Study Desk

Naaman the captain of the army of the king of Syria was an important man to his king. He was much respected, because by him the Lord had made Syria win in battle. Naaman was a strong man of war, but he had a bad skin disease.

But Naaman was very angry and went away. He said, "I thought he would come out to me, and stand, and call on the name of the Lord his God. I thought he would wave his hand over the place, and heal the bad skin disease.

Then Naaman returned to the man of God with all those who were with him. He came and stood in front of Elisha and said, "See, now I know that there is no God in all the earth but in Israel. So I ask you now to take a gift from your servant."

But Elisha said, "As the Lord lives, before Whom I stand, I will take nothing." Naaman tried to talk him into taking it, but he would not.

But may the Lord forgive your servant for this. My king goes into the house of Rimmon to worship there. He rests on my arm and I put my face to the ground in the house of Rimmon. When I put my face to the ground in the house of Rimmon, may the Lord forgive your servant."

But Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, thought, "See, my owner has let Naaman the Syrian go without receiving the gift he brought. As the Lord lives, I will run after him and take something from him."

But as one of them was cutting a tree, the ax head fell into the water. The man cried out, "It is bad, sir! The ax belongs to another man, and I was to return it."

So we made my son ready to eat over the fire, and ate him. The next day I said to her, ‘Give your son, so we may eat him.' But she has hidden her son."

Now Elisha was sitting in his house. And the leaders were sitting with him. The king sent a man, but before the man came to him, Elisha said to the leaders, "Do you see how this son of a killer has sent to take off my head? See, when the king's man comes, shut the door. Hold the door shut against him. Is not the sound of his owner's feet behind him?"

The captain on whose arm the king rested said to the man of God, "See, if the Lord should make windows in heaven, could this thing be?" Elisha said, "You will see it with your own eyes. But you will not eat of it."

They said to one another, "We are not doing right. This is a day of good news, but we are keeping quiet. We will be punished if we wait until morning. So now let us go and tell those of the king's house."

And they came and called the men who watched the city gate. They said to them, "We went to the tents of the Syrians. But there was no one to be seen or heard there. Only the horses and donkeys were tied there. The tents were left just as they were."

Now the king chose the captain on whose arm he rested to watch the gate. But the people stepped on him at the gate. He died just as the man of God had said when the king came down to him.

Then the captain had said to the man of God, "See, if the Lord should make windows in heaven, could such a thing be?" And Elisha had said, "You will see it with your own eyes. But you will not eat of it."

Elisha said to him, "Go and tell him, ‘You will get better for sure.' But the Lord has shown me that he will die for sure."

But the next day Hazael took the bed covering and put it in water. Then he spread it on Ben-hadad's face so that he died. And Hazael became king in his place.

But the Lord was not willing to destroy Judah, because of His servant David. The Lord had promised to give David one to rule through his sons always.

Then Joram crossed over to Zair, with all his war-wagons. He and his war-wagon captains got up during the night and fought against the Edomites who had gathered around them. But his army ran away to their tents.

But King Joram had returned to Jezreel to be healed of the cuts the Syrians had given him, when he fought with King Hazael of Syria. So Jehu said, "If this is what you have in mind, then let no one get out of the city to tell the news in Jezreel."

So a horseman went to meet him and said, "The king asks, ‘Do you come in peace?'" And Jehu said, "What have you to do with peace? Get behind me." Then the watchman told Joram, "The horseman came to them, but he did not return."