(v. 5) not only build reader interest, but also unify his conversion (v. 15b) and Gehazi’s fraud (v. 20) to this core miracle story. The first complication is offered by verses 6–7, a comic detour to the king of Israel and his reaction. Verse 6 reflects a proper letter form, bringing the reader into it right where the formal pleasantries are over and the business starts (“… and now,” obscured in the English versions). Because the king of Syria fails to mention the “prophet in Samaria” in his letter,
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