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Naaman

A captured servant girl advises Naaman to find help from God.
Contributed by Moody Publishers
Story also available on our translated websites: Spanish, Portuguese, Polish, German, Hindi
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In the Old Testament, we read the story of Naaman, the commander-in-chief of the army of Syria. – Slide 1
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Naaman was highly respected by his fellow men and he was known to be a personal friend of the king. – Slide 2
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If being rich and having an important job had been all that was necessary to guarantee happiness, Naaman’s home would have been a wonderful place to live. But unfortunately, Naaman’s home was a place of sorrow. Naaman had leprosy, a dreaded sickness for which there was no cure. – Slide 3
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Naaman’s wife, and the other members of his family, were very sad knowing that, day by day, Naaman was slowly dying. – Slide 4
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Even the servants felt sorry for Naaman and his wife, and one of the servants in particular wondered if she could help. – Slide 5
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She knew about the true and the living God, and about Elisha, the prophet of God that lived in the land of her childhood. – Slide 6
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The servant girl felt sure that if Naaman went to the prophet, he could be cured of his leprosy. – Slide 7
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So one day she gathered up her courage and told her mistress about the prophet who lived in Israel, and what she felt could be done about this sorrow in their home. – Slide 8
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Naaman’s wife had never heard of God, and yet as she sat there and listened to the servant girl tell of the wonderful things that God could do, new hope came into her heart. – Slide 9
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Naaman’s wife went to tell her husband of this news. – Slide 10
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Naaman listened intently. He had captured this servant girl on one of his raids into Israel. Why was she trying to help him? – Slide 11
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A God that could cure leprosy? Could such a thing be true? It was his only hope. – Slide 12
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So Naaman agreed with his wife that he would have to go and try to find the prophet. – Slide 13
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But he was a Syrian who had attacked people in Israel. How willing would they be to help an enemy? Perhaps the king of Syria could help. – Slide 14
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The king of Syria had never heard of Elisha the prophet, but the king felt sure that the ruler of Israel would know, so he gave Naaman a letter… – Slide 15
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… a letter of introduction for the captain of the Syrian army. And not only that … – Slide 16
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... the king saw to it personally that a royal gift was prepared for whoever could cure Naaman of his dreaded disease. – Slide 17
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The king did everything to show Naaman how much he thought of his commander-in-chief. – Slide 18
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Then he set him off on the journey south into Israel with wishes for a speedy recovery. – Slide 19
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It was a long journey, but finally Naaman arrived at the palace of King Jehoram, the ruler of the land of Israel. And before long ... – Slide 20
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... Naaman was standing before the king. An important person like the captain of the Syrian army wasn’t someone to keep waiting. – Slide 21
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The king opened the letter of introduction and started to read, ‘I have sent Naaman my servant to you, that you may cure him of his leprosy.’ – Slide 22
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Leprosy! Cure a man of leprosy! The ruler of Israel suddenly felt very afraid. His hands started to shake. And yet he knew he must not let these Syrians see his fear. – Slide 23
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So the king asked for time to consult with his advisors on this matter of great importance. – Slide 24
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But the moment the strangers had left the throne room, the king tore his clothes to show how upset he was, and he wailed and he moaned, and he cried out: – Slide 25
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‘Am I God? Can I cure a man of his leprosy?’ – Slide 26
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The Syrians are trying to start a quarrel as an excuse to attack us!’ the king said. ‘That’s what this is all about.’ – Slide 27
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The wise men of the kingdom wondered what to do. But because the letter had failed to mention the prophet Elisha, and because the king and his advisors were not right with God, they did not have an answer. – Slide 28
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Naaman was shown every courtesy while he was there. He was given the best of everything. But all of this delay puzzled Naaman. – Slide 29
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Why was the king taking so long? – Slide 30
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The king was still pondering the problem, when a servant came to the king with a message about Naaman from Elisha the prophet. – Slide 31
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Elisha had heard about Naaman’s visit to the king. The message was a request that Naaman be sent to Elisha so that the Syrians would know there was a true and a living God. – Slide 32
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The king, was very happy to be relieved of his problem. Naaman was directed to the home of the prophet Elisha at once. – Slide 33
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The caravan left the royal palace, on the trip to the home of Elisha the prophet. – Slide 34
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But when they arrived, they found themselves outside a very simple poor home, and that bothered Naaman. – Slide 35
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He was also bothered by the fact that no one was outside to meet him. After all … – Slide 36
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… he was the captain of the Syrian army! – Slide 37
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Two of his men rode forward and shouted for someone to come out and meet their leader. – Slide 38
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But inside the house, Elisha did not come to the door but gave his servant a message for Naaman. – Slide 39
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The servant went out to tell Naaman that if he went to the river Jordan, and washed himself seven times, he would be completely healed of his leprosy. – Slide 40
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The river Jordan? Was Elisha making fun of him? And why not the rivers of Syria which were more beautiful than the dirty, muddy Jordan? – Slide 41
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They couldn’t insult the captain of the Syrian army like this. – Slide 42
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He ordered his men to leave at once. But some of the men with Naaman tried to reason with him about it. – Slide 43
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They reminded their leader that had he been told to do a difficult thing, he undoubtedly would have tried to do it. Why not do as the servant had said? Naaman knew in his heart that his men were right. If he was going to be helped by God, he must be willing to believe and obey. – Slide 44
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So Naaman and his men travelled on to the river Jordan. – Slide 45
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Naaman obediently waded into the water. – Slide 46
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His men watched from the river bank. What was going to happen? – Slide 47
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Six times Naaman went down into the water and his body remained the same. – Slide 48
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When Naaman went down for the seventh time, the men on the bank moved forward. Was it possible for their captain to be healed? Was there a God who could do such a thing? – Slide 49
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And when Naaman came up out of the water his shouts of excitement gave them their answer, ‘My leprosy! It’s gone!’ – Slide 50
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Naaman was overcome with joy. In spite of the weakness of his faith, God had healed his body! – Slide 51
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It was a humble group of men that returned to the small house where Elisha lived with the many gifts they had brought. – Slide 52
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But Elisha didn’t want their gifts. He didn’t want their gold. He wanted God to have all the glory for this miracle. – Slide 53
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A wonderful miracle had taken place. Naaman had been cured of his leprosy through simple faith and obedience to the will of God. – Slide 54
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In the Bible, we find that leprosy is symbolic of sin. The story of Naaman’s faith and obedience is a guide to our own salvation. ‘For God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.’ (John 3:16). – Slide 55
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