Numbers 16 NIV

Suggested Praise Songs:

• Make Room (Lyrics) – Community Music
• They’ll know we are Christians by our love | with lyrics
• Make Us One – Jesus Culture feat. Chris Quilala (letras) New song

Resources for Family Worship (with Children)

• Korah’s rebellion | Animated Bible Stories | My First Bible | 29 – Lesson for Kids
• I’m Gonna Walk Lyrics Video – Song for Kids
• Love One Another by Orange Kids Music – Song for Kids
• Stand Together | Kingdom Rock VBS | Group Publishing – Song for Kids
• Discussion Questions for Children & Youth are located in the section after Explanation, Meditation, and Prayer (at the end of this email/blog).

Explanation:

The repeated acts of rebellion that occurred after the Israelites left Mount Sinai now reach their climax. We do not know exactly when this incident took place.

Korah, one of the descendants of Levi, incited 250 leading figures from the tribes and challenged the authority of Moses and Aaron. Korah belonged to the Kohathite line within the tribe of Levi. The Kohathites were responsible for caring for and carrying the sacred furnishings of the tabernacle. Korah was dissatisfied that the priestly office was monopolized by the Levites descended from Aaron, while the other Levites were assigned only, in Korah’s view, “menial tasks.” The argument he raised when he rebelled may seem legitimate at first glance (v. 3). But hidden within that argument were his pride and greed.

In the face of Korah’s challenge, Moses “fell facedown” (v. 4) and prayed. This is what Moses did whenever he faced a crisis as a spiritual leader. When he encountered something that could make his blood boil, he kept his emotions in check through prayer and sought God’s inspiration. This is a very important virtue for a leader. After finishing his prayer, Moses instructed all 250 who had joined the rebellion to come before the tabernacle the next morning, each bringing fire and incense in his censer (vv. 5–7). Moses rebuked Korah, saying that the responsibility given to him as a Levite was already honorable, and that it was not right for him to covet the priesthood as well (vv. 8–11).

Dathan and Abiram from the tribe of Reuben also joined Korah’s rebellion. Moses summoned the two men from their tents, but they refused his order. They slandered Moses, claiming that for the sake of his own political ambition, he had led the Israelites out of “a land flowing with milk and honey” into the wilderness (vv. 12–14). Calling Egypt “a land flowing with milk and honey” was a direct provocation against Moses. Moses, who had always interceded for the people, could no longer endure it and offered a prayer of curse against them (v. 15).

The next morning, Moses, Aaron, Korah, and the 250 leaders each stood before the tabernacle with their censers. Then God told Moses and Aaron to separate themselves from the rebels. Realizing that God was about to bring disaster upon the whole congregation of Israel, Moses and Aaron fell facedown and interceded, asking God to punish only those who had sinned and to forgive the people (vv. 20–22). The Lord accepted their prayer and told them to separate the congregation from the rebels (vv. 23–24). When the people moved away from the rebels, the ground split open and swallowed those who followed them, and fire came down from heaven and consumed Korah and the 250 rebels (vv. 25–35). God told Moses to take the censers the rebels had used, hammer them into thin sheets, and overlay the altar with them (vv. 39–40). The incense censers overlaid on the altar would become a means of reminding those who saw them of Korah’s sin.

The next day, the Israelites rose up and blamed Moses and Aaron for all the deaths, speaking against them (v. 41). This means that the spirit of distrust and rebellion had taken deep root in their hearts. At that moment, Moses and Aaron saw the glory of God appearing at the tabernacle and ran there. Moses realized that God’s judgment had begun, so he told Aaron to take a censer and go to the people. When Aaron went, he saw that the plague had already begun spreading, and only when he stood with the censer did the plague stop. As a result, 14,700 people died (vv. 42–50).

Meditation:

For a community to stand whole and fulfill its function, leaders must be appointed, and there must be organization and structure to enable them to serve the community. The reason authority and power are entrusted to leaders is not for their own benefit, but so that they may serve the whole community. Leaders must discern this purpose well and use authority and power as tools for service, and the members of the community must recognize and follow their authority. But our fallen nature causes us to shake this order. Leaders fall into the temptation to misuse the authority and power entrusted to them for private purposes, and members of the community fall into the temptation to slander leaders unjustly and challenge their authority.

Earlier, we saw the story of Aaron and Miriam challenging Moses’ authority. They provoked him with the excuse, “Has the Lord spoken only through Moses? Hasn’t he also spoken through us?” (12:2). On the surface, their words were true. But that was not a reason to go against the order God had established. Korah’s words also seem correct on the surface: “The whole community is holy, every one of them, and the Lord is with them. Why then do you set yourselves above the Lord’s assembly?” (v. 3). But that was not a reason to challenge the leadership of Moses and Aaron. Moses and Aaron were serving the people according to God’s will, but Korah slandered them by saying they were “ruling over” the people. Korah belonged to the descendants of Kohath, who had received the most holy responsibility among the three families of the tribe of Levi—the duty of handling the furnishings and articles of the tabernacle. Yet he was not satisfied with this and coveted the priestly office.

It is noteworthy that 250 people joined Korah’s incitement. People tend to fall easily for this kind of incitement. That is because there is a desire lurking in everyone’s heart to challenge authority. So people become dissatisfied with the portion given to them and covet the portion given to others. When someone gives them a seemingly persuasive reason, they quickly take the bait and join in. Compared to the total number of the congregation, 250 people were a small number, but they were like cancer cells, posing a danger that could break down the entire congregation. They were ready to make everything come to nothing while beautifying Egypt as “a land flowing with milk and honey.”

The New Korean Revised Version says that Korah and his followers “formed a faction” (v. 1). The most dangerous thing in dividing and breaking down a community is “forming factions.” In every community, there are people who use subtle words to stir others up for this purpose. There are also always people who are drawn to such words and join them. That is why the New Testament repeatedly warns against faction-making (Romans 2:8; 1 Corinthians 3:3; Galatians 5:20; Jude 1:19). It comes from evil and leads toward evil.

Speaking about the divisions in the Corinthian church, the apostle Paul said, “If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that person; for God’s temple is sacred, and you together are that temple” (3:17). This means that the church is God’s temple, and dividing and breaking down the church community is an act of destroying the temple. When the apostle Paul said this, he was probably thinking of Korah’s rebellion. If we remember that the church is the body of the Lord and the temple of the Holy Spirit, we will be careful both not to stir people up and not to be drawn into forming factions.

Key Verse: Verse 3

They came as a group to oppose Moses and Aaron and said to them, “You have gone too far! The whole community is holy, every one of them, and the Lord is with them. Why then do you set yourselves above the Lord’s assembly?”

Prayer:

Thank You for giving us a church to love and serve. Thank You for giving each of us a role according to our gifts and allowing us to work together for good. Help us to be thankful for the responsibilities entrusted to us, to respect the responsibilities given to others, and to humble ourselves and serve one another. May our church be built up as the Lord’s holy temple. Amen.

Discussion Questions for Children & Youth:

Key Point: God gives each person a meaningful place in His community. A holy church grows when we receive our role with gratitude, respect the roles God gives to others, and use our words to build up the body of Christ rather than divide it.

• For Preschool-Elementary:

• Korah was unhappy with the job God gave him. What is one way you can thank God for something He has given you?
• What kind words can we say when someone else gets to do something special?
• At church, how can we help instead of complaining?
• Youth:

• Korah used spiritual language— “the whole community is holy”—but his motive was pride. How can good-sounding words be used to hide selfish motives?
• What is the difference between respectfully raising a concern and creating division?
• Paul says the church is God’s temple. How should that change the way we speak about church leaders, volunteers, and one another?