Joshua 2

1 And Joshua the son of Naue sent out of Sattin two young men to spy [the land], saying, Go up and view the land and Jericho: and the two young men went and entered into Jericho; and they entered into the house of a harlot, whose name [was] Raab, and lodged there.

Then Joshua, the son of Nun, sent two men from Shittim secretly, with the purpose of searching out the land, and Jericho. So they went and came to the house of a loose woman of the town, named Rahab, where they took their rest for the night.

2 An it was reported to the king of Jericho, saying, Men of the sons of Israel have come in hither to spy the land.

And it was said to the king of Jericho, See, some men have come here tonight from the children of Israel with the purpose of searching out the land.

3 And the king of Jericho sent and spoke to Raab, saying, Bring out the men that entered into your house this night; for they are come to spy out the land.

Then the king of Jericho sent to Rahab, saying, Send out the men who have come to you and are in your house; for they have come with the purpose of searching out all the land.

4 And the woman took the two men and hid them; and she spoke to the messengers, saying, The men came in to me,

And the woman took the two men and put them in a secret place; then she said, Yes, the men came to me, but I had no idea where they came from;

5 but when the gate was shut in the evening, the men went out; I know not whither they are gone: follow after them, if you may overtake them.

And when it was the time for shutting the doors at dark, they went out; I have no idea where the men went: but if you go after them quickly, you will overtake them.

6 But she [had] brought them up upon the house, and hid them in the flax-stalks that were spread by her on the house.

But she had taken them up to the roof, covering them with the stems of flax which she had put out in order there.

7 And the men followed after them in the way to Jordan to the fords; and the gate was shut.

So the men went after them on the road to Jordan as far as the river-crossing: and when they had gone out after them, the door into the town was shut.

8 And it came to pass when the men who pursued after them were gone forth, and before the spies had lain down to sleep, that she came up to them on the top of the house;

And before the men went to rest, she came up to them on the roof,

9 and she said to them, I know that the Lord has given you the land; for the fear of you has fallen upon us.

And said to them, It is clear to me that the Lord has given you the land, and that the fear of you has come on us;

10 For we have heard that the Lord God dried up the Red Sea before you, when you came out of the land of Egypt, and all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites, who were beyond Jordan, to Seon and Og, whom you utterly destroyed.

For we have had news of how the Lord made the Red Sea dry before you when you came out of Egypt; and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites, on the other side of Jordan, to Sihon and Og, whom you gave up to the curse.

11 And when we heard it we were amazed in our heart, and there was no longer any spirit in any of us because of you, for the Lord your god [is] God in heaven above, and on the earth beneath.

And because of this news, our hearts became like water, and there was no more spirit in any of us because of you; for the Lord your God is God in heaven on high and here on earth.

12 And now swear to me by the Lord God; since I deal mercifully with you, so do you also deal mercifully with the house of my father:

So now, will you give me your oath by the Lord, that, because I have been kind to you, you will be kind to my father's house,

13 and save alive the house of my father, my mother, and my brethren, and all my house, and all that they have, and you shall rescue my soul from death.

And that you will keep safe my father and mother and my brothers and sisters and all they have, so that death may not come on us?

14 And the men said to her, Our life for yours [even] to death: and she said, When the Lord shall have delivered the city to you, you shall deal mercifully and truly with me.

And the men said to her, Our life for yours if you keep our business secret; and when the Lord has given us the land, we will keep faith and be kind to you.

15 And she let them down by the window;

Then she let them down from the window by a cord, for the house where she was living was on the town wall.

16 and she said to them, Depart into the hill-country, lest the pursuers meet you, and you shall be hidden there three days until your pursuers return from after you, and afterwards you shall depart on your way.

And she said to them, Get away into the hill-country, or the men who have gone after you will overtake you; keep yourselves safe there for three days, till the searchers have come back, and then go on your way.

17 And the men said to her, We are clear of this your oath.

And the men said to her, We will only be responsible for this oath which you have made us take,

18 Behold, we shall enter into a part of the city, and you shall set a sign; you shall bind this scarlet cord in the window, by which you have let us down, and you shall bring in to yourself, into your house, your father, and your mother, and your brethren, and all the family of your father.

If, when we come into the land, you put this cord of bright red thread in the window from which you let us down; and get your father and mother and your brothers and all your family into the house;

19 And it shall come to pass that whoever shall go outside the door of your house, his guilt shall be upon him, and we shall be quit of this your oath; and we will be responsible for all that shall be found with you in your house.

Then if anyone goes out of your house into the street, his blood will be on his head, we will not be responsible; but if any damage comes to anyone in the house, his blood will be on our heads.

20 But if any one should injure us, or betray these our matters, we shall be quit of this your oath.

But if you say anything about our business here, then we will be free from the oath you have made us take.

21 And she said to them, Let it be according to your word; and she sent them out, and they departed.

And she said, Let it be as you say. Then she sent them away, and they went; and she put the bright red cord in the window.

22 And they came to the hill-country, and remained there three days; and the pursuers searched all the roads, and found them not.

And they went into the hill-country and were there three days, till the men who had gone after them had come back; and those who went after them were searching for them everywhere without coming across them.

23 And the two young men returned, and came down out of the mountain; and they went over to Joshua the son of Naue, and told him all things that had happened to them.

Then the two men came down from the hill-country and went over and came back to Joshua, the son of Nun; and they gave him a complete account of what had taken place.

24 And they said to Joshua, The Lord has delivered all the land into our power, and all the inhabitants of that land tremble because of us.

And they said to Joshua, Truly, the Lord has given all the land into our hands; and all the people of the land have become like water because of us.