Is the soil rich or poor? Does the land have trees or not? Do your best to bring back some fruit from the land.” (It was the season when grapes were beginning to ripen.)
⌞David continued,⌟ “Now, son, the Lord will be with you. You will be successful, and you will build the temple of the Lord your God as he predicted you would.
The Israelites captured fortified cities and a rich land. They took possession of houses filled with all sorts of good things, cisterns, vineyards, olive trees, and plenty of fruit trees. So they ate and were satisfied and grew fat. They enjoyed the vast supply of good things you gave them.
When they lived in their own kingdom and enjoyed the many good things that you gave them in a vast, fertile land which was set in front of them, they didn’t serve you or turn away from their wicked lives.
I will feed them in good pasture, and they will graze on the mountains of Israel. They will rest on the good land where they graze, and they will feed on the best pastures in the mountains of Israel.
When people feel secure, he will invade the richest parts of the provinces and do something that none of his predecessors ever did. He will distribute loot and wealth to his followers. He will invent new ways of attacking fortifications. But this will last only for a little while.
The Lord gave this command to Joshua, son of Nun: “Be strong and courageous, because you will bring the Israelites into the land that I swore to give them, and I will be with you.”
From Shittim Joshua, son of Nun, secretly sent out two men as spies. He told them, “Go, look at that country, especially the city of Jericho.” So they went to Jericho and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab to spend the night there.
So the king of Jericho sent messengers to Rahab, who told her, “Bring out the men who came to your house. They came here to gather information about the entire land.”