Happy Sunday, friend!
Get ready, because the she-bears are coming.
It’s one of the weirdest stories in the Old Testament (and that’s saying something), when Elisha curses a group of children who called him bald, and then she-bears come out of the wilderness to kill them. You DON’T want to miss this week’s FAQ!
Let’s dive into this week's Come Follow Me reading: 2 Kings 2-7!
Watch this week's video here!
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5 Key Events
- The prophet Elijah is taken up into heaven in a whirlwind, and Elisha succeeds him as prophet (2 Kings 2)
- Elisha heals the waters of Jericho and performs other powerful miracles (2 Kings 2)
- Elisha multiplies a widow’s oil so she can save her family from debtors, and later raises the Shunammite woman’s son from the dead (2 Kings 4)
- Naaman, a Syrian commander, is healed of leprosy after humbly washing in the Jordan River as instructed by Elisha (2 Kings 5)
- The Lord saves Elisha and his servant from the Syrian army sent to destroy them (2 Kings 6)
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Questions your kids (or church class) might ask: What’s up with Elisha cursing children who are eaten by bears? |
If taken at face value, 2 Kings 2 seems to tell the story of a large group of boys who taunt the prophet Elisha for his baldness. Elisha then curses the boys who are attacked and killed by two she-bears. However, if we take a closer look, this story is likely MUCH more than it seems. Here is another possible interpretation:
- Elijah went up to heaven, leaving behind a “hairy mantle” (אַדֶּרֶת שֵׂעָר) that Elisha then put upon himself, symbolic of taking up the role of prophet
- Elisha stayed in Jericho, where the city was beautiful, but the water was bitter; Elisha miraculously healed the waters
- As Elisha was leaving Jericho, a group of 42+ young men, “qāṭān naʿar” (וּנְעָרִים קְטַנִּים) approached him. (Note the term “וּנְעָרִים קְטַנִּים” translated as “little children” is the same term that was used to describe Joseph in Egypt when he was both 17 and 19 in Genesis 37 and 41. So these were probably not small children.)
- The large group of youths calls out to him “ʿālâ qērēaḥ” (עֲלֵה קֵרֵחַ), which literally means “go up, thou bald head.”
- The term for “go up” here (עֲלֵה or ʿālâ)is the same one used to describe Elijah being translated (2 Kings 2:11), so the young men seem to be challenging Elisha to prove he’s really a prophet by following Elijah to heaven
- “Bald head” (קֵרֵחַ or qērēaḥ) doesn’t make sense since scholars believe Elisha was probably in his early twenties at this point and may very likely have worn a head covering like many ancient Near Eastern men; more likely it was a reference to the hairy mantle Elisha wore after Elijah left it behind
- In other words, the young men may have been accusing Elisha of usurping prophetic authority and being unworthy of the “hairy mantle.” This was not a personal affront; it was disrespect of God’s messenger.
- If that was the case, the Lord had already warned in Leviticus 26:21-22, “And if ye walk contrary unto me, and will not hearken unto me; I will. . . send wild beasts among you, which shall rob you of your children. . . .” The she-bear attack surely fulfilled such a promise.
- One more note: the scriptures say the bears “tare them,” not “killed them.” So the young men may have been mauled but not killed.
Source: https://byustudies.byu.edu/article/elisha-and-the-children-the-question-of-accepting-prophetic-succession
https://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/2ki/2/1/t_conc_315023
https://latterdaysaintmag.com/what-should-we-make-of-the-story-of-elisha-and-the-bears/
THIS WEEK'S CONVERSATION STARTER
This week, ask your teenager: "Do you think God still does miracles today? If so, why doesn't he do really visible ones like parting the Jordan River?" Remember, you don't have to know all the answers, just start the conversation!
Want to go deeper in your personal study this week? My Verse Mapping for Beginners PDF walks you through exactly how. Get it here!
You are awesome!