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The Funny Side of Life

May 22, 2020 By: Kyle Timmons Topic: Uncategorized Scripture: 2 Kings 2:23-24
This statue was located inside the lobby of one of our hotels while in Israel. Photo by Kyle Timmons

For those who know me, I enjoy looking for the humorous things in life.

It is just one of my sick obsessions.

That is probably why I enjoy finding humorous and odd stories within the pages of God’s Word.

I’m personally convinced that one of God’s greatest qualities is humor; after all, He made each of us (and when I look in the mirror I often laugh).

One of those funny passages of Scripture is in 2 Kings 2:23-24.

Here is what it says:

23 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!” 24 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.”

2 Kings 2:23-24

Now tell me you didn’t find some humor in those two verses.

Whenever I read a passage of Scripture I try to ask myself, “what does this passage mean” or “does this apply to me?”

So, as I looked the story up in a commentary a few things popped out at me:

  • The “boys” were men between the ages of 30-40.
  • They were mocking him because he was a prophet.
  • His “curse” was actually an impulse from the Holy Spirit to deal with the “boys’ vehement behavior.”
  • They were punished, “or mauled by bears,” because of their evilness and wickedness.

Lesson? Don’t mock prophets.

All joking aside, it may be best to view this story as a reminder of how God distastes wickedness in people. It’s not the first time Scripture shares of how God punished the wicked and certainly not the last.