THE K I N G ’ S B U S I NE S S
175
FEBRUARY 19, 1922 ELISHA AND NAAMAN THE SYRIAN
Golden Text: Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: Who'forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases. Ps. 103:2, 3. BESSON TEXT 2 Kings 5:1-4, 9-14. (Read 2 Kings 5:1-27; Luke 4:16-30; 5:12-16.)
(1) Now Naaman, captain o f the host o f the king o f Syria, was a great man w ith his master, and honourable, because by him the LORD had given deliverance unto Syria: he was also a m ighty man in valour, but he was a leper. (2) And the Syrians had gone out by companies and had brought away captive out o f the land of Israel a little maid; and she waited on Naa- man’s w ife. (3) And she said unto her mistress, Would God my lord were w ith the prophet that is in Samaria! fo r he would recover him of his leprosy. (4) And one went in, and told his lord, saying, Thus and thus said the maid that is o f the land o f Israel. (9) So Naaman came with his horses and with his char iot, and stood at the door o f the house o f Elisha. (10) And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying, Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to Outline: (1) The Diseased Soldier, vs. 1-3 (2) The Desire for Healing, vs. 4-6 (3) T h e Disappointed Soldier, vs. 7-12 (4) The Deliverance from Disease, vs. 13, 14 Introduction: Naaman, the Syrian general, had been used by Jehovah as an instrument for delivering Syria. Josephus identi fies him as the man mentioned in 1 Ki. 22:34: "A nd a certain man drew a bow at a venture» and smote the king; of Israel be tween the joints o f the harness; where fore he said unto the driver o f his chariot» Turn thine hand» and carry me out o f the h ost; fo r I am wounded.” Because o f this BESSON Ben-hadad elevated EXPOSITION him to the command T. O. Horton of his army and lean ed on his hand when he went to worship, (v. 18). The lesson is full of evangelical teaching. The plan of salvation is made plain in type. It is the counterpart of
thee, and thou shalt be clean. (11) But Naaman was wroth, and went away, and said, Behold, I thought, He w ill surely come out to me, and stand, and call on the name o f the LORD his God, and strike his hand over the place, and recover the leper. (12) A re not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers o f 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, ac cording to the saying of the man of God: and his flesh came again like unto the flesh o f a little child, and he was clean. the parable of the good Samaritan, a story of grace to the Gentiles (Luke 4:27) “ And many lepers w ere in Israel in the time of Eliseus the prophet; and none o f them was cleansed, saving Naaman, the Syrian.” It prefigures the abundant grace of God. It is a character study— con trast the kings, the servants, Naaman and Elisha. It is a great story, telling how a little maid brought great joy to a great general's home. (1) THE DISEASED SOLDIER, vs. 1-3. Naaman was afflicted.with that lep rosy of the most malignant type—white leprosy. He was great, honorable, mighty, valiant, but— a leper. This one affliction offset all his blessings, as with Haman, (Esther 5:13) “Y et all this avalleth me nothing, so lon g as I see Mordecai, the Jew sitting at the king’s gate.” So also with Naboth, about whom we recently studied; and the rich young man (Mark 10:22). Naaman lacked the one thing needful in order to ap-
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