II Kings 5:1- Now Naaman, captain of the host of the king of Syria, was a great man with his master, and honourable, because by him the LORD had given deliverance unto Syria: he was also a mighty man in valour, but he was a leper.
Naaman had a terrible disease that would eventually kill him. There was no known cure for this disease. Anyone who got it was doomed to die.
II Kings 5:2-3- And the Syrians had gone out by companies, and had brought away captive out of the land of Israel a little maid; and she waited on Naaman's wife. And she said unto her mistress, Would God my lord were with the prophet that is in Samaria! for he would recover him of his leprosy.
Slavery is not something we see in America, but around the world there are still people who are slaves. It was not uncommon during Elisha's time for people who survived battles to be taken as slaves by the winning army.
Naaman had won many battles, and at one of these battles he had taken a little Jewish girl home to be a slave to his wife. This little Jewish girl told Naaman's wife that there was a prophet in her home country that could cure Naaman.
II Kings 5:4-5- And one went in, and told his lord, saying, Thus and thus said the maid that is of the land of Israel. And the king of Syria said, Go to, go, and I will send a letter unto the king of Israel. And he departed, and took with him ten talents of silver, and six thousand pieces of gold, and ten changes of raiment.
Someone went and told Naaman what the little slave girl had said, so Naaman gathered a present, and got a letter from his king to the king of Israel. He was hoping that once he got to the capitol city of Samaria, that the king of Israel would call the prophet and he would be healed.
II Kings 5:6-7- And he brought the letter to the king of Israel, saying, Now when this letter is come unto thee, behold, I have therewith sent Naaman my servant to thee, that thou mayest recover him of his leprosy. And it came to pass, when the king of Israel had read the letter, that he rent his clothes, and said, Am I God, to kill and to make alive, that this man doth send unto me to recover a man of his leprosy? wherefore consider, I pray you, and see how he seeketh a quarrel against me.
When the king of Israel read the letter from the king of Samaria, he was in a panick! You see, this wicked king had forsaken the Lord God Almighty and was now serving false idols. None of his idols could heal leprosy. The king of Israel thought that Naaman was using this to start a war.
But, God knew what was going on. He got word to Elisha that a Syrian with leprosy had come to Israel to be healed.
II Kings 5:8- And it was so, when Elisha the man of God had heard that the king of Israel had rent his clothes, that he sent to the king, saying, Wherefore hast thou rent thy clothes? let him come now to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel.
Elisha sent word to the king of Israel telling him that he should send Naaman. Elisha knew that the God who made man could heal man. He was going to show all Israel and Syria what the Lord God Almighty could do!
II Kings 5:9-10- So Naaman came with his horses and with his chariot, and stood at the door of the house of Elisha. And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying, Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean.
Elisha sent a servant out to give some simple commands to Naaman. Go down to the river and wash yourself in it seven times.
II Kings 5:11-12- But Naaman was wroth, and went away, and said, Behold, I thought, He will surely come out to me, and stand, and call on the name of the LORD his God, and strike his hand over the place, and recover the leper. Are not Abana and Pharpar, rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? may I not wash in them, and be clean? So he turned and went away in a rage.
God always deals with the root of our problems. What was the main problem Naaman had? It was pride! He thought that Elisha would come out and put on a big show. Perhaps he was expecting fireworks.
He didn't want to climb into the dirty Jordan River of Israel and wash himself seven times! That would be embarrassing- taking a bath in front of his men! So, he rode off in a huff!
II Kings 5:13- And his servants came near, and spake unto him, and said, My father, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then, when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean?
One of his men came to him and asked him a simple question- if it were some great feat, wouldn't you have tried to do it? Of course he would have! But, a great feat would show Naaman's glory, not God's. God had given him a humbling thing to do so that no one but God would get the glory.
II Kings 5:14- Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God: and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.
If Naaman had decided to only wash 5 times God wouldn't have healed him. God is very specific about what we should and shouldn't do. God is very specific about how we should obey. God always blesses obedience!
Naaman went into that dirty Jordan River in front of his men and obeyed God. He humbled himself and washed seven times. And when he finished the seventh- he was healed! His skin looked as pretty as a little child. Perhaps, God even healed his scars!
II Kings 5:15-19- And he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and came, and stood before him: and he said, Behold, now I know that there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel: now therefore, I pray thee, take a blessing of thy servant. But he said, As the LORD liveth, before whom I stand, I will receive none. And he urged him to take it; but he refused. And Naaman said, Shall there not then, I pray thee, be given to thy servant two mules' burden of earth? for thy servant will henceforth offer neither burnt offering nor sacrifice unto other gods, but unto the LORD. In this thing the LORD pardon thy servant, that when my master goeth into the house of Rimmon to worship there, and he leaneth on my hand, and I bow myself in the house of Rimmon: when I bow down myself in the house of Rimmon, the LORD pardon thy servant in this thing. And he said unto him, Go in peace. So he departed from him a little way.
Naaman wanted to give Elisha presents for telling him how to be healed of that terrible disease! But, Elisha wouldn't accept the gifts.
Then Naaman asked Elisha to forgive him for going into the temple of the false idol in his home town. It was Naaman's duty to escort the king into and out of the temple. Naaman now knew that only the Lord God Almighty was the true God.
Elisha sent him away in peace.
But, Elisha had a servant. And this servant had a greedy heart.
II Kings 5:20-24- But Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said, Behold, my master hath spared Naaman this Syrian, in not receiving at his hands that which he brought: but, as the LORD liveth, I will run after him, and take somewhat of him. So Gehazi followed after Naaman. And when Naaman saw him running after him, he lighted down from the chariot to meet him, and said, Is all well? And he said, All is well. My master hath sent me, saying, Behold, even now there be come to me from mount Ephraim two young men of the sons of the prophets: give them, I pray thee, a talent of silver, and two changes of garments. And Naaman said, Be content, take two talents. And he urged him, and bound two talents of silver in two bags, with two changes of garments, and laid them upon two of his servants; and they bare them before him. And when he came to the tower, he took them from their hand, and bestowed them in the house: and he let the men go, and they departed.
Elisha's servant, Gehazi, made up a story about some other prophets coming to visit Elisha. He said these other prophets needed some of the things that Naaman had offered to Elisha.
Naaman was only too happy to be able to reward the man who had saved his life! He willingly gave the stuff to Gehazi and sent him home.
Gehazi not only lied, but he used the Lord God Almighty and His special servants in order to get what his wicked heart wanted. Do you think God was going to let him get away with it?
II Kings 5:25- But he went in, and stood before his master. And Elisha said unto him, Whence comest thou, Gehazi? And he said, Thy servant went no whither.
Elisha asked Gehazi what he had been up to, but instead of confessing his sin he lied again!
II Kings 5:26-27- And he said unto him, Went not mine heart with thee, when the man turned again from his chariot to meet thee? Is it a time to receive money, and to receive garments, and oliveyards, and vineyards, and sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and maidservants? The leprosy therefore of Naaman shall cleave unto thee, and unto thy seed for ever. And he went out from his presence a leper as white as snow.
Elisha told Gehazi that he knew what he had done. Gehazi had not only lied, but he had stolen God's glory by allowing Naaman to pay for his healing.
You see, God was trying to show the world something through Naaman. Leprosy is a type of sin. And sin can't be paid for with clothes, or money, or good deeds. Sin can only be paid for by obeying God's Word and washing in the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ- this is called salvation.
Gehazi broke this picture of salvation, and for that his punishment was a slow death sentence. Gehazi would now be killed by the very same disease that Naaman had been cured from!
