Joshua 2:24
in Joshua 2“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.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And they said unto Joshua, Truly Jehovah hath delivered into our hands all the land; and moreover all the inhabitants of the land do melt away before us.
KJV
And 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.
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This verse in Joshua 2
Commentary
8 notes on this verseTruly the Lord hath delivered into our hands all the land - How different was this report from that brought by the spies on a former occasion! They found that all the inhabitants of the land were panic-struck. The people had heard of the great exploits of the Israelites on the other side of Jordan; and as they had destroyed the potent kings of the Amorites, they took it for granted that nothing could stand before them. This information was necessary to Joshua to guide him in forming the plan of his campaign.
This 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. Beside Numbers 13:31-33, where ten spies said Israel could not go up, this reports the same country the opposite way. Clarke marks the contrast and reads this report as what Joshua needed to plan the campaign.
This site's exposition
melting in fear of us
Henry reads the report as a people with neither the wisdom to yield nor the courage to fight. The spies concluded that the land was already theirs. Henry treats such terror as an omen that a fall is near.
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 Awakening3 voices
): " All the inhabitants of the country, though resolved to stand it out, yet do faint because of us, they have neither wisdom to yield nor courage to fight," whence they conclude, " Truly the Lord has delivered into our hands all the land, it is all our own; we have nothing to do, in effect, but to take possession." Sinners' frights are sometimes sure presages of their fall.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
And they said unto Joshua,....
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 words behind it
16 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֹּאמְרוּ֙ | vaiyomeru | and they said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| אֶל־ | ʾel- | to | H413 → | 5510 times |
| יְהוֹשֻׁ֔עַ | yehoshua' | Joshua | H3091 → | 218 times |
| כִּֽי־ | ki- | that | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| נָתַ֧ן | natan | he has given | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| יְהוָ֛ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| בְּיָדֵ֖נוּ | beyadenu | in hand our | H3027 → | 1618 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| כָּל־ | kol- | all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| הָאָ֑רֶץ | haaretz | the land | H776 → | 2504 times |
| וְגַם־ | vegam- | and also | H1571 → | 769 times |
| נָמֹ֛גוּ | namogu | they have melted away | H4127 → | |
| כָּל־ | kol- | all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| יֹשְׁבֵ֥י | yoshevei | [the] inhabitants of | H3427 → | 1079 times |
| הָאָ֖רֶץ | haaretz | the land | H776 → | 2504 times |
| מִפָּנֵֽינוּ׃ ס | mipaneinu | <from> because of us | H6440 → | 2123 times |
וַיֹּאמְרוּ֙and they said
vaiyomeruH559 →5305 times
אֶל־to
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
יְהוֹשֻׁ֔עַJoshua
yehoshua'H3091 →218 times
כִּֽי־that
ki-H3588 →4482 times
נָתַ֧ןhe has given
natanH5414 →2011 times
יְהוָ֛הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
בְּיָדֵ֖נוּin hand our
beyadenuH3027 →1618 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
כָּל־all
kol-H3605 →5413 times
הָאָ֑רֶץthe land
haaretzH776 →2504 times
וְגַם־and also
vegam-H1571 →769 times
נָמֹ֛גוּthey have melted away
namoguH4127 →
כָּל־all
kol-H3605 →5413 times
יֹשְׁבֵ֥י[the] inhabitants of
yosheveiH3427 →1079 times
הָאָ֖רֶץthe land
haaretzH776 →2504 times
מִפָּנֵֽינוּ׃ ס<from> because of us
mipaneinuH6440 →2123 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Exodus 23:31And I will establish your borders from the Red Sea to the Sea of the Philistines, and from the desert to the Euphrates. For I will deliver the inhabitants into your hand, and you…
it leads to
- Genesis 15:18
On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your descendants I have given this land—from the river of Egypt to the great River Euphrates—
- Deuteronomy 11:24
Every place where the sole of your foot treads will be yours. Your territory will extend from the wilderness to Lebanon, and from the Euphrates River to the Western Sea.
- Joshua 21:44
And the LORD gave them rest on every side, just as He had sworn to their fathers. None of their enemies could stand against them, for the LORD delivered all their enemies into their…
- Joshua 1:4
Your territory shall extend from the wilderness and Lebanon to the great River Euphrates—all the land of the Hittites—and west as far as the Great Sea.
- Numbers 34:3–15
Your southern border will extend from the Wilderness of Zin along the border of Edom. On the east, your southern border will run from the end of the Salt Sea,
- Genesis 15:18
Through
Proverbs 25:13Like the cold of snow in the time of harvest is a trustworthy messenger to those who send him; he refreshes the soul of his masters.
it leads to
- Proverbs 13:17
A wicked messenger falls into trouble, but a faithful envoy brings healing.
- Proverbs 13:17
Through
Joshua 5:1Now when all the Amorite kings west of the Jordan and all the Canaanite kings along the coast heard how the LORD had dried up the waters of the Jordan before the Israelites until…
it leads to
- Joshua 2:9–11
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…
- Numbers 13:29
The Amalekites live in the land of the Negev; the Hittites, Jebusites, and Amorites live in the hill country; and the Canaanites live by the sea and along the Jordan.”
- Joshua 2:9–11
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies14
On this verse
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.
