[2Ki 5:8-14] Go, Wash Yourself Seven Times In The Jordan

John C. Lim

2 Kings 5: 8-14   (Part 2 of 4)   

“Go, wash yourself seven times in the Jordan,”

      

message: "Why have you torn your robes? Have the man come to me and he will know that  there is a prophet in Israel." 9 So Naaman went with his horses and chariots and stopped at  the door of Elisha's house. 10 Elisha sent a messenger to say to him, "Go, wash yourself seven  times in the Jordan, and your flesh will be restored and you will be cleansed."  

      11 But Naaman went away angry and said, "I thought that he would surely come out to me  and stand and call on the name of the LORD his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure me  of my leprosy. 12 Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than any of the  waters of Israel? Couldn't I wash in them and be cleansed?" So he turned and went off in a  rage.  

      13 Naaman's servants went to him and said, "My father, if the prophet had told you to do  some great thing, would you not have done it? How much more, then, when he tells you,  'Wash and be cleansed'!" 14 So he went down and dipped himself in the Jordan seven times,  as the man of God had told him, and his flesh was restored and became clean like that of a  young boy.  

Naaman stood before the king of Israel with the letter from his king asking for help for this army general who was suffering from the incurable disease of leprosy.  The king of Israel is clearly perturbed with this seemingly an impossible request.  So the king tore his robes as a sign of abject frustration.   Now the drama takes a different turn.  Let’s look at verse 8.

      When Elisha the man of God 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.”

Elisha is no ordinary man living in that ancient time in Israel.  He is “the man of God.”  To be considered a man of God is a unique identifier in Israel.  We know the strictest guideline for being considered as a prophet of God.  Look at Deuteronomy 18:18-22. 

      I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers; I will put my words in  his mouth, and he will tell them everything I command him.  If anyone does not listen to my  words that the prophet speaks in my name, I myself will call him to account.  But a prophet  who presumes to speak in my name anything I have not commanded him to say, or a prophet  who speaks in the name of other gods, must be put to death."    You may say to yourselves,  "How can we know when a message has not been spoken by the LORD ?"  If what a prophet  proclaims in the name of the LORD does not take place or come true, that is a message the  LORD has not spoken. That prophet has spoken presumptuously. Do not be afraid of him.

It is not a simple thing to be considered a prophet in Israel.  If someone pretended to be a prophet, he could easily lose his life.  In that time, if someone who proclaimed he was a prophet and prophesied, what he said must come true.  If what he said did not take place, he was to be killed according to this passage.  Basically, it meant that 100 percent of what he prophesied must come true or he would be considered a false prophet and therefore killed.   Let me simplify this even further.  If someone prophesied and 99 times out of 100 times, he was accurate, he would have been killed because of that one time he was not.  

Therefore, when Elisha is referred to as the man of God, we know that it means something quite significant.  Elisha is considered a prophet of God.  This means Elisha is a mouthpiece of God and that when he speaks and tells people that it is from God, he is in fact speaking for God.  I don’t believe we have anyone in our world today who can claim to be a prophet of God.  Anyone who dares to claim that he is a prophet today is not a prophet by the Old Testament standard and therefore should be ignored completely.  We know that a person who would claim to be a prophet of God is either delusional or has a wrong agenda which likely is to take advantage of gullible people and lead them astray not unlike Jim Jones who led his followers to certain death through suicide and murder. 

Elisha heard about the incident where the king of Israel had torn his robes, and he sent the message to the king. 

     Why have you torn your robes?  Have the man come to me and he will know that there is a prophet in Israel.

What a powerful statement from this man of God!  Who is out there today that can utter such a bold statement!  Here is a man of God whose spoken words came directly from God.  He was not a false prophet but a true prophet of God. 

Elisha didn’t even mention Naaman’s name as it is immaterial to him.  His message was simply to have the man, or Naaman come to him.  And Elisha adds that Naaman will know that there is a prophet in Israel.   What he means by that is that Naaman will know that there is true God in Israel. 

In that ancient time, the king of Israel should know better than anyone how special Israel was in God’s eyes.  The nation of Israel was founded by God when He called Abraham out of Ur and the descendants of Abraham formed the nation of Israel.  God is with the nation of Israel.  Yet when confronted with this improbable challenge, the king of Israel did not turn to God but vented his helplessness relying on his own strength and wisdom.  How sad!  In that moment of utter need, the thought that God is with Israel didn’t enter his mind.  And also, he did not even think about the man of God, Elisha who was a true prophet of God. 

And the man of God, Elisha boldly advises the king to send Naaman to him and that Naaman will know that there is a prophet in Israel.  It is quite ironic in what Elisha says to the king.  The king of Israel who should know better than the foreigner that there is God in Israel would be the one who actually does not know and this mere foreigner who comes from a country that does not believe in God would be the one who would come to know that there is a true God in Israel.

What a powerful display of confidence and assurance that God is with Elisha!  Elisha had no doubt in his mind that he was a prophet of God and that God’s spirit dwelt within him. 

Don’t we long for such testimony in our lives today?  We wish and pray that there is a true prophet who can speak and we would know his words are 100 percent from God. But alas, we don’t have such a prophet in our time today.  What we do have is the written word of God that continues to guide us as the Holy Spirit continues to move through God’s word to empower us and convict us.  Instead of prophet in the days of ancient Israel, we now have the inspired Word of God that we can access any time and any place.  We cherish the written Word of God and meditate upon it daily.

So the scene now changes where Naaman with his elaborate train of people, horses and chariots go to Elisha.  We can well imagine this must have been some kind of a crowd gathering scene where everyone in that area came to watch and take in the action.  This is a great drama being played out in front of Elisha’s house.  Look at verse 9.

      So Naaman went with his horses and chariots and stopped at the door of Elisha's house.

Naaman and his company come to stop at the door of Elisha’s house.  Obviously, the tension is now building with some great anticipation of what is to take place.  Presumably, Naaman indicated his presence and waited for some kind of an official acknowledgement from this prophet.   Look at verse 9.

      Elisha sent a messenger to say to him, "Go, wash yourself seven times in the Jordan, and your  flesh will be restored and you will be cleansed."

As Naaman and his company waited, the instruction came from the prophet of God.  Elisha sent a messenger to Naaman with an instruction.  How much more simpler can you get than this?  But Naaman didn’t take kindly to this response.   Look at verses 11-12.

      But Naaman went away angry and said, "I thought that he would surely come out to me and  stand and call on the name of the LORD his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure me of  my leprosy.  Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than any of the waters  of Israel? Couldn't I wash in them and be cleansed?" So he turned and went off in a rage.

It is interesting what Naaman expected and received.  He had his own preconceived notion of what would take place in regards to his possible healing.  Expectation is an interesting topic to mull over as we look at this passage.  Naaman had certain expectations.  He was not satisfied with Elisha’s prescription.   
 
When his expectation was not met, he was filled with anger.  He truly believed that Elisha would immediately come out, stand in front of him and call on the name of the LORD while waving his hand over the spot and cure him of his leprosy. 

Naaman had the whole event choreographed in his head as to how his healing should take place.  This is our problem today as well.  We bring our own expectation in regards to our own salvation and try to choreograph how our salvation is to take place.  We dictate how God should respond instead of God leading us.  We have certain expectations when it comes to our own salvation as well as in our lives.  We have everything worked out to the minutest details but left out the most important person, Jesus Christ. 

When his expectation of how things would proceed didn’t take place, he was quite upset.  If we look at what he says carefully, we can see the flawed logic in Naaman’s mindset. 

He was initially interested in Elisha because he wanted healing from his leprosy.  A desperate man was merely seeking healing at any cost no matter where he had to turn.  He didn’t bargain for anything more than simply being healed from his leprosy.  He didn’t care what or who healed him.  All he cared about was to be cleansed.  So, in his mind, God of Israel was no different than the gods and idols he worshipped.  It didn’t really matter as all these idols and gods were means by which men sought some kind of end result.

In a sense Naaman might have been the ultimate cynic who didn’t have much respect for any religion as long as he received what he was seeking after.  Did it matter whether it was the God of Israel or gods of his own native land?  Therefore his perspective in verse 12 clearly reveals what was in his mind.  Look at verse 12 again. 

      Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than any of the waters of Israel?  Couldn't I wash in them and be cleansed?" So he turned and went off in a rage.

Naaman was completely taken aback by Elisha’s instruction.  He lacks the spiritual component of true faith in God.  He is not a believer yet and sees the world through his superficial lenses.  Obviously, river Jordan was not much to look at compared to the beautiful rivers of Damascus.  If anyone thought that his leprosy would be healed by washing in the river, it can’t be in the river of Jordan. 

When Jewish people in the time of Jesus saw Jesus, a son of carpenter, they couldn’t accept him as the Son of God, or Messiah.  Their expectation of a savior was much grander and more majestic, not someone who rode on a donkey.  Therefore they rejected Jesus completely.  Someone who would come to save them had to meet their expectations and it couldn’t be Jesus who displayed gentle and meek spirit who did not come to build the earthly kingdom with popularity and force but heavenly kingdom with humility. 

When Naaman’s expectation was not met, he turned furious and went off in rage.  If the story ended here, we wouldn’t hear of Naaman’s healing.  So let’s continue to look at what happens next.  Look at verse 13.

      Naaman's servants went to him and said, "My father, if the prophet had told you to do some  great thing, would you not have done it? How much more, then, when he tells you, 'Wash and  be cleansed'!"

As I mentioned before last week, Naaman has some redeeming quality not just as a warrior general but as a head of the household or as a boss.  He obviously took care of his people and they loved and respected him.  Their loyalty and their love for him were not simply based on his stature or status but on his character as well.  When Naaman was turned off by Elisha and went off in fit of rage, his servants implored him.  Why?  They genuinely cared and loved their master, Naaman.  Look at how they addressed him as “father.” 

They appeal to his warrior mentality.  They remind him that if the prophet had asked him to do something truly difficult and challenging in order to be healed of his disease, that he would be more than willing and glad to take on that challenge.  For task oriented warrior general like Naaman, this was an excellent argument and poignant suggestion.   
 
The servants reminded him not to turn away from the prophet’s instruction just because it is so much easier and simpler than what he was willing and able to do.  Their argument was not to be turned off just because it is so simple.  Apparently, Naaman was moved by his servants’ reminder. 

The way to salvation is simple, perhaps too simple.  Faith in Jesus Christ is the only prerequisite for our salvation or redemption.  Nothing else is in the formula.  Look at Romans 3:22-24. 

      This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no  difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his  grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

And even that faith is not from ourselves but is the gift of God as Ephesians 2:8-9 says.

      For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the  gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.

It is always by the grace of God that we receive any kind of blessing from God whether it is the healing or forgiveness of our sins.  There is no work involved or merit associated with God’s gift of grace.  When this free gift of God is communicated to people, they become incredulous because we are so inundated with our worldly system where everything is based on our performance. 

Naaman is no different from anyone else in that ancient time.  He did not expect something for nothing.  He could not believe that his incurable disease could be healed in such simple manner.  I am sure he had washed himself numerous times in the past and nothing happened. 

He came upon the prophet of God and was told to go wash himself 7 times in the river of Jordan.  He was initially turned off by this ridiculous instruction by way of a messenger boy from the prophet. But because of his servants’ more level headed persuasion, he proceeds.  Look at verse 14. 

      So he went down and dipped himself in the Jordan seven times, as the man of God had told  him, and his flesh was restored and became clean like that of a young boy.

Naaman and his followers went down to Jordan River.  As we can very well imagine, there must have been a large crowd who gathered around to watch this whole event taking place.  There must have been a large number of on-lookers with great curiosity watching this drama being played out.  Naaman at the urging of his servants went down. 

We can safely surmise that Naaman dipped himself exactly 7 times and not 6 or 8 times since the Bible tells us that he dipped himself seven times.  We can infer from this that if Naaman had been healed after 1^st or 2^nd time, there would have been no need to for him to dip himself subsequently.  So we know that he dipped himself exactly 7 times as he was instructed.  

Naaman’s flesh was restored and became clean like that of a young boy.  What a wonderful miracle for Naaman!  We can be sure that many thoughts might have entered Naaman’s mind as he went down and dipped himself 7 times.  After couple of times of dipping himself in the river, he may have looked for sign that he was getting better.  And after noticing there is no difference, he could have easily been discouraged and might have even thought how silly this whole exercise is and give up.  Had he given up before he dipped himself seven times, he probably wouldn’t have been healed. 

As he continued to dip himself in the river, he may have desperately wanted to see the improvement in his condition.  Even at 6^th time he dipped himself, he probably didn’t see any improvement at all.  However when he dipped himself exactly 7 times, his flesh was restored.   
 
Carrying out that seemingly ludicrous activity of dipping himself in the Jordan was probably the most difficult thing he had ever done as he had to overcome his pride and human logic.  In spite of what others may have thought about Naaman’s dipping in Jordan, for that moment, he did what he was told to do.  And miraculously, when he dipped himself 7^th time, he was completely healed of his incurable disease.   God’s healing defies logic and explanation.  There is no way to explain how this healing could have taken place.  God, the Creator of the universe is able to heal Naaman of his leprosy in the manner he chooses. 

Jordan River doesn’t have any special significance other than the fact it was probably near where Elisha lived.  There is nothing magical about Jordan River as numerous people probably took bath in it all the time.  But it was the man of God’s instruction to Naaman to go down to the Jordan and dip himself seven times.

In a sense, Naaman believed on the word of the prophet, Elisha.  Even if it was because of the urging of his servants, nevertheless, he acted on faith.  As ridiculous as it may have sounded initially, Naaman in view of all other spectators of the day went down to Jordan and dipped himself seven times. 

This faith that enabled Naaman to carry out the prophet’s instruction is a gift from God.  Faith that brings about healing for Naaman is a gift that God gave to Naaman.  God did not heal all the lepers living in Israel on that day but this one foreigner, Naaman. 

The message of salvation is really simple.  It is simply to believe on Jesus Christ and be saved.  Because of such simple message of the gospel, more often than not it presents a problem for many people in the world.  They simply can’t believe that it is so simple.  They believe that anything worthwhile must be hard to attain and difficult to achieve. 

If people were given a very difficult task to accomplish to get the reward, more people would be convinced to do so.  However, message of the gospel is simply to repent of our sins and believe on Jesus Christ for forgiveness of sins. 

And when we turn to God in repentance and trust in the blood of Jesus Christ, our sins are forgiven and we receive eternal salvation.  It is only by the grace of God that we are saved from our sins.  And it is only through Jesus Christ, we are saved. 

Our salvation does not depend on us for then we would never be saved.  No matter how hard we work for our salvation, we would never attain it.  Salvation is too costly as it cost the life of Jesus Christ, the One who was without sin, on the cross.  Jesus alone was able to pay the price for our salvation.