Rimmon

Biblical Text

Rimmon appears in 2 Kings 5 as the name of a god worshiped by the people of Aram. The commander Naaman washed seven times in the Jordan River as Elisha had instructed and was healed of his leprosy. He then confessed, "Behold, now I know that there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel" (2 Kings 5:15), and declared that from then on he would offer sacrifice to no god other than the LORD (2 Kings 5:17). He went on to ask pardon for one thing: when his master the king entered the house of Rimmon to worship, the king would lean on his arm, and Naaman would then have to bow down as well (2 Kings 5:18). Elisha answered only, "Go in peace" (2 Kings 5:19).

Background

The house of Rimmon appears to have been located in Damascus, the capital of Aram. Scholars generally associate Rimmon with Hadad, the Aramean storm god. The basis for this identification is the Akkadian Ramman ("the thunderer"), which was used as an epithet of Hadad. The Hebrew Rimmon is spelled the same as the word for "pomegranate." Some therefore suggest that the name Ramman took this form in Hebrew, or that its spelling was deliberately altered, but this explanation is not settled. The name of Tabrimmon, father of the Aramean king Ben-hadad in 1 Kings 15:18, is also thought to contain the same divine name.

The same spelling, Rimmon, is used with other meanings in the Bible as well. Examples include the "rock Rimmon," where the Benjamites took refuge (Judges 20:45–47); a town in the territory of Judah and Simeon (Joshua 15:32; 19:7; Zechariah 14:10); a place in the territory of Zebulun (Joshua 19:13); and Rimmon the Beerothite, father of Baanah and Rechab, who killed Ish-bosheth (2 Samuel 4:2). These must be distinguished from the god Rimmon. As for "Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddon" in Zechariah 12:11, opinion is divided between those who take it as a place name and those who connect it with mourning for a deity.

Significance in Scripture as a Whole

The Naaman narrative depicts a Gentile confessing the God of Israel alone as the true God. A distinctive feature of the passage is that this confession is set against the backdrop of the house of Rimmon, a site of idolatry. In the New Testament, Jesus observes that among the many lepers in Elisha's day only Naaman the Syrian was cleansed, citing the story as an example of God's grace reaching the Gentiles (Luke 4:27). Some interpreters also read the question of how to conduct oneself before idols alongside the discussion of food offered to idols in 1 Corinthians 8 and 10.

Interpretation and Points of Debate

The central question is what Elisha meant by "Go in peace."

• Permission view: Elisha accepted Naaman's circumstances and did not object to his bowing in the course of his official duties, provided he kept his faith in his heart.
• Reserved-judgment view: Elisha's words were an ordinary farewell and did not signify permission; he left the matter to Naaman's conscience and to God.
• Growth-in-faith view: The scene is read as showing both the weakness and the honest conscience of a Gentile who had only just professed faith.

The text does not say how Naaman actually conducted himself afterward. The explanation that Rimmon was a "pomegranate god" is often added, but it is a conjecture based on the identical spelling of the two words.

In the Korean Church

In sermons on Naaman, this scene is presented as an example of the real-life conflicts that remain even after one has professed faith. The passage is also sometimes raised in discussions of situations in which believers are expected to take part in the rites of another religion at work or within the family, particularly the question of ancestral rites.