In Number 16, Korah and 250 other prominent Israelite leaders rebelled against the leadership of Moses and Aaron. Korah’s ambition to become a priest led him to employ dishonest methods, actions that ultimately resulted in his ruin.
Moses and Aaron stood alone against 250+ leading men of the community and heard their complaint.
They assembled against Moses and against Aaron and said to them, “You have gone too far! All the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the Lord is among them. So why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the Lord?” (Numbers 16:3).
Many pastors and ministers I know, myself included, grapple with pride and ego. I understand the envy Korah and his followers felt, seeing Moses and Aaron in favored positions while they remained in servant roles.
Many who have held leadership roles in a church understand the pain of criticism from fellow leaders. While I haven’t literally fallen on my face as Moses did (verse 4), my heart has certainly sunk when hearing harsh words from those I’ve served the Lord alongside.
Korah and his followers challenged Moses and Aaron, believing their roles in the tabernacle were insufficient. They aspired to become priests serving at the altar (verse 10).
These men, aware of God’s judgment that they would die in the wilderness, might have believed new leadership could persuade God to change His mind and allow this generation to enter the Promised Land. Regardless, leadership was being challenged.
Moses proposed a test: each would bring a censer filled with incense, and they would see how God would respond to their worship.
High Noon
Like an old Western showdown, Moses and Aaron confronted Korah and his 250 followers the next day. Each held a censer, symbolizing their worship in the tabernacle, as they awaited God’s response.
So each man took his censer, and they put fire in the censers and laid incense on them, and they stood at the entrance of the tent of meeting with Moses and Aaron.
Then Korah assembled the whole congregation against them at the entrance of the tent of meeting. And the glory of the Lord appeared to the whole congregation (Numbers 16:18-19).
Reading the Book of Numbers gives us valuable insight into Moses’s character, particularly his consistent intercession with God for the people. Even when they angered him and made accusations, Moses’s prayers for them never ceased.
They fell on their faces and said, “O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, shall one person sin and you become angry with the whole congregation?” (Numbers 16:22).
In response to Moses’s prayer, God directed him to separate the people from the rebels. He then instructed Moses to inform the people how God would distinguish between the rebellious and the faithful.
And Moses said, “This is how you shall know that the Lord has sent me to do all these works; it has not been of my own accord:
If these people die a natural death or if a natural fate comes on them, then the Lord has not sent me.
But if the Lord creates something new and the ground opens its mouth and swallows them up, with all that belongs to them, and they go down alive into Sheol, then you shall know that these men have despised the Lord” (Numbers 16:28-30).
Reflections
James tells us this about envy: But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth.
Such ‘wisdom’ does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice (James 3:14-16).
The account of Korah and his rebellious followers provides a clear warning against bitter envy and selfish ambition. Their actions likely stemmed from pride or boasting, which inevitably distorts the truth.
Such a mindset is not from God; it is earthly, unspiritual, and demonic.
We must diligently avoid the kind of envy highlighted in Numbers and James, as it invariably results in disorder and all sorts of evil.
Tomorrow’s article will tell the end of this tragic story.
YouTube Discussion
Rudy Ross and I discussed this passage on YouTube today.
Real Voices 