He showed them the entrance into the city, and they struck the city with the edge of the sword; but they let the man and all his family go.
Parallel translations
- KJV And when he shewed them the entrance into the city, they smote the city with the edge of the sword; but they let go the man and all his family.
- BSB So the man showed them the entrance to the city, and they put the city to the sword but released that man and all his family.
- NKJV So he showed them the entrance to the city, and they struck the city with the edge of the sword; but they let the man and all his family go.
- NASB So he showed them the entrance to the city, and they struck the city with the edge of the sword, but they let the man and all his family go free.
- NLT So he showed them a way in, and they killed everyone in the town except that man and his family.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The man shows the entrance, the city is struck, but he and his family are spared. It matters as mercy honored toward one who aided God's people.
Overview
True to their word, the Israelites destroy Bethel yet preserve the helpful man and his household. The kept promise reflects integrity in the midst of warfare. As with Rahab, deliverance comes to one who sides with God's people, a foreshadowing of grace that rescues individuals out of judgment.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 1
- Josh 6:22–25Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the land, “Go into the prostitute’s house, and bring the woman and all that she has out from there, as you swore to her.”
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Israel's cycle of sin and rescue through flawed deliverers cries out for a Savior who never fails — the true and final Judge and Deliverer who saves his people not for a season but forever.
How Judges 1:25 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.