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¹ And Joshua the son of Nun sent out of Shittim two men as spies secretly, saying, Go, view the land, and Jericho. And they went and came into the house of a prostitute whose name was Rahab, and lay there.² And it was told the king of Jericho, saying, Look, there came men in here tonight of the sons of Israel to search out the land.³ And the king of Jericho sent to Rahab, saying, Bring forth the men that came to you, that entered into your house; for they came to search out all the land.⁴ And the woman took the two men. And she hid it, and she said, Yes, the men came to me, but I didn't know from where they were:⁵ and it came to pass 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 after 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 And the men pursued after them the way to the Jordan to the fords: and as soon as those that pursued after them had gone out, they shut the gate.

⁸ And before they were 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 is 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, that were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon and to Og, whom you completely destroyed.¹¹ And as soon as we had heard it, our hearts melted, neither did there remain anymore spirit in any man, because of you: for Yahweh your God, he is God in heaven above, and on earth beneath.¹² Now therefore, I pray you, 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, and my mother, and my brothers, and my sisters, and all that they have, and will deliver our lives from death.¹⁴ And the men said to her, Our life for yours, if you do not utter this business of ours; then 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 dwelt on the wall.¹⁶ And she said to them, Go to the mountain, or else the pursuers will fall on you; then hide yourselves there three days, until the pursuers return: and afterward may you go your way.¹⁷ And the men said to her, We will be innocent of this oath of yours which you have made us to swear.¹⁸ Look, when we come into the land, you shall bind this line of scarlet thread in the window by which you have let us down: and you shall gather to yourself into the house your father, and your mother, and your brothers, and all your father's household.¹⁹ And it shall be, that whoever shall go out of the doors of your house into the street, his blood shall be on his head, and we shall be innocent: and whoever shall be with you in the house, his blood shall be on our head, if any hand is on him.²⁰ But if you utter this business of ours, then we shall be innocent of your oath which you have made us to swear.²¹ And she said, According to your words, so be it. And she sent them away, and they departed: and she bound the scarlet line in the window.

²² And then they went, and came to the mountain, and abode there three days, until the pursuers had returned: and the pursuers sought them throughout all the way, but didn't find them.²³ Then the two men returned, and descended from the mountain, and passed over, and came to Joshua the son of Nun; and they told him all that had befallen them.²⁴ And they said to Joshua, Truly Yahweh has delivered into our hands all the land; and moreover all the inhabitants of the land melt away before us.