“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.”
Elisha was fresh from seeing Elijah taken by angels in a chariot, to be with Jehovah. If you read the chapter around this verse, you will be left in no doubt that Elisha was given the mantle of Elijah. But, I know that many Christians will look on this text, in which 42 ‘children’ were injured or died after being cursed by Elisha, with horror. They were torn apart after being mauled by two she-bears.
As I write this, our church is in the midst of studying Numbers. We have been very aware of the deep authority of God’s word and know that it is of dire fearsome presence. We see that no word of God may be thwarted by human action, and that every word and letter is of vital spiritual significance. And, as we read about God surrounding Mount Sinai with heavenly greatness, we are shown that what God says is not just words, but a constant warning for us to take heed and obey.
I also know that no sin goes unpunished, regardless of age. So, when we see what happened to ‘children’ in Bethel, we should not place our emotions before God’s thunderous holiness. In spiritual reality God does not see human beings as different ages, or that younger age excuses sin. In another text we are told that teenagers who rebelled were to be taken outside the walls of a city and stoned to death! And this is how we should read this frightening text. The ‘little children’ likely refers to teenagers, not tiny toddlers. They dared to scorn Elisha and thus scorned God Himself. Today, teenagers scorn God and Christians. This is why our streets are unsafe and godless. No-one can mock God or His preachers, and not be punished. Warn youngsters!
© 27 July 2024
---oOo---
Published on www.christiandoctrine.com
Bible Theology Ministries
Swansea
Wales
United Kingdom