The Real Rahab

Thoughts from Bible Study.

So I really love the story of Rahab and of all the women in the Bible she is the one I am most interested in meeting someday. She was a prostitute. I can imagine that she was shrewd and street smart. She knew what was true and what was just a cheesy line. So what I wonder about her is what did her family think of her line of work? Was it a cultural norm? Or where they just a little embarrassed by her occupation? Had she been cut off? Was her line of work honored in her culture?

She ended up being a key player in God's grand design. She was the woman who saved Joshua from the kings men as she lowered them out a window and down a wall. How many times had she done that little trick? It was the right thing for her to do and she knew it. Obviously, she saw something in these men that was different than all the others. She probably saw that the God they worshiped was no joke. She may have thought, "He is the real deal I want to be apart of that plan."

She negotiated safety for her family:
“Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that you will show kindness to my family, because I have shown kindness to you. Give me a sure sign that you will spare the lives of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them—and that you will save us from death.” Joshua 2: 12-13

Deal making may have been a particular skill in her line of work. Did her family appreciate this deal? Was this a challenge for her to ask? Were they surprised that she thought enough about them to try and save them? Did they deserve to be saved?

God obviously saw something in her. She evidently gave up her line of work and settled down with an Israelite because she became a famous great great great ... grandmother to the baby - Jesus.

I like a God who takes a prostitute and makes her a heroine and a great...grand mother of the Savior.