Old Testament · 2 Kings

2 Kings 5

Naaman Cured of Leprosy

(Luke 17:11–19)

1And Naaman, captain of the army of the king of Aram, was a great man^a before his lord and lifted up of face, for by him the LORD had given deliverance to Aram; and the man was a mighty man of valor, a leper.

2And Aram had gone out in bands and had taken captive from the land of Israel a little girl, and she came to be before the wife^b of Naaman. 3And she said to her mistress, "Would that my lord were before the prophet who is in Samaria! Then he would gather him from his leprosy."

4And he went in and told his lord, saying, "Thus and thus said the girl who is from the land of Israel."

5And the king of Aram said, "Go, come, and I will send a letter to the king of Israel." And he went and took in his hand ten talents of silver and six thousand of gold and ten changes of garments.

6And he brought the letter to the king of Israel, saying, "And now, when this letter comes to you, behold, I have sent to you Naaman my servant, that you may gather him from his leprosy."

7And it came to pass, when the king of Israel read the letter, that he tore his garments and said, "Am I God, to kill and to make alive, that this one sends to me to gather a man from his leprosy? But surely know, please, and see that he is seeking an occasion against me."

8And it came to pass, when Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his garments, that he sent to the king, saying, "Why have you torn your garments? Let him come now to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel."

9And Naaman came with his horses and with his chariot, and stood at the doorway of the house of Elisha.

10And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, "Go and wash seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh^c shall return to you, and you shall be clean."

11And Naaman was angry and went away, and said, "Behold, I said to myself, 'He will surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of the LORD his God, and wave his hand over the place, and recover the leper.' 12Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them and be clean?" And he turned and went away in wrath.

13And his servants came near and spoke to him and said, "My father, had the prophet spoken to you a great thing, would you not do it? How much more when he said to you, 'Wash and be clean'?"

14And he went down and dipped himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God; and his flesh returned like the flesh of a little lad, and he was clean.

Gehazi’s Greed and Leprosy

15And he returned to the man of God, he and all his camp, and came and stood before him, and said, "Behold now, I know that there is no God in all the earth except in Israel; and now, take, please, a blessing from your servant."

16And he said, "As the LORD lives^d, before whom I stand, I will not take it." And he urged him to take it, but he refused.

17And Naaman said, "If not, let there be given, please, to your servant two mules' burden of ground^e; for your servant will no longer make burnt offering and sacrifice to other gods, but to the LORD. 18For this thing may the LORD pardon your servant: when my lord goes into the house of Rimmon to bow down there, and he leans on my hand, and I bow down in the house of Rimmon; when I bow down in the house of Rimmon, may the LORD pardon your servant in this thing."

19And he said to him, "Go in peace." And he went from him a stretch of land. 20And Gehazi, the lad of Elisha the man of God, said, "Behold, my lord has spared this Naaman the Aramean, by not taking from his hand that which he brought; as the LORD lives, I will surely run after him and take something from him."

21And Gehazi pursued after Naaman. And Naaman saw one running after him, and he fell from upon the chariot to meet him, and said, "Is it well?"

22And he said, "It is well. My lord has sent me, saying, 'Behold, just now there have come to me two lads from the hill country of Ephraim, from the sons of the prophets; give them, please, a talent of silver and two changes of garments.'"

23And Naaman said, "Be willing, take two talents." And he urged him, and bound two talents of silver in two bags, with two changes of garments, and gave them to two of his lads, and they bore them before him.

24And he came to the hill, and took them from their hand and deposited them in the house, and sent the men away, and they departed.

25And he came in and stood before his lord, and Elisha said to him, "From where, Gehazi?" And he said, "Your servant went nowhere."

26And he said to him, "Did not my heart go, when the man turned back from upon his chariot to meet you? Is it a time to take silver and to take garments and olive groves and vineyards and sheep and oxen and menservants and maidservants? 27And the leprosy of Naaman shall cleave to you and to your seed forever." And he went out from before him a leper, like snow.