Numbers · chapter 16 of 36
Updated on
Numbers 16 tells of the rebellion of Korah, a Levite, together with Dathan, Abiram, On and 250 leaders, who accuse Moses and Aaron of exalting themselves above the congregation. Moses puts the decision in the Lord's hands: the earth swallows Korah and his followers, fire consumes the 250 with their censers, and the next day a plague kills thousands until Aaron makes atonement.
After the people's rebellion in Numbers 14, chapter 16 shows a rebellion from within the leadership: a Levite and several leaders question Moses' authority and Aaron's priesthood. The conflict touches the center of the book: who may approach God and by what means. The Lord's answer is dramatic and makes clear that access to his presence is his gift, not a human conquest.
Korah, son of Izhar, of the Kohathite family of the Levites, joins Dathan and Abiram, sons of Eliab, and On, of the tribe of Reuben, with 250 leaders of the congregation. They confront Moses and Aaron: the whole congregation is holy, they say, and the Lord is in its midst, so why do Moses and Aaron exalt themselves? Moses falls on his face and proposes a test: in the morning the Lord will show whom he has chosen, and Korah and his men are to bring censers with fire and incense. Moses reminds the Levites that they already have great honor and should not seek the priesthood as well. Dathan and Abiram refuse to appear and accuse him of bringing them out of a land flowing with milk and honey to kill them in the wilderness.
The next day Korah gathers the congregation at the entrance of the tent, and the glory of the Lord appears. The Lord proposes to consume the congregation, but Moses and Aaron fall on their faces and intercede. Moses tells the people to move away from the tents of the rebels and declares that if the earth opens its mouth, they will know these men have despised the Lord. The earth opens, swallows the rebels with their households and closes over them, and fire consumes the 250 men who were offering incense. Eleazar has their censers hammered into plating to cover the altar, as a reminder that only the descendants of Aaron may offer incense.
The day after, the congregation accuses Moses and Aaron of killing the Lord's people, and a plague begins. Aaron takes his censer with fire and incense, runs to the congregation and makes atonement, standing between the dead and the living, and the plague stops. 14,700 die, besides those who died in the affair of Korah.
References follow ESV book names and verse numbers. Read each verse in your Bible before the explanation.
The rebels say that the whole congregation is holy and ask why Moses and Aaron exalt themselves. It sounds like equality, but it hides a desire for power, and it ignores that access to God is not taken on one's own but granted by the Lord.
Moses answers that in the morning the Lord will make known who is his and who is holy. He does not defend himself but leaves the decision to God, something he had already done in Numbers 12.
Moses and Aaron fall on their faces and ask the Lord not to be angry with the whole congregation for the sin of one man. Even in the face of rebellion, the leaders intercede for the people, showing once more their shepherds' hearts.
Aaron stands between the dead and the living with the censer, and the plague stops. It is a powerful picture of mediation and atonement, which Christians see fulfilled in Christ, the one mediator between God and humanity.
6 questions with answers and references, ready for Sunday school, small group or a Bible quiz night.
Answer: Korah, a Levite, together with Dathan, Abiram and On, of the tribe of Reuben, and 250 leaders. — Numbers 16:1-2
Answer: Of exalting themselves above the Lord's congregation, when all were holy. — Numbers 16:3
Answer: With a test: Korah and his men were to bring censers with fire and incense before the Lord the next day. — Numbers 16:5-7
Answer: The earth opened its mouth and swallowed them with their households, and they went down alive into Sheol. — Numbers 16:31-33
Answer: Fire from the Lord consumed them. — Numbers 16:35
Answer: Aaron took his censer with fire and incense, made atonement and stood between the dead and the living. — Numbers 16:46-48
Numbers 16 warns against a spirit of rivalry in service to God. Korah held an honorable place among the Levites, but he wanted more. In the church, service is poisoned when someone seeks recognition, title or position above the calling. In a small group you can ask whether you are grateful for the place God has given you.
It also shows that access to God is not seized. For Christians, Christ is the high priest who opened the way for us, and that truth strengthens both confidence and humility. And like Moses and Aaron, leaders have the task of interceding for the people, even for those who criticize them.
Numbers 16 leaves the congregation fearful of approaching the tabernacle and Aaron's authority called into question. Numbers 17 will show a sign God gives to confirm whom he has chosen for the priesthood.
Numbers 26:11 clarifies that Korah's sons did not die. Later, descendants of his appear as singers and gatekeepers of the sanctuary, and several psalms carry their name. The text shows that the judgment fell on the ringleaders and not on all their families.
Because the people accused the leaders of killing the Lord's people, which meant rejecting God's own judgment. The plague shows the seriousness of that attitude, and Aaron's intercession with the censer shows that God provides a means of forgiveness and stops the punishment.