Rimmon

In this matter may the Lord pardon your servant.

When my master goes into the house of Rimmon to worship there, leaning on my arm, and I bow myself in the house of Rimmon, when I bow myself in the house of Rimmon, the Lord pardon your servant in this matter." He said to him, "Go in peace." Let's pause here for a moment.

This entire encounter is fascinating.

First of all, it would be difficult to classify this as anything other than a full conversion.

The older name of the country was Kumusu, and it may be that the language spoken in it was allied to that of the Hittites, since a tablet in hieroglyphics of the Hittite type has been unearthed at Toprak-Kale.

One of the newly found inscriptions of Sarduris III shows that the name of the Assyrian god, hitherto read Raman or Rimmon, was really pronounced Hadad.

It describes a war of the Vanic king against Assur-nirari, son of Hadad-nirari, Adad-nirari of Assyria, thus revealing not only the true form of the Assyrian name, but also the parentage of the last king of the older Assyrian dynasty.

From another inscription, belonging to Rusas II, the son of Argistus, we learn that campaigns were carried on against Hittites and the Moshi in the later years of Sennacherib's reign, and therefore only just before the irruption of the Cimmerians into the northern regions of Western Asia.

On that day, the Lord will become king over the whole earth, the Lord alone and his name alone.

All the land from Geba to Rimmon, south of Jerusalem, will be changed into a plain, but Jerusalem will be raised up and will remain on its site from the Benjamin Gate to the place of the First Gate, to the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananel to the royal winepresses.

People will live there, and never again will there be a curse of complete destruction.

So Jerusalem will dwell in security.

He reigns, verse nine, as king over the whole earth.

That's really the picture in verse 10 as well.

From Geba to Rimmon mark off the southern boundaries, not of the city of Jerusalem, but actually of the whole land of Judah.

Uh, so it's like Jerusalem's boundaries have expanded.

And he's saying, "Your God is the true God, so let me take the dirt from this territory and put it back in my place of worship where I live." Watch what he says.

"In this thing the Lord pardon thy servant, that when my master goes into the house of Rimmon to worship there, and he leans on my hand, and I bow myself in the house of Rimmon.

When I bow down myself in the house of Rimmon, the Lord pardon thy servant in this thing." It's like-

Okay, so go ahead and, and paraphrase that.

What, what-

Right

... is the true God." Heiser breaks this down.

I don't really claim to fully comprehend all this, but Heiser breaks it down really good, that the idea is that he takes that dirt from the territory of the true God, puts it in the house of Rimmon, which is a false god that they're worshiping in Syria.

On that day the Lord will be one and his name one.

The whole land shall be turned into a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem.

But Jerusalem shall remain aloft on its site from the Gate of Benjamin to the place of the former gate, to the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananel to the king’s wine presses.

And it shall be inhabited, for there shall never again be a decree of utter destruction.

In this matter may the Lord pardon your servant.

When my master goes into the house of Rimmon to worship there, leaning on my arm, and I bow myself in the house of Rimmon, when I bow myself in the house of Rimmon, the Lord pardon your servant in this matter.

He said to him, Go in peace.

But when Naaman had gone from him a short distance, Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said, See, my master has spared this Naaman the Syrian in not accepting from his hand what he brought.

On that day, the Lord will be one and his name one.

The whole land shall be turned into a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem.

But Jerusalem shall remain aloft upon its site from the gate of Benjamin to the place of the former gate to the corner gate and from the tower of Hananel to the king's wine presses.

And it shall be inhabited, for there shall be no more curse.

From there it passes along on the east toward the sunrise to Gathhefer.

To Ephkazin and going on to Rimmon, it bends towards Nia.

Then on the north, the boundary turns about to Hanathon.

and it ends at the valley of Ibtahel, and Kata, and Nahalal, Shimron, Idalah, and Bethlehem, 12 cities with their villages.