, and you have at your disposal chariots, horses, weapons, and fortified cities. Why is it that every woman in the Bible had to be a wife or mother or harlot? Proof that He can and will use a vessel of any condition for His Own Glory! This truly blessed and made me pick my Bible to read the story of Rahab again We thank God for we are justified. In the olden days, just as today, cities were called by the names of famous men and women. Gen. 15:13 God said to Abram, "Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, where they will be enslaved and oppressed four hundred years. The regimen of rituals, songs and textual readings performed in a specific order on the first two nights (in Israel, on the first night) of Passover.Seder Eliyahu Zuta[ed. The Scroll of Esther is read on Purim from a parchment scroll. A type of non-halakhic literary activitiy of the Rabbis for interpreting non-legal material according to special principles of interpretation (hermeneutical rules). [16], When the city of Jericho fell,[17] Rahab and her whole family were preserved according to the promise of the spies, and were incorporated among the Jewish people. Wood-engraver: Antoine Piaud (1837-1866). An additional midrashic teaching lists a number of converts who became part of the families of Israelite leaders, for example: Joseph marriedAsenath, Joshua married Rahab, Boaz marriedRuth, and Moses took the daughter of Hobab (= Jethro)(Eccl. 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]." Most of them were ordinary people just like you and me. Rahab: The Biblical Prostitute in the 'Faith Hall of Fame' - People | HowStuffWorks - SoundOfTexk, Rahab: Hure und Held des Alten Testaments - TUNLOG, http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1200274756, http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1200003623, http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/s/r1/lp-e?q=Rahab&p=par, Lavish New Kingdom Tomb Uncovered at Saqqara. So they are actions that correspond with what you say you believe for. Thank You again. There would be nothing else left, and He was adamant about it. In the Babylonian Talmud, Rahab was so beautiful that the very mention of her name could cause arousal (Megillah 15a). Otto I dont know. She was a prostitute who became a believer and played a key role in the Israelite conquest of Jericho. Rahab was ordered by the king, who had been informed of the arrival of the spies, to deliver them to him; she, however, hid them on the roof and declared that they had come and gone without her knowing who they were (ii. Wow great article. This is a thing you want to think about . Rex. She is one of five women mentioned in Matthew's genealogy of Christ; they are Tamar the wife of Judah, Rahab the wife of Salmon, Ruth the wife of Boaz, Bathsheba the wife of King David (after being the wife of Uriah), and Mary the Mother of Jesus. But the meaning of the Hebrew word zanah is to commit fornication to be or play the harlot but the NT writer of Hebrews describes her as porne which means a woman who sells her body for sex. That pretty much seals it. [9] This etiological meaning of Rahabs story, that is, its referencing the origin of individuals considered to go back to Rahab in Israelite society, was noticed already by Abravanel (his commentary of Joshua 6:23). Who Was Rahab? Shemuel, in Yal., Josh. You will lack what you wasted. Is it that youve decided you like those rules but not others? "Rahab through the Ages: A Study of Christian Interpretation of Rahab", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rahab&oldid=1150855480, Christian female saints from the Old Testament, Articles with unsourced statements from July 2022, Wikipedia articles incorporating text from Easton's Bible Dictionary, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Rahab is depicted as a virtuous soul (in The Third Circle of Heaven) in, 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. A Canaanite woman living in Jericho, Rahab is a prostitute who is also a biblical heroine. This favorable disposition to converts is expressed in a dictum that converts who drew close to God merited being drawn closer by God. Salmon and Rahab were the father and mother of Boaz. God continues to increase me through each and every teaching and lesson you provide. John, I asked this same question, and I went to my Hebrew concordance. Who was Rahab in the Bible? As far as I was told, that son who left should have received a very different treatment had the Jewish law been applied to him according to that culture and time. Priests; descendants of Aaron, brother of Moses, who were given the right and obligation to perform the Temple services. I am a little behind but I am hanging in there, taking my time for heart knowledge and produce change within me instead of keeping up with the time. I have been a apart of your teachings for years and I must say I am never disappointed. ?I am really happy this afternoon because your message has been blessed me thanks. They burned the city with fire, and all that was in it. Bad news indeed for modern women. 15a). Episode 91: Israel at 75: Voices of Protest. Then afterward you may go on your way. Joshua 2:15, 16. This exposition accents the power a person has to determine whether his/her deeds will be good or bad, regardless of his/her origins. Many Rabbis viewed conversion favorably, an attitude that is reflected in exegeses about Rahab. Rahab is mentioned alongside Jethro and Naaman as positive examples of the converts who joined Israel. Answer In the book of Joshua, we are introduced to one of the most thought-provoking and astonishing heroines of the Old Testament. The book of truth the Bible recorded she was a harlot. Spiritually, Physically, and Materially! I know that the LORD hath given you the land, and that your terror has fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land faint because of you. Did she live on the wall of Jericho or within it, in what is known to archaeologists as a casemate wall? For she had given a friendly welcome to the spies. 16:19: O Lord, my strength and my stronghold, my refuge in a day of trouble, to You nations shall come from the ends of the earth. When the Lord performs miracles for Israel, the non-Jewish nations shall come to adhere to Him(Ex. But everyone in the area knew they were there and what they were about to do. Sinners may not be unavailable in their family but at that time, they are both clean. Yael Wife of Heber The Kenite: Midrash and Aggadah, Biblical Women in World and Hebrew Literature, Hebrew Women in Egypt: Midrash and Aggadah, The Shalvi/Hyman Encyclopedia of Jewish Women, Copyright 19982023, Jewish Women's Archive. 3-6). Keep up the goodd work. Her ability to mend her ways was exemplary for ensuing generations, who used Rahabs story to request divine mercy and pardon for their actions. An angel can be visible to people, or unseen by them, as he wishes, therefore I do not need you to conceal me. For we dont know who they will be tomorrow. Designation of the five scrolls of the Bible (Ruth, Song of Songs, Lamentations, Ecclesiastes, Esther). Rahab is portrayed by Myrna Fahey in the 1967 TV series The Time Tunnel in episode 20 entitled "The Walls of Jericho". The Woman caught in the act of adultery and I note: when she was brought to Jesusshe was naked! Rahab eventually married Salmon, an Israelite from the tribe of Judah, and they had a child. Jewish Women's Archive. [5] This may not be the only case of such imprecision when listing family members. 18:11): Now I know that the Lord is greater than all gods. Naaman made an even greater admission when he proclaimed(II Kings 5:15): Now I know that there is no God in the whole world except in Israel!; and Rahab exceeded him, when she declared(Josh. Let me ask a question. Rabbah8:9). Rex. See Thomas B. Dozeman,Joshua 1-12: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary(The Anchor Yale Bible; New Haven: Yale University Press, 2015), 232. There was not a prince nor a ruler that had not had relations with her; and she was therefore well informed of what was going on outside Jericho (Mek., Yitro, 'Amalek, 1; Zeb. Her connection to the people of Israel was not merely utilitarian, but ensued from her love of them and their God. The story of Rahab would therefore provide an answer as to how a Canaanite group became part of Israel in spite of the Deuteronomistic injunction to kill all Canaanites and not to intermarry with them.[19][20][21]. A Biblical prostitute or just an innkeeper? The Rabbis sing paeans of praise ofRahabfor her beauty and wisdom. Some of our partners may process your data as a part of their legitimate business interest without asking for consent. There is debate whether the Rahab in Jesus lineage is the same we see in the book of Joshua but theres a lot of debate on a lot of things concerning the Bible and timelines are definitely in a lot of them. Here is one other reason: when she asked the two Israelite spys to promess her that her family would not be hurt in any case. The men said to her, We shall be free from this oath to you which you have made us swear, unless, when we come into the land, you tie this cord of scarlet thread in the window through which you let us down, and gather to yourself into the house your father and your mother and your brothers and all your fathers household. In the midrashic expansion, Jeremiah tells him: If only I had a ladder. God asks him: You want a ladder? [8] For more on the Rabbinic sources, see David J. Zucker and Moshe Reiss,Judaisms First Converts: A Pagan Priest and a Prostitute,TheTorah.com(2017). In Isaiah 51.9 we have the idea of "cutting" Rahab. He still brought me through those tough consequences and I often see the blessings that were still able to come out of those situations. What evidence ? [6] A number of 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". It may not display this or other websites correctly. . Name two important descendants of Rahab. You cannot receive a higher compliment from a God Who is only pleased by the action of faith (Hebrews 11:6). This series of comparisons, only some of which appear here, emphasizes the sins of Israel, who swear falsely, make light of their parents honor, and worship stars, while Rahab conducts herself in a proper and correct manner. In another exegesis, God showed Moses before his death, through the spirit of divine inspiration, the line of prophets that would issue from Rahab (Sifreion Deuteronomy, Chap.338). This is a hard one. The Bible, after all, is a book of truth. We love you. The only other woman mentioned on the list is Sarah, Abrahams wife and mother of Isaac. Even worse news for the men they have been with if she is chosen to have a clean start . Nahmanides suggests that this was just standard speech ( ) and was not meant to suggest that the angels thought he had sons. The ancient rabbis regarded Rahab as one of the most beautiful women in Jewish history. Another tradition has her saying: Pardon me by merit of the rope, the window, and the flaxen [the stalks of flax under which she concealed the spies] (BTZevahimloc. Thanks so much for this. James 2:17 Weymouth New Testament. And you do not know how far each of them has already come, or how far they are able to go in God. I have sinned with three things [with my eye, my thigh, and my stomach]. After having engaged in prostitution for forty years, Rahab converted at the age of fifty. What an AMAZING expose of this part of Gods Word!! TheA type of non-halakhic literary activitiy of the Rabbis for interpreting non-legal material according to special principles of interpretation (hermeneutical rules).midrash includes Rahab among the four most beautiful women the world has ever known:Sarah, Rahab, Abigail,andEsther. He is an awesome God. Link will be below: You took that conclusion just because the same Rahab name ? So also faith, if it is unaccompanied by obedience, has no life in it so long as it stands alone. In our daily dealing with human beings, we must not right off anybody, because the very person that is tagged dirty or alien can turn out to be the medium by which our future can be secured. ' John 8:31-32. When the king learned that he was about to die, he turned his face to the wall and prayed, as portrayed inIsa. 38:2: Thereupon Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord. The Rabbis understand the wall, not as the place where Hezekiah prayed, but as the subject of his prayer. The crowd goes nuts, and not in a good way. The spies agree to her terms and tell her to leave a red cord hanging from her window to let them know which home to spare. It came about when it was time to shut the gate at dark, that the men went out; I do not know where the men went. Unfortunately for them, this would be the wrong place to hide. It was not by chance that those spies found their way to her house. Indeed, as Robert Boling notes, such an establishment might have represented an ideal location for spies to gather intelligence. She was said to be one of the four great beauties, the other three being Sarah, Abigail, and Esther (Meg. Cudi I just read your comment on the Rahab article by Rex Rouis. I feel very sad for you, only truth can help . You might think from her profession that she was destined to die an early death, to fade away into shame, the disgraced woman . Ruth's son, Boaz, was the father of Ruth's children. Thesekohanimwere Baruch son of Neriah, Seraiah son of Mahseiah, Jeremiah son of Hilkiah and Hanamel son of Shalom (Num. Rahab symbolizes proper behavior, in contrast to the sinning Israelites. According to Him, having faith without corresponding actions is not pleasing. [6] In rabbinic texts, however, she is explained as being an "innkeeper," based on the Aramaic Targum: . You can read about Rahab in Joshua 2 and Joshua 6 .. 5b). It is claimed that there was not a single idolatry in all the world that Jethro did not worship, and therefore when he converted, he spoke from experience when he said(Ex. The Rabbis apply to Jeremiah, who was descended from Rahab, the proverb: "The son of the corrupted one who mended her ways will come and reproach the son of the fit one who had gone astray"the son of Rahab, who was a prostitute who had mended her ways, shall rebuke the Israelites, of proper lineage, who had degenerated ( Pesikta de-Rav Kahana, Rahab undoubtedly stands for Egypt, but the exact origin of the term and of its connection with Egypt is much disputed. ; Tov . Here is a hypothesis I am developing: Keep up the good work! I became interested in this issue and decided to check the time difference between Rahab and Boaz. Joshua 2:4 7. and . I would give this article zero credence. Since the Lord did all this, he knows how to rescue godly people when they are tested. The Talmud legends, curiously enough, reckon eight prophets among her descendants, including Jeremiah and Baruch, but not any of the line of David. The Scarlet Cord: Rahab's Bible Story & Our Story. a prostitute; whore. Only the silver and gold, and articles of bronze and iron, they put into the treasury of the house of the Lord. Rahab, the prostitute of the Canaanite city of Jericho, ultimately is noteworthy for her great faith and for her place in the lineage of Jesus Christ. I dont think she was a prostitute she was a business person. Some may discount this interpretation, but the fact that you had such a question points to the reality of my answerGod made women to be wives and mothers. When informed of the Israelite spies The King of Jericho Sent to Rahab or Little Egypt so to speak. Now therefore, I pray you, swear unto me by the LORD, since I have shewed you kindness, that ye will also shew kindness unto my father's house, and give me a true token: and that you will save alive my father, and my mother, and my brethren, and my sisters, and all that they have, and deliver our lives from death. Boaz ObedJesse Rahab/Descendants How is Rahab related to Boaz? Pauls comments are primarily aimed at hypocrisy among believers, of which family members could be a part. The ancient rabbis regarded Rahab as one of the most beautiful women in Jewish history. Mother of Boaz . If you make Jesus your shepard, youll never be in want. Taking consonants from a word to change the meaning of a word is not recommended. The Woman with the issue of blood The word Want, from the Hebrew concordance means: I shall not lack, be in need or be without.. As Believers, we are to consistently, look to our Heavenly Father as our provider, of all things! After her, the Bible reads: And what more shall I say? Rahab's reward was alluded to by Hezekiah in his prayer for recovery from his sickness (comp. Noth, Martin, "Israelitischer Personennamen im Rahmen der gemeinsemitischen Namengebung", Beitrage zur Wissenschaft vom Alten und Neuen Testaments III,10, 193. What does the Bible say about Rahab? Woow wonderful ?? "Rahab: Midrash and Aggadah." And I think the answer is as infinitely as Gods will and love to provide the truths we need and seek through these investigations and reporting of them. In the midrashic account, the merit of Rahabs deeds saved the prophet Jeremiah from death. 31:21: She is not worried for her household because of snow, for her whole household is dressed in crimsonshe was not concerned, because of the length of crimson cord that would be the sign between them (Midrash Eshet Hayil31:21). script>. Jesus is an important visitor, and preparations have been underway for him to stay with the most pious people in town. Other then Mary, Rahab is the only one mentioned again in the New Testament. [6], Josephus mentions that Rahab kept an inn but is silent as to whether merely renting out rooms was her only source of income. [14] Instead, she hid them under bundles of flax on the roof. Rex. Terrible exegesis. The Canaanites were the descendants of Noah's grandson Canaan whose father Ham was cursed because of his sin against Noah. Hide my fellow Caleb, while I will stand before them, without them seeing me. Rahab did as he asked. We would like to show you a description here but the site won't allow us. 14b). When Jeremiah had been cast into the pit, Ebed-melech the Ethiopian was sent to bring him up (as is related inJer. Somehow the king of Jericho knew the spies were there and he sent messengers to ask about it. It has been long since I last came here But I am glad I did. Otto, I think if no one ever sits down with them, they cant ever get saved. Themidrashcontinues this comparison by saying that whatever was written in Israels dishonor was written in Rahabs praise. Some have claimed that the symbol of the red cord is related to the practice of the "red-light district". The inhabitants of Jericho were adversaries of the Israelites. The example given is of Rahab the harlot: despite her being busy in her house (in prostitution), and her being from a people for whom theTorah she-bi-khetav: Lit. In fact, sisters are mentioned only eight times in MT, and five of these occurrences haveqere-ketivissues with this word: Josh2:13**; Ezek16:51(qere)**; Ezek16:55; Ezek 16:61; Hos 2:3; Job 1:4*; Job 42:11*; 1 Chron2:16*. Rabbah27:4). Joshua sent the spies in, and they ended up at Rahabs place. She wisely tells them to go out and stay toward the west of the city, in the opposite direction of their camp so they can hide in the hill country. 5:2): They are sure to be swearing falsely; it is written of Rahab(Josh. For more on the New Testament sources, see, e.g., Trent C. Butler,Joshua(WBC; Waco, TX: Word, 1983), p. 35; Richard D. Nelson,Joshua(OTL; Louisville, KT: Westminster John Knox, 1997), 46. She engaged in prostitution during the forty years of the Israelites wanderings in the wilderness, until the age of fifty. The pattern is evident, the entire Bible endorses one male DNA doner from virginity to death for a female, and only upon the death of the FIRST doner is she FREE to marry again. Pursue them quickly, for you will overtake them. But she had brought them up to the roof and hidden them in the stalks of flax which she had laid in order on the roof. Our responsibility as Believers is to Restore people not reject them, or put our hands against them in any way unless they are folded in prayers for them . An example of data being processed may be a unique identifier stored in a cookie. I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson and Jephthah, about David and Samuel and the prophets Hebrews 11:32. Nahmanides (Ramban) points out that when the angels tell Lot to gather everyone else he has, they mention sons-in-law, sons, and daughters (Gen 19:12), but Lot had no sons. 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] (Mekhilta de-Rabbi Ishmael, Masekhta de-Amalek, Yitro1). At the conquest of Jericho by the Israelites, Joshua ordered the two spies to rescue Rahab and her family, whose descendants thenceforward dwelt in Israel (vi. Who were the descendants of Rahab? 20:17]: You must proscribe them, but you did not do so. its not shameful, nor degrading, nor belittling, but a glorious truth that women might find liberating to acceptmy wife has. Notify me of follow-up comments by email. [12], According to the book of Joshua,[13] when the Hebrews were encamped at Shittim, in the "Arabah" or Jordan valley opposite Jericho, ready to cross the river, Joshua, as a final preparation, sent out two spies to investigate the military strength of Jericho.
