The Fourth Book of Moses: Numbers

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- Chapter 16 -

One day Korah son of Izhar and a descendant of Levi’s son Kohath, conspired with Dathan and Abiram, who were the sons of Eliab, and On son of Peleth. They were all from the tribe of Reuben.

Those four men incited 250 other people who were leaders among the Israelite people to join them in rebelling against Moses.

They came together to criticize Aaron and Moses. They said to them, “You two are using more authority than you should! Yahweh has set apart all of us Israelite people, and he is with all of us. So why do you act as though you were more important than the rest of us people who belong to Yahweh?”

When Moses heard what they were saying, he prostrated himself on the ground.

Then he said to Korah and those who were with Korah, “Tomorrow morning Yahweh will show to us whom he has chosen to be his priest, and who is holy and allowed to come near to him. Yahweh will permit only those whom he chooses to come into his presence.

So Korah, tomorrow you and those who are with you must prepare your pans to burn incense.

Then you must light a fire in them and burn the incense in the presence of Yahweh. Then we will see which one of us Yahweh has chosen to be his holy servant. It is you men who are descendants of Levi who are trying to use more authority than you should!”

Then Moses spoke again to Korah. He said, “You men who are descendants of Levi, listen to me!

You know that Yahweh, the God of Israel has chosen you Levites from the community of Israel so you can work for him at his sacred tent and serve the people. Does that seem to you like a small thing for you to do?

Yahweh has brought you, Korah, and your fellow descendants of Levi, near to himself. Now are you demanding to become priests also?

It is really Yahweh against whom you and your fellow descendants of Levi are rebelling. Aaron is not the one about whom you are really complaining.”

Then Moses summoned Dathan and Abiram, but they refused to come. They sent a message saying, “We will not come to you!

You brought us out of Egypt, which was a very fertile land, in order to cause us to die here in this desert. That was bad. But now you are also trying to boss us, and that is worse.

You have not given us a new land to live in, a land that has good fields and vineyards. You are only trying to blind these people. So we will not come to you.”

Then Moses became very angry. He said to Yahweh, “Do not accept the grain offerings that they have brought. I have not taken anything from them, not even one donkey, and I have never done anything wrong to them, so they have no reason to complain against me.”

Then Moses said to Korah, “You and all those who are with you must come here tomorrow and stand in front of Yahweh. Aaron will also be here.

You and all the 250 men who are with you must each take a pan in which to burn incense, and put incense in it, to burn it to be an offering to Yahweh. Aaron will do the same thing.”

So each of those men got a pan to burn incense. They put in it incense and hot coals to light it, and then they all stood at the entrance of the sacred tent with Aaron and Moses.

Then Korah summoned all the people who supported him and who were against Moses, and they also gathered at the entrance of the tent. Then the glory of Yahweh appeared to all of them.

Yahweh said to Aaron and Moses,

“Get away from all these people, in order that I can get rid of them immediately!”

But Aaron and Moses prostrated themselves on the ground. They pleaded with Yahweh, saying, “God, you are the one who caused all these people to live. Only one of these men has sinned. So, is it right for you to be angry with all the people?”

Moses Separates the People

Yahweh said to Moses,

“Okay, but tell all the people to get away from the tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram.”

So Moses stood up and went to the tents of Dathan and Abiram. The Israelite leaders followed him.

He told the people, “Get away from the tents of these wicked men, and do not touch anything that belongs to them! If you touch anything, you will die because of their sins!”

So all the people moved away from the tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram. Dathan and Abiram came out of their tents with their wives and children and babies, and stood at the entrance of their tents.

The Earth Swallows Korah

Then Moses said, “I was not the one who decided to do all these things that I have done. It was Yahweh who chose me and sent me to do them. And now he will prove that to you.

If these men die in a normal way, then it will be clear that Yahweh did not choose me.

But if Yahweh does something that has never happened before, if he causes the ground that is under their feet to open up and swallow these men and their families and all their possessions, and they fall into the opening and are buried while they are still alive, then you will know that these men have insulted Yahweh.”

As soon as Moses said this, the ground split open beneath those men.

It swallowed those men and their families and all those who were standing there with Korah and all of their possessions.

They fell into the opening in the ground while they were still alive, and all their possessions fell into the opening also. They disappeared, and the ground closed back up again.

They screamed as they fell, and all the people who were standing nearby heard them scream. The people were terrified and cried out as they ran away, saying, “We do not want the ground to swallow us, also!”

And then a fire from Yahweh came down from the sky and burned up the 250 men who were burning the incense!

The Censers Reserved for Holy Use

Then Yahweh said to Moses,

“Tell Aaron’s son Eleazar to take the pans that had incense in them away from the fire and to scatter the burning coals. The pans that those men were carrying are holy because they burned incense to me in them.

Those men have now died because of their sin. So Eleazar must take their pans and hammer the metal to make it become very thin. He must make a covering for the altar with that metal. Those pans were used to offer incense to me, so they are holy. What happened to those pans will now warn the Israelite people.”

So Eleazar the priest collected the 250 pans for burning incense that had been used by the men who died in the fire. He hammered the pans very thin to make a covering for the altar, as Yahweh told Moses should be done.

That warned the Israelites that only those who were descendants of Aaron were permitted to burn incense as an offering to Yahweh. If anyone else did that, the same thing would happen to him as happened to Korah and those with him.

Murmuring and Plague

(1 Corinthians 10:1–13)

But the following morning, all the Israelite people started to complain against Aaron and Moses saying “You have killed many people who belonged to Yahweh!”

When all the people gathered together to protest about what Aaron and Moses had done, they looked at the sacred tent and saw that the sacred cloud had covered it, and the glory of Yahweh had appeared.

Aaron and Moses went and stood in front of the sacred tent.

Then Yahweh said to Moses,

“Get away from these people, in order that I can get rid of them immediately without injuring you two!” But Aaron and Moses prostrated themselves on the ground and prayed.

Moses said to Aaron, “Quickly take another pan and put in it some burning coals from the altar. Put incense in the pan, and carry it out among the people to atone for the sins of the people. Yahweh is very angry with them, and I know that a severe plague has already started among them.”

So Aaron did what Moses told him. He took the burning incense out among the people. The plague had already started to strike the people, but Aaron continued to burn the incense to make atonement for the sins of the people.

He stood between the people who had already died and those who were still alive, and then the plague stopped.

But 14,700 people had already died from that plague, in addition to the people who died with Korah.

Then after the plague had ended, Aaron and Moses returned to the entrance of the sacred tent.

Now Korah, the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, with Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and On, the son of Peleth, sons of Reuben, took some men.

They rose up before Moses, with some of the children of Israel, two hundred fifty princes of the congregation, called to the assembly, men of renown.

They assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said to them, “You take too much on yourself, since all the congregation are holy, everyone of them, and the LORD is among them! Why do you lift yourselves up above the LORD’s assembly?”

When Moses heard it, he fell on his face.

He said to Korah and to all his company, “In the morning, the LORD will show who are his, and who is holy, and will cause him to come near to him. Even him whom he shall choose, he will cause to come near to him.

Do this: have Korah and all his company take censers,

put fire in them, and put incense on them before the LORD tomorrow. It shall be that the man whom the LORD chooses, he shall be holy. You have gone too far, you sons of Levi!”

Moses said to Korah, “Hear now, you sons of Levi!

Is it a small thing to you that the God of Israel has separated you from the congregation of Israel, to bring you near to himself, to do the service of the LORD’s tabernacle, and to stand before the congregation to minister to them;

and that he has brought you near, and all your brothers the sons of Levi with you? Do you seek the priesthood also?

Therefore you and all your company have gathered together against the LORD! What is Aaron that you complain against him?”

Moses sent to call Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab; and they said, “We won’t come up!

Is it a small thing that you have brought us up out of a land flowing with milk and honey, to kill us in the wilderness, but you must also make yourself a prince over us?

Moreover you haven’t brought us into a land flowing with milk and honey, nor given us inheritance of fields and vineyards. Will you put out the eyes of these men? We won’t come up.”

Moses was very angry, and said to the LORD, “Don’t respect their offering. I have not taken one donkey from them, neither have I hurt one of them.”

Moses said to Korah, “You and all your company go before the LORD, you, and they, and Aaron, tomorrow.

Each man take his censer and put incense on it, and each man bring before the LORD his censer, two hundred fifty censers; you also, and Aaron, each with his censer.”

They each took his censer, and put fire in it, and laid incense on it, and stood at the door of the Tent of Meeting with Moses and Aaron.

Korah assembled all the congregation opposite them to the door of the Tent of Meeting. The LORD’s glory appeared to all the congregation.

The LORD spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying,

“Separate yourselves from among this congregation, that I may consume them in a moment!”

They fell on their faces, and said, “God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, shall one man sin, and will you be angry with all the congregation?”

Moses Separates the People

The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

“Speak to the congregation, saying, ‘Get away from around the tent of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram!’”

Moses rose up and went to Dathan and Abiram; and the elders of Israel followed him.

He spoke to the congregation, saying, “Depart, please, from the tents of these wicked men, and touch nothing of theirs, lest you be consumed in all their sins!”

So they went away from the tent of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, on every side. Dathan and Abiram came out, and stood at the door of their tents with their wives, their sons, and their little ones.

The Earth Swallows Korah

Moses said, “Hereby you shall know that the LORD has sent me to do all these works; for they are not from my own mind.

If these men die the common death of all men, or if they experience what all men experience, then the LORD hasn’t sent me.

But if the LORD makes a new thing, and the ground opens its mouth, and swallows them up with all that belong to them, and they go down alive into Sheol,(a) then you shall understand that these men have despised the LORD.”

As he finished speaking all these words, the ground that was under them split apart.

The earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up with their households, all of Korah’s men, and all their goods.

So they, and all that belonged to them went down alive into Sheol.(b) The earth closed on them, and they perished from among the assembly.

All Israel that were around them fled at their cry; for they said, “Lest the earth swallow us up!”

Fire came out from the LORD, and devoured the two hundred fifty men who offered the incense.

The Censers Reserved for Holy Use

The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

“Speak to Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest, that he take up the censers out of the burning, and scatter the fire away from the camp; for they are holy,

even the censers of those who sinned against their own lives. Let them be beaten into plates for a covering of the altar, for they offered them before the LORD. Therefore they are holy. They shall be a sign to the children of Israel.”

Eleazar the priest took the bronze censers which those who were burned had offered; and they beat them out for a covering of the altar,

to be a memorial to the children of Israel, to the end that no stranger who isn’t of the offspring of Aaron, would come near to burn incense before the LORD, that he not be as Korah and as his company; as the LORD spoke to him by Moses.

Murmuring and Plague

(1 Corinthians 10:1–13)

But on the next day all the congregation of the children of Israel complained against Moses and against Aaron, saying, “You have killed the LORD’s people!”

When the congregation was assembled against Moses and against Aaron, they looked toward the Tent of Meeting. Behold, the cloud covered it, and the LORD’s glory appeared.

Moses and Aaron came to the front of the Tent of Meeting.

The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

“Get away from among this congregation, that I may consume them in a moment!” They fell on their faces.

Moses said to Aaron, “Take your censer, put fire from the altar in it, lay incense on it, carry it quickly to the congregation, and make atonement for them; for wrath has gone out from the LORD! The plague has begun.”

Aaron did as Moses said, and ran into the middle of the assembly. The plague had already begun among the people. He put on the incense, and made atonement for the people.

He stood between the dead and the living; and the plague was stayed.

Now those who died by the plague were fourteen thousand seven hundred, in addition to those who died about the matter of Korah.

Aaron returned to Moses to the door of the Tent of Meeting, and the plague was stopped.

Footnotes

(a)16:30 Sheol is the place of the dead.

(b)16:33 Sheol is the place of the dead.