2 Kings 5

NEW JERUSALEM	CATHOLIC PUBLIC DOMAIN
1 Naaman, army commander to the king of Aram, was a man who enjoyed his master's respect andfavour, since through him Yahweh had granted victory to the Aramaeans.	1 Naaman, the leader of the military of the king of Syria, was a great and honorable man with his lord. For through him the Lord gave salvation to Syria. And he was a strong and rich man, but a leper.
2 But the man suffered from a virulent skin-disease. Now, on one of their raids into Israelite territory, theAramaeans had carried off a little girl, who became a servant of Naaman's wife.	2 Now robbers had gone out from Syria, and they had led away captive, from the land of Israel, a little girl. And she was in the service of the wife of Naaman.
3 She said to her mistress, 'If only my master would approach the prophet of Samaria! He would cure himof his skin-disease.'	3 And she said to her lady: “I wish that my lord had been with the prophet who is in Samaria. Certainly, he would have cured him of the leprosy that he has.”
4 Naaman went and told his master. 'This and this', he reported, 'is what the girl from Israel has said.'	4 And so, Naaman entered to his lord, and he reported to him, saying: “The girl from the land of Israel spoke in such a manner.”
5 'Go by al means,' said the king of Aram, 'I shal send a letter to the king of Israel.' So Naaman left, taking with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold and ten festal robes.	5 And the king of Syria said to him, “Go, and I will send a letter to the king of Israel.” And when he had set out, he had taken with him ten talents of silver, and six thousand gold coins, and ten changes of fine clothing.
6 He presented the letter to the king of Israel. It read, 'With this letter, I am sending my servant Naaman toyou for you to cure him of his skin-disease.'	6 And he brought the letter to the king of Israel, in these words: “When you will receive this letter, know that I have sent to you my servant, Naaman, so that you may heal him of his leprosy.”
7 When the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his clothes. 'Am I a god to give death and life,' he said,'for him to send a man to me and ask me to cure him of his skin-disease? Listen to this and take note of it andsee how he intends to pick a quarrel with me.'	7 And when the king of Israel had read the letter, he tore his garments, and he said: “Am I God, so that I could take or give life, or so that this man would send to me to cure a man from his leprosy? Take notice and see that he is seeking occasions against me.”
8 When Elisha heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, he sent word to the king, 'Why have youtorn your clothes? Let him come to me, and he wil find there is a prophet in Israel.'	8 And when Elisha, the man of God, had heard this, specifically, that the king of Israel had torn his garments, he sent to him, saying: “Why have you torn your garments? Let him come to me, and let him know that there is a prophet in Israel.”
9 So Naaman came with his team and chariot and drew up at the door of Elisha's house.	9 Therefore, Naaman arrived with his horses and chariots, and he stood at the door of the house of Elisha.
10 And Elisha sent him a messenger to say, 'Go and bathe seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh wilbecome clean once more.'	10 And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go, and wash seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will receive health, and you will be clean.”
11 But Naaman was indignant and went off, saying, 'Here was I, thinking he would be sure to come out tome, and stand there, and cal on the name of Yahweh his God, and wave his hand over the spot and cure thepart that was diseased.	11 And becoming angry, Naaman went away, saying: “I thought that he would have come out to me, and, standing, would have invoked the name of the Lord, his God, and that he would have touched the place of the leprosy with his hand, and so have healed me.
12 Surely, Abana and Parpar, the rivers of Damascus, are better than any water in Israel? Could I notbathe in them and become clean?' And he turned round and went off in a rage.	12 Are not the Abana and the Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel, so that I might wash in them and be cleansed?” But then, after he had turned himself away and was leaving with indignation,
13 But his servants approached him and said, 'Father, if the prophet had asked you to do somethingdifficult, would you not have done it? Al the more reason, then, when he says to you, "Bathe, and you wilbecome clean." '	13 his servants approached him, and they said to him: “If the prophet had told you, father, to do something great, certainly you ought to have done it. How much more so, now that he has said to you: ‘Wash, and you will be clean?’ ”
14 So he went down and immersed himself seven times in the Jordan, as Elisha had told him to do. Andhis flesh became clean once more like the flesh of a little child.	14 So he descended and washed in the Jordan seven times, in accord with the word of the man of God. And his flesh was restored, like the flesh of a little child. And he was made clean.
15 Returning to Elisha with his whole escort, he went in and, presenting himself, said, 'Now I know thatthere is no God anywhere on earth except in Israel. Now, please, accept a present from your servant.'	15 And returning to the man of God, with his entire retinue, he arrived, and stood before him, and he said: “Truly, I know there is no other God, in all the earth, except in Israel. And so I beg you to accept a blessing from your servant.”
16 But Elisha replied, 'As Yahweh lives, whom I serve, I wil accept nothing.' Naaman pressed him toaccept, but he refused.	16 But he responded, “As the Lord lives, before whom I stand, I will not accept it.” And though he urged him strongly, he did not agree at all.
17 Then Naaman said, 'Since your answer is "No," al ow your servant to be given as much earth as twomules may carry, since your servant wil no longer make burnt offerings or sacrifice to any god except Yahweh.	17 And Naaman said: “As you wish. But I beg you to grant to me, your servant, that I may take from here the burden of two mules from the ground. For your servant will no longer offer holocaust or victim to other gods, except to the Lord.
18 Only -- and may Yahweh forgive your servant for this -- when my master goes to the temple of Rimmonto worship there, he leans on my arm, and I bow down in the temple of Rimmon when he does; may Yahwehforgive your servant for doing this!'	18 But there is still this matter, for which you will entreat the Lord on behalf of your servant: when my lord enters the temple of Rimmon, so that he may adore there, and he leans on my hand, if I will bow down in the temple of Rimmon, while he is adoring in the same place, that the Lord may ignore me, your servant, concerning this matter.”
19 'Go in peace,' Elisha replied.	19 And he said to him, “Go in peace.” Then he went away from him, in the elect time of the earth.
20 Naaman had gone a smal distance, when Gehazi, Elisha's servant, said to himself, 'My master has letthis Aramaean Naaman off lightly, by not accepting what he offered. As Yahweh lives, I will run after him and getsomething out of him.'	20 And Gehazi, the servant of the man of God, said: “My lord has spared Naaman, this Syrian, by not receiving from him what he brought. As the Lord lives, I will run after him, and take something from him.”
21 So Gehazi set off in pursuit of Naaman. When Naaman saw him running after him, he jumped downfrom his chariot to meet him. 'Is all well?' he asked.	21 And so, Gehazi followed after the back of Naaman. And when he had seen him running toward him, he leaped down from his chariot to meet him, and he said, “Is all well?”
22 'All is well,' he said. 'My master has sent me to say, "This very moment two young men of the propheticbrotherhood have arrived from the highlands of Ephraim. Be kind enough to give them a talent of silver and twofestal robes." '	22 And he said: “It is well. My lord has sent me to you, saying: ‘Just now two youths from the sons of the prophets have come to me from mount Ephraim. Give them a talent of silver, and two changes of clothing.’ ”
23 'Please accept two talents,' Naaman replied, and pressed him, tying up the two talents of silver in twobags with the two festal robes and consigning them to two of his servants who carried them ahead of Gehazi.	23 And Naaman said, “It is better that you accept two talents.” And he urged him, and he bound the two talents of silver in two bags, with two changes of clothing. And he set them upon two of his servants, who carried them before him.
24 When he reached Ophel, he took these from them and put them away in the house. He then dismissedthe men, who went away.	24 And when now he had arrived in the evening, he took them from their hands, and he stored them in the house. And he dismissed the men, and they went away.
25 He, for his part, went and presented himself to his master. Elisha said, 'Gehazi, where have you been?''Your servant has not been anywhere,' he replied.	25 Then, having entered, he stood before his lord. And Elisha said, “Where are you coming from, Gehazi?” He responded, “Your servant did not go anywhere.”
26 But Elisha said to him, 'Was not my heart present there when someone left his chariot to meet you?Now you have taken the money, you can buy gardens with it, and olive groves, sheep and oxen, male andfemale slaves.	26 But he said: “Was my heart not present, when the man turned back from his chariot to meet you? And now you have received money, and you have received garments, so that you might buy olive groves, and vineyards, and sheep, and oxen, and men and women servants.
27 But Naaman's disease of the skin wil cling to you and your descendants for ever.' And Gehazi left hispresence white as snow from skin-disease.	27 So then, the leprosy of Naaman shall adhere to you, and to your offspring forever.” And he departed from him a leper, as white as snow.