CHAPTER 2
1 Therefore Joshua, the son of Nun, sent from Shittim two men, spyers in huddles, and said to them, Go ye, and behold ye the land, and the city of Jericho. Which went, and entered into the house of a woman whore, Rahab by name, and rested at her. (And so Joshua, the son of Nun, secretly sent out two spies from Shittim, and said to them, Go ye, and look ye over the land, and the city of Jericho. And they went, and entered into the house of a whore-woman, Rahab by name, and stayed with her.)
2 And it was told, and said to the king of Jericho, Lo! men of the sons of Israel have entered hither by night, to espy the land. (And it was told to the king of Jericho, Behold! some men of the Israelites have come in here by night, to spy out the land.)
3 Therefore the king of Jericho sent to Rahab the whore, and said, Bring out the men, that came to thee, and that entered into thine house; for they be spyers (or for they be spies), and they came to behold all the land.
4 And the woman took the men, and hid them, and said, I acknowledge, that they came to me, but I wist not of whence they were; (But earlier, the woman had taken the men, and had hid them, and so she said, I acknowledge, that they came to me, but I knew not where they came from;)
5 and when the gate was closed in darknesses, and they went out together, I know not whither they went, (or and tonight before the city gate was closed, they went out together, but I do not know where they went); pursue ye them soon, and ye shall overtake them.
6 Forsooth she (had) made the men to go up into the solar of her house, and she (had) covered them with stubble, or sheaves, of flax, that was there.
7 And they, that were sent, followed them by the way that leadeth to the fords of (the) Jordan; and when they were gone out, anon the gate was closed. (And they, who were sent there, followed after them by the way that leadeth to the crossings of the Jordan River; and when they were gone out, at once the city gate was closed.)
8 [And] They that were hid, slept not yet, and lo! the woman went up to them,
9 and said, I know that the Lord hath betaken to you this land; for your fearedfulness is fallen into us, and all the dwellers of the land be abashed. (and she said, I know that the Lord hath delivered this land to you; for we all be afraid of you, and all the inhabitants of the land be greatly panicked.)
10 We have heard, that the Lord hath dried up the waters of the Red Sea at your entering, when ye went out of Egypt; and what things ye did to the two kings of Amorites, that were beyond (the) Jordan, to Sihon and Og, which ye killed; (We have heard, that the Lord dried up the waters of the Red Sea, or the Sea of Reeds, before you, when ye went out of Egypt; and what ye did to the two kings of the Amorites, who were on the eastern side of the Jordan River, that is, to Sihon and Og, whom ye killed;)
11 and we heard these things, and we dreaded, and our heart was sick, and spirit dwelled not in us at your entering; for the Lord your God himself is God in heaven above, and in earth beneath (or and on the earth below).
12 Now therefore swear ye to me by the Lord God, that as I did mercy with you, so and ye do with the house(hold) of my father; and give ye to me a very sign, (And so now swear ye to me by the Lord God, that as I did mercy with you, so ye shall also do mercy with my family; and give ye to me a true sign,)
13 that ye (shall) save my father, and my mother, and my brethren, and [my] sisters, and all things that be theirs, and (shall) deliver our lives from death.
14 Which answered to her, Our life be for you into death, if nevertheless thou betrayest not us; and when the Lord hath betaken to us the land, we shall do mercy and truth with thee. (And they answered to her, Our lives be for yours unto death, if thou betrayest us not; and when the Lord hath delivered the land to us, we shall show mercy and faithfulness to thee.)
15 Then she let them down from the window by a cord; for her house was joined
to the town wall.
16 And she said to them, Go ye up to the hilly places, lest peradventure the men turning again meet you; and be ye hid there three days, till they come again; and so ye shall go by your way. (And she said to them, Go ye up to the hills, lest as the men return, they come upon you; and be ye hid there for three days, until they return; and then ye can go on your way.)
17 Which said to her, We shall be guiltless of this oath, by which thou hast charged us,
18 if, when we enter into the land, this red cord is not (shown as) a sign, and thou bindest it not in the window, by which thou lettest us down; and thou gatherest not into thine house thy father, and mother, and brethren, and all thy kindred;
19 the blood of him shall be on his head, that goeth out at the door of thine house, and we shall be guiltless; forsooth the blood of all men that be in the house with thee, shall turn into our head (or shall be on our heads), if any man toucheth them.
20 That if thou wilt betray us, and bring forth into the midst this word, we shall be clean of this oath, by which thou hast charged us. (But if thou wilt betray us, and bring forth this word into the midst, or and make known our agreement, then we shall be released from this oath, by which thou hast charged us.)
21 And she answered, As ye have spoken, so be it done. And she let go them, that they should go forth, (or And she let them go, so that they could go forth), and (then) she hanged the red cord in her window.
22 And they went forth, and came into the hilly places, and dwelled there three days, till they turned again that (had) pursued them; for they sought them by each way, and found not them. (And they went forth, and came to the hills, and stayed there for three days, until they who had pursued them returned; for they had sought them every place that they could think of, but could not find them anywhere.)
23 And when the seekers entered into the city again, the spyers turned again, and came down from the hill; and when they had passed [over](the) Jordan, they came to Joshua, the son of Nun; and they told to him all things that befelled to them, (And after that those who had sought them had entered into the city again, the spies returned, and came down from the hills; and when they had crossed back over the Jordan River, they came to Joshua, the son of Nun; and they told him everything that had happened to them,)
24 and said, The Lord hath betaken all the land into our hands, and all the dwellers thereof be cast down by dread. (and they said, The Lord hath delivered all the land into our hands, and all of its inhabitants be greatly afraid of us.)