Naaman hears that Elisha, the prophet of Israel, can heal him, so he makes the trip. We've got better rivers up in Damascus." He focused particularly on Naamans gaze as he quietly reflects upon the prophets reasons for refusing to accept his gifts of appreciationthe moment of revelation when Naaman came to understand that there is no God in all the world except in Israel.. According to Blankert, the subject had a twofold significance for the regents: first, Elishas refusal symbolized the regents own rectitude and, second, the example of Gehazi was a cautionary note for their servants that they would pay a heavy price for deception. Similar decorations are also visible on the sash of one of the servants in De Grebbers version of Elishas Refusal for the Leprozenhuis in Haarlem, while the jewels on Naamans and Belshazzars turbans are nearly identical. Such may have been Elisha's feeling. When he discovered that he was stricken with leprosy, he searched for a cure -- and of course, at that time, there was no cure. One day his wife's Israeli servant girl told her about the power of God moving through the prophet Elisha. This website uses cookies to ensure the best user experience. [1] When the Hebrew slave-girl who waits on his wife tells her of a Jewish prophet in Samaria who can cure her master, he obtains a letter from King Ben-Hadad II of Aram to King Joram of Israel in which Ben-Hadad asks Joram to arrange for the healing of his subject Naaman. And the guy urged him, but still he refused.In the healing of Naaman we find some interesting things, and one of them is that typically, we, all of us, really have difficulty with just accepting the grace of God. Lambert Jacobszs Elisha Refusing Naamans Gifts depicts an episode from the Old Testament story of Naaman, the widely admired commander of the Syrian army, and the Prophet Elisha, who cured him of leprosy. Can we say the same thing about Elishas rejection of Naamans gift? Only after Naaman's slaves suggest to their master that he has nothing to lose by at least giving it a try since the task is a simple and easy one, he takes his bath in the Jordan river as a mikveh as instructed and finds himself healed. Why does the king blame Elisha for the siege and famine of Samaria in 2 Kings 6:31? If Elisha had accepted those gifts, he would be accepting the glory that God should get. The request is so odd that its hard to avoid wondering if Naaman needed some other kind of therapy. Christian theology has always depicted Naaman as the paradigmatic case of Gods will to save people we would normally considered as being unworthy of salvation: Naaman is not even an Israelite, and doesnt share the prophets faith. Acts 8:20.) It includes articles on history, literature, religion and theology, text, versions, language, and the bearing on the Old Testament of archaeology and the study of the Ancient Near East. People become very excited when they see God work. And he said, "Send him down to me, and he will know that there is a God in Israel." A1A16. Why Did Elisha Refuse Gifts from Naaman? He was originally a disciple of Elijah. 5, Nachtrge, Ortsregister, Ikonographisches Register, Bibliographie (Landau, 1994), nos. The first one is that between the faith and humility of Naamans young servant (who barely knows of Elisha and still is willing to tell her master to go meet the prophet) and that of Naaman himself, who traveled all the way to Elishas house and was yet willing to leave uncured simply because the prophet did not receive him in person. the Lord hath forbidden this thing." You know, I would like to go out and conquer a thousand giants or something. Subscribe for free and get daily or weekly updates straight to your inbox, The three things you need to know everyday, Highlights from the last week to keep you informed. Some paint layers were thinly applied, as in sections of the brown background and the plum-colored textile held by Naamans attendant. Backer had a great reputation as a skilled painter of finely formed hands. )"The temptation to use priesthood power for personal gain has plagued man throughout history," states the Church Educational System's Old Testament Student Manual. 2 Kings 3:14 And Elisha said, As the LORD of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look toward thee, nor see thee. Elisha was totally surrendered to God in every area of his life. Want to see fewer ads on Aleteia? Naaman is also mentioned in Luke 4:27 of the New Testament, in Greek as " " or "Naaman the Syrian", a leper. Copyright Aleteia SAS all rights reserved. He was a good commander and was held in favor because of the victory that God brought him. 1800 (Stockholm, 2005), 213, no. In general, he painted directly onto the canvas, working both wet into wet and over dried paint layers. When the prophet Elisha hears about this, he sends for general Naaman. Naaman also renounces his former god Rimmon after being cured by Elisha - acknowledges solely the God of Israel. When Naaman left Elisha's house to return home to Syria, Gehazi was filled with greed. Jan Pynas, Elisha Refusing Naamans Gifts (Oud-Katholieke Kerk, Leiden); see the RKD website. Now Naaman was the captain of the host of Syria, he was a great man with his master, he was honorable, because the LORD had actually helped him to subdue many nations. When Elisha became aware of Gehazi's duplicity, he punished his servant by infecting him with the disease from which Naaman had just been cured. cat. Nephi called such employment "priestcraft," in which " . Naaman traveled to Samaria, where Elisha told him to take seven dips in the river Jordan. Interestingly, the Septuagint (the classic translation of the Old Testament into Greek) uses the word baptizein (to baptize) for Naamans immersions in the Jordan River. 5 Insights for Interpreting the Deaths of Ananias and Sapphira. When he returned home, Elisha found out and punished Gehazi with leprosy for his greed. When he returned home, Elisha found out and punished . 14:1-12, where God himself tells Moses the ritual for cleansing one with a skin disease). To subscribe to this RSS feed, copy and paste this URL into your RSS reader. BRILL is renowned for its publications in the following subject areas; Asian Studies, Ancient Near East & Egypt, Biblical Studies & Religious Studies, Classical Studies, Medieval & Early Modern Studies, Middle East & Islamic Studies. I could buy an olive orchard, a vineyard. Just to receive from God the simplicity with which God gives to me. Discover God's grace, His officers convinced him of the wisdom of obeying the commands of the prophet. 1 Kings 13:8 And the man of God said unto the king, If thou wilt give me half thine house, I will not go in with thee, neither will I eat bread nor drink water in this place: I will receive none.--Theodoret compares our Lord's "Freely ye have received, freely give" (Matthew 10:8). He's going to set himself up. The Church News is an official publication of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The man was also a valiant warrior, but he was a leper. Not only is Elishas gesture of refusal reminiscent of that in the Leiden Collection painting, but Gehazi similarly stands behind the prophet in both works. Now I told you that a fellow that would have this kind of a gift would have problems. 20-7 act epexegetically to Elisha's refusal to accept Naaman's gifts is plausible for three reasons. But he was a leper. Amsterdam Museum, Amsterdam. In this quiet and restrained scene, Lambert Jacobsz placed Naaman in the center of the composition and gave him added prominence through his slightly larger scale and the brilliant colors of his turban and kaftan. And so they came to the Jordan River and Naaman dipped himself in the Jordan River, and when he came up the seventh time, his flesh was pink like a baby's flesh. Maybe something's gone wrong." He came to the door to tell Naaman that he should take a dip in the Jordan River seven times. Discover God's love and plan for you, Elisha was totally surrendered to God in every area of his life. First and foremost, Naamans healing is not Elishas gift: it is a gift freely bestowed by the grace of God, and Elisha is well aware of that. He did not want sin to come between him and the Lord or to hinder the Lord's work through his life because of his greed. Learn more about Stack Overflow the company, and our products. The Bible doesn't say whether God told him not to receive the gift from Naaman, but we see that Elisha was quick to refuse the offer, desiring only to honor God. And so it was told to Naaman and he told the king that there was a prophet in Israel that could cure him of his leprosy. Why should Elisha receive a gift for him? From whom acquired by the present owner in 2006. Kullanm artlarmz ve Gizlilik Politikamz kabul ettiiniz iin teekkr ederiz. Although the story of Naaman and Elisha was infrequently depicted by other artists, Jacobsz painted episodes from this story at least six times in the late 1620s and 1630s, including three scenes with small-scale figures and three with large-scale figures.2 One of Jacobszs early portrayals of this subject, which is known only from a black-and-white photograph (fig 2), has compositional elements similar to those seen in Elisha Refusing Naamans Gifts, such as the interaction between Naaman and Elisha. In Elisha Refusing Naamans Gifts, Jacobsz, a devout Mennonite teacher and biblical expert, was more interested in conveying the conversion of a great leader to the Christian faith than in portraying physical drama.14 With the painting in The Leiden Collection, Jacobsz showed himself to be both a talented painter and an earnest Mennonite teacher. This is where Halbertals remarks might come in handy: if a gift is supposed to start a gift cycle, why is Elisha not willing to partake in it? After this, Naaman and his retinue returned to Elisha and offered a giftten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold, ten sets of clothingElisha could take whatever he wanted. Naaman believed that "There [was] no God in all the earth but in Israel" ( 2 Kgs 5:15) and wanted to return to his homeland with holy ground. Naaman proceeds with the letter to King Joram. Elishas hands are exceptionally beautifully shaped and contrast strongly with the usually somewhat clumsy hands painted on other original work by Lambert Jacobsz. The artist carefully modelled the faces of these two protagonists, paying great attention to their facial expressions. Those were the things which Elisha refused. He is miraculously healed by the simple act. 78. Compare translations, take notes and highlight, consult devotionals and commentaries, look up Greek and Hebrew words, and much moreall with the help of intuitive, interactive tools. The new baptism takes place in the Jordan River where Jesus of Nazareth, also called the Christ by his followers, was baptized many centuries later. Albert Blankert in a letter to Jack Kilgore, 5 October 2006, at The Leiden Collection, New York. The model for the elderly man was also used for a version of The Tribute Money in Stockholm by Jacob Backer in his Leeuwarden period; see Grel Cavalli-Bjrkman, Dutch and Flemish Paintings, vol. Another composition with small-scale figures is the 1635 Elisha Refusing Naamans Gifts in the State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg. By clicking Accept all cookies, you agree Stack Exchange can store cookies on your device and disclose information in accordance with our Cookie Policy. I Dare You Not to Bore Me with the Bible. Thanks to their partnership in our mission, we reachmore than 20 million unique users per month! Naaman was a powerful man and a warrior who was used to giving commands and having those commands obeyed. https://theleidencollection.com/iconclass. 9:18.) I speculate that God seeing a true turning of Naaman to Himself did not want Naaman to say that he contributed toward his conversion, especially not with material and perishable things Share Improve this answer He declared that the rivers in Damascus were cleaner than any river in Israel. Although opinion varies as to how much a talent weighed (maybe 25-35kg), it was certainly a lot of money. In the past, the edges of the painting appear to have been folded over a smaller stretcher about an inch from the current edge. At the behest of some servants, he consents to dip himself in the Jordan. Naaman, standing outside of Elisha's house, was furious when he was greeted by a messenger instead of the prophet himself. Why would God have rejected Cains offering? Gehazi told Naaman that Elisha had changed his mind and now Elisha wanted the gifts. And so, he'd like a couple of changes of apparel for them and a talent of silver. Describing Diatheke: Covenant Centrality in the Bible, Pets in the Bible and Their Exegetical Significance, See to This: The Meaning of Jehovah Jireh in Genesis 22.