After a fruitless search lasting three days, the king of Jericho’s men return to the city; the Israelite spies come down out of the hills, cross the Jordan to the east side, return to the Israelite camp at Acacia, and report to Joshua. They conclude their report by saying that victory is assured: everyone in Jericho is terrified of the Israelites.

The directions and the movement of events in this verse are somewhat difficult. The hills suggest that these spies went and hid themselves in the hills west of Jericho, while their pursuers went searching for them eastward, in the direction of the Jordan River. On the other hand, it is possible that the hills is intended to contrast with travel along the roads. The Hebrew phrase “in all the way” is somewhat ambiguous and may mean either “everywhere” (as in Good News Translation all over the countryside) or “every road.” Accordingly the verse may be translated, “The two men hid themselves in the hills for three days, until their pursuers returned to the city. The guards had searched along every road in the region, but had found no one.”

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Newman, Barclay M. A Handbook on Joshua. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1983. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .