Conquest · OT
Rahab
The Canaanite woman of Jericho who hid Israel's spies and joined the people of God.
Rahab was a prostitute of Jericho whose house was built into the city wall. When Joshua sent two spies to scout the city, she hid them under stalks of flax on her roof and lied to the king's men to protect them. Her reason was the rumor of the Red Sea and the conquests east of the Jordan: 'The Lord your God, he is God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath.'
In return she begged the spies to spare her family. They told her to bind a scarlet cord in her window; every person inside her house would be saved when the city fell. When Jericho's walls collapsed, only Rahab's section stood, and she and her household were brought out and joined Israel.
The New Testament celebrates her twice — for her faith (Hebrews 11:31) and for her works (James 2:25). Matthew's genealogy of Jesus names her as the mother of Boaz and the great-great-grandmother of King David, placing this Canaanite prostitute in the messianic line.
Key moments
Hid the spies
Confessed faith in Israel's God.
Hung the scarlet cord
An old typology of the blood of Christ.
Survived the fall of Jericho
Her household alone was spared.
Became great-grandmother of David
Named in Matthew 1:5 in Jesus' genealogy.
Key verses
"And as soon as we had heard it, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more spirit in any man, because of you: for Jehovah your God, he is God in heaven above, and on earth beneath."
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"But Rahab the harlot, and her father’s household, and all that she had, did Joshua save alive; and she dwelt in the midst of Israel unto this day, because she hid the messengers, whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho."
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"and Salmon begat Boaz of Rahab; and Boaz begat Obed of Ruth; and Obed begat Jesse;"
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"By faith Rahab the harlot perished not with them that were disobedient, having received the spies with peace."
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"And in like manner was not also Rahab the harlot justified by works, in that she received the messengers, and sent them out another way?"
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Frequently asked
Was Rahab really a prostitute?
The Hebrew zonah and Greek pornē in both Hebrews and James are unambiguous. The Bible does not airbrush her past — that is part of the power of her story. Grace reaches into Jericho's brothel and lifts her into the line of the Messiah.
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