The Kingdom of Syria at this time was mostly Aramaic people who spoke pretty much the same language as Israel. They also had some similar customs. The Syrians knew that Israel claimed to worship Jehovah, and were familiar with some of the requirements attached to that. We don’t know how Syrians looked at leprosy, but they did know how Israel’s law made lepers social outcasts, and that it was supposedly a command from their God, since it was regarded as a sign of divine wrath.
The main point to notice in the opening verses is that Naaman was the commander of the Syrian royal army, and that the King really favored him for his successes in battle. Whatever leprosy meant in Syrian society, it would become a serious hindrance to his duties, and signaled a slow and painful death, which portions of skin and limbs dying and rotting off.
We get the picture that, at this point, Israel was somewhat of a tributary to Syria, having lost in some battle. During the recent conflicts, the Syrian raiders had seized some border captives, and among them was an Israeli girl who ended up a handmaiden to Naaman’s wife. The girl was old enough to remember stories of a prophet and his miracles. She believed. At some point she remarked that she wished Naaman could visit this famous prophet who hung around the royal court in Samaria. She wasn’t hostile to her servitude; she genuinely cared about the master of the household. It’s obvious she had little clue about the whole story, and was unable to provide much information.
But this remark was reported to Naaman, who then in turn asked his master the King about it. They knew less about the situation than the girl did. Still, they were currently somewhat dominant over Israel and decided to send Naaman with gifts and a substantial escort. The essence of the letter was that the King of Israel should call in this prophet to heal Naaman. Jehoram tore his clothes as a sign of being quite distraught. He might have known Elisha could do miracles, but this was a bit much. How many lepers did he have in his kingdom, and none were healed?
He was pretty sure this was some kind of game, an excuse to attack Israel. The famous general would not have tried to enter the city, knowing the rules about lepers, but he could easily spy out the situation and make tactical plans accordingly. Jehoram was already somewhat of a tributary to Syria’s king; if he could have fought off an attack from Syria, he would have already done it.
So we can picture Naaman camping outside the city with all the finery of someone high in Syrian royal service. And word now goes out through the grapevine that this is just a ruse looking to cause trouble and Jehoram has torn his clothes in mourning. Elisha got word of it and sent a message to his king. What’s all the fuss? Elisha would gladly show Naaman that God had at least one true prophet in Israel.
We have no idea where Elisha resided at that time. Chances are he had quarters near the City of Samaria so he could be ready at hand to prod Jehoram now and then, representing Jehovah’s interests, and keep track of the King. So when Jehoram finally replied to Naaman, he told him to visit with Elisha the prophet. Naaman duly reported to the prophet’s residence in his chariot, and with escorting chariots. Again, he stayed outside the courtyard wall out of respect for the religious rules about lepers.
While he was waiting to see what would happen, Elisha sent out a servant with the message that Naaman should bathe seven times in the Jordan River. This wasn’t some crazy ritual bath, either, just that he should plunge himself under the surface of the water seven times. The promise is that it would restore his normal skin.
It was not at all what Naaman was expecting. He was used to the pagan prophets in Syria doing all sorts of mumbo-jumbo rituals. Here, the prophet never even showed his face. Naaman ranted about how the two rivers nearest his country’s capital of Damascus were much nicer than the muddy Jordan in the first place (they were and still are). But Naaman’s attendants spoke very wisely to him. If Elisha had demanded some heroic deed, would that have appealed more to Naaman? Why could the power of Elisha’s God not be found with a simple act in the local river?
So Naaman decided to give it a shot. The road between Samaria and Damascus ran across the Upper Jordan River near the Wadi Yarmuk, or he could head straight down a much closer one (Wadi Farah) starting near Shechem, just a short ride from Samaria. So Naaman does this rather odd and simple act, and on the seventh dunking, came up with skin as clean as a child’s.
It would be hard to imagine just how it felt to overcome what would have been an early death sentence, and a slow and degrading death at that. So he returned to Elisha’s residence with his whole entourage and tried to offer some kind of payment. Elisha steadfastly refused, using a strong oath — “as surely as Jehovah lives.” In this he was quite consistent with his predecessor, who was at pains to show that he could not be bribed. So Naaman decided the least he could do was convert to the worship of Jehovah, who surely was a living God, indeed, unlike all the others he had heard about.
It was common in the minds of people in the Ancient Near East to imagine a god as tied to some location. It’s not meant to be a fact, so much as symbolism. Naaman asked permission to take with him as much Israeli soil as two mules could carry in baskets. It was his way of honoring the God of the land who had won his loyalty. He would construct a shrine that incorporated the soil. He wanted to stand on “sacred ground” when he worshiped God. He also asked Elisha to intercede with Jehovah regarding his feudal duty.
Naaman, as servant of his King, would be required to engage in some of the King’s ritual worship of Rimmon. That was part of a man’s feudal duty throughout the Ancient Near East (it’s why Abraham refused to accept the burial cave as a gift, because it would have feudal duties attached to it). Naaman asked that Jehovah wouldn’t take it seriously when he engaged in such rituals, but forgive him and know that Naaman’s heart belonged to Jehovah.
Elisha told Naaman he had no cause to worry; peace with Jehovah wasn’t that tricky.
