Commentary on Joshua - Keil & Delitzsch - David Cox

Keil and Delitzsch <strong>Commentary</strong> on the Old Testament
left the town, they shut the gate to prevent the spies from escaping, in case they
should be still in the town. ka'asher (OT:834) 'achareey (OT:310) for 'asher
(OT:834) 'achareey (OT:310) is uncommon, but it is analogous to 'asher 'achareeyken
in Gen 6:4.
Verse 8-9. Notwithstanding these precautions, the men escaped. As soon as the
officers had left Rahab's house, she went to the spies, who were concealed upon the
roof, before they had lain down to sleep, which they were probably about to do upon
the roof-a thing of frequent occurrence in the East in summer time-and confessed to
them all that she believed and knew, namely, that God had given the land to the
Israelites, and that the dread of them had fallen upon the Canaanites ( "us," in contrast
with "you," the Israelites, signifies the Canaanites generally, and not merely the
inhabitants of Jericho), and despair had seized upon all the inhabitants of the land.
The description of the despair of the Canaanites (v. 9) is connected, so far as the
expressions are concerned, with Ex 15:15 and 16, to show that what Moses and the
Israelites had sung after crossing the Red Sea was now fulfilled, that the Lord had
fulfilled His promise (Ex 23:27 compared with Deut 2:25 and 11:25), and had put
fear and dread upon the Canaanites.
Verse 10. The report of the drying up of the Red Sea (Ex 14:15ff.), of the defeat of
the mighty kings of the Amorites, and of the conquest of their kingdoms, had
produced this effect upon the Canaanites. Even in the last of these occurrences the
omnipotence of God had been visibly displayed, so that what the Lord foretold to
Moses (Deut 2:25) had now taken place; it had filled all the surrounding nations with
fear and dread of Israel, and the
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