Rahab Welcomes the Spies
(Hebrews 11:31-40)
1And Joshua the son of Nun sent out of Shittim two men to spy secretly, saying, Go view the land, even Jericho. And they went, and came into an harlot's house, named Rahab, and lodged there. 2And it was told the king of Jericho, saying, Behold, there came men in hither to night of the children of Israel to search out the country. 3And the king of Jericho sent unto Rahab, saying, Bring forth the men that are come to thee, which are entered into thine house: for they be come to search out all the country. 4And the woman took the two men, and hid them, and said thus, There came men unto me, but I wist not whence they were: 5And it came to pass about the time of shutting of the gate, when it was dark, that the men went out: whither the men went I wot not: pursue after them quickly; for ye shall overtake them. 6But she had brought them up to the roof of the house, and hid them with the stalks of flax, which she had laid in order upon the roof. 7And the men pursued after them the way to Jordan unto the fords: and as soon as they which pursued after them were gone out, they shut the gate.
8And before they were laid down, she came up unto them upon the roof; 9And she said unto the men, I know that the LORD hath given you the land, and that your terror is fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land faint because of you. 10For we have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red sea for you, when ye came out of Egypt; and what ye did unto the two kings of the Amorites, that were on the other side Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom ye utterly destroyed. 11And as soon as we had heard these things, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more courage in any man, because of you: for the LORD your God, he is God in heaven above, and in earth beneath. 12Now therefore, I pray you, swear unto me by the LORD, since I have shewed you kindness, that ye will also shew kindness unto my father's house, and give me a true token: 13And that ye will save alive my father, and my mother, and my brethren, and my sisters, and all that they have, and deliver our lives from death. 14And the men answered her, Our life for yours, if ye utter not this our business. And it shall be, when the LORD hath given us the land, that we will deal kindly and truly with thee.
The Promise to Rahab
15Then she let them down by a cord through the window: for her house was upon the town wall, and she dwelt upon the wall. 16And she said unto them, Get you to the mountain, lest the pursuers meet you; and hide yourselves there three days, until the pursuers be returned: and afterward may ye go your way. 17And the men said unto her, We will be blameless of this thine oath which thou hast made us swear. 18Behold, when we come into the land, thou shalt bind this line of scarlet thread in the window which thou didst let us down by: and thou shalt bring thy father, and thy mother, and thy brethren, and all thy father's household, home unto thee. 19And it shall be, that whosoever shall go out of the doors of thy house into the street, his blood shall be upon his head, and we will be guiltless: and whosoever shall be with thee in the house, his blood shall be on our head, if any hand be upon him. 20And if thou utter this our business, then we will be quit of thine oath which thou hast made us to swear. 21And she said, According unto your words, so be it. And she sent them away, and they departed: and she bound the scarlet line in the window.
22And they went, and came unto the mountain, and abode there three days, until the pursuers were returned: and the pursuers sought them throughout all the way, but found them not. 23So the two men returned, and descended from the mountain, and passed over, and came to Joshua the son of Nun, and told him all things that befell them: 24And they said unto Joshua, Truly the LORD hath delivered into our hands all the land; for even all the inhabitants of the country do faint because of us.
King James Bible
Text courtesy of BibleProtector.com.
Rahab Welcomes the Spies
(Hebrews 11:30–31)
1 Joshua the son of Nun secretly sent two men out of Shittim as spies, saying, “Go, view the land, including Jericho.” They went and came into the house of a prostitute whose name was Rahab, and slept there. 2 The king of Jericho was told, “Behold, men of the children of Israel came in here tonight to spy out the land.” 3 The king of Jericho sent to Rahab, saying, “Bring out the men who have come to you, who have entered into your house; for they have come to spy out all the land.” 4 The woman took the two men and hid them. Then she said, “Yes, the men came to me, but I didn’t know where they came from. 5 It happened about the time of the shutting of the gate, when it was dark, that the men went out. Where the men went, I don’t know. Pursue them quickly; for you will overtake them.” 6 But she had brought them up to the roof, and hid them with the stalks of flax, which she had laid in order on the roof. 7 The men pursued them the way to the Jordan to the fords: and as soon as those who pursued them had gone out, they shut the gate.
The Promise to Rahab
8 Before they had laid down, she came up to them on the roof; 9 and she said to the men, “I know that Yahweh has given you the land, and that the fear of you has fallen on us, and that all the inhabitants of the land melt away before you. 10 For we have heard how Yahweh dried up the water of the Red Sea before you, when you came out of Egypt; and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites, who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon and to Og, whom you utterly destroyed. 11 As soon as we had heard it, our hearts melted, neither did there remain any more spirit in any man, because of you: for Yahweh your God, he is God in heaven above, and on earth beneath. 12 Now therefore, please swear to me by Yahweh, since I have dealt kindly with you, that you also will deal kindly with my father’s house, and give me a true token; 13 and that you will save alive my father, my mother, my brothers, and my sisters, and all that they have, and will deliver our lives from death.” 14 The men said to her, “Our life for yours, if you don’t talk about this business of ours; and it shall be, when Yahweh gives us the land, that we will deal kindly and truly with you.”
15 Then she let them down by a cord through the window; for her house was on the side of the wall, and she lived on the wall. 16 She said to them, “Go to the mountain, lest the pursuers find you; and hide yourselves there three days, until the pursuers have returned. Afterward, you may go your way.” 17 The men said to her, “We will be guiltless of this your oath which you have made us to swear. 18 Behold, when we come into the land, you shall bind this line of scarlet thread in the window which you used to let us down. You shall gather to yourself into the house your father, your mother, your brothers, and all your father’s household. 19 It shall be that whoever goes out of the doors of your house into the street, his blood will be on his head, and we will be guiltless. Whoever is with you in the house, his blood shall be on our head, if any hand is on him. 20 But if you talk about this business of ours, then we shall be guiltless of your oath which you have made us to swear.” 21 She said, “According to your words, so be it.” She sent them away, and they departed. She tied the scarlet line in the window.
22 They went, and came to the mountain, and stayed there three days, until the pursuers had returned. The pursuers sought them throughout all the way, but didn’t find them. 23 Then the two men returned, descended from the mountain, passed over, and came to Joshua the son of Nun; and they told him all that had happened to them. 24 They said to Joshua, “Truly Yahweh has delivered into our hands all the land. Moreover, all the inhabitants of the land melt away before us.”
Rahab Welcomes the Spies
(Hebrews 11:30–31)
1 Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim, a saying, “Go, inspect the land, especially Jericho.” So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there.
2 And it was reported to the king of Jericho: “Behold, some men of Israel have come here tonight to spy out the land.”
3 So the king of Jericho sent to Rahab and said, “Bring out the men who came to you and entered your house, for they have come to spy out the whole land.”
4 But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. So she said, “Yes, the men did come to me, but I did not know where they had come from. 5 At dusk, when the gate was about to close, the men went out, and I do not know which way they went. Pursue them quickly, and you may catch them!” 6 (But Rahab had taken them up to the roof and hidden them among the stalks of flax that she had laid out there.)
7 So the king’s men set out in pursuit of the spies along the road to the fords of the Jordan, and as soon as they had gone out, the gate was shut.
The Promise to Rahab
8 Before the spies lay down for the night, Rahab went up on the roof 9 and said to them, “I know that the LORD has given you this land and that the fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who dwell in the land are melting in fear of you. 10 For we have heard how the LORD dried up the waters of the Red Sea b before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites across the Jordan, whom you devoted to destruction. c 11 When we heard this, our hearts melted and everyone’s courage failed because of you, for the LORD your God is God in the heavens above and on the earth below.
12 Now therefore, please swear to me by the LORD that you will indeed show kindness to my family, because I showed kindness to you. Give me a sure sign 13 that you will spare the lives of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them, and that you will deliver us from death.”
14 “Our lives for your lives!” the men agreed. “If you do not report our mission, we will show you kindness and faithfulness when the LORD gives us the land.”
15 Then Rahab let them down by a rope through the window, since the house where she lived was built into the wall of the city. 16 “Go to the hill country,” she said, “so that your pursuers will not find you. Hide yourselves there for three days until they have returned; then go on your way.”
17 The men said to her, “We will not be bound by this oath you made us swear 18 unless, when we enter the land, you have tied this scarlet cord in the window through which you let us down, and unless you have brought your father and mother and brothers and all your family into your house. 19 If anyone goes out the door of your house into the street, his blood will be on his own head, and we will be innocent. But if a hand is laid on anyone with you in the house, his blood will be on our heads. 20 And if you report our mission, we will be released from the oath you made us swear.”
21 “Let it be as you say,” she replied, and she sent them away. And when they had gone, she tied the scarlet cord in the window.
22 So the spies went out into the hill country and stayed there three days, until their pursuers had returned without finding them, having searched all along the road. 23 Then the two men started back, came down from the hill country, and crossed the river. So they came to Joshua son of Nun and reported all that had happened to them.
24 “The LORD has surely delivered the entire land into our hands,” they said to Joshua. “Indeed, all who dwell in the land are melting in fear of us.”
Footnotes:
1 a Or Acacia Grove
10 b Or the Sea of Reeds
10 c Forms of the Hebrew cherem refer to the giving over of things or persons to the LORD, either by destroying them or by giving them as an offering.
Rahab Welcomes the Spies
(Hebrews 11:31-40)
1And 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. 2And 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. 3And 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. 4And 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; 5and 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;' 6and 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. 7And 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.
8And -- before they lie down -- she hath gone up unto them on the roof, 9and 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. 10For 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. 11And 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. 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, 13and 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.' 14And 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.'
The Promise to Rahab
15And 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; 16and 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.' 17And the men say unto her, 'We are acquitted of this thine oath which thou hast caused us to swear: 18lo, 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; 19and 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; 20and if thou declare this our matter, then we have been acquitted from thine oath which thou hast caused us to swear.' 21And 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.
22And 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. 23And 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; 24and 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.'
