Seder 115: Psalm 46---Finding Refuge in God with the Sons of Korah

 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).  

Seder 115: Numbers 16---Korah's Rebellion

 At some point during Israel's 40-year sojourn in the wilderness (after the middle of the second year and before the end of the 39th), a group of Reubenites, Levites, and leaders confronted Moses and Aaron.  

The Reubenites Dathan and Abiram mistakenly blamed Moses for having not yet led them to the Promised Land.  Painting a misleadingly rosy picture of life in Egypt, they accused Moses of deceiving them by taking them away from a "land of milk and honey" into a desolate wilderness (Num 16:12-14).  

A group of Levites led by Korah, a cousin of Moses and Aaron, seemed to have resented the fact that the priesthood was reserved for Aaron's family.  

Understandably, Moses resented their false and unfair accusations.  It was not his fault that Israel had not reached the Promised Land.  He asserted to God, "I have not taken one donkey from them, and I have not harmed one of them" (v 15).  

A few centuries later, the prophet Samuel gave a similar defense of himself in an address to the people of Israel. "Whose ox have I taken?  Or whose donkey have I taken?" (1 Sam 12:3)  In using this language, Samuel implicitly compared the Israelites of his day who demanded a king to Korah.  (1 Sam 11:14-12:22 is a traditional haftarah portion associated with this part of Numbers in the annual Torah cycle.)   

After giving the rebels a night to consider their actions and repent, God judged them decisively.  Dathan and Abiram and their families were swallowed up by the ground.  Those who aspired to the priesthood were incinerated.   Tradition has it that Korah, the ringleader, was in flames when the ground swallowed him up.  

One Reubenite, On the son of Peleth, is mentioned as a participant in the revolt in Num 16:1 but is not mentioned again.  Tradition has it that he thought better of his actions and did not continue in the rebellion.  In one scenario, his wife dissuaded him from continuing by pointing out that his status would not improve even if the rebellion were successful (b. Sanhedrin 109b-110a; Numbers Rabbah 18.20).  Proverbs 14:1 ("The wisest of women builds her house, but folly with her own hands tears it down") is traditionally illustrated by contrasting the wives of On and Korah.  

In a sermon at Church of the Messiah on Sept 3, 2022, Rob Wilson contrasted the examples of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, with those of Moses, Aaron, and the wife of On.  He also reminded us that in the Mishnah, in Pirke Avot 5:10, Korah's dispute is seen as one that is "not for the sake of heaven."