2 Kings 5:20-27

IV. A JUDICIAL MIRACLE 5:20-27

TRANSLATION

(20) But Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, thought, Behold my master has spared Naaman this Aramean by not taking from his hand that which he brought. As the LORD lives, I will run after him, and take from him something. (21) And Gehazi pursued Naaman. And when Naaman saw him running after him, he got down from the chariot to meet him, and said, Is all well? (22) And he said, All is well. My master has sent me, saying, Behold now this: Two young men of the sons of the prophets have come unto me from Mt. Ephraim. Give, I pray you, to them a talent of silver, and two changes of garments. (23) And Naaman said, Consent to take two talents. And he implored him, and he bound two talents of silver in two bags, and two changes of garments, and put them upon two of his servants; and they bore them before him. (24) And he came unto the hill, and he took them from their hand, and bestowed them in the house. And he sent the men away, and they departed. (25) And he came and stood before his master. And Elisha said unto him, Where are you coming from Gehazi? And he said, Your servant did not go anywhere. (26) And he said unto him, Did not my heart go with you when a man turned again from upon his chariot to meet you? Is it time to receive silver and to receive garments, and oliveyards and vineyards, and sheep and cattle, and servants and handmaids? (27) The leprosy of Naaman shall cleave to you and to your seed forever. And he went out from before him a leper as white as snow.

COMMENTS

Gehazi could not bear the thought of the Aramean going home with all his treasure. He convinced himself that this foreigner deserved to be spoiled because he was an enemy of Israel. He swore an oath that he would run after the general and take something of him (2 Kings 5:20). As the Lord lives are strange words in the mouth of one who has set his mind on a course of lying and stealing. Often solemn religious formulas, rendered meaningless by frequent repetition, drop from the lips of those who engage in the most indefensible conduct.

Naaman's entourage, traveling at a leisurely pace so as not to exhaust those servants who might have been on foot, was easily overtaken by the fleet-footed Gehazi. Naaman spotted the runner, recognized him, and paid him a supreme honor by descending from his chariot, a sign of respect in the East of an inferior for a superior. By so honoring the servant of the prophet, he was showing honor for the prophet himself. Seeing Gehazi's haste and anxious looks, Naaman suspected that something had gone wrong in the brief time since he had left Samaria, and he therefore anxiously inquired of Gehazi, Is all well? (2 Kings 5:21). The servant replied that all was well, i.e., there had been no accident or calamity. But nonetheless, a circumstance had arisen which had caused Elisha to change his mind with regard to the gifts which Naaman had offered. Two needy sons of the prophets from Mt. Ephraim had happened along, and Elisha would like Naaman to donate to them a talent of silver ($2,000) and two changes of garments. Gehazi's story sounded plausible, and the amount for which he asked, while rather large for the pretended occasion, was but a trifle compared with the amount which Naaman had expected to expend. Though greedy, Gehazi did not wish to ask for so much as to arouse suspicion. Gehazi (whose name means avaricious) is the prototype of modern religious charlatans who exploit unsuspecting persons on the pretext of giving aid to needy religious causes.

Naaman believed the story of Gehazi and wanted to do even more than the servant had requested. He suggested that two talents ($4,000) be taken, probably because the strangers who had arrived were two. Following the conventions of the Near East, Gehazi pretended to decline the more generous offer. Naaman took the two talents and put them in bags and, along with the changes of garments, put them upon the shoulders of two of his servants. These servants carried the two heavy bags of silver and garments for Gehazi (2 Kings 5:23). At a hill just outside Samaria, Gehazi took the money from Naaman's slaves, and dismissed them. He could not run the risk of having these foreigners seen entering Samaria again. Too many questions might be asked. Gehazi took the bags of money and hid them in the house of his master, probably in the courtyard thereof (2 Kings 5:24).

As soon as he had hidden the things Naaman had given him, Gehazi entered the room where Elisha was sitting as casually as he could, as if he had been busy in another part of the house. He was met, however, with a plain and stern question from his master which literally in the Hebrew is Whence, Gehazi? Gehazi probably had not regarded the deception and spoiling of a foreigner as a very grievous wrong; but now his path of chicanery is about to force him to lie to his master: Your servant went nowhere! (2 Kings 5:25). Then came the bombshell: Did not my heart go with you (i.e., was I not with you in prophetic spirit) when the man turned again from his chariot to meet you? This was enough to prove to the sheepish servant that Elisha knew what had just transpired. But then the prophet went a step further and reflected back to Gehazi his own inner thoughts about what he would do with the newly acquired wealth: purchase oliveyards and vineyards, and sheep and oxen. Was this the time for such worldly ambitions? When Baalism held such a grip on the nation and when so many who claimed to represent Yahweh were hypocritical and mercenarywas this the time to think of acquiring property and luxury for himself? Such actions could bring the prophetic office into contempt with unbelievers and undermine the credibility of Elisha's ministry! (2 Kings 5:26). Therefore, since Gehazi had taken of Naaman's goods, he would also take of his leprosy. And should this servant decide to marry and father children, they too would be lepers. In that instant the plague fell on Gehazi, his skin turned white as snow, and he departed from the presence of his master to spend his remaining days with the outcast lepers (2 Kings 5:27).