Chapter 5
2021 - The miracles continue.
Naaman, a leper, is the commander of the army of Syria. A great man, a mighty man of valor, whom God helped to defeat Syria's enemies. So God had helped this leper to become renowned in his own country. Surely God anticipated what was to come, and in fact designed things this way to bring glory to Himself, even from a foreign nation, an enemy nation. A captured Israeli girl tells Naaman's wife that there is a prophet in Israel who can heal his leprosy. Naaman gets leave to go and find out, and the King of Syria sends a letter with him to the King of Israel. Elisha hears of his coming, and tells him to wash 7 times in the Jordan. But Elisha doesn't even come out to meet him. Just sends the message. Naaman, being a bit prideful, is angry about this. Here is the verse:
11 But Naaman was angry and went away, saying, "Behold, I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call upon the name of the LORD his God, and wave his hand over the place and cure the leper. [2Ki 5:11 ESV]
Funny how we sometimes have expectations of how exactly God should answer our prayers and petitions. We have a scenario in mind, we know how we would fix this problem! And then God does it a completely different way, a way that goes so much further than what we would have done. We have to be careful when we don't see our prayers answered according to our own designs. We need to be careful and not end up working against God because we are so sure of our own solutions.
Possible FB post. Noted 8/28/20.
Nevertheless, at his servant's urging, he washes. He is cured. Those servants were pretty brave to suggest to their master that he might be wrong, to point out how silly it was not to even try doing what the prophet had said. No matter how "insufficient" the procedure seems, remember that it is God, not the procedure that cures.
Naaman goes back to give Elisha thank you gifts. Here is what he says:
15 Then he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and he came and stood before him. And he said, "Behold, I know that there is no God in all the earth but in Israel; so accept now a present from your servant." [2Ki 5:15 ESV]
God has been glorified, and this influential foreigner has become not only a believer, but a missionary to his own people of the greatness and glory of God.
Elisha won't take the gifts. Naaman takes two mule loads of dirt back to Syria, so that he can worship God on God's own land. And Naaman asks for pardon, as he is a servant, and must take his master to worship Rimmon in Syria, and must bow to Rimmon during his master's worship. Elisha seems to pardon him for this. What all would this apply to? When someone says "Curse God or die"? When the neighbor you are eating with prays to Allah? MSB seems to interpret this "special dispensation" the same way I did.
Might be able to do a FB post on this. The line between obedience on earth and obedience to God. This man is bowing to idols, but worshiping only God. And there seems to be a "special dispensation" for this.
Possible, but complicated to word, FB post.
Elisha's servant lies to Naaman in order to get some of the "thank you gifts" Naaman had brought. Then he lies to Elisha about having done so. Elisha pronounces this man, Gehazi, and his family and his future descendants, lepers. Gehazi is immediately white with leprosy.
2022 - More miracles from Elisha. Healing leprosy in a Syrian. Then causing Gehazi, and all his descendants, to become lepers..He makes iron float in the Jordan. Elisha repeatedly tells the King of Israel where the King of Syria is waiting for him - they are at war, and Elisha helps Israel's King avoid being ambushed. Over and over. Supernatural knowledge...but not really a miracle I guess. The Syrian army is blinded. All of them at once.