Pearl in the Sand Read Online Free PDF

impenetrable. I can’t see how even Moses and his magician warriors could get in.”
    “So? Isn’t that where Og is?”
    “For now, yes. He’s settled in, and all he has to do is sit tight and wait the Hebrews out. It will be a long and grueling siege, and the Hebrews can’t afford to loaf about and do nothing for that long. They’ll need food, water, and fresh grazing land for their cattle. Eventually, they’ll have to give up and leave.”
    Rahab frowned. “I thought you feared Og might lose. Now you’re telling me he doesn’t even have to fight to win.”
    Debir walked over to the window and gazed out at the plains andhills leading to the Jordan. His smile didn’t reach his eyes as he turned back to face her. “It’s mighty hard on a king’s pride to hide rather than fight. He may not lose, but he also doesn’t win. Og is a warrior, and he has enough pride to match the size of his shanks. It will take a great deal of sense to keep him sheltered in Edrei.”
    “And you think he has more pride than sense.”
    “Let’s just wait and see.”

     
    Og chose to march. Like the proud fool he was, he took his whole army out to meet the Hebrews in battle. One soldier survived long enough to tell the story, and a passing merchant brought it to Jericho. Edrei had been attacked by swarms of hornets. The city was thick with them. They drove the horses wild, and there was no escape. Their stings were so bad they killed the very young and old. Even their strong men howled with pain and cursed with vexation. Og could not bear it. To be imprisoned in your own kingdom by an inferior enemy was bad enough, but the added indignation of being stung by hornets was too much for him. Was he a slave that he should cower in his own domain, hiding from mere vagabonds? So he marched out together with his sons and his army to engage the Hebrews.
    And the Hebrews killed every single one of them and took possession of their land.
    “It won’t be long now before Moses sets his eyes on Jericho,” Debir said after telling Rahab the story of Bashan’s defeat. He was lying on his back, staring at the ceiling. “We are the first great city west of the Jordan, and if he understands anything about warfare, he’ll make us their next target.”
    Her mouth turned dry at this pronouncement. “Well, for pity’s sake, don’t open the gates and rush out to meet them if they come. We’ll be safe inside our walls.”
    With his thumb and middle finger, he flicked a fly that had settledclose to him. He had faultless aim. The fly pitched over in death. Turning toward Rahab, he said, “They crossed the Red Sea, you know. When they ran away from the Pharaoh. The sea parted for them and collapsed over the Egyptian army.”
    Rahab flopped down on a feather-filled cushion and leaned back against a scarlet trimmed tapestry. “Don’t tell me you believe in that nonsense?”
    Debir looked at her from beneath bushy brows. “I do believe it. I have believed it for almost forty years since I first heard about it. Their god is mighty beyond our experience.”
    Her smile was tinged with sarcasm. “Another bloodthirsty god. Excellent. Just what Canaan needs.”
    He shook his head, his eyes sparkling with amusement. “You have the strangest notions, Rahab. It’s a wonder the gods don’t strike you down.”
    “I leave them alone and they return the favor. Why do you believe this nonsense about the sea parting and the Pharaoh drowning, Debir? It’s not like you to credit rumors.”
    “It’s no rumor.”
    “You saw this with your own eyes?”
    Debir ran a hand through his hair. “No. But I saw it through the eyes of someone who
did
see it firsthand. One of the Hebrews.”
    Rahab bolted upright. “You know one of them?”
    “Forty years ago I did.” Debir rose from the mattress and came to sit near her. “I met him just before my military training. If I hadn’t been so young, I would have recognized him for the spy he was. At the time though, I