Having learned about an Aramean army commander named Naaman who had leprosy (2 Kings 5:1), and the fact that an Israelite girl was a servant to Naaman’s wife (2 Kings 5:2), it’s time to start connecting those two facts into part of a larger account as we continue studying this chapter of the Bible.
I don’t know if this Israelite girl was treated well and had a good enough relationship that she could talk with her mistress freely. Or, maybe she was just young and spoke what was on her mind. (Sometimes, kids just say what they are thinking, without filters and social norms that adults tend to use!)
She said to her mistress, “If only my master would see the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy.”
2 Kings 5:3 NIV
https://bible.com/bible/111/2ki.5.3.NIV
Regardless, this Israelite servant girl heard about Naaman’s condition, and she mentioned to Naaman’s wife that there was a prophet in Samaria who could heal him. (By the way, depending on when the girl was taken from Israel, she might have been thinking about the prophet Elijah, who was Elisha’s predecessor, but that’s just a guess.)
I don’t know what caused Naaman to believe the word of a foreign servant girl. Maybe he had respect for the God of Israel. Maybe he was desperate for a cure. Maybe his wife told him to pursue this suggestion. In any case, though, Naaman went to the king of Aram with this news (see verses 4-6), and the king of Aram sent Naaman to the king of Israel with a generous gift. Remember, these two countries often didn’t get along in that era, but perhaps there was enough of a détente or ceasefire going on between the two kings at this time, that they were at least on speaking terms.
Remember that the Israelite servant girl had suggested a prophet, not the king. While the king and Naaman might have been following a “chain of command” (due to their military mindset), the king of Israelite knew that he couldn’t heal anyone.
As soon as the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his robes and said, “Am I God? Can I kill and bring back to life? Why does this fellow send someone to me to be cured of his leprosy? See how he is trying to pick a quarrel with me!”
2 Kings 5:7 NIV
https://bible.com/bible/111/2ki.5.7.NIV
As with many paranoid people, and perhaps as one who had been baited before by political adversaries before, the king of Israel imagines the worst about this offer. Rather than considering that maybe the Arameans are confused or just misdirected, he fears that the king of Aram is looking for an excuse to start a fight, and he’s pretty distraught as a result.
I’m not sure how Elisha heard the news about what had happened with the King of Israel and Naaman. Maybe God told him, or maybe the news traveled throughout the capital of Israel or the region, like news gets passed around today (except without the Internet or cable TV).
However, Elisha didn’t leave the king of Israel hanging out to dry (see verses 8-10). Going back to what Naaman’s wife’s servant girl had suggested in the first place (about a prophet in Samaria – see 2 Kings 5:2), Elisha had the king send Naaman over to his place. While God is in control of governments’ power and actions, and He sometimes uses political structures to achieve His goals, Naaman’s situation was not going to be addressed by a king, but rather by a prophet and the power of God.
When Naaman showed up at Elisha’s house, though, Elisha didn’t even go out to talk with him. Instead, Elisha sent a messenger with instructions for Naaman.
Elisha sent a messenger to say to him, “Go, wash yourself seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will be restored and you will be cleansed.”
2 Kings 5:10 NIV
https://bible.com/bible/111/2ki.5.10.NIV
Like many other miracles studied in recent articles, though, the action that Naaman was supposed to take wasn’t magical; it wasn’t a medical or scientific solution. In fact, I don’t think that washing 7 times in the Jordan River was necessarily even the root cause of the healing itself. I think that it was about giving Naaman a chance to express his faith. It gave him an opportunity to obey. And, it gave Naaman a role in God’s healing.
You can read ahead, but if nothing else, I hope that this part of 2 Kings 5 at least reminds us that God’s plans aren’t always simple or straightforward. It might have been convenient for Naaman to just send a letter to Elisha and be immediately healed, but there was going to be more to this healing than a “quick fix”.
From Sunday School lesson prepared for June 29, 2025
References:
- Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
- The College Press NIV Commentary – 1 & 2 Kings, by Jesse C. Long, Jr. © 2002 College Press Publishing Co.
- Matthew Henry Commentary on the Whole Bible (Complete). Matthew Henry. 1706, via BibleGateway.com.
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