Now they that were sent, pursued after them, by the way that leadeth to the fords of the Jordan: and as soon as they were gone out, the gate was presently shut.
Rashi
To the fords. These were places for crossing the water, for the pursuers thought they had turned back to return to the plains of Moav and the Jordan was between them.
And the shut the gate. The gatekeepers shut the gate. this refers to the gate of the city. The pursuers suspected that the spies were still in the city and by shutting the gates, they would be locked in and they would be able to find them.
Hebrew and Aramaic words are the commentator’s citations of the sacred text; the English translation that follows each is the translator’s.
Imported from an open dataset — not yet checked against the printed edition.