The leprosy therefore of Naaman shall cleave unto thee, and unto thy seed for ever ,.... As long as any of his race remained; as through his covetousness he had his money, so for his punishment he should have his disease: and he went out from his presence ; as one ashamed and confounded, and discharged from his master's service: a leper as white as snow ; a leprosy of which colour is the worst, and is incurable. read more
The leprosy of Naaman - shall cleave unto thee - Thou hast got much money, and thou shalt have much to do with it. Thou hast got Naaman's silver, and thou shalt have Naaman's leprosy. Gehazi is not the last who has got money in an unlawful way, and has got God's curse with it. A leper as white as snow - The moment the curse was pronounced, that moment the signs of the leprosy began to appear. The white shining spot was the sign that the infection had taken place.... read more
THE CURE OF NAAMAN 'S LEPROSY . HIS GRATITUDE ; AND THE SIN OF GEHAZI , The historian continues his narrative of Elisha's miracles, commenced in 2 Kings 2:1-25 ; and gives in the present chapter a very graphic and complete account of two which were especially remarkable, and which stood in a peculiar relation the one towards the other. One was the removal of leprosy; the other, its infliction. One was wrought on a foreigner and a man of eminence; the other, on a... read more
History of Naaman's disease and cure, illustrative of certain forces in the life of man. "Now Naaman, captain of the host of the King of Syria, was a great man with his master," etc. Naaman, in a worldly point of view, was a great man—one of the magnates of his age. But he was the victim of a terrible disease. "He was a leper." Leprosy was a terrible disease —hereditary , painful , contagious , loathsome , and fatal . In all these respects it resembled sin. Naaman's disease and... read more
The lessons taught by the sin and punishment of Gehazi. Gehazi's is a sad case, but a not unusual one; the case of a person brought into close contact with a high form of moral excellence and spirituality, who, instead of profiting by the example, willfully casts it aside, and adopts a low standard of life and conduct—a standard which always tends to become lower. The first lesson to be learnt from his case is this— I. IF CONTACT WITH EXCELLENCE FAIL TO RAISE US , IT ... read more
Elision and Gehazi. We shall, perhaps, derive most profit from the study of these two characters if we look at them together, as they are here set before us, in sharp and striking contrast. I. CONTRAST THE COVETOUSNESS OF THE ONE WITH THE UNSELFISHNESS OF THE OTHER . 1. Look, first of all, at Elisha ' s unselfishness . It is a sublime picture. We hardly know which to admire most— Elijah as he stands forth alone in rugged grandeur to confront the... read more
The story of Naaman: 3. Gehazi's falsehood. In Elisha's company we might have expected only honor, integrity, truthfulness. But the society of the good will not of itself make another good. Hypocrisy can cover a foul interior. A fair outward seeming can cloak a heart ruled by very evil principles. In the first apostolic band there was a Judas. In Elisha's service there was a Gehazi. The sin of both was covetousness. The offspring of covetousness in Gehazi's ease was hypocrisy and falsehood. ... read more
The leprosy therefore of Naaman shall cleave unto thee ; i.e. "As thou hast taken his goods, thou shalt also take his leprosy, which goes with them." A just Nemesis. And unto thy seed forever. The iniquity of the fathers is visited upon the children. Gehazi, however, could avoid this part of the curse by not marrying. And he went out from his presence a leper as white as snow. There were many forms and degrees of leprosy (Le 2 Kings 13:2 -46). Gehazi's was of the most pronounced... read more
2 Kings 5:27. The leprosy of Naaman shall cleave unto thee and thy seed for ever That is, for some generations, as the expression is often used, and as may be thought by comparing this with Exodus 20:5; Exodus 34:7. This was a sentence which Gehazi justly deserved, for his crime was aggravated by a greedy covetousness, which is idolatry, profanation of God’s name, a downright theft, in taking that to himself which was given for others, deliberate and impudent lying, a desperate contempt of... read more
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Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - 2 Kings 5:20-27
Naaman, a Syrian, a courtier, a soldier, had many servants, and we read how wise and good they were, 2 Kgs. 5:13. Elisha, a holy prophet, a man of God, has but one servant, and he proves a base, lying, naughty fellow. Those that heard of Elisha at a distance honoured him, and got good by what they heard; but he that stood continually before him, to hear his wisdom, had no good impressions made upon him either by his doctrine or miracles. One would have expected that Elisha's servant should be... read more