2 Kings 2:23
From there, Elisha went up to Bethel, and as he was walking up the road, a group of boys came out of the city and jeered at him, chanting, "Go up, you baldhead! Go up, you baldhead!"
Sermons
Elisha and the Naughty ChildrenW. Alonzo Griffiths.2 Kings 2:23-24
The Tearing of Forty and Two Children by Two She-BearsSunday Magazine2 Kings 2:23-24
RidiculeD. Thomas 2 Kings 2:23-25
The Mockers At BethelJ. Orr 2 Kings 2:23-25














And he went up from thence unto Bethel: and as he was going, etc. These verses lead us to consider ridicule in three aspects.

I. AS INFAMOUSLY DIRECTED.

1. Directed against an old man on account of his supposed personal defects. "Go up, thou bald head!" This meant, perhaps, "Go up, as Elijah has gone, if thou canst; we want to get rid of thee." Though baldness of the bead is not always a sign of age, Elisha was undoubtedly far advanced in years. Nothing is more contemptible or absurd than to ridicule people on account of constitutional defects, whether of body or mind. Direct the shafts of ridicule, if you like, against defects of moral character, against vanity and pride, sensuality, but never against constitutional defects, - that is impious; for no man can make one hair white or black, or add a cubit to his stature.

2. Directed against an old man of most distinguished excellence. Elisha was a man of God, and everything concerning him shows manifestations of a godly character. To ridicule a good man is not only more impious, but more absurd, than to laugh to scorn the very sun in its brightness.

3. Directed against a man engaged in a mission of mercy. He was Heaven's messenger of mercy to his country. He came to Bethel to bestow wise counsels on the sons of the prophets in their seminary, and to bless all who would listen to his counsels. How often has ridicule been thus infamously directed! Christ himself was once its victim; ay, its chief victim. "They that passed by wagged their heads." They put on him a "crown of thorns."

II. MALEVOLENTLY INSPIRED. The animus in this ridicule was that of an intolerant religion. There were two schools of religion in Bethel, two rival sects; one was the religion of the true God, and the other that of idolatry. One of Jeroboam's calves was there established as the object of worship. There is no malevolence so inveterate and ruthless as that inspired by false religion and rival sects. Perhaps these children had not this infernal passion to any extent, but were the mere instruments of their intolerant parents. Probably their parents sent them out now to meet the prophet, and put the very words into their mouths, taught them by what notes, grimaces, and attitude they should ring them out. This ridiculing the men of God was one of the crying sins of Israel. "They mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and misused his prophets." These children were but the echoes and the instruments of their parents' religions malignant intolerance.

III. TERRIBLY PUNISHED. "And he turned back, and looked on them, and cursed them in the name of the Lord. And there came forth two she-bears out of the wood, and tare forty and two children of them."

1. They were punished by the will of the prophet. He "cursed them." Perhaps there is no arrow more poignant than that of ridicule. One might have thought, however, that one of Elisha's moral strength and stature would not have felt it at all, especially when directed by children. But he knew their ridicule was but the ridicule of their mothers and fathers, and perhaps of the townspeople in general, who were all about him; and his righteous indignation was kindled. The more loving a man is the more fierce his wrath rages when set on fire. The "wrath of the Lamb" is the most tremendous wrath in the universe.

2. They were punished by the justice of God. The prophet's indignation was righteous, and, because it was righteous, the justice of God sanctioned it by causing "two she bears out of the wood to tear forty and two children of them." This was a tremendous homily of Divine justice to the whole population - a sermon that would thunder in the hearts of the fathers, the mothers, and the neighbors.

CONCLUSION. Take care how you use your faculty of ridicule. It is a useful faculty in its place. Satire is the east wind of thought. Scorching sarcasm has withered to the roots many a noxious weed; satire has humbled to the dust, has struck to the earth, many a proud and haughty soul. Elijah used it on Carmel's brow, Job used it to his arrogant friends, and Paul to the conceited members of the Corinthian Church. Ridicule, rightly inspired and directed, is

"A whip of steel, that can as with a lash
Imprint the character of shame so deep,
Ev'n in the brazen forehead of proud sin,
That not eternity shall wear it out."


(Randolph.) D.T.

And he went up from thence unto Beth-el.
I. THE EVENT AS REGARDS THE TRANSGRESSORS. They were the children of a small town among the hills, in one of the extremities of the land of Canaan, called Beth-el; the inhabitants depended chiefly for their living upon their flocks of sheep and the produce of the earth.

1. Wickedness arising from unexpected quarters. The children of Beth-el.

2. That there is a great responsibility connected with a family. Considering the tendencies of our nature to evil, and the bad examples around, us, nothing but strong common, sense, strong parental love and the fear of God, will enable parents to wash their hands from the blood of their offspring.

3. That neither age nor position exempts sin from being punished. The bears destroyed forty-two children of Beth-el. Rich and poor, high and low, old and young must be punished for their transgressions. God is no respecter of persons.

II. THE EVENT AS REGARDS THE PROPHET.

1. It is dangerous to persecute God's people. No weapon that is formed against them shall prosper, whether it be the stocks or the burning faggots, the Pope or the drunken vagabond. Seeing godly men in trouble, we might think that God is angry with them, but that is a great mistake.

2. That religion does not deprive man of the right of self-defence. Some people seem to think that a Christian must endure every species of injustice without uttering a word of protest.

3. That the kindest nature when aroused is the fiercest. In reading the history of the prophet we are struck with the generosity of his nature.

(W. Alonzo Griffiths.)

Sunday Magazine.
Elisha had started for Beth-el on prophetic business. As he was passing out of Jericho, he was followed by a crowd, not of innocent little children, but probably of servant boys. The phrase here translated "little children" was applied to himself by Solomon when he was twenty years of age (1 Kings 3:7); and by Jeremiah to himself when he was old enough to enter upon the prophetic office (Jeremiah 1:6, 7); and it was applied to Joseph when he was at least seventy years of age (Genesis 37:2). These deriders were boys old enough to know what they were about, and old enough to have respect for the prophetic office. Probably they had had a pecuniary income from the business of fetching water into Jericho, so long as the water in the city was bad. As soon as Elisha healed the spring of the waters of the city, the occupation of these lads was gone. They were enraged at that. They were more interested in their pecuniary income than in the health of hundreds of citizens, old and young. Their cry after Elisha was not disrespect for old age. They did not call him "Bald-head." He was not old. There is no evidence that he was baldheaded; but, if so, those boys probably would not have known it, as there is no proof that they ever had seen his uncovered head. He could have had no artificial baldness. That was forbidden (Leviticus 21:5, Numbers 6:5). Because of the miracle of the healing of the water, and the consequent loss to them of their gain, they cried after him, "Go up, thou shaver! Go up, thou shaver! "It is to be remarked that he had performed the miracle as the ambassador of Jehovah, and that when those boys cried out after him they were insulting Jehovah. The prophet did not take it as a personal offence He did not curse them in his own name. He cursed them in the name of Jehovah; and ii they had not committed any great sin against Jehovah he would never have visited them with so frightful a retribution. They, themselves, were murderously selfish and impious. They watched the prophet's going out, and went out in a body for the purpose of insulting him as a prophet. It was justice that visited their sins upon them, and it was so connected with the miracle, that it seemed to be simply poetic justice, that whatever the punishment of their sins should be, it should be manifest as being of a kind with their sins. That is the principle which reigns throughout all intelligent moral government. They desired the death of others that they might make money. There is no lesson in this passage of respect for old age. There is no exhibition of bad temper on the part of the prophet. There is nothing of cruelty in the conduct of Jehovah. That God abhors selfishness, and that when human selfishness sets itself in opposition to the movements of God's unselfish mercy and loving-kindness, then lie will administer to it a severe rebuke; this is the lesson. Selfishness and irreverence are the sins against which this narrative is levelled. If it be said that it is not likely that so many lads so large as these would have been torn, as represented in the text, it may be replied that she-bears, robbed of their whelps, are described as especially ferocious; and that when these lads heard the malediction pronounced by a prophet who had wrought the great miracle of cleansing the waters in their town, and then saw immediately two ferocious bears rushing toward them, their guilt and peril united to demoralise them, and while they were in this condition so many of them were hurt. It is to be noted that not one of the wicked boys is said to have lost his life. None perished, while many were punished. The story, instead of setting forth Jehovah as a cruel deity, actually presents him as a God who administers justice mercifully.

(Sunday Magazine.).

People
Elijah, Elisha
Places
Bethel, Gilgal, Jericho, Jordan River, Mount Carmel, Samaria
Topics
Along, Bald, Baldhead, Bald-head, Baldy, Bethel, Beth-el, Boys, Crying, Forth, Jeered, Lads, Mocked, No-hair, Road, Saying, Scoff, Sport, Thence, Town, Walking, Youths
Outline
1. Elijah, taking his leave of Elisha, with his mantle divides Jordan
9. and, granting Elisha his request, is taken up by a fiery chariot into heaven
12. Elisha, dividing Jordan with Elijah's mantle, is acknowledged his successor
16. The young prophets, hardly obtaining leave to seek Elijah, cannot find him.
19. Elisha with salt heals the unwholesome waters
23. Bears destroy the children that mocked Elisha

Dictionary of Bible Themes
2 Kings 2:23

     5128   baldness
     5296   disabilities
     5505   roads
     5586   town
     5881   immaturity

2 Kings 2:23-24

     5277   criminals
     5550   speech, negative
     5746   youth
     5827   curse
     5893   insults
     8816   ridicule, nature of
     9210   judgment, God's

Library
The Translation of Elijah and the Ascension of Christ
'And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.'--2 KINGS ii. 11. 'And it came to pass, while He blessed them, He was parted from them, and carried up into heaven.'--LUKE xxiv. 51. These two events, the translation of Elijah and the Ascension of our Lord, have sometimes been put side by side in order to show that the latter narrative is nothing
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Elijah's Translation and Elisha's Deathbed
And Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof.'--2 KINGS ii. 12. '...And Joash, the King of Israel, came down unto him, and wept over his face, and said. O my father, my father, the chariot of Israel and the horsemen thereof.'--2 KINGS xiii. U. The scenes and the speakers are strangely different in these two incidents. The one scene is that mysterious translation on the further bank of the Jordan, when a mortal was swept up to heaven in a
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Chariot of Fire
'And it came to pass, when the Lord would take up Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal. 2. And Elijah said unto Elisha, Tarry here, I pray thee; for the Lord hath sent me to Beth-el. And Elisha said unto him, As the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. 80 they went down to Beth-el 3, And the sons of the prophets that were at Beth-el came forth to Elisha and said unto him, Knowest thou that the Lord will take away thy master from thy head
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Gentleness Succeeding Strength
'He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and went back, and stood by the bank of Jordan; 14. And he took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and smote the waters, and said, Where is the Lord God of Elijah? and when he also had smitten the waters, they parted hither and thither: and Elisha went over. 15. And when the sons of the prophets which were to view at Jericho saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Preparing to Depart
"And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven."--2 Kings 2:11. IT seems to me that the departure of Elijah from the world, though of course he did not "die" at all, may furnish us with a very good type of the decease of those saints who, although taken away on a sudden, are not without some previous intimation that in such a manner they will be
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 54: 1908

Whether Hope is a Help or a Hindrance to Action?
Objection 1: It would seem that hope is not a help but a hindrance to action. Because hope implies security. But security begets negligence which hinders action. Therefore hope is a hindrance to action. Objection 2: Further, sorrow hinders action, as stated above ([1361]Q[37], A[3]). But hope sometimes causes sorrow: for it is written (Prov. 13:12): "Hope that is deferred afflicteth the soul." Therefore hope hinders action. Objection 3: Further, despair is contrary to hope, as stated above [1362](A[4]).
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica

Jericho Itself.
We read, that this city was not only wasted by Joshua with fire and sword, but cursed also. "Cursed be he before the Lord, who shall rise up and build that city Jericho," Joshua 6:26. "Nor was another city to be built (says the Talmudists), which was to be called by the name of Jericho: nor was Jericho itself to be built, although to be called by another name." And yet I know not by what chance this city crept out of dust and rubbish, lived again, and flourished, and became the second city to Jerusalem.
John Lightfoot—From the Talmud and Hebraica

Consolations against the Fear of Death.
If in the time of thy sickness thou findest thyself fearful to die, meditate-- 1. That it argueth a dastardly mind to fear that which is not; for in the church of Christ there is no death (Isa. xxv. 7, 8), and whosoever liveth and believeth in Christ, shall never die (John xi. 26). Let them fear death who live without Christ. Christians die not; but when they please God, they are like Enoch translated unto God (Gen. v. 24;) their pains are but Elijah's fiery chariot to carry them up to heaven (2
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety

The Country of Jericho, and the Situation of the City.
Here we will borrow Josephus' pencil, "Jericho is seated in a plain, yet a certain barren mountain hangs over it, narrow, indeed, but long; for it runs out northward to the country of Scythopolis,--and southward, to the country of Sodom, and the utmost coast of the Asphaltites." Of this mountain mention is made, Joshua 2:22, where the two spies, sent by Joshua, and received by Rahab, are said to "conceal themselves." "Opposite against this, lies a mountain on the other side Jordan, beginning from
John Lightfoot—From the Talmud and Hebraica

The Baptist's Testimony.
"There came a man, sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for witness, that he might bear witness of the light, that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came that he might bear witness of the light.... John beareth witness of Him, and crieth, saying, This was He of whom I said, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for He was before me. For of His fulness we all received, and grace for grace. For the law was given by Moses; grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.
Marcus Dods—The Expositor's Bible: The Gospel of St. John, Vol. I

Formation and History of the Hebrew Canon.
1. The Greek word canon (originally a straight rod or pole, measuring-rod, then rule) denotes that collection of books which the churches receive as given by inspiration of God, and therefore as constituting for them a divine rule of faith and practice. To the books included in it the term canonical is applied. The Canon of the Old Testament, considered in reference to its constituent parts, was formed gradually; formed under divine superintendence by a process of growth extending through
E. P. Barrows—Companion to the Bible

Epistle vii. To Peter, Domitian, and Elpidius.
To Peter, Domitian, and Elpidius. Gregory to Peter, Domitian, and Elpidius, Bishops [1688] . I rejoice exceedingly that you welcomed with great joy the ordination of the most holy Cyriacus, my brother and fellow-priest. And since we have learnt from the preaching of Paul the apostle that If one member rejoice, all the members rejoice with it (1 Cor. xii. 26), you must needs consider with how great exultation I rejoice with you in this thing, wherein not one member, but many members of Christ have
Saint Gregory the Great—the Epistles of Saint Gregory the Great

The Upbringing of Jewish Children
The tenderness of the bond which united Jewish parents to their children appears even in the multiplicity and pictorialness of the expressions by which the various stages of child-life are designated in the Hebrew. Besides such general words as "ben" and "bath"--"son" and "daughter"--we find no fewer than nine different terms, each depicting a fresh stage of life. The first of these simply designates the babe as the newly--"born"--the "jeled," or, in the feminine, "jaldah"--as in Exodus 2:3, 6, 8.
Alfred Edersheim—Sketches of Jewish Social Life

A Holy Life the Beauty of Christianity: Or, an Exhortation to Christians to be Holy. By John Bunyan.
Holiness becometh thine house, O Lord, for ever.'--[Psalm 93:5] London, by B. W., for Benj. Alsop, at the Angel and Bible, in the Poultrey. 1684. THE EDITOR'S ADVERTISEMENT. This is the most searching treatise that has ever fallen under our notice. It is an invaluable guide to those sincere Christians, who, under a sense of the infinite importance of the salvation of an immortal soul, and of the deceitfulness of their hearts, sigh and cry, "O Lord of hosts, that judgest righteously, that triest
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

The Twelve Minor Prophets.
1. By the Jewish arrangement, which places together the twelve minor prophets in a single volume, the chronological order of the prophets as a whole is broken up. The three greater prophets, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel, stand in the true order of time. Daniel began to prophesy before Ezekiel, but continued, many years after him. The Jewish arrangement of the twelve minor prophets is in a sense chronological; that is, they put the earlier prophets at the beginning, and the later at the end of the
E. P. Barrows—Companion to the Bible

That Upon the Conquest and Slaughter of vitellius Vespasian Hastened his Journey to Rome; but Titus his Son Returned to Jerusalem.
1. And now, when Vespasian had given answers to the embassages, and had disposed of the places of power justly, [25] and according to every one's deserts, he came to Antioch, and consulting which way he had best take, he preferred to go for Rome, rather than to march to Alexandria, because he saw that Alexandria was sure to him already, but that the affairs at Rome were put into disorder by Vitellius; so he sent Mucianus to Italy, and committed a considerable army both of horsemen and footmen to
Flavius Josephus—The Wars of the Jews or History of the Destruction of Jerusalem

Paul's Departure and Crown;
OR, AN EXPOSITION UPON 2 TIM. IV. 6-8 ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR How great and glorious is the Christian's ultimate destiny--a kingdom and a crown! Surely it hath not entered into the heart of man to conceive what ear never heard, nor mortal eye ever saw? the mansions of the blest--the realms of glory--'a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.' For whom can so precious an inheritance be intended? How are those treated in this world who are entitled to so glorious, so exalted, so eternal,
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

Kings
The book[1] of Kings is strikingly unlike any modern historical narrative. Its comparative brevity, its curious perspective, and-with some brilliant exceptions--its relative monotony, are obvious to the most cursory perusal, and to understand these things is, in large measure, to understand the book. It covers a period of no less than four centuries. Beginning with the death of David and the accession of Solomon (1 Kings i., ii.) it traverses his reign with considerable fulness (1 Kings iii.-xi.),
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

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