Rahab

Rahab (Hebrew: רָחָב, Rahab ) in the Old Testament the name of the woman who had hidden after the report of the capture and destruction of Jericho by the Israelites (Josh. 2 EU) two spies sent by Joshua into her house and saved. This they did with her family to survive the massacre of all the other residents and the complete destruction of the city by Jos 6 EU.

Genealogy

According to Matthew 1.5 EU Rahab wife Salma or Salmon and mother of Boaz was. The other genealogies and tribal lists mention Rahab's name not (see: Ruth 4.21 EU; 1 Chr 2,11 EU, Lk 3,32 EU).

In the book of Joshua (2.1 EU; 6,17.25 EU) and in the New Testament (Hebrews 11:31 EU; Jak 2.25 EU) Rahab is referred to as a whore. In the related report of the capture of Jericho of the Jewish historian Flavius ​​Josephus, this term is not used for Rahab. According to Josephus, Rahab was a hostess and I have the two scouts in their host house houses (Ant. 5.7 f). The tradition, Rahab was an innkeeper, also follows the Targum Jonathan ( Jos 2:1).

The derivation of the name Rahab is not released. It has been suggested that the name of an eponym of the Kenites had or with other non-Israelite tribal or clan name of the form בֵית רָחָב (BET Rahab, " whore house ") or ( Noth ) with the place name Beth- rehob ( בֵית - רְחֹב, " house on the public square ", see: Ri 18.28 EU, 2 Sam 10,6 EU and others) was related. In the Talmud, the name Rahab is a derivative RHB with the Hebrew verbal root, " spread, open up wide ," explains. An interpretation of the name from the Hebrew verbal root RHB has also been suggested by newer artists. On these hypotheses on the origin of the name Rahab based scattered further interpretations here want to see an allusion to the profession of prostitutes nickname. Predominantly, the name is understood as a genuine feminine personal name, which was not produced by a subsequent interpretation or etiology, and awarded him connected with tradition a great age.

Other interpretations

The name Rahab is also found as a reproduction of the Hebrew רַהַב ( rahab; Judeo -Aramaic: רַהֲבָא, Rahaba, " fury, rage " ) in the translations of Isa 51.9 EU, Ps 89,10 EU, Hi 9, 13 EU and 26,12 EU where this is interpreted as the name of a mythical monster, and in Isa 30.7 EU 87.4 EU and Ps as a symbolic name for Egypt. Another occurrence of this word is found in Ps 40.5 ELB, where it is translated as " oppressors, the enemy " and the like. This name comes from the Hebrew root רהב ( rhb, " assail, enforce, harry " ), the correlation in many other Semitic languages ​​has.