Rahab lived around 1400 BC in Jericho, an ancient walled city located near the Jordan River in what is now the West Bank, about 10 miles north of the Dead Sea. During her lifetime, Egypt’s New Kingdom was at its height under Pharaoh Thutmose III, and the Minoan civilization was flourishing on the island of Crete with its elaborate palace at Knossos.
She ran an inn built into Jericho’s famous walls—a strategic location that put her in contact with travelers, traders, and information from across the ancient world. When Israelite spies entered the city, she recognized what the city’s leaders couldn’t: their world was about to change completely. Her choice to help the spies and trust in their God transformed her from an outsider in a doomed city to an ancestor of kings. She married Salmon, an Israelite, and became the great-great-grandmother of King David—placing her directly in the lineage of Jesus Christ.