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Numbers 16 Commentary
by Brad Boyles
Numbers 16 is part of a much bigger picture of Moses’ leadership of Israel. This rollercoaster of leading the Israelites toward the Promised Land had many twists and turns. If we go all the way back to the beginning of Exodus, we find that the relationship between Moses and Israel was dramatic, complicated, and tumultuous.
- Exodus 4 – At first, the Israelites rallied behind Moses.
- Exodus 5 – In the next chapter, Pharaoh ramped up their labor, and the people lost faith in Moses.
- Exodus 12 – Passover comes, and they are seemingly freed from Egypt. Moses is celebrated.
- Exodus 14 – But, of course, that quickly dissipated after Pharoah’s army began to pursue them and it seemed they were trapped between the army and the Red Sea. Moses is once again the target of their criticism.
- Exodus 14 – With God’s help, Moses parts the Red Sea for Israel and closes it on the Egyptians. Moses was their hero!
- Exodus 16 – But once again, it was short-lived as they began wandering and become hungry. It was all Moses’ fault… again.
- Exodus 17 – Manna fell from the sky and Moses was back in their good graces… until they got thirsty and actually threatened to stone Moses.
- Exodus 18 – The complaining Israelites were again wearing Moses out with their whining and disputes.
- Exodus 32 – Then Moses famously went to Mount Sinai with God. The people had zero confidence in him at this point and decided a golden calf would be better.
- Numbers 11 – The old miracle manna got boring and Moses finally cried out to God: “I am not able to carry all these people alone! If you will treat me like this, kill me at once.” God, in His grace, gave Moses elders to assist him.
- Numbers 12 – The plummet continued as Miriam and Aaron (his own brother and sister) publicly opposed Moses because of his interracial marriage.
- Numbers 14 – The twelve spies’ presented their “Promised Land Report” which drew threats from the people to demote Moses and Aaron and stone Joshua and Caleb.
What a nightmare! Can you imagine this kind of leadership journey? This history sets the table for Korah and his minions to rise up against Moses. After all of the ups and downs, Korah believes that the time has come for mutiny.
Who Was Korah?
Korah was not a lay-worshipper. He was a fellow Levite and a first cousin to Moses, Aaron, and Miriam. He was of equal rank with Aaron within the tribe of Levi, though, Aaron was called by God as the first High Priest and Korah would have been a gatekeeper for the tabernacle.
The point is, Korah was not just another Israelite. He was charismatic, persuasive, and well-liked. This is why he was so influential. These 250 men who followed him were not just Israelites, but “esteemed men” or “men of renown.” So ultimately what is their beef with Moses and Aaron?
They assembled before Moses and Aaron and said to them, “You have gone too far! All the members of the community belong to the LORD, and the LORD is with all of us. Why, then, Moses, do you set yourself above the LORD’s community?” [4] When Moses heard this, he threw himself on the ground and prayed.
Numbers 16:3-4 GNB
Moses’ Response
Korah gathers a crowd and challenges Moses’ authority. This was a position, ironically, that Moses neither wanted nor chose, but I love Moses’ response. He first goes directly into prayer.
He doesn’t engage with these accusations and he doesn’t fire back at Korah pointing out his character flaws. In fact, he doesn’t even answer him right away. This is an easy text to over-spiritualize, but in reality, how many of us are tempted to immediately fire back out of anger instead of disengaging and going into prayer?
Korah is a Levite but he believes he should be able to be a priest and offer sacrifices. Dathan, Abiram, and On also take issue with Moses’ leadership and they join the rebellion. Moses’ response redirects Korah to the true authority. In actuality, they had a problem with God and the authority structure He had designed. So, since the problem was directed at God, Moses would set up a test where God would be the judge.
Each year on the Day of Atonement the high priest took a censer of coals from the blazing altar where animals were sacrificed, and together with these burning coals on a small, shovel-like censer, the high priest took two handfuls of sweet incense beaten into fine granules. He passed through the holy place beyond the veil into the holy of holies. There he put the incense upon the flaming coals before God.
Moses has given the Korah and his wannabe priests a priestly duty and the rest of the congregation will wait and see if God accepts their sacrifice. Ultimately, Moses establishes a test but it will be God who fights the battle.
Rebellion against human authority often means there’s rebellion against spiritual authority as well. Korah and Moses do not see authority the same way. Korah sees it as personal gain while Moses sees it as service to God. How do you see authority? Is it just a prestigious title? Is it another accomplishment under your belt? Or, is it an opportunity to serve?
The Test
We read in verse 19 that all the congregation has been assembled against them (which I’m assuming means Moses and Aaron) at the doorway of Korah’s tent. I’m interpreting that as new people who have been persuaded by Korah to come check this out or possibly join him. So now, the entire congregation is there surrounding the tent.
God tells Aaron and Moses to step back from the community of people because He’s going to destroy them. This triggers these two leaders to intercede for the lives of the people who have been swept up by the rebellion.
But Moses and Aaron bowed down with their faces to the ground and said, “O God, you are the source of all life. When one of us sins, do you become angry with the whole community?” [23] The LORD said to Moses, [24] “Tell the people to move away from the tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram.”
Numbers 16:22-24 GNB
It is here we get a glimpse of the love that Moses and Aaron have for their flock, but also for the grace of God, who, after hearing their prayer, tells the two men to get the congregation away from Korah and his 250 followers. After Moses draws back the people, he makes this profound speech stating that if these men are against God, He will certainly swallow them up. No sooner than he finishes this speech, the earth opens, and Korah and his rebels are swallowed up.
What can we learn from this? As Christians, when we come under attack and we must seek God. It’s hard. It requires discernment, trust, perseverance, and patience. For those of us with natural abilities, it’s difficult to harness that desire to fix it ourselves. It’s difficult to allow the Korah’s of the world to spout off half-truths in our face. It’s even more difficult when we know their motives are impure and when they are ultimately slandering the God whom we love.
However, the message is clear. Let the Lord fight the battle. It may be that the Lord prompts you to personally confront, and that’s great because we have a model for that in Scripture (Matthew 18). However, it may be that the Lord prompts you to put forth a test like Moses did, or, to simply disengage and move on. If God has a promise for you or your ministry, He will be the One to eliminate the hindrance to fulfilling that promise. The key to the success of Moses and Aaron as leaders was their willingness to serve the people (even in the harsh times) and their obedience to prayer.