2 Kings 5:1–6:33
1 Now aNaaman, captain of the army of the king of Aram, was a great man 1with his master, and highly respected, because by him the Lord had given victory to Aram. The man was also a valiant warrior, but he was a leper.
2 Now the Arameans had gone out ain bands and had taken captive a little girl from the land of Israel; and she 1waited on Naaman’s wife.
3 She said to her mistress, “I wish that my master were 1with the prophet who is in Samaria! Then he would cure him of his leprosy.”
4 1Naaman went in and told his master, saying, “Thus and thus spoke the girl who is from the land of Israel.”
5 Then the king of Aram said, “Go 1now, and I will send a letter to the king of Israel.” He departed and atook with him ten talents of silver and six thousand shekels of gold and ten bchanges of clothes.
6 He brought the letter to the king of Israel, saying, “And now as this letter comes to you, behold, I have sent Naaman my servant to you, that you may cure him of his leprosy.”
7 When the king of Israel read the letter, ahe tore his clothes and said, “bAm I God, to kill and to make alive, that this man is sending word to me to cure a man of his leprosy? But cconsider now, and see how he is seeking 1a quarrel against me.”
8 It happened when Elisha athe man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, that he sent word to the king, saying, “Why have you torn your clothes? Now let him come to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel.”
9 So Naaman came with his horses and his chariots and stood at the doorway of the house of Elisha.
10 Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “aGo 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 and said, “Behold, I 1thought, ‘He will surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, and wave his hand over the place and cure the leper.’
12 “Are not 1Abanah 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 awent away in a rage.
13 aThen his servants came near and spoke to him and said, “bMy father, had the prophet told you to do some great thing, would you not have done it? How much more then, 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; and ahis flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child and bhe was clean.
15 When he returned to the man of God 1with all his company, and came and stood before him, he said, “Behold now, aI know that there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel; so please btake a 2present from your servant now.”
16 But he said, “aAs the Lord lives, before whom I stand, bI will take nothing.” And he urged him to take it, but he refused.
17 Naaman said, “If not, please let your servant at least be given two mules’ load of aearth; for your servant will no longer offer burnt offering nor will he sacrifice to other gods, but to 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 ahe leans on my hand and I bow myself in the house of Rimmon, when I bow myself in the house of Rimmon, the Lord pardon your servant in this matter.”
19 He said to him, “aGo in peace.” So he departed from him some distance.
20 But aGehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, 1thought, “Behold, my master has spared this Naaman the Aramean, 2by not receiving from his hands what he brought. bAs the Lord lives, I will run after him and take something from him.”
21 So Gehazi pursued Naaman. When Naaman saw one running after him, he came down from the chariot to meet him and said, “Is all well?”
22 He said, “aAll is well. My master has sent me, saying, ‘Behold, just now two young men of the sons of the prophets have come to me from bthe hill country of Ephraim. Please give them a talent of silver and ctwo changes of clothes.’ ”
23 Naaman said, “aBe pleased to take two talents.” And he urged him, and bound two talents of silver in two bags with two changes of clothes and gave them to two of his servants; and they carried them before him.
24 When he came to the 1hill, he took them from their hand and adeposited them in the house, and he sent the men away, and they departed.
25 But he went in and stood before his master. And Elisha said to him, “Where have you been, Gehazi?” And he said, “aYour servant went nowhere.”
26 Then he said to him, “Did not my heart go with you, when the man turned from his chariot to meet you? aIs it a time to receive money and to receive clothes and olive groves and vineyards and sheep and oxen and male and female servants?
27 “Therefore, the leprosy of Naaman shall cling to you and to your 1descendants forever.” So he went out from his presence aa leper as white as snow.
1 Now athe sons of the prophets said to Elisha, “Behold now, the place before you where we are living is too limited for us.
2 “Please let us go to the Jordan and each of us take from there a beam, and let us make a place there for ourselves where we may live.” So he said, “Go.”
3 Then one said, “Please be willing to go with your servants.” And he 1answered, “I shall go.”
4 So he went with them; and when they came to the Jordan, they cut down trees.
5 But as one was felling a beam, 1the axe head fell into the water; and he cried out and said, “Alas, my master! For it was borrowed.”
6 Then the man of God said, “Where did it fall?” And when he showed him the place, ahe cut off a stick and threw it in there, and made the iron float.
7 He said, “Take it up for yourself.” So he put out his hand and took it.
The Arameans Plot to Capture Elisha
8 Now the king of Aram was warring against Israel; and he 1counseled with his servants saying, “In such and such a place shall be my camp.”
9 aThe man of God sent word to the king of Israel saying, “Beware that you do not pass this place, for the Arameans are coming down there.”
10 The king of Israel sent to the place about which the man of God had told him; thus he warned him, so that he guarded himself there, 1more than once or twice.
11 Now the heart of the king of Aram was enraged over this thing; and he called his servants and said to them, “Will you tell me which of us is for the king of Israel?”
12 One of his servants said, “No, my lord, O king; but Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedroom.”
13 So he said, “Go and see where he is, that I may send and take him.” And it was told him, saying, “Behold, he is in aDothan.”
14 He sent horses and chariots and a great army there, and they came by night and surrounded the city.
15 Now when the attendant of the man of God had risen early and gone out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was circling the city. And his servant said to him, “Alas, my master! 1What shall we do?”
16 So he 1answered, “aDo not fear, for bthose who are with us are more than those who are with them.”
17 Then Elisha prayed and said, “aO Lord, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” And the Lord opened the servant’s eyes and he saw; and behold, the mountain was full of bhorses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.
18 When they came down to him, Elisha prayed to the Lord and said, “Strike this 1people with blindness, I pray.” So He astruck them with blindness according to the word of Elisha.
19 Then Elisha said to them, “This is not the way, nor is this the city; follow me and I will bring you to the man whom you seek.” And he brought them to Samaria.
20 When they had come into Samaria, Elisha said, “O aLord, open the eyes of these men, that they may see.” So the Lord opened their eyes and they saw; and behold, they were in the midst of Samaria.
21 Then the king of Israel when he saw them, said to Elisha, “aMy father, shall I 1kill them? Shall I 1kill them?”
22 He 1answered, “You shall not 2kill them. Would you 2akill those you have taken captive with your sword and with your bow? bSet bread and water before them, that they may eat and drink and go to their master.”
23 So he prepared a great feast for them; and when they had eaten and drunk he sent them away, and they went to their master. And athe marauding bands of Arameans did not come again into the land of Israel.
The Siege of Samaria—Cannibalism
24 Now it came about after this, that aBen-hadad king of Aram gathered all his army and went up and besieged Samaria.
25 There was a great afamine in Samaria; and behold, they besieged it, until a donkey’s head was sold for eighty shekels of silver, and a fourth of a 1kab of dove’s dung for five shekels of silver.
26 As the king of Israel was passing by on the wall a woman cried out to him, saying, “Help, my lord, O king!”
27 He said, “1If the Lord does not help you, from where shall I help you? From the threshing floor, or from the wine press?”
28 And the king said to her, “aWhat 1is the matter with you?” And she 2answered, “This woman said to me, ‘Give your son that we may eat him today, and we will eat my son tomorrow.’
29 “aSo we boiled my son and ate him; and I said to her on the next day, ‘Give your son, that we may eat him’; but she has hidden her son.”
30 When the king heard the words of the woman, ahe tore his clothes—now he was passing by on the wall—and the people looked, and behold, he had sackcloth 1beneath on his 2body.
31 Then he said, “May aGod do so to me and more also, if the head of Elisha the son of Shaphat 1remains on him today.”
32 Now Elisha was sitting in his house, and athe elders were sitting with him. And the king sent a man from his presence; but before the messenger came to him, he said to the elders, “Do you bsee how this son of a murderer has sent to take away my head? Look, when the messenger comes, shut the door and 1hold the door shut against him. Is not the sound of his master’s feet behind him?”
33 While he was still talking with them, behold, the messenger