2 Kings 2:23-25 – Scoffers will face a time of reckoning

Second Kings 2:23-25 describe the third miracle of Elisha in Bethel. This miracle, however, was not a positive one. He pronounced a curse on a group of young men of which 42 of them were mauled by two female bears. What he did may trouble us but instead of wondering whether what he did was right or wrong, we need to know why he did it.

Firstly, we need to note that Bethel, where the curse took place, was one of the centers where Jeroboam placed a golden calf for the people of Israel to worship. He had unwittingly introduced idolatry to Israel and infringed the first commandment of God given through Moses. While he did it to prevent his people from going down to Jerusalem in Judah to worship God, it caused the people to become idolatrous. Since then, Bethel had become a stronghold for idolatrous worship. This suggests that that group of young lads were possibly idolatrous and not for the LORD. Hence, it’s safe to conclude that they were not only repudiating Elisha’s ministry, but God who had ordained and anointed him. They were clearly not for his ministry.        

Secondly, the way the group of young men jeered at Elisha was indicative that they were mocking not only Elisha but also Elijah and God. It was not so much the denigrating way they had addressed him, but that their disrespect was also shown to his departed mentor and God. The words they used to jeer at him were “Go up, you baldhead; go up, you baldhead!” They were suggesting that he should join Elijah in his departure. In so doing, they were making fun of what God had done in bringing Elijah up in a whirlwind. Since they did not respect God, or his mentor, or his inherited ministry, he pronounced a curse on them.

What Elisha specifically said in the curse was not known but he did it in the name of the LORD. This leaves us with the impression that the judgment was not Elisha’s but the LORD’s. Two female bears came out of the wood following his curse and mauled 42 of the lads who came to mock him. From the account, we deduced that the number of young lads that jeered at him was more than 42.

This account encourages us to respect God and his servants and not to scoff at them. More than being unduly concerned with what Elisha did to those scoffers, we must be careful that we don’t become one ourselves. The Bible in 2 Peter 3:3 tells us that “… in the last days' mockers will come with their mocking, following after their own lust.” Scoffers and mockers will increase as the second coming of Christ draws nearer. On our part, we must diligently seek to know and understand the truth and don’t denigrate what we do not have full knowledge of. Leave the judgment to God, just don’t be influenced by those who scoff at the truth. Be discerning!