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| 1 And Korah, the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, made bold, and with him Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and On, the son of Peleth, the sons of Reuben; |
Now Korah – Teaches us that in God's estimation there is no holiness that does not include humility and full submission. R3100:2
Son of Levi – The uprising was amongst the consecrated Levites. R5268:2*
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| 2 and they rose up against Moses, with two hundred and fifty men of the children of Israel, princes of the assembly, summoned to the council, men of renown; |
They rose up – Represents those who fail to recognize divine institutions in spiritual Israel. R4037:5
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| 3 and they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said to them, It is enough; for all the assembly, all of them are holy, and Jehovah is among them; and why do ye lift up yourselves above the congregation of Jehovah? |
Gathered themselves – Typical of the opposition engendered against the Lord's harvest work: "Why so high a standard?" R5268:3*
Too much upon you – "Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer." (1 Cor 10:10) R2300:4
Had they recognized the Lord as Governor they would have accepted Moses as his representative. R4047:1
So some ignore Jesus and talk of the fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man. R4047:2
Thus Christ calls not all, but a special class. R4047:2
The Lord sets the members in the Body, we are not to set ourselves. R4047:3
LORD is among them – Boastfulness is not a sign of piety, but of the reverse. R2300:5
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| 4 When Moses heard this, he fell on his face. |
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| 5 And he spoke to Korah and to all his band, saying, Even to-morrow will Jehovah make known who is his, and who is holy; and he will cause him to come near to him; and him whom he has chosen, him will he cause to come near to him. |
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| 6 This do: take you censers, Korah, and all his band, |
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| 7 and put fire therein, and lay incense thereon before Jehovah to-morrow; and it shall be that the man whom Jehovah doth choose, he shall be holy. It is enough, ye sons of Levi! |
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| 8 And Moses said to Korah, Hear, I pray you, ye sons of Levi! |
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| 9 Is it too little for you, that the God of Israel has separated you from the assembly of Israel, to bring you near to himself to do the work of the tabernacle of Jehovah, and to stand before the assembly to minister to them? |
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| 10 --that he has brought thee near, and all thy brethren the sons of Levi with thee; and seek ye now the priesthood also? |
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| 11 For which cause thou and all thy band are banded together against Jehovah; and Aaron, who is he that ye murmur against him? |
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| 12 And Moses sent to call Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab; but they said, We will not come up! |
We will not come up – Where the heart is wrong it cannot be guided by reason. R3100:3
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| 13 Is it a small thing that thou hast brought us up out of a land flowing with milk and honey, to kill us in the wilderness, that thou must make thyself altogether a ruler over us? |
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| 14 Moreover, thou hast not brought us into a land flowing with milk and honey, or given us inheritance of fields and vineyards: wilt thou put out the eyes of these men? we will not come up! |
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| 15 Then Moses was very wroth, and said to Jehovah, Have no regard to their oblation: not one ass have I taken from them, neither have I hurt one of them. |
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| 16 And Moses said to Korah, Be thou and all thy band before Jehovah, thou, and they, and Aaron, to-morrow. |
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| 17 And take each his censer, and put incense thereon, and present before Jehovah every man his censer, two hundred and fifty censers; and thou, and Aaron, each his censer. |
Censer – Pictures the bringing forth of many tracts and pamphlets by those who oppose the harvest work. R5268:4*
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| 18 And they took each his censer, and put fire on them, and laid incense thereon, and stood before the entrance to the tent of meeting, as well as Moses and Aaron. |
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| 19 And Korah gathered the whole assembly against them to the entrance of the tent of meeting. And the glory of Jehovah appeared to all the assembly. |
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| 20 And Jehovah spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, |
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| 21 Separate yourselves from the midst of this assembly, and I will consume them in a moment. |
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| 22 And they fell on their faces, and said, O *God, the God of the spirits of all flesh! shall *one* man sin, and wilt thou be wroth with the whole assembly? |
Of the spirits – Ruach, life-power, spirit of life. E314
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| 23 And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, |
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| 24 Speak unto the assembly, saying, Get you up from about the habitation of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram. |
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| 25 And Moses rose up and went to Dathan and Abiram; and the elders of Israel followed him. |
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| 26 And he spoke to the assembly, saying, Depart, I pray you, from the tents of these wicked men, and touch nothing of theirs, lest ye perish in all their sins. |
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| 27 And they got up from the habitation of Koran, Dathan, and Abiram, on every side. And Dathan and Abiram came out, and stood in the entrance of their tents, and their wives, and their sons, and their little ones. |
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| 28 And Moses said, Hereby ye shall know that Jehovah has sent me to do all these deeds, for they are not out of my own heart: |
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| 29 if these men die as all men die, and are visited with the visitation of all men, Jehovah has not sent me; |
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| 30 but if Jehovah make a new thing, and the ground open its mouth, and swallow them up, and all that they have, and they go down alive into Sheol, then ye shall know that these men have despised Jehovah. |
Earth open – Possibly showing being swallowed up by worldliness, business, etc. R5268:4
Into the pit – Sheol, oblivion, the death-state. E356; R828:3
Typical, here, of the Second Death. R3100:5, R138:4* Numbers 16:32
Swallowed them up – Thus worldliness or various false ideas have swallowed or buried in oblivion, as far as leadership is concerned, some who have become heady and have been rejected by the Lord. R3100:6
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| 31 And it came to pass when he had ended speaking all these words, that the ground clave apart that was under them. |
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| 32 And the earth opened its mouth, and swallowed them up, and their households, and all the men that belonged to Korah, and all their property. |
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| 33 And they went down, they and all that they had, alive into Sheol, and the earth covered them; and they perished from among the congregation. |
Into the pit – Not only Korah, but his house and household goods all went into hell. HG556:2
They perished – Typifying the everlasting destruction of those who would despise the antitypical Moses and his redemptive work. R4037:5
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| 34 And all Israel that were round about them fled at their cry; for they said, Lest the earth swallow us up! |
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| 35 And there came out a fire from Jehovah, and consumed the two hundred and fifty men that had presented incense. |
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| 36 And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, |
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| 37 Speak to Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest, that he take up the censers out of the burning; and scatter the fire afar; for they are hallowed, |
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| 38 the censers of these sinners who have forfeited their life; and they shall make them into broad plates for the covering of the altar; for they presented them before Jehovah, therefore they are hallowed; and they shall be a sign unto the children of Israel. |
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| 39 And Eleazar the priest took the copper censers, which they that were burnt had presented; and they were made broad plates for a covering of the altar: |
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| 40 as a memorial to the children of Israel, that no stranger who is not of the seed of Aaron come near to burn incense before Jehovah, that he be not as Korah, and as his band, --as Jehovah had said to him through Moses. |
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| 41 And the whole assembly of the children of Israel murmured on the morrow against Moses and against Aaron, saying, Ye have killed the people of Jehovah. |
Israel murmured – Instead of recognizing the justice of the Lord in dealing with those who were rebellious against his divine arrangements. R5268:4*
Typifying some who now falsely accuse the Lord's true servants when the Lord himself has ceased to use some unfaithful servant. R3101:1
This same spirit may be noted in our day. How many there are who, because not right at heart, are more or less in sympathy with those with whom the Lord has no sympathy. R3100:6
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| 42 And it came to pass, when the assembly was gathered together against Moses and against Aaron, that they looked toward the tent of meeting, and behold, the cloud covered it, and the glory of Jehovah appeared. |
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| 43 And Moses and Aaron went before the tent of meeting. |
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| 44 And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, |
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| 45 Get you up from the midst of this assembly, and I will consume them in a moment. And they fell on their faces. |
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| 46 And Moses said to Aaron, Take the censer, and put fire thereon from off the altar, and lay on incense, and carry it quickly to the assembly, and make atonement for them; for there is wrath gone out from Jehovah: the plague is begun. |
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| 47 And Aaron took as Moses had said, and ran into the midst of the congregation; and behold, the plague had begun among the people; and he put on incense, and made atonement for the people. |
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| 48 And he stood between the dead and the living; and the plague was stayed. |
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| 49 Now they that died in the plague were fourteen thousand seven hundred, besides them that had died because of the matter of Korah. |
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| 50 And Aaron returned to Moses to the entrance of the tent of meeting; and the plague was stayed. |
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