#123: Gehazi and the Root of All Evil
But Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said, “Look, my master has spared Naaman this Syrian, while not receiving from his hands what he brought; but as the LORD lives, I will run after him and take something from him.” So Gehazi pursued Naaman. When Naaman saw him running after him, he got down from the chariot to meet him, and said, “Is all well?” And he said, “All is well. My master has sent me, saying, ‘Indeed, just now two young men of the sons of the prophets have come to me from the mountains of Ephraim. Please give them a talent of silver and two changes of garments.’ So Naaman said, “Please, take two talents.” And he urged him, and bound two talents of silver in two bags, with two changes of garments, and handed them to two of his servants; and they carried them on ahead of him. When he came to the citadel, he took them from their hand, and stored them away in the house; then he let the men go, and they departed.
Now he went in and stood before his master. Elisha said to him, “Where did you go, Gehazi?” And he said, “Your servant did not go anywhere.” Then he said to him, “Did not my heart go with you when the man turned back from his chariot to meet you? Is it time to receive money and to receive clothing, olive groves and vineyards, sheep and oxen, male and female servants? Therefore the leprosy of Naaman shall cling to you and your descendants forever.” And he went out from his presence leprous, as white as snow.
II Kings 5:20-27
When Jesus preached in his hometown of Nazareth (Luke 4:16-30), those He grew up with and who knew Him best attempted to push Him off a cliff because they despised His message. But when Jesus went to the city of Capernaum many came to see Him heal and hear Him preach (vs. 31-44). A great tragedy of life is that sometimes those physically closest to the truth reject it. A great blessing is that many who are far off receive it with faith and love.
The final portion of the account of Naaman in Israel presents a great warning. Gehazi, the servant of Elisha, witness to the word and power of God, let his lust for money and discontent lead him into great sin. Like Achan before him (Joshua 7) and Ananias and Saphira after him (Acts 5) the love of money grew up and bore much evil fruit.
Gehazi was greedy for easy gain. The wealth of the Syrians was freely offered and Elisha rejected it. No one would stop Gehazi from trying to lay claim to some of that wealth. Gehazi went so far as to use the Lord’s name in vain to make a sinful vow before pursuing Naaman and presenting a lie (vs. 20).
The sense of the text is that Gahazi was very angry (with good reason) with Syria for their ravaging and subjugation of Israel. “This Syrian” (vs. 20), is not describing friendship between Gehazi and Syria. But Gehazi, not having a heart of submission to the Lord, failed to see the greater work of salvation that God had done in Naaman and in the sight of many Syrians. Dear people of God we must never plot evil against those who oppose us but rather pray for them that persecute us and plead with God to save them (Matt. 5:43-44).
Being greedy for gain, Gehazi ran after Naaman, lied to Naaman about sons of the prophets needing money and clothing, hid the treasure, and than lied again to Elisha who represented the Lord. Sin begat sin, lies led to more lies, and the end thereof was the way of death. Gehazi had not simply gathered some money from a foreign enemy in opportunistic circumstances, he tempted Naaman to question Elisha’s refusal to accept payment. He set up Naaman’s servants to think that perhaps the gift of salvation was to be paid for by sinners after all. He deceived himself into thinking he knew better than Elisha who was the prophet of the Lord.
Elisha, by the Spirit of the Lord, knew what took place, and pronounced leprosy upon Gehazi and his descendants. The Syrian leper was cleansed while the Israelite servant was made a leper.
We should note with the punishment that it did not lead to immediate death. Achan was put to death quickly for his sin. Ananias and Sapphira were struck down immediately by the Lord. Gehazi and his household would have a prolonged death with this painful disease. Scripture is silent on the balance of Gehazi’s days but clearly Gehazi had time to repent of his sin and seek the Lord’s pardon while it could have been found. I do hope this took place in the course of time though Scripture is silent concerning Gehazi’s heart and it seems he is left to us an example of unbelief. [1]
This text is a great warning for us not to lust after worldly things, especially wealth and money. As a servant of Elisha, Gehazi and his family had all they could need but he wanted more. Let us learn to tell the truth and shut our mouths if we dare to speak a lie. Let us learn to quickly repent when our sin is brought to our attention lest a greater calamity come upon us even as Gehazi was given a chance to repent but he hardened his heart and received leprosy. “Those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition” (I Tim. 6:9).
So much sin has been committed with the root sin being the love of money. Men will lie, steal, covet, kill, defraud, and much more all to grow their wealth even just a small amount for a short period of time. How much harm has come to the kingdom of God when those within His church engage in such sin?
Naaman who was far off from the Lord, received the Lord joyfully, and left Elisha’s presence clean in soul and body. Gehazi, who was very near to the prophet of the Lord, a witness to many of the great deeds of the Lord, despised the Lord, and left a leper, body and soul polluted. You are being brought near to the Lord in His Word today. Will you despise it like the friends of Jesus in Luke 4 and Gehazi in II Kings 5, or will you receive it with faith and love like Naaman and those at Capernaum, lay it up in your heart and practice it in your life? May the Lord grant us great contentment with our own estate towards the end we might serve the Lord Jesus Christ with joy and truth.
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[1] Gehazi will make an appearance again in II Kings 8:1-6 where we find him in the court of the King of Israel when the Shunammite woman returned after the famine. The text does not suggest Gehazi repented or that he was no longer a leper. He had fame as the servant of Elisha and could have been in the court of the king even as a leper. There were after all “many lepers in Israel in the days of Elisha” (Luke 4:27).
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