Two she-bears came out of the woods and TORE forty-two of the BOYS

[TonyChanYT]

Soon after Elisha succeeded Elijah in 2 Kings 2:

23He went up from there to Bethel, and while he was going up on the way, some small boys came out of the city and jeered at him, saying, “Go up, you baldhead! Go up, you baldhead!” 24And he turned around, and when he saw them, he cursed them in the name of the LORD. And two she-bears came out of the woods and tore forty-two of the boys.

Strong's Hebrew: 3206. יָ֫לֶד (yeled) — 89 Occurrences

Brown-Driver-Briggs:
a. child = son, boy
b. (little) child, children
c. descendants
d. youth

Wasn't that a bit harsh?

Pulpit Commentary:

It is not said how far the lads were injured, whether fatally or not. But the punishment, whatever its severity, came from God, not from the prophet, and we may be sure was just.

Benson Commentary:

Upon the whole, it appears that the persons who mocked Elijah were not infants, but arrived to years of maturity; that they did not insult him by chance, but by design; that they went out in great crowds on purpose; that they mocked him because he was the prophet of the true God, from whom they had apostatized; and that he did not wish their untimely end from a principle of revenge, but only predicted it as a prophet. The punishment will appear just, if we consider the time, place, persons, and all the circumstances of the case. These young persons might be guilty of many other heinous crimes, known to God and his prophet, besides that here recorded: they were at least guilty of idolatry, which by God’s law deserved death: add to this, that the idolatrous parents were punished in their children; and that if any of these children were more innocent, God might have mercy on their souls, and then the death they suffered was not a misery, but a real blessing to them, taking them away from that education which was very likely to expose them, not only to temporal, but eternal destruction.

Wasn't God being a bit harsh to the boys?

I don't know. God does what he does. He answers to no one. I just accept his infinite wisdom for his actions.

 

[quietthinker]

If God is to be assessed by some of what is recorded in the OT and attributed to him we are in trouble, however, if God is to assessed by observing Jesus there is great hope.