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2 Kings 2:23-24
New International Version
2 Kings 2:23-24
New International Version
Elisha Is Jeered
23 From there Elisha went up to Bethel. As he was walking along the road, some boys came out of the town and jeered(A) 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(B) on them in the name(C) of the Lord. Then two bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the boys.
2 Kings 2:23-24
New American Standard Bible
2 Kings 2:23-24
New American Standard Bible
23 Now he went up from there to Bethel; and as he was going up by the road, some young boys came out from the city and (A)ridiculed him and said to him, “Go up, you baldhead; go up, you baldhead!” 24 When he looked behind him and saw them, he (B)cursed them in the name of the Lord. Then two female bears came out of the woods and tore up forty-two [a]of the boys.
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- 2 Kings 2:24 Lit boys from them
2 Kings 2:23-24
The Message
2 Kings 2:23-24
The Message
23 Another time, Elisha was on his way to Bethel and some little kids came out from the town and taunted him, “What’s up, old baldhead! Out of our way, skinhead!”
24 Elisha turned, took one look at them, and cursed them in the name of God. Two bears charged out of the underbrush and knocked them about, ripping them limb from limb—forty-two children in all!
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2 Kings 2:23-24
Amplified Bible
2 Kings 2:23-24
Amplified Bible
23 Then Elisha went up from Jericho to [a]Bethel. On the way, young boys came out of the city and mocked him and said to him, “Go up, you [b]baldhead! Go up, you baldhead!” 24 When he turned around and looked at them, he cursed them in the name of the Lord. Then two female bears came out of the woods and tore to pieces forty-two of the boys.
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- 2 Kings 2:23 Many people in Bethel participated in pagan worship and regarded the prophets of God with contempt.
- 2 Kings 2:23 This refers to a bald space on the back of the head, which was probably shaved by prophets as a symbol of their sacred separation from ordinary life. So it appears that the boys were not only ridiculing Elisha’s baldness, but his prophetic office as well.
New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
New American Standard Bible (NASB) 
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
The Message (MSG)
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson
Amplified Bible (AMP)
Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.