Had Elisha allowed the mockery to pass unnoticed, he would have continued to be ridiculed and reviled by the rabble, and his mission to instruct and save in a time of grave national peril might have been defeated. This one instance of terrible severity was sufficient to command respect throughout his life. For fifty years he went in and out of the gate of Bethel, and to and fro in the land, from city to city, passing through crowds of idle, rude, dissolute youth; but none mocked him or made light of his qualifications as the prophet of the Most High.

Hvis Elisa havde ladet som ingenting, ville pøbelen være blevet ved at spotte og håne ham med det resultat, at hans bestræbelser for at undervise og bringe frelse, når landet kom i nød, ville slå fejl. Den frygtelige strenghed, som blev lagt for dagen i dette tilfælde, skabte respekt om ham resten af livet. I halvtreds år gik han ind og ud af Betels port, rejste landet rundt, besøgte byerne og færdedes mellem dovne, uopdragne og umoralske unge mennesker, uden at en eneste vovede at spotte ham eller tale nedsættende om hans kvalifikationer som den Højestes profet.