Here's another self-righteous question: Why did God use bears to "rip apart"?

Question

alive I might add, children for making fun of a guy's bald head? Have you ever seen a person eatten alive? Do you have any idea how burtal it is? Is this the kind of thing God can just do because he's God? If so, what kind of god would even think of such a thing - nevermind following through with it?

Scott, read Alan's answer. Are you sure you read your Bible? is it possible non-believer like me knows it better than you do? is that possibly why i'm an atheist and you're not?

okay Scott, here you go:

From there Elisha went up to Bethel. While he was on his way, some small boys came out of the city and jeered at him. "Go up baldhead," they shouted, "go up baldhead!" The prophet turned and saw them, and he cursed them in the name of the Lord. Then two shebears came out of the woods and tore forty two of the children to pieces. 2 Kings 2:23-24

Answer 1

Don't know, but why ask such type of questions?

Answer 2

Option 1 (Biblical God exists): He's a genocidal psychopath, to be honest, and reading the OT is like reading a drugged-up Charles Manson's subconscious thoughts. The number of times when he commits another unspeakable evil and gets away with it just because "well, he's God, who are we to judge him?" are endless. If any human did some of the brutal, malevolent, jealous things that the God character does, they'd be executed or banged up in prison for life. Fact.

Option 2 (Biblical God doesn't exist): It's just another tiresome fable with no meaning, purpose or attraction to it, except for horror fans, maybe, although it's blindingly awful in that it has the gore, but no real depth to the writing, so it all feels a bit pathetic. To be honest, the Bible's seminal, and important in a cultural sense, but it's a crap novel, I'd buy some classic literature instead.

Answer 3

Yes, I read about that story in Stranger in a Strange Land. I didn't believe it could possibly be true but it is.

I asked five different people, all Jewish and all knowledgable about the OT, and known of them knew that story or thought it was really there. They were all stunned when I showed it to them.

Just proves that the bible has to be read selectively.

It is 2 kings 22:23-24

2:23 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.
2:24 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.

Answer 4

Talk about wacky bible stories!
You know the story of sodom & gomorah? What some people might not know is that when the angel guys visited Lot, the townsmen demanded that he send the angels out so that they could have sex with them, and Lot said, "no way! please rape my virgin daughters instead!" Now that's a story about a really great guy who sure loved his family, whom god chose to save from his destructive wrath. Oh, and god turned his wife into a pillar of salt just for looking back - he killed her just for taking a peek!
Sheeesh! Makes me glad I'm an atheist.

Answer 5

Where in the world are you getting this? Care to give a link or should we just take your word for it? It's certainly not Biblical, so if you want us to answer it, provide a link. Otherwise, bears do what bears do, hunt and eat available meat. They don't tend to judge people's personalities.
Jack did a good job of finally citing his reference. I'm not afraid to admit I hadn't remembered seeing this. My guess is many Christians aren't familiar with this passage. But Jack: in no way does that mean you "know the Bible better", it took me 5 minutes to find the passage under the search heading of Bible Contraditions on the internet. Web site reading is not Bible Study. I emailed you a link on the response which boils down to this: God gave life, it is His to take away not ours. God doesn't follow moral standards intended for men just like parents don't follow moral standards intended for children. God is the barometer for which moral standards are set. I admit I was wrong and we as Christians should be prepared for these questions, that being said... I'll take my "Bible knowledge" against Jack anyday. Clearly one of us understands the context.

Answer 6

If god were probably real, I don't know why he would have chose bears in particular. The behaviour of the god in the Holy Bible is probably nothing more than a projection by the uncivilized, barbaric writers of the bible.

Answer 7

Well, for one thing bears are really good at that sort of thing. I mean, I'd picked bears. Many the day I've wished I had a couple of the big beast handy, and not just for children, mind you.

What, have you some problem with bears?

Answer 8

Just don't piss off God, O.K.

Oh, and he loves you. He causes people to die in agony and suffering every day because he loves them so much.

It is all part of the mysterious plan. Don't ask about the plan, that just pisses him off even more. (Even though he still loves you!)

Edit:
For any other sceptics like Scott B:
2 Kings 2:23 - 2:24

But God loved them as the bears ripped them limb from limb

Answer 9

LOL, and why would god give a crap about Paul's ego or bald head and actually do something to avenge his taunting when so many worse things somehow escape his wrath? The whole concept of "god" is a rediculous lie.

Answer 10

And why would he put Abraham through the wringer with ordering him to murder his son, only to change his mind at the last minute; but couldn't show similar mercy to Jephtha's daughter?

Answer 11

Well of course it was she-bears. What did you expect him to send out to attack those 42 kids? Two poodles?

"Move it, baldy!"
"Arf arf arf!"