Rahab and The Society of Jericho
Dear Reader,
I would first like to thank Rabbi Yamin Levy for teaching me the Book of Joshua and for teaching me that the Bible is not an antiquated reference book of theology, but a living testament to the Divine.
One of the first stories in the Book of Joshua, is the story of the spies. Joshua sent both his spies to do reconnaissance on the city of Jericho. Where was the first place they decided to gather information? A house of ill repute, a brothel (the word in Hebrew is Zona, Joshua 2:1, so let's not kid ourselves about her profession), run by a woman named Rahab.
The nation of Israel was coming into Canaan. The natives were quaking as their invader approached, but the invader was coming with a quest. This quest was a revolution. Equality and an opportunity to worship the One and True. Join and you will be fully integrated into Israel. Leave, and a pursuit will not ensue. These were the laws of the conquest of Canaan. Israel, a meritocracy where men are judged not by their standing, but by their deeds. Wicked men, regardless of lineage (Korach as an example, a prestigious and powerful Levite, swallowed up for rebelling against the meritocracy of Moses) are punished while the good flourish. It is a utopia that is sweeping the land.
Jericho was scared. This nation had just left Egypt a short forty years ago in nothing short of a miraculous exodus. They defeated Sichon the Emorite and the Amalekites. These desert nomads were no pushover, especially for a sedentary city with no especially powerful army. They run a traditional Canaanite city: society is ruled by the people with power regardless of merit. Rahab, as an outcast, is forced into prostitution (let's face it, no woman wants to be a prostitute) on the fringes of society. Society rejected her, and so she rejected her society. One usually asks how Rahab would betray her city to enemies of its people, but now it becomes understandable.
A society that rejects its own constituents is not a society to be in. That is the message of Rahab.
-Marc Kolb
I would first like to thank Rabbi Yamin Levy for teaching me the Book of Joshua and for teaching me that the Bible is not an antiquated reference book of theology, but a living testament to the Divine.
One of the first stories in the Book of Joshua, is the story of the spies. Joshua sent both his spies to do reconnaissance on the city of Jericho. Where was the first place they decided to gather information? A house of ill repute, a brothel (the word in Hebrew is Zona, Joshua 2:1, so let's not kid ourselves about her profession), run by a woman named Rahab.
The nation of Israel was coming into Canaan. The natives were quaking as their invader approached, but the invader was coming with a quest. This quest was a revolution. Equality and an opportunity to worship the One and True. Join and you will be fully integrated into Israel. Leave, and a pursuit will not ensue. These were the laws of the conquest of Canaan. Israel, a meritocracy where men are judged not by their standing, but by their deeds. Wicked men, regardless of lineage (Korach as an example, a prestigious and powerful Levite, swallowed up for rebelling against the meritocracy of Moses) are punished while the good flourish. It is a utopia that is sweeping the land.
Jericho was scared. This nation had just left Egypt a short forty years ago in nothing short of a miraculous exodus. They defeated Sichon the Emorite and the Amalekites. These desert nomads were no pushover, especially for a sedentary city with no especially powerful army. They run a traditional Canaanite city: society is ruled by the people with power regardless of merit. Rahab, as an outcast, is forced into prostitution (let's face it, no woman wants to be a prostitute) on the fringes of society. Society rejected her, and so she rejected her society. One usually asks how Rahab would betray her city to enemies of its people, but now it becomes understandable.
A society that rejects its own constituents is not a society to be in. That is the message of Rahab.
-Marc Kolb
posted by Marc Kolb | 12:16 AM
3 Comments:
I would need to disagree. The people of Canaan were not really given the option of accepting the Jewish God. The Hebrews were given orders to send a message to the nations of Canaan. They were given the choice to leave and live or to stay and die. This is not a measure of equality, but rather a measure of injustice. It is not upotia to be threatened in order to leave your home. The people of Canaan were scared, but also felt that they wanted to defend their homes. They sought to preserve their own society, something that they had full right to do.
"When thou drawest nigh unto a city to fight against it, then proclaim peace unto it. And it shall be, if it make thee answer of peace, and open unto thee, then it shall be, that all the people that are found therein shall become tributary unto thee, and shall serve thee. And if it will make no peace with thee, but will make war against thee, then thou shalt besiege it."
Deuteronomy 20:10-12
These are the Torah's laws. It would have been impossible to have a lawful conquest without offering peace to each city prior to battle. They knew full well that they could become a tributary to Israel and be left alone if they paid their taxes and what not. According to the law, they don't even have to be monotheistic to live in peace. Their culture would have been left in tact as would their homes and land. They were offered a peace settlement, they chose not to take it.
As per the conquest, Maimonides stated the following in his laws on kings (Chapter 6):
ומניין שאינו מדבר אלא באלו שלא השלימו: שנאמר "לא הייתה עיר, אשר השלימה את ישראל, בלתי החיווי, יושבי גבעון: את הכול, לקחו במלחמה. כי מאת ה' הייתה לחזק את ליבם לקראת המלחמה את ישראל, למען החרימם" (ראה יהושוע יא,יט-כ)--מכלל ששלחו להם לשלום, ולא קיבלו.
Peace had to have been asked or the statement that one nation sought peace would not make sense.
שלושה כתבים שלח יהושוע, עד שלא נכנס לארץ: הראשון שלח להם מי שרוצה לברוח, יברח; וחזר ושלח מי שרוצה להשלים, ישלים; וחזר ושלח מי שרוצה לעשות מלחמה, יעשה.
Additionally, he went as far as to say that Joshua sent three letters to each city with three intentions: peace, flight, or battle.
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