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2 Kings 2:23-24
New King James Version
2 Kings 2:23-24
New King James Version
23 Then he went up from there to Bethel; and as he was going up the road, some youths came from the city and mocked him, and said to him, “Go up, you baldhead! Go up, you baldhead!”
24 So he turned around and looked at them, and (A)pronounced a curse on them in the name of the Lord. And two female bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the youths.
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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
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.
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
King James Version
2 Kings 2:23-24
King James Version
23 And he went up from thence unto Bethel: and as he was going up by the way, there came forth little children out of the city, and mocked him, and said unto him, Go up, thou bald head; go up, thou bald head.
24 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.
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New King James Version (NKJV) 
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
New American Standard Bible (NASB) 
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
Amplified Bible (AMP)
Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.