Following up from the previous article’s study of a miracle performed through the prophet Elijah (see 2 Kings 2:19-22), the next passage may be another sign, but it’s more of a consequence, rather than a healing.
From there Elisha went up to Bethel. As he was walking along the road, some boys came out of the town and jeered at him. “Get out of here, baldy!” they said. “Get out of here, baldy!” He turned around, looked at them and called down a curse on them in the name of the LORD. Then two bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the boys. And he went on to Mount Carmel and from there returned to Samaria.
2 Kings 2:23-25 NIV
https://bible.com/bible/111/2ki.2.23-25.NIV
As Elisha was going along, some boys showed up and started making fun of him. Some of you might remember hanging out with other kids when you were younger, and getting caught up in bad ideas and participating in inappropriate behavior. I know that I did, and I still regret some of those choices.
Per Long, p. 296, these children may have been telling Elisha to go away “permanently” (i.e., to Heaven), just as Elijah had been taken up. They were not necessarily merely picking on Elisha’s hairline, but were probably insulting both him and the God that he served.
I don’t know what motivated Elisha to call down a curse – whether it was just out of frustration, or direction from God – but Elisha did curse them in the LORD’s name, and God responded.
Now, we might think that the punishment here is unusually severe, and it was more than a slap on the wrist for the offenders. However, since God is acting here, we must be ready to rethink our own opinions when they don’t match His wisdom. Perhaps we have grown accustomed to insults being hurled both at God and at people (who are created in the image of God, after all). Maybe we have become numb to sins that are so common around us. That doesn’t mean we should wish harm upon every person who insults us (see Matthew 5:11; 1 Peter 3:9), but it does mean that we should consider our own words carefully.
So, why did God act here? It looks like this was a serious reminder that He is not a God to be defied, insulted, or trifled with. And, human beings who are sharing God’s message are His representatives (or ambassadors – see 2 Corinthians 5:20).
Note that Elisha wasn’t exercising some sort of superpower: just as He gave God credit for the healing of the waters at Jericho, He cursed the boys in God’s name. In the same way, if we make a claim – whether an oath, a curse, or a prayer – in God’s name, we’re calling upon the power and nature of God to uphold that statement. That is a powerful opportunity, but not one to be taken lightly.
As a result, if we make a promise or a curse in God’s name, we had better be sure that we are serious about it, and be genuinely prepared to have God hold us accountable. Of course, taking God’s name in vain is always wrong, going back to the third of the Ten Commandments (see Exodus 20:7). On the other hand, when we pray “in Jesus’ name”, that is a powerful attestation to our faith that God hears us, and that Jesus is our only way to God the Father.
So, let’s consider our words carefully today, both those that could demean others (i.e., fellow human beings who God loves), and our requests to God that could be answered in a more dramatic fashion than we expect!
From Sunday School lesson prepared for June 8, 2025
References:
- Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
- The College Press NIV Commentary – 1 & 2 Kings, by Jesse C. Long, Jr. © 2002 College Press Publishing Co.
Those Who Sin Differently 