Tanakh & Talmud. Various Authors

by him the Lord had given victory unto Aram; he was also a mighty man of valour, but he was a leper. ²And the Arameans had gone out in bands, and had brought away captive out of the land of Israel a little maid; and she waited on Naaman's wife. ³And she said unto her mistress: 'Would that my lord were with the prophet that is in Samaria! then would he recover him of his leprosy.' ⁴And he went in, and told his lord, saying: 'Thus and thus said the maid that is of the land of Israel.' ⁵And the king of Aram said: 'Go now, 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. ⁶And he brought the letter to the king of Israel, saying: 'And now when this letter is come unto thee, behold, I have sent Naaman my servant to thee, that thou mayest recover him of his leprosy.' ⁷And 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? but consider, I pray you, and see how he seeketh an occasion against me.'

      ⁸And it was so, when Elisha the man of God 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.' ⁹So Naaman came with his horses and with his chariots, and stood at the door of the house of Elisha. ¹⁰And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying: 'Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come back to thee, and thou shalt be clean.' ¹¹But 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 wave his hand over the place, and recover the leper. ¹²Are not Amanah and Pharpar, the 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. ¹³And his servants came near, and spoke 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?' ¹⁴Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God; and his flesh came back like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.

      ¹⁵And 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 present of thy servant.' ¹⁶But he said: 'As the Lord liveth, before whom I stand, I will receive none.' And he urged him to take it; but he refused. ¹⁷And Naaman said: 'If not, yet I pray thee let there 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. ¹⁸In this thing the Lord pardon thy servant: when my master goeth into the house of Rimmon to worship there, and he leaneth on my hand, and I prostrate myself in the house of Rimmon, when I prostrate myself in the house of Rimmon, the Lord pardon thy servant in this thing.' ¹⁹And he said unto him: 'Go in peace.' So he departed from him some way.

      ²⁰But Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said: 'Behold, my master hath spared this Naaman the Aramean, in not receiving at his hands that which he brought; as the Lord liveth, I will surely run after him, and take somewhat of him.' ²¹So Gehazi followed after Naaman. And when Naaman saw one running after him, he alighted from the chariot to meet him, and said: 'Is all well?' ²²And he said: 'All is well. My master hath sent me, saying: Behold, even now there are come to me from the hill-country of Ephraim two young men of the sons of the prophets; give them, I pray thee, a talent of silver, and two changes of raiment.' ²³And Naaman said: 'Be content, take two talents.' And he urged him, and bound two talents of silver in two bags, with two changes of raiment, and laid them upon two of his servants; and they bore them before him. ²⁴And when he came to the hill, he took them from their hand, and deposited them in the house; and he let the men go, and they departed. ²⁵But 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.' ²⁶And he said unto him: 'Went not my heart [with thee], when the man turned back 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 men-servants and maid-servants? ²⁷The 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.

      6And the sons of the prophets said unto Elisha: 'Behold now, the place where we dwell before thee is too strait for us. ²Let us go, we pray thee, unto the Jordan, and take thence every man a beam, and let us make us a place there, where we may dwell.' And he answered: 'Go ye.' ³And one said: 'Be content, I pray thee, and go with thy servants.' And he answered: 'I will go.' ⁴So he went with them. And when they came to the Jordan, they cut down wood. ⁵But as one was felling a beam, the axe-head fell into the water; and he cried, and said: 'Alas, my master! for it was borrowed.' ⁶And the man of God said: 'Where fell it?' And he showed him the place. And he cut down a stick, and cast it in thither, and made the iron to swim. ⁷And he said: 'Take it up to thee.' So he put out his hand, and took it.

      ⁸Now the king of Aram warred against Israel; and he took counsel with his servants, saying: 'In such and such a place shall be my camp.' ⁹And the man of God sent unto the king of Israel, saying: 'Beware that thou pass not such a place; for thither the Arameans are coming down.' ¹⁰And the king of Israel sent to the place which the man of God told him and warned him of; and he guarded himself there, not once nor twice. ¹¹And the heart of the king of Aram was sore troubled for this thing; and he called his servants, and said unto them: 'Will ye not tell me which of us is for the king of Israel?' ¹²And one of his servants said: 'Nay, my lord, O king; but Elisha, the prophet that is in Israel, telleth the king of Israel the words that thou speakest in thy bed-chamber.' ¹³And he said: 'Go and see where he is, that I may send and fetch him.' And it was told him, saying: 'Behold, he is in Dothan.'

      ¹⁴Therefore sent he thither horses, and chariots, and a great host; and they came by night, and compassed the city about. ¹⁵And when the servant of the man of God was risen early, and gone forth, behold, a host with horses and chariots was round about the city. And his servant said unto him: 'Alas, my master! how shall we do?' ¹⁶And he answered: 'Fear not: for they that are with us are more than they that are with them.' ¹⁷And Elisha prayed, and said: 'Lord, I pray Thee, open his eyes, that he may see.' And the Lord opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw; and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha. ¹⁸And when they came down to him, Elisha prayed unto the Lord, and said: 'Smite this people, I pray Thee, with blindness.' And He smote them with blindness according to the word of Elisha. ¹⁹And Elisha said unto them: 'This is not the way, neither is this the city; follow me, and I will bring you to the man whom ye seek.' And he led them to Samaria.

      ²⁰And it came to pass, when they were come into Samaria, that Elisha said: 'Lord, open the eyes of these men, that they may see.' And the Lord opened their eyes, and they saw; and, behold, they were in the midst of Samaria. ²¹And the king of Israel said unto Elisha, when he saw them: 'My father, shall I smite them? shall I smite them?' ²²And he answered: 'Thou shalt not smite them; hast thou taken captive with thy sword and with thy bow those whom thou wouldest smite? set bread and water before them, that they may eat and drink, and go to their master.' ²³And he prepared great provision for them; and when they had eaten and drunk, he sent them away, and they went to their master. And the bands of Aram came no more into the land of Israel.

      ²⁴And it came to pass after this, that Ben-hadad king of Aram gathered all his host, and went up, and besieged Samaria. ²⁵And there was a great famine in Samaria; and, behold, they besieged it, until an ass's head was sold for fourscore pieces of silver, and the fourth part of a kab of dove's dung for five pieces of silver. ²⁶And as the king of Israel was passing by upon the wall, there cried a woman unto him, saying: 'Help, my lord, O king.' ²⁷And he said: 'If the Lord do not help thee, whence shall I help thee? out of the threshing-floor, or out of the winepress?' ²⁸And the king said unto her: 'What aileth thee?' And she answered: