self upon the child; and the flesh of the child waxed warm. Then he returned, and walked in the house to and fro; and 65 went up, and stretched himself upon him: and the child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes. And he called Gehazi, and said, Call this Shunammite. So he called her. And when she was come in unto him, he said, Take up thy son. Then she went in, and fell at his feet, and bowed herself 70 to the ground, and took up her son, and went out.

5.1. Now Naaman, captain of the host of the king of Syria, was a great man with his master, and honourable, because by him Jehovah had given deliverance unto Syria: he was also a mighty man in valour, but he was a leper. And the Syrians 75 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. And she said unto her mistress, Would God my lord were with the prophet that is in Samaria! for he would recover him of his leprosy. And one went in, and told his lord, saying, Thus 80 and thus said the maid that is of the land of Israel. And the king of Syria said, Go to, go, 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. And he brought the letter to the king of Israel, 85 saying, Now when this letter is come unto thee, behold, I have therewith sent Naaman my servant to thee, that thou mayest recover him of his leprosy. And 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 90 send unto me to recover a man of his leprosy? wherefore consider, I pray you, and see how he seeketh a quarrel against me. And it was so, when Elisha the man of God had 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 95 now to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel. So Naaman came with his horses and with his chariot, and stood at the door of the house of Elisha. And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying, Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean. But 100 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 Jehovah his God, and strike his hand over the place, and

recover the leper. Are not Abana and Pharpar, rivers of 105 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. 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 110 to thee, Wash, and be clean? Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God: and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean. And he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and came, and stood before him: 115 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 blessing of thy servant. But he said, As Jehovah liveth, before whom I stand, I will receive none. And he urged him to take it; but he refused. And Naaman said, If not, yet I pray thee 120 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 Jehovah. In this thing Jehovah pardon thy servant, that when my master goeth into the house of Rimmon to worship there, and he leaneth on my 125 hand, and I bow myself in the house of Rimmon: when I bow down-myself in the house of Rimmon, Jehovah pardon thy servant in this thing. And he said unto him, Go in peace. So

he departed from him a little way.

5.20. But Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said, 130 Behold, my master hath spared Naaman this Syrian, in not receiving at his hands that which he brought: but, as Jehovah liveth, I will run after him, and take somewhat of him. So Gehazi followed after Naaman. And when Naaman saw him running after him, he lighted down from the chariot to meet 135 him, and said, Is all well? And he said, All is well. My master hath sent me, saying, Behold, even now there be come to me from mount Ephraim two young men of the sons of the prophets give them, I pray thee, a talent of silver, and two changes of garments. And Naaman said, Be content, take two 140 talents. And he urged him, and bound two talents of silver in two bags, with two changes of garments, and laid them upon two of his servants; and they bare them before him. And when he came to the hill, he took them from their hand, and

bestowed them in the house: and he let the men go, and they departed. But he went in, and stood before his master. And 145 Elisha said unto him, Whence comest thou, Gehazi? And he said, Thy servant went no whither. And he said unto him, Went not mine heart with thee, when the man turned again from his chariot to meet thee? Is it a time to receive money, and to receive garments, and oliveyards, and vineyards, and sheep, and 150 oxen, and menservants, and maidservants? The leprosy therefore of Naaman shall cleave unto thee, and unto thy seed for And he went out from his presence a leper as white as

ever. snow.

LESSON LXXIV

ELISHA AND BEN-HADAD

2 KINGS 6.24 to 8.15

6.24. And it came to pass after this, that Ben-hadad king of Syria gathered all his host, and went up, and besieged Samaria. And 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 cab of dove's dung for five pieces 5 of silver. And as the king of Israel was passing by upon the wall, there cried a woman unto him, saying, Help, my lord, O king. And he said, If Jehovah do not help thee, whence shall I help thee? out of the barnfloor, or out of the winepress ? And the king said unto her, What aileth thee? And she 10 answered, This woman said unto me, Give thy son, that we may eat him to day, and we will eat my son to morrow. So we boiled my son, and did eat him: and I said unto her on the next day, Give thy son, that we may eat him: and she hath hid her son. And it came to pass, when the king heard the words 15 of the woman, that he rent his clothes; and he passed by upon the wall, and the people looked, and, behold, he had sackcloth within upon his flesh. Then he said, God do so and more also to me, if the head of Elisha the son of Shaphat shall stand on him this day. Now Elisha was sitting in his house, and the 20 elders sat with him; and the king sent a man from before him : but ere the messenger came to him, he said to the elders, See ye how this son of a murderer hath sent to take away mine

head? look, when the messenger cometh, shut the door, and hold 25 the door fast against him: is not the sound of his master's feet behind him? And while he yet talked with them, behold, the messenger came down unto him: and he said, Behold, this evil is of Jehovah; what should I wait for Jehovah any longer? (7.1) And Elisha said, Hear ye the word of Jehovah; Thus 30 saith Jehovah, To morrow about this time shall a measure of fine flour be sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, in the gate of Samaria. Then a lord on whose hand the king leaned answered the man of God, and said, Behold, if Jehovah would make windows in heaven, might this thing be? 35 And he said, Behold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but shalt not eat thereof.

7.3. And there were four leprous men at the entering in of the gate and they said one to another, Why sit we here until we die? If we say, We will enter into the city, then the famine 40 is in the city, and we shall die there: and if we sit still here, we die also. Now therefore come, and let us fall unto the host of the Syrians: if they save us alive, we shall live; and if they kill us, we shall but die. And they rose up in the twilight, to go unto the camp of the Syrians: and when they were come to 45 the uttermost part of the camp of Syria, behold, there was no man there. For Jehovah had made the host of the Syrians to hear a noise of chariots, and a noise of horses, even the noise of a great host and they said one to another, Lo, the king of Israel hath hired against us the kings of the Hittites, and the 50 kings of the Egyptians, to come upon us. Wherefore they arose and fled in the twilight, and left their tents, and their horses, and their asses, even the camp as it was, and fled for their life. And when these lepers came to the uttermost part of the camp, they went into one tent, and did eat and drink, and carried 55 thence silver, and gold, and raiment, and went and hid it; and came again, and entered into another tent, and carried thence also, and went and hid it. Then they said one to another, We do not well: this day is a day of good tidings, and we hold our peace if we tarry till the morning light, some mischief will 60 come upon us: now therefore come, that we may go and tell the king's household. So they came and called unto the porter

1 The word here translated measure is "seah." A seah was one-third of an ephah.

of the city and they told them, saying, We came to the camp of the Syrians, and, behold, there was no man there, neither voice of man, but horses tied, and asses tied, and the tents as they were. And he called the porters; and they told it to the 65 king's house within. And the king arose in the night, and said unto his servants, I will now shew you what the Syrians have done to us. They know that we be hungry; therefore are they gone out of the camp to hide themselves in the field, saying, When they come out of the city, we shall catch them alive, and 70 get into the city. And one of his servants answered and said, Let some take, I pray thee, five of the horses that remain, which are left in the city, (behold, they are as all the multitude of Israel that are left in it: behold, I say, they are even as all the multitude of the Israelites that are consumed :) and let us send 75 and see. They took therefore two chariots with horses; and the king sent after the host of the Syrians, saying, Go and see. And they went after them unto Jordan: and, lo, all the way was full of garments and vessels, which the Syrians had cast away in their haste. And the messengers returned, and told the 80 king. And the people went out, and spoiled the tents of the Syrians. So a measure of fine flour was sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, according to the word of Jehovah. And the king appointed the lord on whose hand he leaned to have the charge of the gate and the people trode 85 upon him in the gate, and he died, as the man of God had said, who spake when the king came down to him. And it came to pass as the man of God had spoken to the king, saying, Two measures of barley for a shekel, and a measure of fine flour for a shekel, shall be to morrow about this time in the gate of 90 Samaria and that lord answered the man of God, and said, Now, behold, if Jehovah should make windows in heaven, might such a thing be? And he said, Behold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but shalt not eat thereof. And so it fell out unto him for the people trode upon him in the gate, and he died.

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95

8.7. And Elisha came to Damascus ; and Ben-hadad the king of Syria was sick; and it was told him, saying, The man of God is come hither. And the king said unto Hazael, Take a present in thine hand, and go, meet the man of God, and enquire of Jehovah by him, saying, Shall I recover of this 100 disease? So Hazael went to meet him, and took a present with