Albert Barnes Commentary 2 Kings 2:24

"And he looked behind him and saw them, and cursed them in the name of Jehovah. And there came forth two she-bears out of the wood, and tare forty and two lads of them." — 2 Kings 2:24 (ASV)

This is the only occasion where we find Elisha acting as a minister of vengeance. Perhaps it was necessary to show at the outset of his prophetic career that he, so mild and peaceful, could also wield the terrors of God’s judgments, just as Elijah did (1 Kings 19:19). The people who were truly punished were not so much the children as their wicked parents (2 Kings 2:23), for the children were merely their mouthpieces, and these parents justly lost the gift of children, of which they had proven themselves unworthy.