Joshua 2:6

Green's Literal Translation

But she made them go up on the roof, and hid them with stalks of flax, which she arranged on the roof.

Parallel Translations

Legacy Standard Bible
But she had brought them up to the roof and concealed them in the stalks of flax which she had laid in order on the roof.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
But she had brought them up to the roof and hidden them in the stalks of flax which she had laid in order on the roof.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
But she had brought them vp to the rooffe of the house, & hyd them with the stalkes of flare which she had lying abrode vpon the rooffe.

Easy-to-Read Version
(Rahab said this, but really she had taken the men up to the roof and had hidden them in the flax that she had piled up there.)

Revised Standard Version
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.

World English Bible
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.

King James Version (1611)
But shee had brought them vp to the roofe of the house, and hid them with the stalkes of flaxe, which she had laid in order vpon the roofe.

King James Version
But 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.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
But she had caused them to clymme vp vnto the house toppe, and hyd them vnder the stalkes of flaxe, that she had prepared her vpo the toppe of the house.

American Standard Version
But she had brought them up to the roof, and hid them with the stalks of flax, which she had laid in order upon the roof.

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

Update Bible Version
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.

Webster's Bible Translation
But 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.

New English Translation
(Now she had taken them up to the roof and had hidden them in the stalks of flax she had spread out on the roof.)

New King James Version
(But she had brought them up to the roof and hidden them with the stalks of flax, which she had laid in order on the roof.)

Complete Jewish Bible
Actually she had brought them up to the roof and hidden them under some stalks of flax she had spread out there.

Darby Translation
But she had taken them up to the roof, and secreted them under the stalks of flax, which she had laid out on the roof.

Geneva Bible (1587)
(But she had brought them vp to the roofe of the house, and hidde them with the stalkes of flaxe, which she had spread abroad vpo the roofe)

George Lamsa Translation
But she had brought them up to the roof of the house, and hid them beneath the stalks of flax which she had piled up on the roof.

Amplified Bible
But [in fact] she had brought the scouts up to the roof and had hidden them under the stalks of flax which she had laid in order on the roof [to dry].

Hebrew Names Version
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.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
But she had brought them up to the roof, and hid them with the stalks of flax, which she had spread out upon the roof.

New Living Translation
(Actually, she had taken them up to the roof and hidden them beneath bundles of flax she had laid out.)

New Life Bible
But she had brought them up to the roof and had hidden them under the grain she had put up there.

New Revised Standard
She had, however, brought them up to the roof and hidden them with the stalks of flax that she had laid out on the roof.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
But she had brought them up upon the house, and hid them in the flax-stalks that were spread by her on the house.

English Revised Version
But she had brought them up to the roof, and hid them with the stalks of flax, which she had laid in order upon the roof.

Berean Standard Bible
(But Rahab had taken them up to the roof and hidden them among the stalks of flax that she had laid out there.)

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
But, she, had taken them up to the roof, - and concealed them with the stalks of flax which she had laid in order for herself upon the roof.

Douay-Rheims Bible
But she made the men go up to the top of her house, and covered them with the stalks of flax, which was there.

Lexham English Bible
(But she had taken them to the roof and had hidden them in the stalks of flax that she had spread out on the roof.)

English Standard Version
But she had brought them up to the roof and hid them with the stalks of flax that she had laid in order on the roof.

New American Standard Bible
But she had brought them up to the roof and hidden them in the stalks of flax which she had laid in order on the roof.

New Century Version
(The woman had taken the men up to the roof and had hidden them there under stalks of flax that she had spread out.)

Christian Standard Bible®
But she had taken them up to the roof and hidden them among the stalks of flax that she had arranged on the roof.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Forsothe sche made the men to stie in to the soler of hir hows, and hilide hem with stobil of flex, that was there.

Young's Literal Translation
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.

Contextual Overview

¹ And Joshua the son of Nun sent two men out of Shittim to spy secretly, saying, Go look over the land, and Jericho. And they went and came into the house of a woman, a harlot; and her name was Rahab. And they lay down there. ² And it was reported to the king of Jericho saying, Behold, men have come here tonight from the sons of Israel, to search the land. ³ And the king of Jericho sent to Rahab, saying, Bring out the men who have come in to you, who have come into your house. For they have come in to search out all the land. ⁴ And the woman took the two men and hid them, and said, This way the men came in to me, but I did not know from where they were. ⁵ And it happened as the gate was to be shut at dark, even the men went out. I do not know where they have gone. You go after them, and hurry, for you may overtake them. ⁶ But she made them go up on the roof, and hid them with stalks of flax, which she arranged on the roof. ⁷ And the men went after them the way of the Jordan, by the fords. And they shut the gate afterwards, when the pursuers had gone after them.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

to the roof: Joshua 2:8, Exodus 1:15-21, Deuteronomy 22:8, 2 Samuel 11:2, Matthew 24:17

hid them: Exodus 2:2, 2 Samuel 17:19, 1 Kings 18:4, 1 Kings 18:13, 2 Kings 11:2, Jeremiah 36:26, Colossians 3:3, Hebrews 11:23

Gill's Notes on the Bible

But she had brought them up to the roof of the house,.... Before the messengers came; though Abarbinel thinks it was after they were gone, when she took them from the place of their concealment, and had them to the roof of the house, where she thought they would be safe and secure, should the messengers return, or others come in search of them, who would not, as she imagined, look for them there:

and hid them with the stalks of flax; that is, under them, or "in flax of wood", or "a tree" b; which may with as much propriety, or more, be called a tree than hyssop, 1 Kings 4:33; as it is in the Misnah c. Moreover, there was a sort of flax which grew in the upper part of Egypt towards Arabia, as Pliny says d, which they called "xylon", or wood, of which were made "lina xylina": though the words may be rightly transposed, as by as, "stalks of flax", which are large and strong before the flax is stripped or beaten off of them; the Targum renders it bundles of flax, or handfuls and sheaves of them, as they were when cut down and gathered:

which she had laid in order upon the roof; to be dried, as Kimchi observes; and Pliny e speaks of flax being bound up in bundles, and hung up and dried in the sun; which was done that it might be more easily stripped and beaten off; and the roofs of houses in those countries being flat, were very fit for such a purpose;

1 Kings 4:33- :; and these being now laid there were very suitable and convenient to conceal the men under them. This seems to be in favour of Rahab, as being a virtuous and industrious woman; see

Proverbs 31:13.

b בפשתי העץ "in linis ligni", Montanus; "vel arboris", Vatablus. c Sabbat, c. 2. sect. 3. & Bartenora in ib. d Nat. Hist. l. 19. c. 1. e Nat. Hist. l. 19. c. 1.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Stalks of flax - literally, “the carded fibres of the tree.” The flax in Palestine grew to more than three feet in height, with a stalk as thick as a cane. It was probably with the flax stalks, recently cut (compare Exodus 9:31, note) and laid out on the house roof to dry, that Rahab hid the spies.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Joshua 2:6. Hid then with the stalks of flax — It is a matter of little consequence whether we translate פסתי העיץ pistey haets stalks of flax, or stalks of hemp: the word עץ ets, which signifies wood, serves to show that whether it was hemp or flax, it was in its rough, unmanufactured state; and as this was about the season, viz., the end of March or the beginning of April, in which the flax is ripe in that country, consequently Rahab's flax might have been recently pulled, and was now drying on the roof of her house. The reader may find some useful remarks upon this subject in Harmer's Observations, vol. iv., p. 97, c.

Upon the roof. — We have already seen that all the houses in the east were made flat-roofed for which a law is given Deuteronomy 22:8. On these flat roofs the Asiatics to this day walk, converse, and oftentimes even sleep and pass the night. It is probable that this hiding was after that referred to in the fourth verse.