2 Kings 5

¹ Now Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Aram, was a great man in the sight of his master and highly regarded, because through him the LORD had given victory to Aram. He was a mighty warrior, but he was a leper.

² Now the Arameans had gone out in raiding parties and had taken captive a young girl from the land of Israel. She served Naaman's wife.

³ She said to her mistress, "If only my master were before the prophet who is in Samaria! Then he would cure him of his skin disease."

⁴ So Naaman went in and told his master, saying, "Thus and thus spoke the girl who is from the land of Israel."

⁵ The king of Aram said, "Go now, and I will send a letter to the king of Israel." So he departed and took with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold, and ten changes of clothing.

⁶ He brought the letter to the king of Israel, which read, "Now, when this letter comes to you, know that I have sent my servant Naaman to you so that you may cure him of his skin disease."

⁷ When the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his clothes and said, "Am I God, to kill and to make alive, that this man sends to me to cure a man of his skin disease? Just look and see how he is seeking a quarrel with me."

⁸ When Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, he sent word to the king, saying, "Why have you torn your clothes? Let him come to me, and he will know that there is a prophet in Israel."

⁹ So Naaman came with his horses and chariots and stood at the door of Elisha's house.

¹⁰ Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, "Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh will be restored to you, and you will be clean."

¹¹ But Naaman was furious and went away, saying, "Look, I thought he would surely come out to me, stand, and call on the name of the LORD his God, wave his hand over the place, and cure the skin disease."

¹² "Are not Abanah and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them and be clean?" So he turned and went away in a rage.

¹³ But his servants approached and spoke to him, saying, "My father, if the prophet had told you to do something great, would you not have done it? How much more when he says to you, 'Wash and be clean'?"

¹⁴ So he went down and dipped 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.

¹⁵ Then he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and came and stood before him. He said, "Now I know that there is no God in all the earth except in Israel. Now please accept a gift from your servant."

¹⁶ But he said, "As the LORD lives, before whom I stand, I will not accept it." He urged him to accept it, but he refused.

¹⁷ Naaman said, "If not, please let your servant be given two mule-loads of earth, for your servant will no longer offer burnt offering or sacrifice to any god except the LORD.

¹⁸ "In this matter may the LORD pardon your servant: when my master goes into the house of Rimmon to worship there, and he leans on my arm, 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 matter."

¹⁹ He said to him, "Go in peace." So he departed from him a short distance.

²⁰ But Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, thought, "Look, my master has let this Aramean Naaman off easily by not accepting from his hand what he brought. As the LORD lives, I will run after him and get something from him."

²¹ So Gehazi pursued Naaman. When Naaman saw someone running after him, he got down from the chariot to meet him and said, "Is all well?"

²² He said, "All is well. My master has sent me, saying, 'Right now two young men of the sons of the prophets have come to me from the hill country of Ephraim. Please give them a talent of silver and two changes of clothing.'"

²³ Naaman said, "Please, take two talents." He urged him and bound two talents of silver in two bags with two changes of clothing and gave them to two of his servants, and they carried them before him.

²⁴ When he came to the hill, he took them from their hand and put them in the house. Then he sent the men away, and they left.

²⁵ He went in and stood before his master. Elisha said to him, "Where have you been, Gehazi?" He said, "Your servant did not go anywhere."

²⁶ He said to him, "Did not my heart go with you when the man turned from his chariot to meet you? Is this a time to accept silver, clothing, olive groves, vineyards, sheep, oxen, male servants, and female servants?"

²⁷ "Therefore the skin disease of Naaman will cling to you and to your descendants forever." So he went out from his presence, a leper, white as snow.