What does the Bible say about Rahab?
Today, we are diving into the story of Rahab, who was a Canaanite prostitute from Jericho. Who would have thought that Rahab would emerge as an extraordinary figure in Joshua 2 and 6? Despite her background, God used her powerfully. She boldly hid two Israelite spies sent by Joshua to scout the city before its walls fell, risking her life in the process. Her actions weren’t driven by mere fear—she’d heard of the Lord and chose to trust Him, aiding the spies’ escape. When Jericho was destroyed, God honored His promise through the Israelites, sparing Rahab. She later married Salmon of Judah, becoming the mother of Boaz and an ancestor in the lineage of King David and Jesus (Matthew 1:5). Her faith earns praise in Hebrews 11:31 and James 2:25, showing that God can redeem anyone who turns to Him, regardless of their past. Let’s dive into some verses on Rahab.
1. Joshua 2:1 (NASB) – “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.”
2. Joshua 2:3 (NIV) – “So the king of Jericho sent this message to Rahab: ‘Bring out the men who came to you and entered your house, because they have come to spy out the whole land.'”
3. Joshua 2:4 (NKJV) – “But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. So she said, ‘Yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they were from.'”
4. Joshua 2:9 (ESV) – “And she said to the men, ‘I know that the Lord has given you the land, and that the fear of you has fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land melt away before you.'”
5. Joshua 2:11 (KJV) – “And as soon as we had heard these things, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more courage in any man, because of you: for the Lord your God, he is God in heaven above, and in earth beneath.”
6. Joshua 2:12 (NLT) – “Now swear to me by the Lord that you will be kind to me and my family since I have helped you. Give me some guarantee that”
7. Joshua 2:14 (Holman) – “The men answered her, ‘We will give our lives for yours. If you don’t report our mission, we will show kindness and faithfulness to you when the Lord gives us the land.'”
8. Joshua 2:18 (NIV) – “Unless, when we enter the land, you have tied this scarlet cord in the window through which you let us down, and unless you have brought your father and mother, your brothers and all your family into your house.'”
9. Joshua 2:21 (NKJV) – “Then she said, ‘According to your words, so be it.’ And she sent them away, and they departed. And she bound the scarlet cord in the window.”
10. Joshua 6:17 (ESV) – “And the city and all that is within it shall be devoted to the Lord for destruction. Only Rahab the prostitute and all who are with her in her house shall live, because she hid the messengers whom we sent.”
11. Joshua 6:22 (KJV) – “But Joshua had said unto the two men that had spied out the country, Go into the harlot’s house, and bring out thence the woman, and all that she hath, as ye sware unto her.”
12. Joshua 6:23 (NLT) – “So the young men who were spies went in and brought out Rahab and her father, mother, brothers, and all her relatives—all the people connected to her—and they placed them outside the camp of Israel.”
13. Joshua 6:25 (NASB) – “However, Rahab the harlot and her father’s household and all she had, Joshua spared; and she has lived in the midst of Israel to this day, for she hid the messengers whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.”
14. Hebrews 11:31 (NIV) – “By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient.”
15. James 2:25 (NKJV) – “Likewise, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way?”
16. Matthew 1:5 (ESV) – “And Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse,”
17. Psalm 89:10 (KJV) – “Thou hast broken Rahab in pieces, as one that is slain; thou hast scattered thine enemies with thy strong arm.”
18. Isaiah 51:9 (NLT) – “Wake up, wake up, O Lord! Clothe yourself with strength! Flex your mighty right arm! Rouse yourself as in the days of old when you slew Rahab, the dragon of the sea.”
19. Job 26:12 (Holman) – “By His power He stirred the sea, and by His understanding He crushed Rahab.”
20. Psalm 87:4 (NIV) – “I will record Rahab and Babylon among those who acknowledge me—Philistia too, and Tyre, along with Cush—and will say, ‘This one was born in Zion.’”
