◀ All Reading Plans / Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary) / 2 Kings 5:1-14 (Naaman is healed of leprosy); Psalm 30 (You restored me to health); 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 (Run the race); Mark 1:40-45 (The healing of one with leprosy) (New English Translation)

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Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Daily Bible readings that follow the church liturgical year, with thematically matched Old and New Testament readings.

Duration: 1245 days

2 Kings 5:1-14

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] ²Raiding parties went out from Syria and took captive from the land of Israel a young girl, who became a servant to Naaman’s wife. ³She 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.”

⁴Naaman^[c] went and told his master what the girl from the land of Israel had said. ⁵The 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. ⁶He 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.” ⁷When 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]

⁸When 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.” ⁹So Naaman came with his horses and chariots and stood in the doorway of Elisha’s house. ¹⁰Elisha 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.” ¹¹Naaman 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. ¹²The 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. ¹³His 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] ¹⁴So 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.

Footnotes

2 Kings 5:1 tn Heb “was a great man before his master and lifted up with respect to the face.”
2 Kings 5:1 tn For a discussion of מְצֹרָע (m^etsoraʿ), 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.
2 Kings 5:4 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Naaman) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
2 Kings 5:5 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Naaman) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
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).
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).
2 Kings 5:6 tn Heb “and now when this letter comes to you, look, I have sent to you Naaman my servant.”
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.
2 Kings 5:7 tn Heb “Indeed, know and see that he is seeking an occasion with respect to me.”
2 Kings 5:8 tn Heb “man of God” (also in vv. 15, 20).
2 Kings 5:8 tn Heb “Let him come.”
2 Kings 5:10 tn Heb “will return to you.”
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.
2 Kings 5:13 tn Heb “They spoke to him. They said.”
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.
2 Kings 5:13 tn Heb “a great thing.”
2 Kings 5:13 tn Heb “would you not do [it]?” The rhetorical question expects the answer, “Of course you would.”
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”).
2 Kings 5:14 tn Heb “according to the word of the man of God.”
2 Kings 5:14 tn Heb “and his skin was restored, like the skin of a small child.”

Psalm 30

Psalm 30^[a]

A psalm, a song used at the dedication of the temple;^[b] by David.

30 I will praise you, O Lord, for you lifted me up,^[c]
and did not allow my enemies to gloat^[d] over me.
²O Lord my God,
I cried out to you and you healed me.^[e]
³O Lord, you pulled me^[f] up from Sheol;
you rescued me from among those descending into the grave.^[g]
⁴Sing to the Lord, you faithful followers^[h] of his;
give thanks to his holy name.^[i]
⁵For his anger lasts only a brief moment,
and his good favor restores one’s life.^[j]
One may experience sorrow during the night,
but joy arrives in the morning.^[k]
⁶In my self-confidence I said,
“I will never be shaken.”^[l]
⁷O Lord, in your good favor you made me secure.^[m]
Then you rejected me^[n] and I was terrified.
⁸To you, O Lord, I cried out;
I begged the Lord for mercy:^[o]
⁹“What^[p] profit is there in taking my life,^[q]
in my descending into the Pit?^[r]
Can the dust of the grave^[s] praise you?
Can it declare your loyalty?^[t]
¹⁰Hear, O Lord, and have mercy on me.
O Lord, deliver me.”^[u]
¹¹Then you turned my lament into dancing;
you removed my sackcloth and covered me with joy.^[v]
¹²So now^[w] my heart^[x] will sing to you and not be silent;
O Lord my God, I will always^[y] give thanks to you.

Footnotes

Psalm 30:1 sn Psalm 30. The author thanks the Lord for delivering him from death and urges others to join him in praise. The psalmist experienced divine discipline for a brief time, but when he cried out for help the Lord intervened and restored his favor.
Psalm 30:1 tn Heb “a song of the dedication of the house.” The referent of “house” is unclear. It is possible that David wrote this psalm for the dedication ceremony of Solomon’s temple. Another possibility is that the psalm was used on the occasion of the dedication of the second temple following the return from exile, or on the occasion of the rededication of the temple in Maccabean times.
Psalm 30:1 tn Elsewhere the verb דָּלָה (dalah) is used of drawing water from a well (Exod 2:16, 19; Prov 20:5). The psalmist was trapped in the pit leading to Sheol (see v. 3), but the Lord hoisted him up. The Piel stem is used here, perhaps suggesting special exertion on the Lord’s part.
Psalm 30:1 tn Or “rejoice.”
Psalm 30:2 sn You healed me. Apparently the psalmist was plagued by a serious illness that threatened his life. See Ps 41.
Psalm 30:3 tn Or “my life.”
Psalm 30:3 tn Heb “you kept me alive from those descending into the pit.” The Hebrew noun בּוֹר (bor, “pit, cistern”) is sometimes used of the grave and/or the realm of the dead. The translation follows the consonantal Hebrew text (Kethib); the marginal reading (Qere) has, “you kept me alive so that I did not go down into the pit.”
Psalm 30:4 tn A “faithful follower” (חָסִיד) is one who does what is right in God’s eyes and remains faithful to God (see Pss 4:3; 12:1; 16:10; 31:23; 37:28; 86:2; 97:10).
Psalm 30:4 tn Heb “to his holy remembrance.” The noun זֵכֵר (zekher, “remembrance”) here refers to the name of the Lord as invoked in liturgy and praise. Cf. Pss 6:5; 97:12.The Lord’s “name” is “holy” in the sense that it is a reminder of his uniqueness and greatness.
Psalm 30:5 tn Heb “for [there is] a moment in his anger, [but] life in his favor.” Because of the parallelism with “moment,” some understand חַיִּים (khayyim) in a quantitative sense: “lifetime” (cf. NIV, NRSV). However, the immediate context, which emphasizes deliverance from death (see v. 3), suggests that חַיִּים has a qualitative sense: “physical life” or even “prosperous life” (cf. NEB “in his favour there is life”).
Psalm 30:5 tn Heb “in the evening weeping comes to lodge, but at morning a shout of joy.” “Weeping” is personified here as a traveler who lodges with one temporarily.
Psalm 30:6 sn In my self-confidence I said… Here the psalmist begins to fill in the background of the crisis referred to in the earlier verses. He had been arrogant and self-confident, so the Lord withdrew his protection and allowed trouble to invade his life (vv. 8-11).
Psalm 30:7 tn Heb “in your good favor you caused to stand for my mountain strength.” Apparently this means “you established strength for my mountain” (“mountain” in this case representing his rule, which would be centered on Mt. Zion) or “you established strength as my mountain” (“mountain” in this case being a metaphor for security).
Psalm 30:7 tn Heb “you hid your face.” The idiom “hide the face” can mean “ignore” (see Pss 10:11; 13:1; 51:9) or, as here, carry the stronger idea of “reject” (see Ps 88:14).
Psalm 30:8 tn The prefixed verbal forms in v. 8 are probably preterites; the psalmist recalls that he prayed in his time of crisis.
Psalm 30:9 sn The following two verses (vv. 9-10) contain the prayer (or an excerpt of the prayer) that the psalmist offered to the Lord during his crisis.
Psalm 30:9 tn Heb “What profit [is there] in my blood?” “Blood” here represents his life.
Psalm 30:9 tn The Hebrew term שָׁחַת (shakhat, “pit”) is often used as a title for Sheol (see Pss 16:10; 49:9; 55:24 HT [55:23 ET]; 103:4).
Psalm 30:9 tn Heb “dust.” The words “of the grave” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
Psalm 30:9 tn The rhetorical questions anticipate the answer, “Of course not!”sn According to the OT, those who descend into the realm of death/Sheol are cut off from God’s mighty deeds and from the worshiping covenant community that experiences divine intervention (Pss 6:5; 88:10-12; Isa 38:18). In his effort to elicit a positive divine response, the psalmist reminds God that he will receive no praise or glory if he allows the psalmist to die. Dead men do not praise God!
Psalm 30:10 tn Heb “be a helper to me.”
Psalm 30:11 sn Covered me with joy. “Joy” probably stands metonymically for festive attire here.
Psalm 30:12 tn Heb “so that”; or “in order that.”
Psalm 30:12 tn Heb “glory.” Some view כָבוֹד (khavod, “glory”) here as a metonymy for man’s inner being (see BDB 459 s.v. II כָּבוֹד 5), but it is preferable to emend the form to כְּבֵדִי (k^evedi, “my liver”). Like the heart, the liver is viewed as the seat of one’s emotions. See also Pss 16:9; 57:9; 108:1, as well as H. W. Wolff, Anthropology of the Old Testament, 64, and M. Dahood, Psalms (AB), 1:90. For an Ugaritic example of the heart/liver as the source of joy, see G. R. Driver, Canaanite Myths and Legends, 47-48: “her [Anat’s] liver swelled with laughter, her heart was filled with joy, the liver of Anat with triumph.” “Heart” is used in the translation above for the sake of English idiom; the expression “my liver sings” would seem odd indeed to the modern reader.
Psalm 30:12 tn Or “forever.”

1 Corinthians 9:24-27

²⁴Do you not know that all the runners in a stadium compete, but only one receives the prize? So run to win. ²⁵Each competitor must exercise self-control in everything. They do it to receive a perishable crown, but we an imperishable one.

²⁶So I do not run uncertainly or box like one who hits only air. ²⁷Instead I subdue my body and make it my slave, so that after preaching to others I myself will not be disqualified.

Mark 1:40-45

Cleansing a Leper

⁴⁰Now^[a] a leper^[b] came to him and fell to his knees, asking for help. “If^[c] you are willing, you can make me clean,” he said. ⁴¹Moved with indignation,^[d] Jesus^[e] stretched out his hand and touched^[f] him, saying, “I am willing. Be clean!” ⁴²The leprosy left him at once, and he was clean. ⁴³Immediately Jesus^[g] sent the man^[h] away with a very strong warning. ⁴⁴He told him,^[i] “See that you do not say anything to anyone,^[j] but go, show yourself to a priest, and bring the offering that Moses commanded^[k] for your cleansing, as a testimony to them.”^[l] ⁴⁵But as the man^[m] went out he began to announce it publicly and spread the story widely, so that Jesus^[n] was no longer able to enter any town openly but stayed outside in remote places. Still^[o] they kept coming^[p] to him from everywhere.

Footnotes

Mark 1:40 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.
Mark 1:40 sn The ancient term for leprosy covers a wider array of conditions than what is called leprosy today (Hansen’s disease). In the OT the Hebrew term generally referred to a number of exfoliative (scaly) skin diseases (when applied to humans). A person with one of these diseases was totally ostracized from society until he was declared cured (Lev 13:45-46). In the NT the Greek term also refers to a number of skin diseases, but there is some evidence that true leprosy (Hansen’s disease) could be referred to, since that disease began to be described by Greek physicians in Alexandria, Egypt around 300 B.C. and thus might have been present in Judea and Galilee just before the time of Jesus.
Mark 1:40 tn This is a third class condition. The report portrays the leper making no presumptions about whether Jesus will heal him or not.
Mark 1:41 tc The reading found in almost the entire NT ms tradition is σπλαγχνισθείς (splanchnistheis, “moved with compassion”). Codex Bezae (D) and a few Latin mss (a d ff² r¹*) here read ὀργισθείς (orgistheis, “moved with anger”). Just as important, the second-century Diatessaron by Tatian almost surely spoke of Jesus’ anger here. On the one hand, the external evidence is so overwhelming for σπλαγχνισθείς that only solid internal reasoning could overturn it. On the other hand, various creative arguments that have been offered for accidental changes in the early transmission of the text from σπλαγχνισθείς to ὀργισθείς generally reveal more about the ingenuity of the scholar than the authenticity of the text. Inner-Greek, inner-Latin, and inner-Syriac accidental changes have all been suggested, but they lack conviction. (See, e.g., Peter J. Williams, “An examination of Ehrman’s case for ὀργισθείς in Mark 1:41, ” NovT 53 [2011]: 1–12, who argues for an inner-Greek corruption; Metzger, TCGNT 65, suggests “It is possible that the reading ὀργισθείς either (a) was suggested by ἐμβριμησάμενος of ver. 43, or (b) arose from confusion between similar words in Aramaic (compare Syriac ethraḥm, “he had pity,” with ethra‘em, “he was enraged”).” It remains far more difficult to account for a change from “moved with compassion” to “moved with anger” than it is to envision a copyist softening “moved with anger” to “moved with compassion.” Against this, it has been asserted that it is difficult to explain why scribes would be prone to soften the text here but not in Mark 3:5 or 10:14 (where Jesus is also said to be angry or indignant). However, at France notes, this view “ignores the fact that in those passages, unlike here, there was obvious cause for anger” (R. T. France, The Gospel of Mark, NIGTC [Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2002], 115). In the parallels both Matthew and Luke have neither ὀργισθείς nor σπλαγχνισθείς here. The simplest explanation for this omission is that their copies of Mark read ὀργισθείς and the other evangelists simply deleted it. Nevertheless, a decision in this case is not easy. Perhaps the best defense of the “angry” reading is Bart D. Ehrman’s “A Leper in the Hands of an Angry Jesus,” in New Testament Greek and Exegesis: Essays in Honor of Gerald F. Hawthorne, ed. Amy M. Donaldson and Timothy B. Sailors (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2003), 77–98. For discussion of the evidence and bibliography, see D. B. Wallace, “Textual Criticism and the Criterion of Embarrassment,” Jesus, Skepticism, and the Problem of History: Criteria and Context in the Study of Christian Origins, ed. Darrell L. Bock and J. Ed. Komoszewski (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, forthcoming), discussion on Mark 1:41.
Mark 1:41 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
Mark 1:41 sn Touched. This touch would have rendered Jesus ceremonially unclean (Lev 5:3; see also m. Nega’im 3.1; 11.1; 12.1; 13.6-12).
Mark 1:43 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
Mark 1:43 tn Grk “him”; the referent (the man who was healed) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
Mark 1:44 tn Grk “And after warning him, he immediately sent him away and told him.”
Mark 1:44 sn The silence ordered by Jesus was probably meant to last only until the cleansing took place with the priests and sought to prevent Jesus’ healings from becoming the central focus of the people’s reaction to him. See also 1:34; 3:12; 5:43; 7:36; 8:26, 30; 9:9 for other cases where Jesus asks for silence concerning him and his ministry.
Mark 1:44 sn On the phrase bring the offering that Moses commanded see Lev 14:1-32.
Mark 1:44 tn Or “as an indictment against them”; or “as proof to the people.” This phrase could be taken as referring to a positive witness to the priests, a negative testimony against them, or as a testimony to the community that the man had indeed been cured. In any case, the testimony shows that Jesus is healing and ministering to those in need.
Mark 1:45 tn Grk “he”; the referent (the man who was healed) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
Mark 1:45 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
Mark 1:45 tn Grk “and”; καί (kai) often has a mildly contrastive force, as here.
Mark 1:45 tn The imperfect verb has been translated iteratively.

New English Translation (NET)

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Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Elisha Heals a Syrian General

Footnotes

Psalm 30[a]

A psalm, a song used at the dedication of the temple;[b] by David.

Footnotes

Cleansing a Leper

Footnotes

Psalm 30^[a]

A psalm, a song used at the dedication of the temple;^[b] by David.