A Great Man
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| In loving memory of my father Robert Louis (Bob) Padgett July 28, 1931-May 22, 2023 |
In our previous message, we shared with you the tremendous prophetic significance of "a great woman" from 2 Kings, Chapter 4. If you missed listening to that message I strongly encourage you to go back and listen to it. That great woman was an unnamed Shunammite woman who was of the tribe of Issachar. She prophetically represents the bride of Christ. In this message we will share with you about "a great man" from 2 Kings, Chapter 5. That great man was Naaman, captain of the host of the king of Syria, Ben-Hadad. Naaman speaks prophetically of a Gentile or Greek and a man who does not know the Lord. Naaman was successful, valiant, and noble, but he was a leper. There was no physician in Damascus or all of Syria who could help rid him of his loathesome disease. But God has a way of using little things to achieve His wondrous purposes.
Just as when we read the verses in 2 Kings 4 about the great woman, we do well as we read 2 Kings 5 to look for the significance of that event as it relates to you and me today. If all we get from this chapter is an account of an historical event, then we miss the point entirely. Just as with the great woman, we need to understand what made Naaman a great man. The name, Naaman, means pleasant or agreeable.
1 Now Naaman, captain of the host of the king of Syria, was a great man with his master, and honourable, because by him the LORD had given deliverance unto Syria: he was also a mighty man in valour, but he was a leper.
The deliverance of Syria through the command of Naaman is attributed to the sovereignty of God, Who is seen as the ruler and controller of the destinies of all nations, not just that of Israel. (For example, see Amos 2:1-3, Amos 9:7, Ezekiel 30:24, and many other verses.) However, at that point in time, Naaman was not aware that his success was due to the Lord. That scenario is typical of almost everyone that the Lord apprehends. My wife and I were both miraculously saved from certain death several times before we knew His sovereign grace.
2 And the Syrians had gone out by companies, and had brought away captive out of the land of Israel a little maid; and she waited on Naaman's wife.3 And she said unto her mistress, Would God my lord were with the prophet that is in Samaria! for he would recover him of his leprosy.
In sharp contrast to Jehoram, the Israelite king in Samaria, this young girl held captive in Damascus was very much aware of God's saving and healing presence with His people through His servant, Elisha.
Further, this little maid was not shy in telling others about Elisha and the Lord. In a previous message we shared the significance of the little maid ... namely that everyone who is born again has a specific purpose in life and that as long as we fulfill the purpose for which we were created, everyone gets the same reward ... from the greatest apostle to the little maid who cleans the house. Acts 4:33 says that great grace was upon them all, irrespective of ministry.
4 And one went in, and told his lord, saying, Thus and thus said the maid that is of the land of Israel.
5 And the king of Syria said, Go to, go, and I will send a letter unto the king of Israel. And he departed, and took with him ten talents of silver, and six thousand pieces of gold, and ten changes of raiment.
Ben-Hadad, the king of Syria, assumed that the prophet described by the little maid was subject to the authority of the king of Israel and that the prophet's services could be bought with a sufficiently large gift. He thought he could buy with worldly wealth one of the blessings of God's presence among His people. The gift, or purchase price, was an enormous amount of material wealth. One talent was worth more than $10,000 or enough to pay 200 rowers for a month's worth of work. Compare this price of ten talents of silver, six thousand pieces of gold, and ten changes of raiment, with the price that king Omi paid for the hill of Samaria (1 Kings 16:24) of two talents of silver. This large amount of silver, gold, and clothing clearly shows how much Ben-Hadad esteemed Naaman.
6 And he brought the letter to the king of Israel, saying, Now when this letter is come unto thee, behold, I have therewith sent Naaman my servant to thee, that thou mayest recover him of his leprosy.7 And it came to pass, when the king of Israel had read the letter, that he rent his clothes, and said, Am I God, to kill and to make alive, that this man doth send unto me to recover a man of his leprosy? wherefore consider, I pray you, and see how he seeketh a quarrel against me.
There is a clear contrast between the faith of the young servant girl, who knew of Elisha and believed in his power; and the distress of Israel's king, who did not even think of Elisha and fretted over his own lack of power. So blind was king Jehoram of Israel to God's saving presence through Elisha that he could think only of international intrigue and a pretext for a declaration of war.
8 And it was so, when Elisha the man of God had heard that the king of Israel had rent his clothes, that he sent to the king, saying, Wherefore hast thou rent thy clothes? let him come now to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel.
Elisha chided Jehoram for his fear and for his failure to consult the Lord's prophet (see 2 Kings 3:13-14) for evidence of the tension that existed between Elisha and Jehoram).
9 So Naaman came with his horses and with his chariot, and stood at the door of the house of Elisha.
This proud pagan came to Elisha as if to command his healing by his lordly presence, with horses and his chariot. This event is a contrast between the pomp of Naaman and the lowliness of Elisha in the eyes of natural men. Naaman came to be healed carrying rich gifts in fine chariots; Elisha had no such finery, just the power of God.
10 And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying, Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean.
Elisha's word to Naaman was designed to demonstrate to Naaman that healing would come by the power of God and that Elisha was not the real healer. Further, Naaman was to wash seven times (a symbol of completeness even in those days) in the muddy waters of the Jordan River, demonstrating that there was no natural connection between the washing and the desired healing. Healing comes by obedience to the living word of God.
11 But Naaman was wroth, and went away, and said, Behold, I thought, He will surely come out to me, and stand, and call on the name of the LORD his God, and strike his hand over the place, and recover the leper.12 Are not Abana and Pharpar, rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? may I not wash in them, and be clean? So he turned and went away in a rage.13 And his servants came near, and spake unto him, and said, My father, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then, when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean?14 Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God: and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.
Why was Naaman wroth? Because Elisha simply sent a messenger to him; Elisha never bothered to bring the message to Naaman personally. So Naaman almost left without receiving his healing and without receiving an even greater gift of being born again. Naaman's pride was almost his undoing: too proud and stubborn to follow the prophet's simple instructions, he almost missed the blessing that God had in store. We, too, should obey the Word of God, even when God's way does not make sense to us.
Fortunately Naaman's servants persuaded Naaman to do as the prophet had said. As Naaman obeyed the word of the Lord, he received the gift of God's grace and was reborn. Naaman was only looking for physical healing but he received something much greater in addition. If we ask God for one thing, He gives us two. Naaman then became a sign to disobedient Israel that the blessing of God is found only by obedient trust in Him. When God's own people turn away from the covenant faithfulness, God will raise up those who will follow His word from outside the covenant nation.
Luke 4:24-30, "And He said, Verily I say unto you, No prophet is accepted in his own country. But I tell you of a truth, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elias, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, when great famine was throughout all the land; But unto none of them was Elias sent, save unto Sarepta, a city of Sidon, unto a woman that was a widow. And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Eliseus the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, saving Naaman the Syrian. And all they in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, And rose up, and thrust Him out of the city, and led Him unto the brow of the hill whereon their city was built, that they might cast Him down headlong. But He passing through the midst of them went His way,"
Jesus used the story of Naaman and Elisha as an illustration of Israel's problem of unbelief. The lepers of Israel overlooked the healing that could have been theirs through Elisha, so God healed a Syrian instead. In the same way, the Israelites of Jesus' day were missing the Power right in front of their eyes. But God is no respecter of persons (Acts 10:34-35), and the Gentiles eventually received the gospel that Israel rejected.
15 And 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: now therefore, I pray thee, take a blessing of thy servant.
Naaman's confession put to shame the Israelites who continued to waver on whether Baal and the Lord were both gods, or whether Yahweh alone was God. Then Naaman, with a grateful heart, tried to pay Elisha for his healing. That was all that Naaman had known up to that point in time. Many years ago I heard about a minister who required $2000 just to pray for someone. Yes, that is very tragic, but most visiting ministers expect to receive a nice offering for their services.
16 But he said, As the LORD liveth, before whom I stand, I will receive none. And he urged him to take it; but he refused.
Those who serve God do not do so for financial gain but out of love and simple obedience to the Lord. Elisha refused the princely gift offered to him. God is a giver, not a taker, and His gifts cannot be bought. Elisha refused to accept anything of monetary value because he knew that healings and miracles come only by the grace, mercy, compassion, and power of God. Some modern-day ministers might want to think about that fact. Perhaps in the next several messages I should share with you about the Scriptural relationship of a Christian with money.
17 And Naaman said, Shall there not then, I pray thee, be given to thy servant two mules' burden of earth? for thy servant will henceforth offer neither burnt offering nor sacrifice unto other gods, but unto the LORD.
When Naaman said "thy servant" he was referring to himself. Naaman just confessed that he was now a servant of Elisha. Somewhere later in his life I am sure Naaman learned that he was only a servant of the Lord. Naaman's former pride had just been changed to a heart of humility and thanksgiving to the Lord. In the ancient world it was commonly thought that a deity could be worshiped only on the soil of the nation to which he was bound. Therefore Naaman wanted to take Israelite soil with him in order to have a place in Damascus where he could worship the Lord. No doubt Naaman later learned that Israelite dirt was no more holy than Syrian dirt. That is still true today. The natural soil of Israel today is no more holy than the dirt in my back yard.
18 In this thing the LORD pardon thy servant, that when my master goeth into the house of Rimmon to worship there, and he leaneth on my hand, and I bow myself in the house of Rimmon: when I bow down myself in the house of Rimmon, the LORD pardon thy servant in this thing.
The main deity of Syria was Rimmon, which name occurs only in this verse. This Rimmon is generally thought to be the same as Hadad, the northwest Semitic storm god, whose control over rain also made him the god of agriculture and fertility, in other words, Baal. When Elisha healed Naaman, the latter wanted to worship only the Lord, but wondered if he would get into trouble when he would assist his monarch in his worship of Rimmon. Most strikingly, Elisha tells him in verse 19 not to worry about that. God looks on our heart.
19 And he said unto him, Go in peace. So he departed from him a little way.
20 But Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said, Behold, my master hath spared Naaman this Syrian, in not receiving at his hands that which he brought: but, as the LORD liveth, I will run after him, and take somewhat of him.21 So Gehazi followed after Naaman. And when Naaman saw him running after him, he lighted down from the chariot to meet him, and said, Is all well?22 And he said, All is well. My master hath sent me, saying, Behold, even now there be come to me from mount Ephraim two young men of the sons of the prophets: give them, I pray thee, a talent of silver, and two changes of garments.23 And Naaman said, Be content, take two talents. And he urged him, and bound two talents of silver in two bags, with two changes of garments, and laid them upon two of his servants; and they bare them before him.
Gehazi deceived Naaman in order to satisfy his desire for material gain. The evil of his lie was compounded in that it obscured the gracious character of the Lord's work in Naaman's healing and blurred the distinction between Elisha's function as a true prophet and the self-serving actions of false prophets. Gehazi asked for one talent of silver; Naaman gave Gehazi two talents of silver. As to be expected, Naaman at that time had no discernment, which comes with increasing understanding and maturity as a Christian believer.
Gehazi's greed and deception are warnings to us. The Bible warns us against "pursuing filthy lucre" (Titus 1:7). We are called to be honest in all of our dealings, knowing that God sees everything and will judge accordingly. We can be sure that our sins will find us out (Numbers 32:23).
24 And when he came to the tower, he took them from their hand, and bestowed them in the house: and he let the men go, and they departed.25 But he went in, and stood before his master. And Elisha said unto him, Whence comest thou, Gehazi? And he said, Thy servant went no whither.26 And he said unto him, Went not mine heart with thee, when the man turned again from his chariot to meet thee? Is it a time to receive money, and to receive garments, and oliveyards, and vineyards, and sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and maidservants?
The Lord gave Elisha a word of knowledge concerning Gehazi's evil actions, spoken as a prophecy. Gehazi's action was equivalent to making merchandise of God's grace. Jesus said, "Make not my Father's house an house of merchandise" (John 2:16). "Money" in Verse 26 refers to silver and gold in various weights, not coins, which were a later Babylonian invention. "The love of money is the root of all evil" (1 Timothy 6:10). When the Lord sovereignly apprehended me 51 years ago, the first two things He emphasized to me were the sovereignty of God and the importance of understanding and walking in the right relationship between a Christian and money. If we believers cannot walk in the right relationship with money and material things, then we will never be able to fulfill the purpose for which we were created. I have seen too many otherwise good, solid men of God who have stumbled over the issue of money.
27 The leprosy therefore of Naaman shall cleave unto thee, and unto thy seed for ever. And he went out from his presence a leper as white as snow.
The phrase, "went out," is the same Hebrew word used with respect to Cain. "And Cain went out from the presence of the Lord, and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden" (Genesis 4:16). To go out from the presence of the Lord is to go into darkness. Scripture never tells us that Cain repented. However, Gehazi possibly did repent, because in 2 Kings 8:4-5, some eight or nine years later, Gehazi is still called the servant of Elisha. The grace of God is so amazing! I believe that none of us can fully comprehend the amazing grace of God. All we can do is thank Him for His amazing grace and glorify Him in all that we do and all that we become, by the power of the Holy Spirit.
One more question ... why does the account of the great woman come before the account of the great man? One reason is given by,
Romans 1:16, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek."
There is a clear contrast between the faith of the young servant girl, who knew of Elisha and believed in his power; and the distress of Israel's king, who did not even think of Elisha and fretted over his own lack of power.
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