Four Lepers That Went Into the Camp of the Syrians

The Starving City, Samaria
In 2 Kings chapter 7, the city of Samaria was surrounded by Syrian soldiers, and many people were dying of hunger. The tragedy of women eating their own children was happening in the city. Then the prophet Elisha, the man of God, said, “Hear ye the word of the LORD; Thus saith the LORD, Tomorrow about this time shall a measure of fine flour be sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, in the gate of Samaria." Suddenly, there was going to be a lot of food. It was an amazing blessing, but the king's minister couldn’t believe it. God said it would happen so, it would happen, but he couldn't accept it and said, 'Behold, if the LORD would make windows in heaven, might this thing be?’

 

Four Lepers at the Entering in of the Gate
God needed someone to fulfill His words in Samaria when He said, ‘tomorrow about this time’ there would be an abundance of food. So, who could God use for the job? There was the king in Samaria, the captain of the host and many other people, but God could not use them because they had their own thoughts. God needed someone who could abandon their thoughts and methods. At that time there were four lepers sitting at the entrance of the gate. They had come out from the valley of the lepers to the gate in search of food. They were hoping someone in the city would give them something to eat, but many days passed by as they watched people around them dying one by one. When they realized they were the only four lepers left, and knowing that they would also die soon, they suddenly had a different thought. “We will die even if we go into the city, and we will die if we just sit here. So let's go to the Syrian army and surrender. If they save us, we will live, and if they kill us, we will die.” They went to the camp of the Syrians ready to die. If they just sat at the gate then eventually they would die, but if they went to the camp of the Syrians at least they had the hope of living. Because the lepers risked their lives and walked towards the camp of the Syrians, the people in Samaria were saved.

 



 

Interfering With Our Faith
Even now, God still speaks to us. Just as this world was created by the Word, the blessings of our lives are also fulfilled by the Word of God. But, we are hesitant to follow God's Word because we have many thoughts that are different from the word. Many people still follow their own thoughts and methods even though there is a way of blessed promises. How many times does the Bible say that our sins are forgiven? But there are still so many people who remain sinners just because of the thought, ‘I am evil, I have a lot of sins.’ Only when we let go of the thought that we are sinners can we enter the world of redemption by the blood of Jesus. Satan inserted a way different from the word into us. That interferes with our faith. Millions of people are following the way that Satan has put in, not God's. Those who have been blessed by God are those who have turned away from that path.

 

The Ones That Saved Samaria
The four lepers sitting at the entrance gates of Samaria did not know that it was the way of death and the curse. They stayed with a vague hope. Then one day, when they were thinking deeply, God’s wisdom came upon them. That wisdom changed the hearts of the lepers. “Our friends have died one after another. In the end, we will die, too. What are we sitting here for? Let’s go to the camp of the Syrians. If they save us, we’ll live; if they kill us, we’ll die.” When they realized they were at the place of death, they made an unexpected decision. Eventually, these four lepers saved all the people in Samaria. This beautiful story happens when you give up on yourself and move on to faith in God. It may seem good when we follow our own thoughts, but it actually draws us closer to Satan, so it is easy for us to go against God’s way. On the other hand, when we try to go God’s way, our thoughts keep blocking us and flows into the way of the flesh.

 

When We Obey God’s Word
The Bible says, “For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.” (Romans 8:6) There are many people who cannot walk the path of God because they love the life of the flesh too much. However, when we forsake our thoughts, wisdom, and methods and obey God’s word, we can walk in the same way that brought great blessings to Israel through the four lepers who went into the camp of the Syrians to satisfy their hunger.