< Joshua 2 >
1 And Joshua son of Nun sendeth from Shittim, two men, spies, silently, saying, 'Go, see the land — and Jericho;' and they go and come into the house of a woman, a harlot, and her name [is] Rahab, and they lie down there.
And so Joshua, the son of Nun, sent two men from Shittim to explore in secret. And he said to them, “Go and consider the land and the city of Jericho.” And while traveling, they entered into the house of a harlot woman named Rahab, and they rested with her.
2 And it is told to the king of Jericho, saying, 'Lo, men have come in hither to-night, from the sons of Israel, to search the land.
And it was reported to the king of Jericho, and it was said: “Behold, men have entered to this place in the night, from the sons of Israel, so that they might explore the land.”
3 And the king of Jericho sendeth unto Rahab, saying, 'Bring out the men who are coming in unto thee, who have come into thy house, for to search the whole of the land they have come in.
And the king of Jericho sent to Rahab, saying: “Bring out the men who came to you, and who entered into your house. For certainly they are spies, and they have arrived to consider the entire land.”
4 And the woman taketh the two men, and hideth them, and saith thus: 'The men came in unto me, and I have not known whence they [are];
And the woman, taking the men, hid them. And she said: “I admit that they came to me, but I did not know where they were from.
5 and it cometh to pass — the gate is to [be] shut — in the dark, and the men have gone out; I have not known whither the men have gone; pursue ye, hasten after them, for ye overtake them;'
And when the gate was closed, they went out together in the darkness. I do not know where they have gone. Pursue them quickly, and you will overtake them.”
6 and she hath caused them to go up on the roof, and hideth them with the flax wood, which is arranged for her on the roof.
But she caused the men to ascend to the roof of her house, and she covered them with the stalks of flax that were there.
7 And the men have pursued after them the way of the Jordan, by the fords, and the gate they have shut afterwards, when the pursuers have gone out after them.
But those who had been sent pursued after them along the way that leads to the ford of the Jordan. And as soon as they went out, the gate was closed.
8 And — before they lie down — she hath gone up unto them on the roof,
Those who were hiding had not yet fallen asleep, and behold, the woman went up to them, and she said:
9 and she saith unto the men, 'I have known that Jehovah hath given to you the land, and that your terror hath fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land have melted at your presence.
“I know that the Lord has given this land to you. For the terror of you has fallen upon us, and all the inhabitants of the land have languished.
10 'For we have heard how Jehovah dried up the waters of the Red Sea at your presence, in your going out of Egypt, and that which ye have done to the two kings of the Amorite who [are] beyond the Jordan; to Sihon and to Og whom ye devoted.
We have heard that the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea upon your arrival, when you were departing from Egypt, and we heard of the things that you did to the two kings of the Amorites, who were beyond the Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom you put to death.
11 And we hear, and melt doth our heart, and there hath not stood any more spirit in [any] man, from your presence, for Jehovah your God, He [is] God in the heavens above, and on the earth beneath.
And upon hearing these things, we were very afraid, and our heart languished. Neither did there remain in us any spirit at your arrival. For the Lord your God is the very God in heaven above and on earth below.
12 'And now, swear ye, I pray you, to me by Jehovah — because I have done with you kindness — that ye have done, even ye, kindness with the house of my father, and have given to me a true token,
Now, therefore, swear to me by the Lord that in the same way that I have acted with mercy toward you, so also shall you act toward the house of my father. And may you give me a true sign
13 and have kept alive my father, and my mother, and my brothers, and my sisters, and all that they have, and have delivered our souls from death.'
that you will save my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all that is theirs, and that you may rescue our souls from death.”
14 And the men say to her, 'Our soul for yours — to die; if ye declare not this our matter, then it hath been, in Jehovah's giving to us this land, that we have done with thee kindness and truth.'
They responded to her: “May our lives be yours unto death, if only you do not betray us. And when the Lord will have delivered the land to us, we will act toward you with mercy and truth.”
15 And she causeth them to go down by a rope through the window, for her house [is] in the side of the wall, and in the wall she [is] dwelling;
Therefore, she sent them down from a window with a rope. For her house was joined to the wall.
16 and she saith to them, 'To the mountain go, lest the pursuers come upon you; and ye have been hidden there three days till the turning back of the pursuers, and afterwards ye go on your way.'
And she said to them: “Climb up to the mountains; otherwise, they may meet you as they are returning. And lay hidden there for three days, until they return. And then you will go on your way.”
17 And the men say unto her, 'We are acquitted of this thine oath which thou hast caused us to swear:
And they said to her: “We shall be innocent of this oath, to which you have sworn us,
18 lo, we are coming into the land, this line of scarlet thread thou dost bind to the window by which thou hast caused us to go down, and thy father, and thy mother, and thy brethren, and all the house of thy father thou dost gather unto thee, to the house;
if, when we enter into the land, this scarlet cord has been placed as a sign, and you have tied it at the window by which you let us down. And so, gather your father, and mother, and brothers, and all your family into your house.
19 and it hath been, any one who goeth out from the doors of thy house without, his blood [is] on his head, and we are innocent; and any one who is with thee in the house, his blood [is] on our head, if a hand is on him;
Whoever will have exited from the door of your house, his blood will be on his own head, and we will be uninvolved. But the blood of all who will be with you in the house shall fall back upon our own head, if anyone touches them.
20 and if thou declare this our matter, then we have been acquitted from thine oath which thou hast caused us to swear.'
But if you will have betrayed us, so that you spread this word in their midst, we will be free from this oath, to which you have sworn us.”
21 And she saith, 'According unto your words, so it [is];' and she sendeth them away, and they go; and she bindeth the scarlet line to the window.
And she responded, “Just as you have spoken, so let it be done.” And sending them to travel on, she hung the scarlet cord at the window.
22 And they go, and come in to the mountain, and abide there three days until the pursuers have turned back; and the pursuers seek in all the way, and have not found.
And truly, walking on, they arrived at the mountains, and they stayed there for three days, until those who had been pursuing them returned. For having sought them along the entire way, they did not find them.
23 And the two men turn back, and come down from the hill, and pass over, and come in unto Joshua son of Nun, and recount to him all that hath come upon them;
And when they returned and entered the city, the explorers descended from the mountain. And crossing the Jordan, they went to Joshua, the son of Nun, and they reported to him all that had happened to them.
24 and they say unto Joshua, 'Surely Jehovah hath given into our hand all the land; and also, all the inhabitants of the land have melted at our presence.'
And they said, “The Lord has delivered this entire land into our hands, and all its inhabitants have been struck down by fear.”