When the rebellious Korah, possibly engulfed in flames, fell into a pit and disappeared, his children were spared (Num 26:11). According to a later tradition, they were lifted into the air above the pit and kept safe from harm.
Descendants of Korah included, most famously, the prophet Samuel. David appointed Samuel's grandson Heman to be one of those in charge of the service of song at the tabernacle (1 Chron 6:31-38), and his descendants continued serving in that way.
Eleven psalms (twelve, if Psalm 43 is counted as a continuation of Psalm 42) are associated with the sons of Korah. In these psalms, we find evidence that the rescue from death that their ancestors experienced left a lasting imprint upon the family's collective consciousness.
One prominent example is in Psalm 46, which praises God as "our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble" (v 1). This psalm, the source of Martin Luther's hymn "A Mighty Fortress is Our God," goes on to declare, "Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way ..."(v 2).
The psalm pictures the Day of the Lord, a time of eschatological judgment, and asserts that those who find refuge in God have nothing to fear from that time of judgment. Though we have all at one time been rebels like Korah, if we turn to God in repentance, we are rescued and will one day be resurrected to eternal life.
The psalm goes on to picture God putting down all rebellion and ruling the world from his throne in Zion. From that throne will flow life-giving waters (v 4; Ezek 47; Rev 22).
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