2 Kings Chapter 5    

¹Now Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great man with his lord, and honorable, because by him Yahweh had given victory to Syria. He was also a mighty man of valor, but he was a leper.
 

²Now the Syrians had gone out in raiding bands and had taken captive a young girl out of the land of Israel, and she became a servant to Naaman’s wife.
  ³And she said to her mistress, “I wish that my lord were standing before the prophet who is in Samaria! Then he would cure him of his leprosy.”
 

⁴So Naaman went in and told his lord, saying, “Thus and so said the young woman who is from the land of Israel.”
  ⁵Then the king of Syria 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^a and 6,000 shekels of gold^b and ten sets of clothing.
  ⁶And he brought the letter to the king of Israel, saying, “Now when this letter has come to you, behold, I have sent to you my servant Naaman for you to cure him of his leprosy.”
 

⁷And when the king of Israel had 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 leprosy? But consider now, and see how he is seeking an occasion to fight against me.”
 

⁸But when Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, he sent to the king, saying, “Why have you torn your clothes? Have him come to me and he will know that there is a prophet in Israel.”
  ⁹So Naaman came with his horses and with his chariots and stood at the door of the house of Elisha.
 

¹⁰And 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.”
 

¹¹But Naaman was angry and went away and said, “Behold, I thought he would come out, yes, come out to me and stand and call on the name of Yahweh his God and wave his hand over the place and cure the leper.
  ¹²Aren’t the Abanah and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Couldn’t I wash in them and be clean?” So he turned and went away in a rage.
 

¹³But his servants came near and spoke to him and said, “My father, if the prophet had asked you do some great thing, would you not have done it? How much more so, when he says to you, ‘Wash and be clean?’”
  ¹⁴So he went down and dipped seven times in the Jordan, in accordance with the word of the man of God, and his flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean!
 

¹⁵Then he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and came and stood before him, and he said, “Behold now, I know that there is no God in all the earth but in Israel. So now please take a gift from your servant.”
 

¹⁶But he said, “As Yahweh lives, before whom I stand, I will not take it.” And he urged him to take it, but he refused.
 

¹⁷So Naaman said, “If not, then please let two muleloads of dirt be given to your servant, for from now on your servant will not offer a burnt offering or sacrifice to other gods, but only to Yahweh.
  ¹⁸But in this thing may Yahweh pardon your servant: when my lord goes into the house of Rimmon to worship there and he leans on my hand and I bow down^c in the house of Rimmon, when I bow down in the house of Rimmon, may Yahweh pardon your servant in this thing.”
 

¹⁹And he said to him, “Go in peace.” So he departed from him a little way.
  ²⁰But Gehazi the servant of Elisha the man of God said, “Behold, my master has spared this Naaman the Syrian in not receiving from his hands what he brought. As Yahweh lives, I will run after him and take something from him.”
 

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

²²And he said, “All is well. My lord has sent me, saying, ‘Behold, two young men of the sons of the prophets have now come to me from the hill country of Ephraim. Please give them a talent of silver and two sets of clothing.’”
 

²³But Naaman said, “Consent to take two talents.” He urged him, and bound two talents of silver in two bags with two sets of clothing, and he gave them to two of his servants, and they carried them before him.
  ²⁴And when he came to the fortified part of the city, he took them from their hand and stored them in the house. Then he sent the men away, and they departed.
 

²⁵And he went in and stood before his lord, and Elisha said to him, “Where did you come from, Gehazi?” And he said, “Your servant did not go anywhere.”
 

²⁶But he said to him, “Didn’t my heart go along with you when the man turned from his chariot to meet you? Is it the time to take money, and to take clothing, and olive groves, and vineyards, and sheep, and cattle, and male servants, and female servants?
  ²⁷Therefore the leprosy of Naaman will cling to you and to your seed perpetually.” And he went out from his presence a leper as white as snow.