{
  "id": "dict_004814",
  "term": "Rechab",
  "slug": "rechab",
  "letter": "R",
  "entry_type": "biblical_person",
  "entry_family": "theological_term",
  "depth_profile": "standard",
  "short_definition": "An Old Testament personal name borne by at least two men: a Benjamite linked to the murder of Ish-bosheth, and the ancestor or father of Jehonadab, associated with the Rechabites.",
  "simple_one_line": "Rechab is an Old Testament name shared by more than one person.",
  "tooltip_text": "A biblical personal name borne by at least two men, including the father or ancestor of Jehonadab and a Benjamite involved in Ish-bosheth’s murder.",
  "aliases": [],
  "scripture_references": [],
  "original_language_terms": [],
  "related_entries": [
    "Jehonadab",
    "Rechabites",
    "Ish-bosheth",
    "2 Samuel",
    "Jeremiah 35"
  ],
  "see_also": [
    "Baanah",
    "Saul",
    "Benjamites",
    "Covenant obedience"
  ],
  "lede_intro": "Rechab is an Old Testament personal name, not a doctrine or theological concept. The name is used for more than one man in Scripture, including a Benjamite connected with the death of Ish-bosheth and the father or ancestor of Jehonadab, from whom the Rechabites are identified.",
  "at_a_glance_definition": "Old Testament personal name",
  "at_a_glance_key_points": [
    "Shared by more than one biblical figure",
    "One Rechab was a Benjamite linked to Ish-bosheth’s murder",
    "Another is connected with Jehonadab and the Rechabites"
  ],
  "description_academic_short": "Rechab is an Old Testament personal name borne by more than one individual. The best-known references are to a Benjamite involved in the murder of Ish-bosheth and to the father or ancestor of Jehonadab, whose descendants are called the Rechabites.",
  "description_academic_full": "Rechab is an Old Testament personal name rather than a theological term. In 2 Samuel 4, Rechab appears with his brother Baanah among the men who murdered Ish-bosheth, Saul’s son. The name is also associated with Jehonadab son of Rechab in 2 Kings 10 and with the Rechabites in Jeremiah 35. Because the name is shared by more than one biblical figure, a good dictionary entry should treat it as a personal name with brief disambiguation rather than as a doctrinal headword.",
  "background_biblical_context": "The Old Testament uses the name Rechab in narrative and family-line contexts. One Rechab belongs to the account of Saul’s house after David’s rise to power; another is connected to Jehonadab and the Rechabite family tradition highlighted in Jeremiah 35.",
  "background_historical_context": "The Rechabites are remembered for a distinctive family rule and settled way of life in contrast to surrounding Israelite patterns. The name Rechab therefore appears in both royal-political and family-tradition settings in the Old Testament.",
  "background_jewish_ancient_context": "Later Jewish readers often recognized the Rechabites as an example of family fidelity and obedience to ancestral instruction. Scripture, however, presents the name primarily as a personal and family designation.",
  "key_texts_primary": [
    "2 Samuel 4:2, 5-9",
    "2 Kings 10:15, 23",
    "Jeremiah 35:6-19"
  ],
  "key_texts_secondary": [
    "1 Chronicles 2:55",
    "Jeremiah 35:18-19"
  ],
  "original_language_note": "The Hebrew form is a personal name; the meaning is not certain enough to press for doctrine. In dictionary use, it functions as a proper name attached to multiple people.",
  "theological_significance": "Rechab itself is not a doctrinal term, but the Rechabite line associated with the name becomes a biblical example of family obedience and covenant faithfulness in Jeremiah 35.",
  "philosophical_explanation": "As a proper name, Rechab illustrates how Scripture sometimes preserves the same name for different individuals. Interpretation depends on context, not on assuming one referent in every occurrence.",
  "interpretive_cautions": "Do not confuse the Benjamite Rechab of 2 Samuel 4 with Rechab in the Jehonadab/Rechabite tradition. The entry should be read as a name entry, not as a theology topic.",
  "major_views_note": "Readers sometimes look for a single Rechab, but Scripture presents multiple referents. The safest treatment is a disambiguated personal-name entry that notes the principal biblical uses.",
  "doctrinal_boundaries": "This entry should not be used to build doctrine from the name itself. Any theological reflection belongs to the Rechabites in Jeremiah 35, not to the name Rechab as such.",
  "practical_significance": "The Rechabite material associated with the name encourages readers to value faithfulness, obedience, and generational responsibility, while remembering that the name itself is only a personal identifier.",
  "meta_description": "Rechab is an Old Testament personal name shared by more than one man, including a Benjamite and the ancestor of the Rechabites.",
  "public_url": "/companion-bible-dictionary/rechab/",
  "json_url": "/companion-bible-dictionary/data/dictionary/rechab.json",
  "final_disposition": "PUBLISH_CANONICAL"
}