UST JOS Chapter 2

◄ JOS 2 ► ║ ═ ©

2 Then Joshua son of Nun chose two men from their camp at Shittim. He told them, “Go secretly and find out all that you can about the land, especially about the city of Jericho.” They left the camp and went to Jericho. A prostitute whose name was Rahab lived in that city. They stayed in her house that night. 2 Someone told the king of Jericho, “Be careful! Some Israelite men have come here tonight to spy on our land!” 3 So the king of Jericho sent messengers to Rahab. They told her, “We know that some men are staying in your house. Surrender them to the king, because they have come here to spy on our land!” 4 But Rahab had already hidden the two men inside her house. She told the messengers, “Yes, it is true that those men came to me. But I did not know that they were spies. 5 Those men left Jericho at dusk, before the guards closed the city gates. I do not know where they were going. But if you hurry, you might catch up with them.” 6 But she was lying. She had actually taken the two men up to the flat roof of her house. There she had hidden them under bundles of flax that she had laid out to dry on her roof. 7 Soldiers looked for the men all along the road that leads from Jericho to the place where people can walk across the Jordan River. They thought the men would travel on that road back to the Israelite camp. As soon as the soldiers left the city, guards shut the city gates to keep the spies from escaping if they were actually still in the city.

8 The two men expected to sleep on the roof, hiding under the flax stalks. But Rahab went up to the roof and spoke with them before they went to sleep. 9 She said to them, “We know that Yahweh is going to enable you Israelites to conquer this land. As a result, all the people living in this land are so afraid of you that we will not be able to fight with you. 10 We have heard about how Yahweh dried up the water of the Sea of Reeds so that you could cross it when you left Egypt. We also heard how you killed Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorite people group who lived on the eastern side of the Jordan River. We heard how you totally destroyed them. 11 When we heard about those things, we were very dismayed. We no longer feel courageous enough to fight against you. We know that Yahweh, whom you worship, is the true God. He is the God who rules over everything. And if he is helping you, then we cannot resist you. 12 So now I want you to swear a solemn oath to me by Yahweh that you will act kindly to me and my family because I have acted kindly toward you. I also want you to give me some proof that you will do what you promise, 13 Spare the lives of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all of their families. Promise me that you Israelites will not kill us when you destroy this city.” 14 The two men told her, “May Yahweh cause us to die if we let anyone kill you or your family! If you do not tell others what we are planning to do, then we will act kindly toward you and all your family. We will not kill you when Yahweh enables us to conquer this land.” 15 One of the outside walls of the house where Rahab lived was part of the wall that was around the city of Jericho. She fastened a rope and hung it outside a window that was in that wall. That allowed the men to climb down the wall and escape from the city, even though the king's men had closed the gates. 16 Then she said to them, “When you leave the city, go up into the hills so that the men who are searching for you will not find you. Hide in caves in the hills for three days, until the men who are searching for you return to the city. Then you will be able to safely return to your camp.” 17 The two men gave her a red cord, and said to her, “This is what you must do. If you do not do this, we will not have to do what you made us promise to do. 18 When we come into the land, you must tie this red cord in the window through which you let us down. You must gather together your father and mother, your brothers and sisters, and their families inside your house. 19 If anyone in your family leaves the house and goes into the street, (our soldiers will kill them, and we will not be guilty. But if they injure anyone who is in this house with you, we will be guilty. 20 But if you tell anyone what we are planning to do, we will not have to do what you made us promise to do.” 21 Rahab said, “I agree to do what you say.” Then she sent them away, and they left her house. And she tied the red cord so it would hang out of the window. 22 When the two men left the city, they went up into the hills. They stayed there for three days while the men who had been sent by the king continued to search for them. They searched all along the road, but they did not find the two men. So they gave up and returned to Jericho. 23 Then the two men started back toward their camp. They came down from the hills, crossed the Jordan River, and returned to the Israelite camp. They told Joshua everything that had happened to them. 24 They said to Joshua, “We are certain that Yahweh is going to enable us to conquer that whole land. We know that because all the people there are very afraid of us.”

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