The Sixth Sunday after the Epiphany - 12 February 2012
II Kings 5:1-14
Psalm 30
I Corinthians 9:24-27
St. Mark 1:40-45
Background: Leprosy
Although the diseases that are mentioned in both the First Lesson and in the Gospel today were probably not classical Leprosy (today called Hansen’s Disease) the social stigma that accompanied these diseases was certainly a factor in both of the situations. The term “leprosy” comes from a Greek term, lepra that indicates “scaly skin”. The term in the Hebrew Scriptures is tzaraath, the symptoms that this word describes are sometimes in line with Hansen’s Disease and in others is described differently. Leviticus 13:2 actually provides such a description, “When a man shall have in the skin of his flesh a rising, a scab, or bright spot.” Some of the actual diseases may have been fungal scalp infections, psoriasis, and related infections common in the Ancient Near East.
2 Kings 5:1-14
Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Aram, was a great man and in high favor with his master, because by him the LORD had given victory to Aram. The man, though a mighty warrior, suffered from leprosy. Now the Arameans on one of their raids had taken a young girl captive from the land of Israel, and she served Naaman's wife. She said to her mistress, "If only my lord were with the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy." So Naaman went in and told his lord just what the girl from the land of Israel had said. And the king of Aram said, "Go then, and I will send along a letter to the king of Israel."
He went, taking with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold, and ten sets of garments. He brought the letter to the king of Israel, which read, "When this letter reaches you, know that I have sent to you my servant Naaman, that you may cure him of his leprosy." When the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his clothes and said, "Am I God, to give death or life, that this man sends word to me to cure a man of his leprosy? Just look and see how he is trying to pick a quarrel with me."
But when Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, he sent a message to the king, "Why have you torn your clothes? Let him come to me, that he may learn that there is a prophet in Israel." So Naaman came with his horses and chariots, and halted at the entrance of Elisha's house. Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, "Go, wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored and you shall be clean." But Naaman became angry and went away, saying, "I thought that for me he would surely come out, and stand and call on the name of the LORD his God, and would wave his hand over the spot, and cure the leprosy! Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them, and be clean?" He turned and went away in a rage. But his servants approached and said to him, "Father, if the prophet had commanded you to do something difficult, would you not have done it? How much more, when all he said to you was, `Wash, and be clean'?" So he went down and immersed himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God; his flesh was restored like the flesh of a young boy, and he was clean.
Although this is a healing story, its alternate import may be about greatness and authority. There is a bit of a standoff between Syrian and Israelite culture and religious life. This is not an uncommon theme in the Elisha cycle, and it is not the last time that Elisha shall make such a stand. What will be proven here, as far as the author is concerned, is the superiority of the God of Israel, in spite of the opposite circumstances and political realities that are alluded to in the story. Another contrast is the wisdom of the young servant girl that is placed in contradiction to the wisdom of the older elite (Naaman). All of this lifts up the authority of the ministry of Elisha, and sets the difficulties with Syria’s king Ben Haddad in an other than a political context.
Breaking open II Kings:
- How is this a story about pride?
- Who is prideful? Are there more than one?
Psalm 30 Exaltabo te, Domine
I will exalt you, O LORD,
because you have lifted me up *
and have not let my enemies triumph over me.
O LORD my God, I cried out to you, *
and you restored me to health.
You brought me up, O LORD, from the dead; *
you restored my life as I was going down to the grave.
Sing to the LORD, you servants of his; *
give thanks for the remembrance of his holiness.
For his wrath endures but the twinkling of an eye, *
his favor for a lifetime.
Weeping may spend the night, *
but joy comes in the morning.
While I felt secure, I said,
"I shall never be disturbed. *
You, LORD, with your favor, made me as strong as the mountains."
Then you hid your face, *
and I was filled with fear.
I cried to you, O LORD; *
I pleaded with the Lord, saying,
"What profit is there in my blood, if I go down to the Pit? *
will the dust praise you or declare your faithfulness?
Hear, O LORD, and have mercy upon me; *
O LORD, be my helper."
You have turned my wailing into dancing; *
you have put off my sack-cloth and clothed me with joy.
Therefore my heart sings to you without ceasing; *
O LORD my God, I will give you thanks for ever.
Like the first reading, two ideas are set against one another for comparison. In the psalm, which may have been written for the dedication or rededication of the Temple, two verbs describe the contrast: “drawn up” as from a well vs. “gone down” as into a pit – a sign of death. Contrasts flood the verse: evening and weeping vs. morning and singing; standing in God’s pleasure vs. knowing that God has hidden God’s face. The psalmist makes an argument to God in facing death, “can the dust praise you.” The final verses continue the contrasts: wailing – dancing, and sackcloth – joy.
Breaking open Psalm 30
- What images come to your mind as you read through this psalm?
- What hope does it inspire in you?
- What audacious argument does the psalmist make in the psalm?
1 Corinthians 9:24-27
Do you not know that in a race the runners all compete, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win it. Athletes exercise self-control in all things; they do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable one. So I do not run aimlessly, nor do I box as though beating the air; but I punish my body and enslave it, so that after proclaiming to others I myself should not be disqualified.
Paul makes use of his audience’s familiarity with local sporting events to speak about Christian self-control. Corinth was the site of the Isthmian Games that were celebrated every two years. The winner would receive a “perishable wreath” (a garland of pine branches). Other readers would understand as well, for in Athens one would receive a wreath of olive branches and at Delphi a wreath of laurel. The honor was in the discipline and in the pursuit rather than a prize of value at the end. He then goes on to other sports, such as running and boxing. He talks about “punishing” his body – using the verb that boxers would translate as an “uppercut”, the winning blow in Greek boxing. The defeated boxer would have a rope cast about him and would be dragged around the arena to the delight of the crow who would jeer and mock him. By these examples Paul points out his mastery over the body and the art of his sport – an example of the discipline demanded of Christians.
Breaking open Corinthians:
- What does the word discipline mean to you?
- How do you discipline your body?
- How do you discipline your faith?
Mark 1:40-45
A leper came to Jesus begging him, and kneeling he said to him, "If you choose, you can make me clean." Moved with pity, Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, and said to him, "I do choose. Be made clean!" Immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean. After sternly warning him he sent him away at once, saying to him, "See that you say nothing to anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, as a testimony to them." But he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the word, so that Jesus could no longer go into a town openly, but stayed out in the country; and people came to him from every quarter.
Continuing on from his healings in Capernaum, Jesus encounters a leper. Like the man with the unclean spirit, the leper sees in Jesus an opportunity for help and freely asks for it. The interesting aspect to this healing is the opportunity for choice – the leper confronts Jesus with choice “if you choose you can make me clean,” and Jesus does so choose. The next conversations can be seen as between Jesus and the healed leper or between Jesus and the demon of leprosy. Jesus’ next saying is to invite the man to show himself to the priests. Entering the transaction with leprosy (thus ritually unclean and “outside” of the righteousness of the chosen people of God (Israel), the man none-the-less presses for a cure. Jesus acknowledges his new status (now ritually clean) and enforces that by inviting the man to show himself to the priests. Like the demons in the other man, this clean man cannot help but announce who Jesus is.
Breaking open the Gospel:
- Who are the lepers in our society?
- What role might you have in healing them?
- How are you a leper?
After breaking open the Word, you might want to pray the Collect for Sunday:
O God, the strength of all who put their trust in you: Mercifully accept our prayers; and because in our weakness we can do nothing good without you, give us the help of your grace, that in keeping your commandments we may please you both in will and deed; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
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