It was customary among eastern nations to cut off the hair of the head, or to shave the head, as a token of mourning, on the death of a relative, Job 1:20 Jeremiah 16:6 . This was forbidden to the Israelites, in consequence of its being a heathen custom, Deuteronomy 14:1 . Natural baldness was treated with contempt, because it exposed a man to the suspicion of leprosy. The children at Bethel cried after Elisha, "Go up, thou bald head," 2 Kings 2:23 . While they indicated by this epithet great contempt for him as a prophet of the Lord, they probably scoffed at the same time at the miracle of Elijah's ascension.