When the third captain of fifty went up, he came and bowed down on his knees before Elijah, and begged him and said to him, “O man of God, please let my life and the lives of these fifty servants of yours be precious in your sight. Behold fire came down from heaven and consumed the first two captains of fifty with their fifties; but now let my life be precious in your sight.” (2 Kings 1:13-14).

As tragic as this account is with respect to the incineration of two companies of fifty men, it nevertheless wonderfully inspires perspective. When you stand with God, nothing can stand against you. The captain of the third company of men understood this and acted in wisdom when he humbled himself before Elijah, the prophet of God. 

The prophet that would succeed Elijah was Elisha. He had an experience very similar to his predecessor. The army of Aram with horses and chariots surrounded his home to capture him. When Elisha's servant awoke to see this great army surrounding them, Elisha reassured him,

Don’t be afraid... Those who are with us are more than those who are with them (2 Kings 6:16).

When the servant's eyes were opened, he saw an even greater army of God with horses and chariots of fire. Yet, not one of these were needed to fight for Elisha, for the prophet simply prayed that the Aramean army be blinded, so that they became wholly dependent on the very prophet they came out to capture. Then all of Aram understood what the third company captain in Elijah's day understood, namely, that when God is with you, nothing can stand against you.

This truth is echoed by Paul with rhetorical flair:

What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31).

And we have this word of assurance from the apostle John:

You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world (1 John 4:4).

Finally, the Lord Jesus has given us this promise:

In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world (John 16:33).

Friends, we are more than conquerors in Christ Jesus (cf. Romans 8:37). What have we to fear in this life? Since we have been given the best thing, namely, Jesus, what more shall we desire? (cf. Romans 8:32; Philippians 1:21). I am reminded of the song of Asaph:

Whom have I in heaven but you?
    And earth has nothing I desire besides you.
My flesh and my heart may fail,
    but God is the strength of my heart
    and my portion forever (Psalm 73:25-26).

Here is how we ought to view all things. Everything reflects the glorious beauty of God. Every good reminds us of God's infinitely higher goodness (cf. James 1:17; Isaiah 55:8-9). Every evil contrasts the purity of God's goodness and moves us all the more desperately to cling to His grace. When we labor and earn money, we marvel at the ability God gives us to produce wealth. When we feel love for our wife and children, we get a taste of the infinite love of God, who has adopted us into His family, even through the sacrifice of the precious blood of His Son. In every good turn we praise God for His providence. In every misfortune we worship God in His sovereignty. Of our material connection to God, Paul declared, "In Him we live and move and have our being" (Acts 17:28). And of our spiritual connection, Paul wrote, "It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption." (1 Corinthians 1:30).

Friends, everything should draw our affections to God and Christ. And there our hearts and minds will be free of all anxiety and fears (cf. Philippians 4:6-7). There we will find perfect peace. As Isaiah declared,

You will keep him in perfect peace,
Whose mind is stayed on You (Isaiah 26:3, NKJV) 

Then he went up from there to Bethel; and as he was going up by the way, young lads came out from the city andmocked him and said to him, “Go up, you baldhead; go up, you baldhead!” When he looked behind him and saw them, he cursed them in the name of the Lord. Then two female bears came out of the woods and tore up forty-two lads of their number (2 Kings 2:23-24).

Yikes! Did God really and violently kill forty-two kids for a bit of name-calling? He certainly had every right to do so, for Elisha was His chosen prophet. But a bit of perspective may give greater clarity to what was going on here.

First, Elisha was going up to Bethel, which if you recall, was one of the two places where Jeroboam had installed an idol for Israel to worship. It was not a god-fearing city; therefore, it is very likely that the leaders and townspeople may have incited these young men to taunt Elisha. 

Second, the "young lads" were probably not kids or youths as we understand them today but rather "young men," perhaps even in their twenties. And these were not a small group playing outside that happened upon Elisha but a large group (i.e. certainly many more than 42) that came out with the express purpose of mocking the prophet of God.

The expression "baldhead" is unique to this text in the Bible, so it is unclear whether Elisha was literally bald or whether it was simply a derisive taunt, as some commentators have suggested. The expression "go up" may have been an allusion to the ascension of Elijah, his predecessor. This idolatrous crowd may have been taunting Elisha to disappear, even as his predecessor had disappeared. 

Significantly, God's prophet must not be mocked, for to do so was equivalent to mocking God. This was why David would not touch or criticize King Saul, because he considered him God's anointed king. When the people asked Samuel for a king, God told him that they were not rejecting Samuel but God Himself. When the Israelites went against Moses, God judged them severely, because to go against Moses was to go against God, who appointed him.

Even in the New Testament we learn in Acts 5 that when Ananias and Sapphira lied to Peter, they were judged because they were actually lying to God. So, Peter says, "Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back some of the price of the land?" (Acts 5:3).

Remember, God killed Uzzah for simply touching the ark of God? The Bible never apologizes for its presentation of the LORD as completely holy. Everywhere in the Bible, Old and New Testaments alike, believers are to serve the Lord "with fear and trembling" (cf. Phlippians 2:12). 

 When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory. (Ephesians 1:13-14)

These verses caught my attention: "I will fill this valley with pools of water. ¹⁷ For this is what the LORD says: You will see neither wind nor rain, yet this valley will be filled with water, and you, your cattle and your other animals will drink. ¹⁸ This is an easy thing in the eyes of the LORD; he will also deliver Moab into your hands."

 We face various kinds of difficulties daily and despair many times because there seems no way out. Sometimes we feel like any hint of possibility to turn the present predicament to favorable one is out of the question in the eyes of our feeble mind. The Israelites here in today's reading has no hope of survival in the arid land with no water let alone being vulnerable to attack by the Moabites. Elisha was brought to them, and the Lord provides them with water even though they don't deserve such a mercy. Elisha also says what God does for them is an easy thing. The impossible for us is an easy thing in God's eyes!!! Brothers and sisters! Let's dream the impossible, and do so especially when we go through arid land in our lives because He who gave up His own Son for us will graciously give us all things according to His good will.

In  2 Kings 2-9 Elisha asked for a double portion of Eijah's spirit.  This was a bold request but God granted it because Eisha's motives were pure.  His main goal was not to be better or more powerful than Eiijah, but to accomplish more for God.  This is a good example for us when we pray.   When we ask God for power or ability, we need to examine our desires and  get rid of any selfishness we we find.