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2 Kings 5
New English Translation

Elisha Heals a Syrian General

5 Now Naaman, the commander of the king of Syria’s army, was esteemed and respected by his master,[a] for through him the Lord had given Syria military victories. But this great warrior had a skin disease.[b] 2 Raiding parties went out from Syria and took captive from the land of Israel a young girl, who became a servant to Naaman’s wife. 3 She told her mistress, “If only my master were in the presence of the prophet who is in Samaria! Then he would cure him of his skin disease.”

4 Naaman[c] went and told his master what the girl from the land of Israel had said. 5 The king of Syria said, “Go! I will send a letter to the king of Israel.” So Naaman[d] went, taking with him 10 talents[e] of silver, 6,000 shekels of gold,[f] and 10 suits of clothes. 6 He brought the letter to the king of Israel. It read: “This is a letter of introduction for my servant Naaman,[g] whom I have sent to be cured of his skin disease.” 7 When the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his clothes and said, “Am I God? Can I kill or restore life? Why does he ask me to cure a man of his skin disease?[h] Certainly you must see that he is looking for an excuse to fight me!”[i]

8 When Elisha the prophet[j] heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, he sent this message to the king, “Why did you tear your clothes? Send him[k] to me so he may know there is a prophet in Israel.” 9 So Naaman came with his horses and chariots and stood in the doorway of Elisha’s house. 10 Elisha sent out a messenger who told him, “Go and wash seven times in the Jordan; your skin will be restored[l] and you will be healed.” 11 Naaman went away angry. He said, “Look, I thought for sure he would come out, stand there, invoke the name of the Lord his God, wave his hand over the area, and cure the skin disease. 12 The rivers of Damascus, the Abana and Pharpar, are better than any of the waters of Israel![m] Could I not wash in them and be healed?” So he turned around and went away angry. 13 His servants approached and said to him,[n] “O master,[o] if the prophet had told you to do some difficult task,[p] you would have been willing to do it.[q] It seems you should be happy that he simply said, ‘Wash and you will be healed.’[r] 14 So he went down and dipped in the Jordan seven times, as the prophet had instructed.[s] His skin became as smooth as a young child’s[t] and he was healed.

15 He and his entire entourage returned to the prophet. Naaman[u] came and stood before him. He said, “For sure[v] I know that there is no God in all the earth except in Israel! Now, please accept a gift from your servant.” 16 But Elisha[w] replied, “As certainly as the Lord lives (whom I serve),[x] I will take nothing from you.” Naaman[y] insisted that he take it, but he refused. 17 Naaman said, “If not, then please give your servant a load of dirt, enough for a pair of mules to carry,[z] for your servant will never again offer a burnt offering or sacrifice to a god other than the Lord.[aa] 18 May the Lord forgive your servant for this one thing: When my master enters the temple of Rimmon to worship, and he leans on my arm and I bow down in the temple of Rimmon, may the Lord forgive your servant for this.”[ab] 19 Elisha[ac] said to him, “Go in peace.”

When he had gone a short distance,[ad] 20 Gehazi, the prophet Elisha’s servant, thought,[ae] “Look, my master did not accept what this Syrian Naaman offered him.[af] As certainly as the Lord lives, I will run after him and accept something from him.” 21 So Gehazi ran after Naaman. When Naaman saw someone running after him, he got down from his chariot to meet him and asked, “Is everything all right?”[ag] 22 He answered, “Everything is fine.[ah] My master sent me with this message, ‘Look, two servants of the prophets just arrived from the Ephraimite hill country.[ai] Please give them a talent[aj] of silver and two suits of clothes.’” 23 Naaman said, “Please accept two talents of silver.”[ak] He insisted, and tied up two talents of silver in two bags, along with two suits of clothes. He gave them to two of his servants and they carried them for Gehazi.[al] 24 When he arrived at the hill, he took them from the servants[am] and put them in the house. Then he sent the men on their way.[an]

25 When he came and stood before his master, Elisha asked him, “Where have you been, Gehazi?” He answered, “Your servant hasn’t been anywhere.” 26 Elisha[ao] replied, “I was there in spirit when a man turned and got down from his chariot to meet you.[ap] This is not the proper time to accept silver or to accept clothes, olive groves, vineyards, sheep, cattle, and male and female servants.[aq] 27 Therefore Naaman’s skin disease will afflict[ar] you and your descendants forever!” When Gehazi[as] went out from his presence, his skin was as white as snow.[at]

Footnotes

  1. 2 Kings 5:1 tn Heb “was a great man before his master and lifted up with respect to the face.”
  2. 2 Kings 5:1 tn For a discussion of מְצֹרָע (metsoraʿ), traditionally translated “leprous,” see M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 63. Naaman probably had a skin disorder of some type, not leprosy/Hansen’s disease.
  3. 2 Kings 5:4 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Naaman) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  4. 2 Kings 5:5 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Naaman) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  5. 2 Kings 5:5 tn The Hebrew term כִּכָּר (kikkar, “circle”) refers generally to something that is round. When used of metals it can refer to a disk-shaped weight made of the metal or to a standard unit of weight, generally regarded as a talent. Since the accepted weight for a talent of metal is about 75 pounds, this would have amounted to about 750 pounds of silver (cf. NCV, NLT, CEV).
  6. 2 Kings 5:5 tn Heb “six thousand gold […].” The unit of measure is not given in the Hebrew text. A number of English versions supply “pieces” (e.g., KJV, ASV, NAB, TEV) or “shekels” (e.g., NASB, NIV, NRSV).
  7. 2 Kings 5:6 tn Heb “and now when this letter comes to you, look, I have sent to you Naaman my servant.”
  8. 2 Kings 5:7 tn Heb “Am I God, killing and restoring life, that this one sends to me to cure a man from his skin disease?” In the Hebrew text this is one lengthy rhetorical question, which has been divided up in the translation for stylistic reasons.
  9. 2 Kings 5:7 tn Heb “Indeed, know and see that he is seeking an occasion with respect to me.”
  10. 2 Kings 5:8 tn Heb “man of God” (also in vv. 15, 20).
  11. 2 Kings 5:8 tn Heb “Let him come.”
  12. 2 Kings 5:10 tn Heb “will return to you.”
  13. 2 Kings 5:12 tn Heb “Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all of the waters of Israel?” The rhetorical question expects an emphatic “yes” as an answer.
  14. 2 Kings 5:13 tn Heb “They spoke to him. They said.”
  15. 2 Kings 5:13 tn Heb “my father,” reflecting the perspective of each individual servant. To address their master as “father” would emphasize his authority and express their respect. See BDB 3 s.v. אָב and the similar idiomatic use of “father” in 2 Kgs 2:12.
  16. 2 Kings 5:13 tn Heb “a great thing.”
  17. 2 Kings 5:13 tn Heb “would you not do [it]?” The rhetorical question expects the answer, “Of course you would.”
  18. 2 Kings 5:13 tn Heb “How much more [when] he said, “Wash and be healed.” The second imperative (“be healed”) states the expected result of obeying the first (‘wash”).
  19. 2 Kings 5:14 tn Heb “according to the word of the man of God.”
  20. 2 Kings 5:14 tn Heb “and his skin was restored, like the skin of a small child.”
  21. 2 Kings 5:15 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Naaman) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  22. 2 Kings 5:15 tn Heb “look.”
  23. 2 Kings 5:16 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  24. 2 Kings 5:16 tn Heb “before whom I stand.”
  25. 2 Kings 5:16 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Naaman) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  26. 2 Kings 5:17 tn Heb “and [if] not, may there be given to your servant a load [for] a pair of mules, earth.”
  27. 2 Kings 5:17 tn Heb “for your servant will not again make a burnt offering and sacrifice to other gods, only to the Lord.”
  28. 2 Kings 5:18 tn Heb “When my master enters 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 forgive your servant for this thing.”sn Rimmon was the Syrian storm god. See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 65.
  29. 2 Kings 5:19 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  30. 2 Kings 5:19 tn Heb “and he went from him a distance of land.” The precise meaning of כִּבְרַה (kivrah) “distance,” is uncertain. See BDB 460 s.v. כִּבְרַה, and HALOT 459-60 s.v. II *כְּבָרַה, and M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 65.
  31. 2 Kings 5:20 tn Heb “said” (i.e., to himself).
  32. 2 Kings 5:20 tn Heb “Look, my master spared this Syrian Naaman by not taking from his hand what he brought.”
  33. 2 Kings 5:21 tn Heb “Is there peace?”
  34. 2 Kings 5:22 tn Heb “peace.”
  35. 2 Kings 5:22 tn Heb “Look now, here, two servants came to me from the Ephraimite hill country, from the sons of the prophets.”
  36. 2 Kings 5:22 tn The Hebrew term כִּכָּר (kikkar, “circle”) refers generally to something that is round. When used of metals it can refer to a disk-shaped weight made of the metal or to a standard unit of weight, generally regarded as a talent. Since the accepted weight for a talent of metal is about 75 pounds, this would have amounted to about 75 pounds of silver (cf. NCV, NLT, CEV).
  37. 2 Kings 5:23 tn Heb “Be resolved and accept two talents.”
  38. 2 Kings 5:23 tn Heb “before him.”
  39. 2 Kings 5:24 tn Heb “from their hand.”
  40. 2 Kings 5:24 tn Heb “and he sent the men away and they went.”
  41. 2 Kings 5:26 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  42. 2 Kings 5:26 tn Heb “Did not my heart go as a man turned from his chariot to meet you?” The rhetorical question emphasizes that he was indeed present in “heart” (or “spirit”) and was very much aware of what Gehazi had done. In the MT the interrogative particle has been accidentally omitted before the negative particle.
  43. 2 Kings 5:26 tn In the MT the statement is phrased as a rhetorical question, “Is this the time…?” It expects an emphatic negative response.
  44. 2 Kings 5:27 tn Heb “cling to.”
  45. 2 Kings 5:27 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Gehazi) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  46. 2 Kings 5:27 tn Traditionally, “he went from before him, leprous like snow.” But see the note at 5:1, as well as M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 66.
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2 Kings 5
International Standard Version

The Healing of Naaman

5 Naaman, the commander of the army of the king of Aram,[a] was a great man in the opinion[b] of his master. He was highly favored, because by him the Lord had given victory to Aram. Though he was a mighty and valiant man, he was suffering from leprosy. 2 On one of their raids to the territory of Israel, Aram had taken captive a young girl when she was an infant,[c] who had eventually become an attendant to[d] Naaman’s wife. 3 She mentioned to her mistress, “If only my master were to visit the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy.”

4 Later, Naaman[e] went to inform his master and told him something like this: “Thus and so spoke the young woman from the territory of Israel.”

5 The king of Aram replied, “Go now, and I’ll send a letter to the king of Israel.” So he left and took with him ten talents[f] of silver and 6,000 units[g] of gold, along with ten sets[h] of clothing. 6 He also brought the letter to the king of Israel, which read as follows: “…and now as this letter finds its way to you, look! I’ve sent my servant Naaman to you so you may heal him of his leprosy.”

7 When the king of Israel read the letter, he ripped his clothes and cried out, “Am I God? Can I kill and give life? Is this man sending me a request[i] to heal a man’s leprosy? Let’s think about this—he’s looking for a reason to start a fight[j] with me!”

8 When Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, he sent a message[k] to the king and asked, “Why did you tear your clothes? Please, let the man come visit me and he will learn that there is a prophet in Israel!”

9 So Naaman arrived with his horses and chariots and stood in front of the door to Elisha’s house. 10 Elisha sent a messenger out to him, who told him, “Go bathe in the Jordan River[l] seven times. Your flesh will be restored for you. Now stay clean!”

11 But Naaman flew into a rage and left, telling himself, “Look! I thought ‘He’s surely going to come out to me, stand still, call out in the name of the Lord his God, wave his hand over the infection,[m] and cure the leprosy!’ 12 Aren’t the Abana and Pharpar rivers in Damascus better than all of the water in Israel? Couldn’t I just bathe in them and become clean?” So he turned away and left, filled with anger.

13 But then his servants approached him and spoke with him. They said, “My father, had the prophet only asked of you something great, you would have done it, wouldn’t you? Yet he told you, ‘Bathe, and be clean…!’” 14 So he went down and plunged himself into the Jordan River[n] seven times, just as the man of God had said, and his flesh rejuvenated like the flesh of a newborn child. And he was clean.

Gehazi’s Greed is Punished

15 Naaman[o] went back to the man of God, along with his entire entourage, and stood before him. “Please look!” he said. “I know that there is no God in all the earth, except in Israel! So please, take a present from your servant.”

16 But Elisha[p] replied, “As the Lord lives, before whom I stand, I will not receive anything from you.” Though Naaman[q] urged him to take it, Elisha[r] declined.

17 So Naaman asked, “No? Then please let your servant load two mules with dirt from Israel,[s] because your servant will no longer offer any burnt offering or sacrifice to any other god but the Lord. 18 In this one area may the Lord pardon your servant: Whenever my master enters the temple of Rimmon to worship there, he will lean on my hand while I bow down in the temple of Rimmon. So may the Lord pardon your servant in this one area.”

19 “Go in peace,” he said. So Naaman[t] left.

After Naaman had gone only a short distance, 20 Gehazi, the attendant to Elisha, the man of God, told himself, “Look how my master has spared this Aramean, Naaman! He declined to take from him what he brought. As the Lord lives, I’m going to run after him and get something from him.” 21 So Gehazi ran after Naaman.

When Naaman noticed someone running after him, he came down from his chariot, greeted him and asked, “Is everything all right?”[u]

22 Gehazi said, “Everything’s all right. My master sent me to tell you, ‘Just now two men from the Guild of Prophets have arrived from the hill country of Ephraim. Please give them each a talent[v] of silver bullion and two sets[w] of clothes.’”

23 But Naaman said, “Please accept my invitation to take two talents[x] of silver.” He urged him, binding two talents[y] of silver in two bags, along with two sets of clothes. He placed them in the care of two of his young men, and they went on ahead of Gehazi.[z] 24 When he arrived at the stronghold, Gehazi[aa] took the bags from their custody and hid them away in the house. Then he sent the men away and they left.

25 Later he went to address[ab] his master. Elisha asked him, “Where did you go, Gehazi?”

“Your servant went nowhere in particular,” he said.

26 But Elisha[ac] responded, “Didn’t my heart break[ad] as the man was turning from his chariot to greet you? Is now the time to receive money? To receive clothes? And olive groves, vineyards, sheep, oxen, servants, or female attendants? 27 Naaman’s leprosy will plague you and your descendants forever!” As he left Elisha’s presence, he was infected with leprosy that looked like white snow.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Kings 5:1 I.e., ancient Assyria, and so throughout the book
  2. 2 Kings 5:1 Lit. eyes
  3. 2 Kings 5:2 Or young little girl; cf. v. 14; i.e., a young girl of small size
  4. 2 Kings 5:2 Lit. girl, and she was in the presence of
  5. 2 Kings 5:4 Lit. he
  6. 2 Kings 5:5 I.e. about 750 pounds; a talent weighed about 75 pounds
  7. 2 Kings 5:5 The unit of weight is unspecified.
  8. 2 Kings 5:5 So MT; LXX reads changes
  9. 2 Kings 5:7 The Heb. lacks a request
  10. 2 Kings 5:7 The Heb. lacks to start a fight
  11. 2 Kings 5:8 The Heb. lacks a message
  12. 2 Kings 5:10 The Heb. lacks River
  13. 2 Kings 5:11 Lit. place
  14. 2 Kings 5:14 The Heb. lacks River
  15. 2 Kings 5:15 Lit. He
  16. 2 Kings 5:16 Lit. he
  17. 2 Kings 5:16 Lit. he
  18. 2 Kings 5:16 Lit. he
  19. 2 Kings 5:17 The Heb. lacks from Israel
  20. 2 Kings 5:19 Lit. he
  21. 2 Kings 5:21 Lit. Peace; i.e. a general statement of good will; and so through v. 26
  22. 2 Kings 5:22 I.e. about 75 pounds; a talent weighed about 75 pounds
  23. 2 Kings 5:22 So MT; LXX reads changes
  24. 2 Kings 5:23 The Heb. is dual; i.e. about 150 pounds; a talent weighed about 75 pounds
  25. 2 Kings 5:23 The Heb. is dual; i.e. about 150 pounds; a talent weighed about 75 pounds
  26. 2 Kings 5:23 Lit. him
  27. 2 Kings 5:24 Lit. he
  28. 2 Kings 5:25 Or to stand before
  29. 2 Kings 5:26 Lit. he
  30. 2 Kings 5:26 Lit. go
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2 Kings 4
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