Joshua 2:23
in Joshua 2Then 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.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
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.
KJV
So 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:
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This verse in Joshua 2
Commentary
7 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
stayed there three days
on Joshua 2:22-24
The report at verse 24 hands Rahab’s sentence from verse 9 back to Joshua, “all who dwell in the land are melting in fear of us”, so the intelligence came from a Canaanite. Beside Numbers 13:31-33, where ten spies said Israel could not go up, this reports the same country the opposite way. Adam Clarke marks the contrast and reads this report as what Joshua needed to plan the campaign.
This site's exposition
came down from the hill country
Clarke counts the three days as the night of their escape, the next day and the night after, with the return on the third day. They crossed a river then in flood. Joshua 3:15 places the flood in this same harvest season, and the nation crossed only when the water stopped.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
A commentator
Clement of RomeClement's First Letter to the Corinthians, Chapter 12 · Written before 99.
proposed
On account of her faith and hospitality, Rahab the harlot was saved. For when spies were sent by Joshua, the son of Nun, to Jericho, the king of the country ascertained that they had come to spy out their land, and sent men to seize them, in order that, when taken, they might be put to death. But the hospitable Rahab receiving them, concealed them on the roof of her house under some stalks of flax. And when the men sent by the king arrived and said, "There came men unto you who are to spy out our land; bring them forth, for so the king commands," she answered them, "The two men whom you seek came unto me, but quickly departed again and are gone," thus not discovering the spies to them. Then she said to the men, "I know assuredly that the Lord your God has given you this city, for the fear and dread of you have fallen on its inhabitants. When therefore you shall have taken it, keep ye me and the house of my father in safety." And they said to her, "It shall be as you have spoken to us. As soon, therefore, as you know that we are at hand, you shall gather all your family under your roof, and they shall be preserved, but all that are found outside of your dwelling shall perish." Moreover, they gave her a sign to this effect, that she should hang forth from her house a scarlet thread. And thus they made it manifest that redemption should flow through the blood of the Lord to all them that believe and hope in God. You see, beloved, that there was not only faith, but prophecy, in this woman.
For her faith and hospitality Rahab the harlot was saved. For when the spies were sent forth into Jericho by Joshua the son of Nun, the king of the land perceived that they were coming to spy out his country, and [he] sent forth men to seize them, that being seized they might be put to death. So the hospitable Rahab received them and hid them in the upper chamber under the flax stalks. And when the messengers of the king came near and said, "The spies of our land entered into your house; bring them forth, for the king so orders," then she answered, "The men truly, whom you seek, came to me, but they departed immediately and are journeying on the way"; and she pointed out to them the opposite road. And she said to the men, "Without a doubt I perceive that the Lord your God will deliver this city to you; for the fear and the dread of you is fallen upon its inhabitants. When therefore it shall come to pass that you take it, save me and the house of my father." And they said to her, "It shall be even so as you have spoken to us. Therefore, when you perceive that we are coming, you shall gather all your folk beneath your roof, and they shall be saved; for as many as shall be found outside of the house shall perish." And moreover they gave her a sign, that she should hang out from her house a scarlet thread, thereby showing beforehand that through the blood of the Lord there shall be redemption for all them that believe and hope on God. You see, dearly beloved, not only faith, but prophecy, is found in the woman.
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
So the two men returned, and descended from the mountain,....
And that which makes this story most remarkable is that Rahab, the person principally concerned in it, is twice celebrated in the New Testament as a great believer ( Heb. xi. 31 ) and as one whose faith proved itself by good works, James ii.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
So the two men returned - Having concealed themselves in the mountains that night, all the next day, and the night ensuing, on the third day they returned to Joshua.
The words behind it
17 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיָּשֻׁ֜בוּ | vaiyashuvu | and they returned | H7725 → | 1056 times |
| שְׁנֵ֤י | shenei | [the] two | H8147 → | 768 times |
| הָֽאֲנָשִׁים֙ | haanashim | the men | H582 → | 566 times |
| וַיֵּרְד֣וּ | vaiyeredu | and they went down | H3381 → | 381 times |
| מֵֽהָהָ֔ר | mehahar | from the hill country | H2022 → | 546 times |
| וַיַּעַבְרוּ֙ | vaiyaavru | and they passed over | H5674 → | 556 times |
| וַיָּבֹ֔אוּ | vaiyavou | and they came | H935 → | 2568 times |
| אֶל־ | ʾel- | to | H413 → | 5510 times |
| יְהוֹשֻׁ֖עַ | yehoshua' | Joshua | H3091 → | 218 times |
| בִּן־ | bin- | [the] son of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| נ֑וּן | nun | Nun | H5126 → | 30 times |
| וַיְסַ֨פְּרוּ־ | vaysaperu- | and they recounted | H5608 → | |
| ל֔וֹ | lo | to <the> him | ||
| אֵ֥ת | ʾet | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| כָּל־ | kol- | all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| הַמֹּצְא֖וֹת | hamotzeot | the [things that] had found | H4672 → | 455 times |
| אוֹתָֽם׃ | ʾotam | with them | H854 → | 929 times |
וַיָּשֻׁ֜בוּand they returned
vaiyashuvuH7725 →1056 times
שְׁנֵ֤י[the] two
sheneiH8147 →768 times
הָֽאֲנָשִׁים֙the men
haanashimH582 →566 times
וַיֵּרְד֣וּand they went down
vaiyereduH3381 →381 times
מֵֽהָהָ֔רfrom the hill country
mehaharH2022 →546 times
וַיַּעַבְרוּ֙and they passed over
vaiyaavruH5674 →556 times
וַיָּבֹ֔אוּand they came
vaiyavouH935 →2568 times
אֶל־to
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
יְהוֹשֻׁ֖עַJoshua
yehoshua'H3091 →218 times
בִּן־[the] son of
bin-H1121 →4930 times
נ֑וּןNun
nunH5126 →30 times
וַיְסַ֨פְּרוּ־and they recounted
vaysaperu-H5608 →
ל֔וֹto <the> him
lo
אֵ֥ת<obj.>
ʾetH853 →10935 times
כָּל־all
kol-H3605 →5413 times
הַמֹּצְא֖וֹתthe [things that] had found
hamotzeotH4672 →455 times
אוֹתָֽם׃with them
ʾotamH854 →929 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Joshua

Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Clement of Rome, Clement's First Letter to the Corinthians, Chapter 12; Clement of Rome, 1 CLEMENT 12; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.
