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Aren`t Abanah and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? may I not wash in them, and be clean? So he turned and went away in a rage.

Verse Takeaways

1

The Logic of Pride

Commentators note that Naaman's boast was factually based. The Abana and Pharpar rivers of Damascus were indeed clearer and considered superior to Israel's muddy Jordan. His rage stemmed from human logic: why perform a simple act in an inferior place? This highlights how pride often relies on what seems reasonable to us, blinding us to the necessity of simple obedience to God's specific, and sometimes counter-intuitive, commands.

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Book Overview

2 Kings

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Commentaries

4

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes

On 2 Kings 5:12

18th Century

Theologian

The Abana is the Barada, the true river of Damascus. It rises in the Anti-Lebanon mountains, flows westward from their base, and forms the oasis wh…

Charles Ellicott

Charles Ellicott

On 2 Kings 5:12

19th Century

Bishop

Abana. —So the Hebrew text; Hebrew margin, Amana; and so in many manuscripts, the Complutensian Polyglot, Septuagint, Tar…

John Gill

John Gill

On 2 Kings 5:12

17th Century

Pastor

Are not Abana and Pharpar, rivers of Damascus, better than all
the waters of Israel ?

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Matthew Henry

Matthew Henry

On 2 Kings 5:9–14

17th Century

Minister

Elisha knew Naaman to be a proud man, and he would let him know that before the great God all people stand on the same level. All God's commands te…