Going Biblical: Fascinating Divine Punishments Recounted in the Old Testament

23. The Prophet and the Mean Kids

The Bible recounts that Elisha was walking along the road to Bethel, when a group of children came out of the town and began to make fun of him, saying, “Go up, you baldhead! Go up, you baldhead!” There might have been more to it than just kids being bratty. It could have reflected some tension between some ancient Israelites and their prophets.

In this case, the children might have been voicing popular scorn for Elisha’s prophetic authority, and disbelief that Elijah had ascended to heaven. In the biblical narrative, Elisha cursed the kids in the Lord’s name, and immediately two female bears came out of the forest and mauled 42 children. The Bible does not specify whether the kids were killed, but getting mauled by bears could not have been fun.

22. A Controversial Divine Punishment

The story of Elisha and the bears has been the subject of much theological and moral debate. Critics think it’s pretty harsh to maul children for making fun of somebody’s baldness. Others see it as a warning against mocking God’s messengers. Prophets were not just religious figures: they carried God’s authority, so insulting a prophet was blasphemous. Some scholars argue this was not just an overreaction to teasing, but was about a broader cultural rejection of God’s leadership.

At the time, Bethel was a center of idol worship, and the children’s mockery might have reflected societal disdain for prophets. The story is short, but loaded with meaning. Whether interpreted literally or symbolically, the story highlights that actions toward God’s messengers have consequences.

21. Lot’s Wife

The punishment of Lot’s wife is a brief but powerful story in the Book of Genesis 19:26, about the price of disobeying the Lord’s orders and longing for a sinful past. Lot, a nephew of Abraham, lived in Sodom, a city notorious for its wickedness. The Bible recounts that God grew angry with such corruption, and decided to destroy Sodom and the nearby city of Gomorrah.

However, Abraham begged God to show mercy, so He chose to spare Lot and his family because they were Abraham’s kin, and because they were relatively righteous. Two angels visited Lot and warned him to flee Sodom with his wife and daughters before destruction came. They urged Lot’s family to escape quickly and gave a clear command: “Escape for your life! Do not look back or stop anywhere in the plain!” As seen below, Lot’s wife did not follow instructions.

20. An Expensive Backwards Glance

As Lot fled with his family, fire and brimstone rained down from the heavens and destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. In that terrifying moment of divine judgment, Lot’s wife did what most people would probably do, and looked back at the horror behind her. Perhaps it was out of regret, sorrow, or longing, but whatever her motives, she had disobeyed the Lord’s command, and for that, she was instantly turned into a pillar of salt.

Over the centuries, there have been many interpretations of her punishment. It symbolizes the consequences of clinging to a sinful past when the Lord offers salvation and a new path. The backward glance is seen as an act of disobedience, reflecting a divided heart: she was physically leaving Sodom, but her heart remained tied to it.

19. The Origins of a Story, and the Legacy of a Biblical Punishment

Geographically, the story is linked to the Dead Sea region. Recent excavations at Tel al Hammam in that region reveal that a Bronze Age city was destroyed there by a meteorite circa 1650 BC. That might have been the real life origin of the Sodom and Gomorrah account. There is a salt formation near the Dead Sea called “Lot’s wife” by the locals, but there is no proof linking it to the biblical story.

In the New Testament, Luke 17:32, Jesus warns his followers to remember the fate of Lot’s wife as a lesson in wholehearted devotion. Ultimately, the story is about the price of not trusting God fully and failure to obey His instructions, and warns against looking back when called to move forward into a new life.

18. The Plagues of Egypt

The plagues of Egypt, described in the Book of Exodus, were a dramatic series of divine punishments visited upon Egypt’s Pharaoh for enslaving the Israelites and refusing to let them go. Through Moses and his brother Aaron, God sent ten devastating plagues to pressure Pharaoh to release the Israelites.

The first plague turned the Nile River into blood, killed the fish, and made the water undrinkable. The second brought a massive infestation of frogs. When Pharaoh pleaded for relief, God removed the frogs, but Pharaoh hardened his heart and again refused to free the Israelites. So God sent a third plague, which turned dust into gnats or lice that afflicted people and animals. As seen below, things got worse.

17. A Growing Crescendo of Catastrophes

A fourth plague brought swarms of flies that created chaos. The fifth plague was a deadly disease that devastated the Egyptians’ livestock, but spared the Israelites’ animals. The sixth plague consisted of painful boils on humans and animals. It was followed by the seventh plague, a massive hailstorm that destroyed crops, animals, and property.

Then came the eighth plague, locusts that devoured all the vegetation that had survived so far. A ninth plague plunged Egypt into total darkness for three days, except in the land of Goshen, where the Israelites dwelt. The tenth and final plague was the most severe: the death of all firstborns in Egypt, from Pharaoh’s son down to the firstborn of slaves and even livestock.

16. The Origin of Passover

Before He sent the final plague, God ordered the Israelites to mark their doorposts with lamb’s blood so that the angel of death would “pass over” their homes – the origin of the Jewish festival of Passover. The final plague finally convinced Pharaoh to let the Israelites leave Egypt.

However, he later pursued them, setting the stage for Moses’ miraculous parting of the Red Sea to cross to the other side, and the drowning of Pharaoh and his army when the waters closed upon them as they continued their pursuit. The plagues of Egypt are viewed as a combination of divine punishment, and a show of God’s power and faithfulness. Each plague challenged Egyptian gods and beliefs, reinforced the Israelite God’s supremacy, and demonstrated His determination to free His people.

15. The Golden Calf’s Worshippers

The Book of Exodus, chapter 32, narrates God’s punishment of the golden calf’s worshippers. The story revolves around themes of idolatry, divine justice, and leadership. After the Israelites escaped Egyptian bondage, they camped near Mount Sinai. Moses climbed the mountain to receive the Law from the Lord, and stayed there for forty days. In his absence, the Israelites grew impatient and anxious. They approached Aaron, Moses’ brother, and demanded a visible god to lead them.

Aaron collected gold from the people, mainly jewelry, and fashioned it into a golden calf. The people then declared, “This is your god, O Israel, who brought you out of Egypt“, and held a feast during which they made sacrifices, danced, and had themselves a grand old time. God saw that, and as seen below, He was not amused.

14. Talking God Out of Destroying Everybody

The Old Testament recounts that God grew quite angry at the idolatry, and told Moses He would destroy the people and start over with him. Moses begged for mercy, and reminded the Lord of His promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. God heeded Moses’ pleas – partially. He agreed not to destroy everybody, but insisted that there would be consequences.

When Moses came down from the mountaintop and personally witnessed the idolatry, he smashed in anger the stone tablets on which the Ten Commandments had been inscribed. He then burned the golden calf, ground it into powder, mixed it with water, and made the people drink it to demonstrate the utter worthlessness of their idol.

13. The Punishment for Idolatry

After destroying the golden calf, Moses stood at the Israelite camp’s entrance and called out, “Whoever is on the Lord’s side, come to me!” The tribe of Levi responded, and on Moses’ orders, they got their swords, fell upon the idolaters, and massacred about 3,000 of them. The slaughter was seen as necessary to purge the Israelites of sin and restore order. Moses then returned to God to seek forgiveness for the people, but His wrath had still not run its course.

As further punishment, God sent a plague, but allowed the Israelites to continue their journey to the Promised Land. The golden calf narrative serves as a warning against idolatry and emphasizes the downside of disobeying God. It also illustrates the importance of faithful leadership, repentance, and shows a balance between justice and mercy in God’s relationship with mankind.

12. Questioning Just What Was So Special About Moses

The Book of Numbers, chapter 16, narrates the consequences of rebellion against those appointed by God to lead. Korah, a Levite (a member of the ancient Israelite tribe of Levi) was a cousin of Moses and Aaron. He, along with Dathan, Abiram, and On from the tribe of Reuben, and supported by 250 leading Israelites, challenged the leadership. The rebels argued that all Israelites were holy, accused Moses and Aaron of elevating themselves above their congregation, and questioned their special status.

In response, Moses proposed a test: the rebels and Aaron would each present censers with incense before the Lord, and He would indicate His chosen leader. The next day, as the community gathered at the Tent of Meeting, God’s presence appeared, and He was not happy.

11. Making the Earth Swallow Up Those Who Displeased God

God ordered Moses and Aaron to separate from the assembly so He could destroy them. Moses and Aaron begged for mercy on behalf of the people, and God heeded their plea and agreed to spare the rebels, but not their leaders. He commanded the Israelites to distance themselves from the tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, and Moses declared that if these men died of natural causes, it would mean the Lord had not sent him.

However, if the earth opened up and swallowed them, it would mean that they had offended the Lord. Soon as Moses finished speaking, the ground split apart and swallowed up the rebels, their families, and possessions. Simultaneously, God sent a fire that consumed the 250 men challenging Aaron in the incense competition.

10. Silencing Grumblers With a Plague

Per the Old Testament, having finished off the rebels, God ordered that the bronze censers used by the 250 men who had challenged Aaron be hammered into a cover for the altar. It was intended to commemorate the event, and serve as a reminder that the Lord would only accept incense from Aaron or his descendants. The next day, the Israelites grumbled about Moses and Aaron, and blamed them for the deaths of so many.

God threatened to destroy the entire assembly, but Moses and Aaron once again pled for leniency. God, however, had already sent a plague. Aaron made atonement for the people, and stood between the living and the dead until the plague passed. By then, 14,700 people had perished. The punishment dished out for Korah’s rebellion underscores the seriousness of challenging God’s appointed leaders.

9. The Great Flood

Noah’s Flood, also known as the Great Flood, is a foundational narrative in the Book of Genesis, chapters 6 – 9. It describes a global flood sent by God to cleanse the earth of human wickedness. According to the story, mankind had grown so corrupt and violent that God regretted creating humans.

However, one man, Noah, was found to be righteous and obedient. God instructed Noah to build a large wooden ark to save himself, his family, and pairs of every kind of animal. The ark was to be a refuge during a flood God planned to unleash upon the world.

8. Forty Days and Forty Nights of Rain

In the Old Testament account, when Noah finished the ark, God ordered him, his wife, sons, their wives, and the animals to enter. Then God made it rain for forty days and forty nights. Water also emerged from beneath the earth. Eventually, even the highest mountains were inundated, and every living thing on land perished.

After 150 days, the waters began to recede, and the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat. Noah sent out a raven and later a dove to check for dry land. When the dove returned with an olive twig leaf – the origin of the association of doves and olive branches with peace – Noah knew the floodwaters had subsided.

7. The Flood Story Has Parallels in Many Cultures

God eventually ordered Noah to leave the ark, and in gratitude, he built an altar and offered sacrifices. God then made a covenant, symbolized by the rainbow, in which he promised never to destroy the earth by flood again. The story serves as a tale of judgment and mercy, highlighting divine justice and the possibility of redemption. It has parallels in many ancient cultures.

For example, the Mesopotamian Epic of Gilgamesh also tells of a great flood and a chosen survivor. Some believe that Noah’s Flood was a literal historic event, but there is no evidence that a global inundation had ever covered the planet. However, there have been various massive regional floods, some of which could have served as the biblical story’s origin.

6. When the Philistines Captured the Ark of the Covenant

In 1 Samuel, chapters 5 – 6, the Philistines endured divine punishment after they captured the Ark of the Covenant, a sacred object that represented God’s presence with Israel. The Philistines had defeated the Israelites in battle, and seized the Ark as booty – the reason why “Philistine” means somebody to whom nothing is sacred. The victors took the Ark to the city of Ashdod, where they placed it in the temple of their god Dagon.

However, their triumph soon soured as a series of calamities struck them. The first sign of God’s displeasure came when the idol of Dagon was found fallen face-down in his temple before the Ark. He was set upright, but fell again the next day, and this time his head and hands broke.

5. Punishing the Philistines With Hemorrhoids?

The Old Testament adds that God next visited a devastating plague upon Ashdod’s population. Along with an infestation of mice, the text describes an outbreak of tumorous swellings. Some scholars see similarities to bubonic plague. Others saw similarities to the swellings caused by hemorrhoids. Whatever the affliction, it inflicted such intense suffering that the people of Ashdod demanded the Ark be removed from their city.

It was sent to other Philistine cities, Gath and Ekron, but wherever it went, the locals experienced similar afflictions. Death spread, and so did panic. Eventually, the Philistines accepted that keeping the Ark meant having to suffer continual catastrophe, and after seven months, they decided to return it to Israel.

4. Returning the Ark of the Covenant

To appease the God of Israel, the Philistines sent a guilt offering of five golden tumors and five golden mice, corresponding to their five city-states. They placed the Ark and the offerings on a cart drawn by two dairy cows and, sent it toward Israelite territory. The cows went directly to the Israelite town of Beth Shemesh, confirming to the Philistines that their suffering had indeed been a punishment from the God of Israel.

When the cart the arrived in Beth Shemesh, the locals committed the sin of looking inside the Ark. That was a big no-no, so God struck them dead. The Philistine captivity of the Ark story illustrated the power and holiness of God, and showed that even foreign nations recognized His might. It also warns against treating sacred things with irreverence.

3. The Mother and Father of All Biblical Punishments

The mother and father of all Old Testament punishments was that of the duo described in the Bible as mankind’s father and mother: Adam and Eve. Their punishment, recounted in Genesis, chapter3, is one of the Bible’s foundational stories, and explains the origin of human sin, suffering, and death. Per the biblical narrative, Adam and Eve were the first humans created by God and placed in the Garden of Eden, a paradise where they lived in harmony with God, nature, and each other.

They were allowed to eat from any tree, except the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. God warned them that eating from that tree would result in death. However, Satan in the guise of a serpent tempted Eve by telling her that eating the fruit would not lead to death, but would make her like God, aware of good and evil.

2. The First Blame Game

Eve ate the forbidden fruit, and got Adam to partake as well. Their eyes were immediately opened, and they realized they were naked. Filled with shame, they covered themselves and hid from God. When God confronted them, Adam blamed Eve, and Eve blamed the serpent. So God punished all three. The serpent was cursed to crawl on its belly and be in constant conflict with humanity – symbolizing the endless struggle between good and evil.

Eve was told she would experience intense pain in childbirth and desire her husband, who would rule over her – the theological origin of the relational imbalance between the sexes. As to Adam, he was told the ground would be cursed because of him. He would have to toil for his food, and face hard labor and frustration until he returned to dust – signifying death and human mortality.

1. The Fall of Man

The Old Testament recounts that to cap of His punishment, God banished Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden. To ensure they could no longer live forever, He also denied them access to the Tree of Life, and assigned an angel with a flaming sword to guard the way to the tree.

This story is known as the Fall of Man, and theologically, it marks the start of sin and suffering in the world. It also sets the stage for themes of redemption that appear throughout the Bible, as God’s judgment is balanced by the promise of future restoration.

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Where Did We Find This Stuff? Some Sources and Further Reading

American Jewish University – What Did Korah Do Wrong?

Chabad – The Story of Korah in the Bible

Commentary Magazine, September 1992 – Looking Back at Lot’s Wife

Crossway – Why Did God Send Bears to Attack a Group of Boys?

Day, John – Yahweh and the Gods and Goddesses of Canaan (2002)

Encyclopedia Britannica – Adam and Eve

Encyclopedia Britannica – Lot’s Wife

German Quarterly, Vol. 63 No. 2 (Spring, 1990) – The Trials of Job and Kafka’s Joseph K.

Gonick, Larry – Cartoon History of the Universe Volumes 1 – 7 (1990)

Greenstein, Edward L. – Job: A New Translation (2019)

History Collection – Fascinating Biblical and Biblical Era Archaeology

Jewish Virtual Library – The Ark of the Covenant

Live Science – Did Noah’s Flood Really Happen?

Live Science – The Science Behind the 10 Plagues of Egypt

National Center for Science Education – Yes, Noah’s Flood May Have Happened, but Not Over the Whole Earth

Washington Post, November 6^th, 2017 – It’s Time to Rethink How You read the Story of Adam and Eve

World History Encyclopedia – Ten Plagues of Egypt