23 From there Elisha went up to Bethel. As he was walking along the road, some boys came out of the town and jeered 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 on them in the name of the Lord. Then two she-bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the boys. (2 Kgs 2:23-24).
Although this is a "controversial" passage, because unbelievers find it morally offensive, the controversy can deflect our attention away from two interesting features of the incident:
i) If the narrator invented the story, why the incidental details? Why two bears? Why forty-two boys? Why she-bears? Why be so specific?
ii) To my knowledge, she-bears are more dangerous than he-bears. A mother bear with cubs is notoriously aggressive and easily provoked. Although lone he-bears may be more dangerous than lone she-bears, a she-bear with cubs is more dangerous than a lone he-bear. At least, that's my unscientific understanding–based on watching nature shows over the years.
Even though this event is a coincidence miracle, it includes realistic details.
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