blessing which she lacked; and, by and by, when the child died suddenly, Elisha restored him. But perhaps the most instructive of his acts was the punishment of his servant Gehazi;-it befell in this manner. There was war between Syria and Israel, and, during a predatory excursion, a body of Syrian troops carried off a Hebrew maiden, whom they gave to Naaman, their general. Now Naaman was a leper; and not all the rude skill of Syria could effect his cure. The Hebrew maiden, however, informed her mistress that there was a prophet in Israel who could do all things. And letters were immediately written to the king of Israel, beseeching him to take away the leprosy from Naaman. As was to be expected, the king of Israel read this demand with mingled indignation and fear. Nevertheless, Elisha came to his assistance; and Naaman, the captain of the Syrian host, was told that if he desired to be healed, he must come and make his obeisance to the prophet. Naaman camc, and a royal company came with him. He conceived that he did the prophet honour: and when Elisha, without so much as going forth to greet him, sent a message to the effect that, by washing seven times in Jordan, the malady would be removed, the proud warrior spurned the counsel, and turned away in a rage. His servants prevailed upon him, however, to do as the prophet had desired, and the cure was complete. Immediately his gratitude became as intense as the angry feeling which preceded it had been warm. He hurried back to the prophet, besought him to accept a rich present, and though Elisha steadily refused, declared himself a convert to the worship of Jehovah. GEHAZI'S LEPROSY. 189 Naaman departed, carrying with him a mule's burden of the soil of Israel, in order that he might set up an altar thereon, and pray to Jehovah, where, as he superstitiously imagined, the anger of the gods of Syria would not be able to reach him. But Gehazi, Elisha's servant, grudged that all the munificent offers which the Syrian had made should have been rejected. He no sooner withdrew from his master's presence, than he stole out of the house, and running after Naaman, deceived him with a tale that strangers had come unexpectedly to claim Elisha's hospitality. The Syrian pressed rich gifts upon him and departed. Two of Naaman's people carried the silver and the raiment, which Gehazi received, as far as the door of the house where Elisha dwelt. There the artful Israelite dismissed them; and after bestowing his treasure where he imagined that it would be safe, he presented himself before Elisha. "And Elisha said unto him, Whence comest thou, Gehazi? And he said, Thy servant went no whither. And he said unto him, Went not my heart with thee when the man turned again from his chariot to meet thee? Is it a time to receive money, and to receive garments, and oliveyards and vineyards, and sheep and oxen, and men-servants and maidservants? The leprosy, therefore, of Naaman shall cleave unto thee, and unto thy seed for ever. And he went out from his presence a leper as white as snow." By these and other wonderous works like them, Elisha established his claim to be accepted as God's prophet. He acquired also great influence over Joram, whom political considerations, rather than a disbelief in the supreme power of Jehovah, retained in the semi-idolatrous religion of Jeroboam; and he repeatedly interfered to save that prince from destruction. On two or three separate occasions he hindered the king from being surprised by ambuscades which the Syrians had laid for him; and at last, when Samaria was besieged, he stayed to share the privations to which his countrymen were subjected. Nor were they of an ordinary kind. Famine pressed the devoted city sore: indeed to such a pitch of distress were the inhabitants reduced, that women killed and ate their own children. It was in the depth of this extremity that Elisha assured the king and his nobles that relief would shortly come. And it did come that night. The Israelites set their watches as usual. The rest tried to sleep off their misery and in the morning when they arose strange tidings greeted them. Four wretched lepers, thrust as usual without the gate, had gone, under the pressure of intense hunger, to seek food or speedy death in the Syrian camp. They found the tents standing, with cattle, horses, provisions, and stores in abundance. But not a man was there to guard them. A sudden panic had fallen upon the host, and it fled. Some time after this, when Elisha, whose profession seems to have shielded him from danger wherever he went, visited Damascus, Ben-hadad the king lay sick; and hearing that the prophet was come, he sent Hazael, the commander-in-chief of his forces, to inquire whether or not he might expect to recover. Now among other matters charged upon Elijah was this: that by himself or by his successor, he should anoint Hazael to be king of Syria; and Elisha felt as soon as the officer approached him, that the moment for fulfilling this injunction was come. He foresaw, at the same time, that Hazael, as king of Syria, would work DEATH OF JORAM. AHAZIAH. 191 and greater ill to Israel than Ben-hadad had done; after gazing upon him for some time, he burst into tears. "Go back and tell your master," said he, "that his disease is not mortal. Nevertheless I tell you that he will die: and I weep because I know that thou wilt cruelly oppress my people when the power comes into thy hands." Hazael, though he spoke like one who resented such a charge, went away full of dark thoughts. He faithfully delivered so much of the prophet's message to Benhadad as seemed to promise a prolongation of his life, and on the morrow he murdered him. He seized the empty throne, and became a bitter enemy to Israel. CHAP. XXXIII. SECOND BOOKS OF KINGS AND OF AHAZIAH KING OF JUDAH. JEHU KING OF ISRAEL. ATHALIAH'S USURPATION. JEHOASH KING OF JUDAH. AMAZIAH. UZZIAH. B. C. 884. WHILE these events were passing in Israel, Joram, the wicked and idolatrous son of Jehoshaphat, ended his life and his reign together. He died in the fortieth year of his age, having held the sceptre eight years, and was succeeded by Ahaziah, the son who had been born to him of Athaliah, the daughter of Ahab king of Israel. So near a relationship between the two reigning families led, as was natural, to frequent and familiar intercourse; and Ahaziah was scarcely crowned ere he made a journey to Samaria, for the purpose of receiving the congratulations of his uncle. But he came at an unfortunate season. Jehoram lay ill of wounds which he had received in a second attempt to wrest Ramoth-gilead from the Syrians: and Ahaziah, as he had adopted the impious man's religion, so he put himself in the way of becoming a partaker in his punishment. The decree which doomed the family of Ahab to extinction, though suspended for a season, had not been recalled. The time was now come for carrying it into effect; and a young prophet received instructions from Elisha to proceed to the camp, and there to anoint a tried soldier, called Jehu, king of Israel. The young man went upon his errand, and finding Jehu surrounded by the chiefs of the army, took him apart and did to him as Elisha had desired. Probably Jehoram had lost by this time the favour of his troops. Probably there was that in the young prophet's manner which forced upon the generals a conviction that he came from God. But however this might be, the chiefs accepted Jehu as their king, and the revolution was complete. Jehu, however, looked beyond the adhesion of the troops. He did not know how far the people might confirm the choice, and he was resolved that, at all events, a leader should be wanting to them. With this view he mounted his chariot, and at the head of a chosen band hurried towards Jezreel, hoping, that before any rumour could reach king Jehoram's ear, he might be able to anticipate resistance. He succeeded according to his wish; for though his approach was notified by the watchmen on the tower, and Jehoram sent scouts on horseback to question his designs, Jehu compelled them one after another to fall into his train. At last king Jehoram him |