Buff Scott Jr.
Junior
- Joined
- Jul 31, 2023
- Messages
- 357
- Reaction score
- 114
- Points
- 43
Reformation Rumblings
BUFF SCOTT, JR.
___________
BUFF SCOTT, JR.
___________
NEVER POKE FUN AT A
Baldheaded ProphetIn the town of Jericho lived a bunch of naughty boys whose upbringing was in doubt. They were ill-mannered and abusive. They lacked social graces. A man of God, apparently baldheaded, had left Jericho and was on his way to Bethel. On the road, after a short distance out, he was confronted by this group of defiant lads who came out of the city and began ridiculing him.
At this juncture, the event becomes strikingly interesting. These vile youths called out to the man of God, mocking him, “Go up, you baldhead! Go on up, you baldhead!” Adam Clarke, Hebrew Scholar, says the actual translation is, “Ascend, you empty skull, to heaven.” The prophet Elisha turned around to face them. He then called down judgment upon them in the name of the Lord—or as the scripture recounts the event, “He cursed them in the name of the Lord”—that is, “He called down a curse upon them.”
I suspect that at this point these young unruly boys looked around and, scared out of their wits, began running. “Then two she-bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the boys” [2 Kings 2:23-25].
Forty-two? Were there more than forty-two? We’re not told exactly, but the implication is there. If a few escaped, why? Might it have been that the Lord saw an element of good in them, something worthy of His attention? Possibly.
Considering our own youthful and rebellious days, I am convinced that if the Lord had not seen something in us worthy of His attention, some trait He could cultivate and use to His own glory, He would have possibly wiped us off the face of the earth long ago. And for His grace, we thank Him every day of our lives—or at least should. King David’s words about himself are relevant for our day, “Remember not the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways, O Lord” [Psalm 25:7].
Down through the history of humankind, however, in every generation, there has been an evil segment of civilization, young and old alike, that blasphemes all that they do not understand. There seems to be no hope of recovery among this class of evildoers—and nothing good seems to be found in any of them, as Paul indicates in Romans 1. Jude speaks of chronic evildoers as...
“...waterless clouds, swept along by winds, fruitless trees in late autumn, twice dead, uprooted; wild waves of the sea, casting up the foam of their own shame; wandering stars, for whom the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved forever.”
Our own generation is perhaps the worst of all generations. The dumbing down of morals is the order of the day. Spiritual and political corruptions are everywhere. All we need do is take a hard look at the Vatican and her clerics, even her Popes, plus Washington, D.C. In the main, our current generation has been lost to ignorance, immorality, and stupidity. And almost every day we read of another Hollywood celebrity who “falls from grace” and lands in the sewer of immorality. Such behavior is rarely criticized by the unprincipled liberal media. Instead, it is glamorized as though it is a suitable way of life.
And “social graces”? They’re almost non-existent among the younger generation. The universal admonition goes unheeded, “Rise in the presence of the aged, show respect for the elderly and revere your God” [Lev. 19:32]. Defiant young people, cast your eyes toward the woods, for Elisha’s “bears” are on their way! Never mock a baldheaded prophet or behave like a “Quack, Quack” duck.
Is there no solution? There will be no end to the trend our generation is experiencing until morality and godliness become the centerpieces of American family life again. For when depravity replaces godliness and morality, as is being done in America, the mortician may soon call for the corpse.
. Then let the discussion ensue ! 
(and again, that two bears could maul/kill 42 seems hard to believe, especially if they were running away as the OP suggests)
