Overview
What Korach the demagogue and some of Shevet Reuven really wanted, and how they and their adherents are punished; the “rod test” vindicating Aaron; Cohen and Levite duties and gifts; Levites gifts to Cohanim.
Following the interpretation Rabbi Menachem Leibtag, the dramatic and tragic saga of Korach and members of the tribe of Reuven and their followers involves “TWO INDEPENDENT GRIEVANCES RAISED BY TWO INDEPENDENT GROUPS SITUATED IN TWO DIFFERENT LOCATIONS” who were united by Korach’s behind- the- scenes manipulation. The saga unfolds in a Hollywood-like style of “cutting” to a scene and jumping back and forth from one scene to the other, from one location to the other.
Who is Korach and what did he really want?
Levi sired Kehas who in turn sired Amram,Yitzhar,Chevron and Uzieel. Amram was the father of Moshe, Aaron and Miriam. Korach was one of Yitzhar’s three sons.
Korach was consumed with jealousy of his cousin Moshe because (according to Rashi) Moshe appointed his cousin Elytzaphan(son of Uzieel, Kehas’ fourth son ) as the leader of the Kehas dynasty instead of him, the offspring of brother number two. Korach was seeking to replace Aaron and install himself as the religious leader. Korach did what demagogues do: Posing as the champion of the people; telling the Jewish people that he was confronting Moshe not for himself but because he cared about them; expressing that every one of the Jews is holy and therefore entitled to offer Korbanot(“ki chall haam kulam kidoshim”). Korach and his 250 person group object to Aaron’s exclusive rights to the Priesthood.(Note: his followers are referred to as “Adas Korach”. The word Adas, rather than Kahal, suggests dissension, disunity and unhappiness.)
What does Korach do?
Although the Torah offers limited information about his behavior, the Sages fill in the gaps for us regarding how Korach stirred up the rebellion against the leadership by mocking and discrediting Moshe publicly.
Korach (with his followers) approached Moshe and asked if a garment that is made entirely of blue wool requires Tzitzis, to which Moshe answered “Yes”. Korach sarcastically commented on the seeming ridiculousness of an all-blue garment requiring four additional blue threads to make it ritually correct.
Korach then asks if a house filled with Torah books requires a Mezuzah, to which Moshe responded “Yes”. Korach’s mocking response is to question aloud how a house filled with Torah does not fulfill the Miztvah but a few verses contained in the Mezuzah do!
Korach then goes on to offer a parable about a poor widow, designed to show how overbearing are the Torah and its Mitzvos.
What do the children of Reuven want?
These are Korach’s neighbors (“woe to an evil person; woe to his neighbors”) whose rejection of Moshe’s authority and leadership may have been triggered by the loss of that tribe’s loss of primacy (as the offspring of Yaakov’s first born son). Theirs is a rebellion to regain this lost political leadership. They ,too, voice concern for the welfare and future of the Jewish people. They rail against Moshe: ”Is it a small thing that you brought us up from out a land flowing with milk and honey to kill us in the desert, but you also make yourself a prince over us?”(Note this insolence to Moshe and ironic characterization of Egypt
Who gets punished…and how?
Hashem tells Moshe to…” tell the congregation(eidah) to …leave the dwelling (“Mishkan”)of Korach ,Dasan and Aviram. ”The congregation abides as “Dasan and Aviram came out and stood at the door of their tents with their wives and their sons and their little ones…The ground cleaves asunder…The earth swallowed them up and their households and all that pertained to Korach and all their goods..and the earth closed upon them and they perished…”.
· Dasan and Aviram and their devoted allies are swallowed up.
· A fire that came from Hashem consumed the 250 men in Adas Korach at the Ohel Moed.
· According to the Torah (Bamidbar 26:12) “the sons of Korach did not die”.
· Korach’s fate remains unclear. In Bamidbar 26:10 we read that “…the earth opened her mouth and swallowed them up WITH KORACH” but the in Devarim 11:6 it seems that ONLY DASAN AND AVIRAM were swallowed up!
Why the ambiguities?
Rabbi Leibtag suggests that these events are not too different from modern day coalition politics. In this case, Korach the demagogue is in the background—moving from group to group and location to location—inciting each of the groups to give voice to their protest and, in effect, creating one large block of supporters to help him achieve his goal of becoming the next national leader!
The Mishna in Pirkei Avot (5:17) considers the rebellion of Korach as the paradigm of a dispute that was "sh'lo l'shem sha'mayim" (an argument not for the sake of Heaven). Korach‘s arguments seem to be "l'shem shamayim" but these claims are really a red herring. “His primary interest is to promote himself, to build a powerbase from which he himself can emerge as the new leader.”
Concludes Rabbi Leibtag: “ Parshat Korach thus teaches us that whenever a dispute arises over community leadership or religious reform, before reaching conclusions we must carefully examine not only the claims, but also the true motivations behind the individuals who promote them…. every individual must constantly examine the true motivations behind all his spiritual endeavors.”
Rabbi H. L. Berenholz
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