Sunday Sermons
Korah's Rebellion
Korah’s
Rebellion
Numbers 16
This chapter can be divided into three sections: Korah and others rebel against Moses (1-30). The rebels are punished (31-43). Aaron atones for the people (44-50).
16:1 The following names are pronounced “Izhar” (IZ hahr), “Abiram” (ah RAY ram), and “Peleth”(PEE leth). The ancestry of Korah is traced back to Levi. Izhar was the brother of Amram, the father of Aaron and Moses. He was thus an uncle of these two leaders. Dathan and Abiram were the sons of Eliab, a Reubenite whose family was one of the most prominent in the tribe.16:2 Since 250 prominent leaders in Israel were gathered in such a revolt, it is clear that Moses and Aaron were not very popular. Let us remember this point. Great leaders or heroes are often not appreciated by their contemporaries. Popularity polls are thus not an accurate indication of God’s approval or whether one is doing good or harm. “According to 2:10ff and 3:29, both Reubenites and Kohathites were to encamp on the south side of the tabernacle. The proximity of their tents explains their mutual involvement” (Wenham pp. 134-135). 16:3 “For all the congregation is holy”: Their basic argument was that Moses and Aaron were unjustified in setting themselves over all the people, seeing that all the people were equally holy and thus equally capable to being leaders. What they conveniently forgot was that the Lord Himself had appointed Moses and Aaron to their offices.
“Korah’s motives may have been the product of jealousy because his cousins, Moses and Aaron, had been appointed to the highest positions in the covenant community. He may also have resented his exclusion from the priestly office, even though he was a Levite” (Harrison p. 232). “Korah wished to abolish the distinction between priests (the family of Aaron) and the rest of the tribe of Levi. The Reubenites apparently felt that they had a claim to the priesthood over the tribe of Levi because they were descendants of the firstborn of Jacob” (Smith p. 436).
Even today, the same attitude does enter in among God’s people. People can start arguing that any older member is an “elder”, or that the elders do not really have any authority, or that there is no such thing as the office of an elder. Apparently such men had failed to learn anything from God’s reaction to the murmuring of Miriam and Aaron, which had equally been directed against the authority and position of Moses (chapter 12). 16:4-5 Consider the humility on the part of Moses. Moses is always willing to refer a matter to God, and he is not caught up in some sort of power trip, rather he is content to let God have the final say regarding who will be in various leadership positions. During this time on the ground Moses was probably praying to God and asking for directions on how to deal with this problem.
16:6-7 The test was that now Korah and his followers must do what had been only reserved for the priests; they must burn incense before the Lord. “Whoever could burn incense before the Lord without being destroyed by the fire of God’s holiness would prove that he had been divinely chosen for priestly ministry” (Smith p. 436). “You have gone far enough”: Once again, people caught up in rebellion do not seem to remember clear biblical precedents. “Since two of Aaron’s sons had died for offering fire which the Lord had not commanded (Leviticus 10:1-2) Korah’s alacrity (quickness, readiness) in submitting to this test is striking” (Wenham p. 135). Yet sin has a way of blinding the person in apostasy. 16:9-11 Moses chides Korah and his fellow Levites for their ingratitude. They had already been highly favored by God, and allowed to do something from which the other tribes had been excluded, yet how often are people not content with even the greatest blessings or privileges? “Moses discerned correctly the real motive for Korah’s rebellion. Korah wanted a popular election to be held for the office of high priest with himself as a candidate. In his view he was the only suitable person for that exalted function” (Harrison p. 234). 16:10 “And are you seeking for the priesthood also?” Korah had tried to act like he was concerned about everyone’s rights (16:3), and that Moses was keeping all the power to himself, yet the truth of the matter is that Korah wants power for himself. There is never an authority vacuum for long, for someone is always standing in the wings ready to assume power. For example, religious liberals argue that the Bible is not an infallible book, yet this does not mean that they do not bow to authority. They often bow to the authority of scientific theories, religious experiences and feelings. In matters of doctrine, the test is not, “What saith the Scriptures”, but rather, “Is it practical for the contemporary generation?”
16:12 “We will not come up”: Moses was trying to head off this rebellion by meeting with each group involved privately. He was trying to keep these men from dying. He summoned the Reubenites, but they refused to meet with him. 16:13-14 The Reubenites accuse Moses of leading them out of a land of milk of honey and into a barren desert, being a dictator, failing to deliver on his promises, and attempting to blind others to the true circumstances so that he could retain his leadership position.
16:15 In contrast to their accusations, Moses knew what was really the case. He knew that he had never harmed them in any way. Moses would admit wrongdoing when he did wrong, but he would not admit any wrongdoing when he was in the right. Moses had never profited from his leadership position. Far from lording it over them, he had not asked anything from them. 16:16-17 Evidently each one of the 250 leaders who had joined in this plot had personal ambitions to be a priest or the high priest. 16:19 Sadly, often a good number of people will join or support an apostate like Korah (2 Timothy 4:3; 2 Peter 2:1ff).16:20-22 In spite of such cruel accusations and ingratitude, in spite of the fact that the rest of Israel did not come to the defense of Moses and Aaron, Moses and Aaron still love the people dearly. Verse 22 infers that man is more than just a body(Ecclesiastes 12:7).
16:23-33 Even in the face of judgment, these rebels and their families came out of their tents and stood defiantly. “The earth is pictured as a ravenous monster whose jaws suddenly open and whose gullet descends to the inner chambers of Sheol (Hades). This passage is frightful, a thing of horror. The new phenomenon is that these people will not die and then go into Sheol; they will fall into Sheol alive (33). It is the spiritual antithesis of Enoch being caught alive into heaven; they are descended alive into ‘hell’” (Gaebelein p. 840). Once again we see the principle of the “ban”. There is no mercy, no pleading, and no help. Everything that belonged to them was accursed, even their material possessions (16:26). Compare with Galatians 1:6-9 and Joshua chapter 7. From the very fact that the entire family was punished, we might conclude that the wives and older children may have endorsed their husbands and fathers in this sin. Sin rarely affects the individual and no one else. Ann Coulter writes, “It’s not quite really accurate to say drugs hurt no one but the user, at least until we’ve repealed the welfare state. Back on earth, we live in a country that will not allow people to live with their own bad decisions. Ann has to pay for their bad decisions” (How To Talk to a Liberal (if you must) p. 313).
16:34-35 While the people are screaming and running in terror, the 250 leaders in Israel are instantly consumed by fire. 16:37-40 The censers held by the 250 rebels are hammered into a covering for the altar, a reminder of the price of disobedience, and that God had chosen the family of Aaron to be His priests to the exclusion of all others as well as a reminder that God means what He says. In addition, it was a reminder that Biblical Silence does not give permission or consent. Like some people today, Korah had allowed himself to resent the restrictions that God had imposed. One can almost hear the people today that would rally to the side of Korah, “Yea, where did God ever say that we couldn’t be priests”. “Let’s concentrate on the spirit of the law and not the letter of the law”. “Moses, Aaron, you guys are legalists!” “I just don’t see what would be the harm in allowing non-Levites into the priesthood!”
16:41-45 As is typical, often those who are serving God are blamed when sinners need to be dealt with. First, Christians should know that dealing with sin is a messy business, and not everything goes smoothly when sin needs to be confronted. We need to be careful that we do not fall into the trap Israel fell, of complaining that Moses and Aaron did not handle the situation properly. Carefully note, God does not need numbers, He only wants people who are faithful to Him. He would rather have two faithful individuals, then 3 million half-hearted or hypocritical followers. Unless a person changes their attitude, they will keep on committing the same sin over and over. “With all the results of murmuring against Moses and the Lord, one would think that the people would have had their bellies’ worth of grumbling” (Gaebelein p. 843). “The Israelites did not learn from that lesson, and within the next few days they had a further argument with Moses at the same place, Meribah (Numbers 20:13)” (The Message of 2 Peter and Jude, Lucas and Green p. 200).
16:46-50 “This was Aaron’s finest hour. He risked his own life to stay the plague” (Smith p. 438). “Thus for a second time Aaron’s high priesthood is vindicated against its critics, and its practical value demonstrated” (Smith p. 139). We see here that to be an effective leader among God’s people, one must really love the souls of such people. A lesser man might have said, “Let them die”.
From Numbers 26:10-11, we learn that all the sons of Korah did not die. In fact, many of the descendants of this wicked man would become the temple singers, responsible for the crafting of numerous psalms (42; 44-49; 84-85; 87-88). Here we learn that one can break from the wickedness of a family, and that God does not hold a grudge if one’s ancestors were wicked. “God will allow this family to restore its former prestige---carrying the name of their infamous father—is a remarkable tribute to His grace”(Gaebelein p. 841). The New Testament endorses the historical reality of Numbers 16, and we are reminded that God still feels the same way about insubordination directed towards His leaders (Jude 11). Let us treat the elders among us with respect and cooperation (Hebrews 13:17).
Jude 11
“Woe to them! For they have gone the way of Cain, and for pay they have rushed headlong into the error of Balaam, and perished in the rebellion of Korah”
· We are to imitate Christ, but the warning here is that we can equally imitate the mindset of Cain (free thinking sin), Balaam (the spirit of compromise), and Korah (full scale revolt).
· “In Korah we have a man who ruminates over God’s order of things and decides that God cannot have meant what He said. So, for reasons of greed, an attempt is made to replace God’s laws with another set dreamed up by a man” (Lucas and Green p. 201).
· “As we reach this ghastly climax, it is worth remembering again that the people Jude describes here are not at all easy to spot—if they were, he would not have had to write his letter! This poisonous infiltration, or deadly hijack, is going on under our noses; and if Jude had not warned us that the ‘nice people’ who want to do this are dangerous rebels, we simply would not know” (p. 201).
Mark Dunagan/Beaverton Church of Christ/503-644-9017
www.beavertonchurchofchrist.net/mdunagan@easystreet.com
