The widow and the general could not have been more different. The widow was totally destitute after the death of her husband and was facing the loss of her children due to not being able to pay her debts. We never learn her name in the scriptures. Naaman, the general, was in charge of all of the armies of Syria, a mighty man of valor and courage. His resources were almost unlimited, the widow had none. Naaman had direct access to the King of Syria, the widow had no such connections. But what Naaman was about to realize is that he was about to face a situation beyond the reach of all of his power, connections and resources. Naaman had developed leprosy.
Back story: A young girl from Israel had been captured by Syrian raiders earlier and ended up being placed as a slave in Naaman's house. One day this girl told her mistress, Naaman's wife, that she knew of a prophet that could cure her husband's leprosy. Leprosy, at this time in history, was a disease without a cure. Not only was this an incurable disease, it required the patient to be isolated from everyone they knew until their death.
Side note: Without the intervention and bravery of this young Israeli girl, serving in captivity, Naaman might never have heard about the cure for his disease. And without her willingness to forgive and look for ways to serve others in her current situation this story would have been much different. Isn't it amazing how God uses even unfair and unjust situations to accomplish His will? Okay, back to our story.
Naaman, after being told of this prophet by his wife, asked his King for permission to travel to Israel. The King of Syria agreed and said he would send, in addition to gold, silver and clothing, a introductory letter to the King of Israel, thanking him in advance for healing his favorite general. Naaman departed with the blessing of his King and with the hope of being healed from his incurable disease.
When the King of Israel received this letter from Naaman he tore his robes in despair, while proclaiming,"Am I God? Can I kill and bring back to life? How am I to cure him of his leprosy? See how the King of Syria is trying to pick a quarrel with me!" Yet when Elisha heard that the King of Israel had torn his robes, he sent him this message: "Why have you torn your robes? Have the man come to me and he will know that there is a prophet in Israel." (2 Kings 5: 2-8) Side note: Without the intervention and bravery of this young Israeli girl, serving in captivity, Naaman might never have heard about the cure for his disease.
So Naaman went with his horses and chariot, and he stood at the door of Elisha's house. And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, "Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored to you, and you shall be clean." But Naaman became furious, and went away and said, "Indeed, I said to myself, '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 heal the leprosy.' Are not the Abanah 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 went away in a rage." (2 Kings 5: 9-12)
Just like the widow in the story I mentioned earlier, Naaman sought after Elisha in hopes that he would intervene on his behalf before his God. (Though the difference here is that the widow recognized the power of God as her husband had been one of the priests serving Elisha) Both the widow and Naaman needed a miracle. Both took the first step to seeking their blessing. Both took action and voiced their need to Elisha. But here the story takes a turn. To the widow, Elisha gave his instructions in person, to Naaman, the mighty general, Elisha sends word through one of his servants. To the least of these Elisha gave a personal audience, to the mightiest he sent word through his hired help. I would have thought it would have been the other way around but God knew that Naaman needed more than physical healing, he needed to recognize his own lack of self-sufficiency.
The widow immediately obeyed the instructions given to her by Elisha, which by the way, also required her to humble herself and ask for help from her neighbors. Yet Naaman leaves in a rage at the way he has been treated, and bitterly complains about the path that Elisha has given him to be healed. First, Elisha refuses to meet with him in person and then he tells him to bath in the dirtiest river in the land? What kind of person did Elisha think he was dealing with? Just like you and I, God has provided only one way for us to be healed, only one way for our sins to be forgiven. Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes unto the Father, but by me. (John 1:14) One way.
Okay, so Naaman is returning home in his chariot, (truly experiencing road rage at this point . . . ) and his servants do an incredibly brave thing. "His servants came near and spoke to him, and said, "My father, if the prophet had told you to do something great, would you not have done it? How much more then, when he says to you, 'Wash, and be clean'?" So he went down and dipped seven times in the Jordan, according to the instructions of the man of God; and his flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean." (2 Kings 5:113-14)
So this general, a highly decorated man of action, found himself facing a situation beyond his control. To his credit, however, he recognized that he was afflicted. Now you may chuckle at the absurdity of Naaman not recognizing that he had an incurable disease. Yet all of humankind have been afflicted with a deadly disease, sin, and very few truly recognize their precarious situation. Most people ignore or rationalize their condition, in fact, some even mock those who try to take steps to find a cure.
Check out what Malcolm Muggeridge said about sin, "The depravity of man is at once the most empirically verifiable reality but at the same time the most intellectually resisted fact." It is not a popular statement to declare that everyone on earth is a sinner, headed to an encounter with a Holy God. But here is the Good News! God has provided a way for us to be healed, a way for all of our sins to be forgiven. That freedom from judgement was paid for by Jesus Christ, the Son of God when He died for our sins. Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes unto the Father, but by me. (John 1:14)
So how did Naaman respond to his healing? "He and all his attendants went back to the man of God. He stood before him and said, "Now I know that there is no God in all the world except in Israel. So please accept a gift from your servant." The prophet answered, "As surely as the Lord lives, whom I serve I will not accept a thing." And even though Naaman urged him, he refused. "If you will not," said Naaman, "please let me, your servant, be given as much earth as a pair of mules can carry, for your servant will never again make burnt offerings and sacrifices to any other god but the Lord." Naaman in the matter of a few hours went from being plagued with a deadly disease and spiritually blind to being cured of his physical disease and accepting the truth about the One God, the only God who could offer him freedom from his spiritual bankruptcy.
Now there is even more to this story and I urge you to read the entire account, but I have often wondered about the fate of the young girl from Israel who started this whole process of redemption. Without her there would have been no healing, physical and spiritual. I like to think that Naaman freed her and gave her safe passage back home to her family when he returned. I also hope that Naaman shared this wonderful story with not only his family, but the King and all of his fellow commanders and soldiers. But even if Naaman was the only recipient of God's grace, her courage, faith and obedience earned her an honored spot in history. And just like this young girl from Israel, you and I have a story to tell of God's power and love to everyone we encounter each day. May we be as faithful as this servant girl in proclaiming the goodness of our God.
