Scripture Reading(s)
2 Kings 5:1-14
5:1 Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Aram, was a great man and in high favor with his master, because by him the LORD had given victory to Aram. The man, though a mighty warrior, suffered from leprosy.
5:2 Now the Arameans on one of their raids had taken a young girl captive from the land of Israel, and she served Naaman’s wife.
5:3 She said to her mistress, “If only my lord were with the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy.”
5:4 So Naaman went in and told his lord just what the girl from the land of Israel had said.
5:5 And the king of Aram said, “Go then, and I will send along a letter to the king of Israel.” He went, taking with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold, and ten sets of garments.
5:6 He brought the letter to the king of Israel, which read, “When this letter reaches you, know that I have sent to you my servant Naaman, that you may cure him of his leprosy.”
5:7 When the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his clothes and said, “Am I God, to give death or life, that this man sends word to me to cure a man of his leprosy? Just look and see how he is trying to pick a quarrel with me.”
5:8 But when Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, he sent a message to the king, “Why have you torn your clothes? Let him come to me, that he may learn that there is a prophet in Israel.”
5:9 So Naaman came with his horses and chariots, and halted at the entrance of Elisha’s house.
5:10 Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go, wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored and you shall be clean.”
5:11 But Naaman became angry and went away, saying, “I thought that for me he would surely come out, and stand and call on the name of the LORD his God, and would wave his hand over the spot, and cure the leprosy!
5:12 Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them, and be clean?” He turned and went away in a rage.
5:13 But his servants approached and said to him, “Father, if the prophet had commanded you to do something difficult, would you not have done it? How much more, when all he said to you was, ‘Wash, and be clean’?”
5:14 So he went down and immersed himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God; his flesh was restored like the flesh of a young boy, and he was clean.
Reflections
This passage not only demonstrates God’s power to heal any disease but also that being washed of his sickness is so much greater then finding good health again.
This mans story not only speaks to the saving power of God to bring physical healing but even more so, spiritual healing.
I truly believe that in this passage we see evidence of not only this mans physical body being restored but also his heart being renewed.
Verses 13-14 paint a picture of what being washed of ones disease looks like. It reminds me of the passage in Hebrews 10:22 that says ““let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.” At the point of conversion, when one turns from their sin, we trade in our old, stained, evil ways for a pure, clean and renewed way of living. Much like this man, we experience a cleansing in our lives that is no longer dictated by what the world offers but is instead representative of Christ living in our hearts.
This man experienced what a prophet had to say about Gods healing power. In our lives, we now experience what Christ himself says about healing and cleansing. Christ’s healing goes beyond that of a physical one. It goes into our hearts and washes away all the dirt that once kept us from having an intimate relationship with Him. We are restored, given new life and a desire to follow after Him.
But his servants approached and said to him, “Father, if the prophet had commanded you to do something difficult, would you not have done it? How much more, when all he said to you was, ‘Wash, and be clean’?”
Sometimes we need the voice of a 3rd party or one that is not our own to coax us in the right direction. Naaman clearly had some pride issues and possibly even some issues with his own faith that God’s prophet could heal him. However, even in his rage the wise words of his servant caused him to reconsider and what a joy that he did reconsider. If not, he would have remained with his illness.
Like Naaman, we need to listen to the advice of others. It is easy to become irritated or upset. When this happens we do not think straight. We make rash decisions and often say things we should not have. We must look outside of our own prideful selves and consider that possibly our own way of doing things or our own way of thinking might be incorrect. When we are humble enough to consider that we are fallible and that the input of others have value then we create opportunities to grow and learn as Christians and as human beings.