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.
Korah, a Levite, gathered 250 leaders against Moses and Aaron. Their claim was that the whole congregation was holy, so no one had the right to stand above it. Moses does not argue. He sets an appointment. In the morning God Himself will settle who belongs to Him, who is holy, and who may come near.
Before Moses says a word, he drops to the ground. One writer links his prayer to the answer that follows:
In the face of such opposition we see the faith and dependence of Moses. "He fell on his face" (v.4). Should we not do the same when trouble arises? Instead of arguing he prays. So God at once gives him the insight to know what to do. He calmly tells the hostile company, "Tomorrow morning the Lord will show who is His and who is holy" (v.5). It is precious to wait on the Lord!
Another writer points out that such a quarrel is not really aimed at the servant at all:
Suppose God sets a man in a certain position and gives him a certain work to do. Suppose others quarrel with him simply because he does that work and fills that position. Their quarrel is really with God, who knows how to settle it, and will do it in His own way. Being sure of this gives the Lord's servant a holy calm, and lifts him above envious and restless spirits when they rise up against him.
Notice whose name is missing from the answer. Moses, the accused, refuses to be the judge:
This put the matter into the right hands. Moses gives great prominence to the sovereign rights of the Lord. "The Lord will show" and "The Lord will choose." There is not a word about himself or Aaron. The whole question hangs on the Lord's choice and the Lord's appointment. The 250 rebels are set face to face with the living God, so that the whole matter may be gone into and settled before a court from which there is no appeal. It would have been no use for Moses and Aaron to give the judgement, since they were the defendants in the case.
Some translations render "in the morning" here as "tomorrow." The delay is deliberate, and one writer sees mercy in it:
On the one hand, Moses leaves it to God to confirm the position He has given to each one. On the other hand, he waits until "tomorrow." He does not want to act in haste, even though the situation is serious. He would rather give Korah and those with him enough time to repent.
Being His, being holy, being brought near — all three depend on God's choice. God had already given Korah a place, which is what makes his grasping so strange:
Unbelief shows itself again and again in this very form. God gives a man an honour. The man does not receive it as from God, so it becomes only a stepping stone for despising the God who gave it, while he grasps after what God has never given him. Nothing breeds dissatisfaction like a heart that fails to value what God has given it. His will alone secures real joy and strength, and good results for the glory of the Lord. These men were not satisfied with their position, either as leaders of the congregation or as Levites. They wanted to be like Aaron and Moses.
Korah's public argument was about everyone's rights. Moses' reply exposes a private ambition underneath it:
At first glance it might not look as though Korah was seeking anything for himself. He seemed to be standing up for the rights of the whole assembly. But Moses, by the Spirit of God, unmasks him. Under the fine-sounding excuse of defending the common rights of the congregation, he was boldly seeking the priesthood for himself. Loud talkers about the liberties, rights, and privileges of God's people are usually seeking their own advancement and advantage. This is not always obvious, but God is sure to bring it to light sooner or later.
One writer sees this verse behind Paul's words to Timothy:
The two-part seal of 2 Timothy 2:19 is almost certainly a reference to Numbers 16:5, 26, and we would do well to read that incident here as an illustration. The two principles are clear and distinct. First, God is sovereign in His mercy and His actions, so He always knows and finally rescues those who are His. Second, man is still responsible, so everyone who acknowledges the Lord with his lips is under a solemn obligation to depart from iniquity. The Christian must never share in evil of any kind, from the least to the greatest.
- Chosen — everything turns on the Lord's choice. Moses says nothing about himself or Aaron.
- Given — nearness and holiness are honours God gives. To despise His gift and grab at what He never gave is unbelief.
- Unmasked — loud talk about everyone's rights can hide a man seeking a place for himself. God brings it to light sooner or later.
- Waited for — Moses falls on his face and prays instead of arguing. He sets the test for the morning, leaving room for repentance.
- Sealed — one writer reads verses 5 and 26 in the seal of 2 Timothy 2:19. The Lord knows His own, and everyone who names His name must depart from iniquity.
This do take you censers, Korah, and all his band,
Korah and 250 leaders had challenged Moses and Aaron over who may serve God as priest. Moses answers not with an argument but with a test: the men who want priestly work must bring censers before the Lord, who will settle who is holy.
Moses names no judge but the Lord, and leaves himself out of the verdict:
This was placing the matter in the proper hands. Moses gives great prominence to the sovereign rights of the Lord. "The Lord will show" and "The Lord will choose." There is not a syllable about himself or Aaron. The two hundred and fifty rebels are brought face to face with the living God. They are summoned into His presence, with their censers in their hands. There the whole matter can be fully gone into and settled, before that great court from which there can be no appeal. It would have been no use for Moses and Aaron to try to give judgment, since they were defendants in the case.
That calm instruction came out of prayer rather than debate. Moses had first fallen on his face:
But in the face of such opposition we see the faith and dependence of Moses. "He fell on his face" (v.4). Should we not do the same when trouble arises? Instead of arguing he prays. So God at once gives him the insight to know what to do.
The Lord's test uses the priest's own equipment:
A small vessel made of metal, to hold burning coals from the altar, on which incense was sprinkled by the priest, so that a cloud of incense might rise from it. The same word is used when Korah, Dathan, Abiram and their company were put to the test; those censers were probably made in a hurry, since 250 were needed.
Moses hands them the very thing they were reaching for. Commentators see wisdom in that:
It is always well, when people are seeking a place, to let them have it, to their heart's content; for most certainly the very place they have foolishly aspired to will be the scene of their clear defeat and terrible confusion. You may sometimes see men envying others in a certain sphere of service, and longing to occupy that sphere themselves. Let them try it; and they are sure, in the end, to break down and retire covered with shame.
The Lord's choice, not Korah's claim, decides who is holy. Priestly honour comes only by call:
As to the appointment of the earthly priest, "No one takes this honour for himself, but only when he is called by God, just as Aaron was." Here again there is a likeness to the priesthood of Christ. No one can truly take the place of priest, in any sense of the word, who is not called of God. Ignoring this great truth is deadly serious. The judgment that fell on Korah and those with him shows it. They sought to establish themselves in the priesthood without being called by God.
Korah already had God-given work. The priesthood was the one line he could not cross:
Korah did not aim at being a minister, for that he was. He aimed at being a priest, which he could not be. God gave the priesthood to Aaron and his family. Anyone else who tried to offer sacrifice, or do any other priestly work, was boldly seizing what was not his. Now Aaron was a type of our great High Priest who has passed into the heavens — Jesus the Son of God... There is no such thing as a priest on earth now, except in the sense in which all believers are priests.
Jude names three failures from the past, and Korah's is the last:
In the letter of Jude the beginning, the way, and the end are perfectly set before us. "The way of Cain" is the great departure at the beginning of this world's moral history. There brother killed brother, jealous of his acceptance with God... "The error of Balaam" is turning the name of God into a means of earthly honour and gain. The last one we have here is "Korah's rebellion," and here those who depart from God perish. This is not merely the selfish twisting of the truth into a way of getting ahead, bad as that was. It is open, deliberate rebellion against the rights of Christ Himself.
- Chosen, not self-appointed. The verse turns on the Lord's choice: no one takes the honour for himself.
- Chosen, so Moses steps aside. Since the choice is God's, Moses prays instead of arguing and leaves the verdict to Him.
- Chosen, so the test is granted. Moses hands over the censers. The place a man grasps at without a call becomes the place of his defeat.
- Chosen for service, not for everything. Korah had real God-given work. His ruin was reaching past it for a priesthood he was never given.
- Chosen — and the choice fell on Christ. Aaron pictures the High Priest now in heaven. Every believer is a priest, but no one on earth holds Aaron's place; Jude points back to Korah's rebellion as the warning.
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!
Korah, a Levite, and 250 leaders rose up against Moses and Aaron, reaching for the priesthood. Moses did not argue back. He set a test for the next day: take censers, and let God Himself show who is holy.
Moses names no defender of his own. His answer turns on what God will do.
This was placing the matter in the proper hands. Moses gives great prominence to the sovereign rights of Jehovah. "The Lord will show" and "The Lord will choose." There is not a syllable about himself or Aaron. The whole question hinges upon the Lord's choice and the Lord's appointment. The two hundred and fifty rebels are brought face to face with the living God. Of course, it would have been useless for Moses and Aaron to judge the case, since they were the defendants. But Moses was glad to have all parties summoned into God's presence, so their case could be judged and settled there.
The test was not a vote or a debate. The men had to do in public the one thing only a priest could do.
For the second time, as verse 4 tells us, Moses met the situation by falling on his face — standing aside for God to act. Yet he knew what God would do, as we see in verses 5-7. Korah and his company would get their answer from God Himself the next day. They were to take censers with fire and incense, and present themselves at the door of the tabernacle, as though they were priests.
The verse does not say the holy man will be chosen; it says the chosen man will be holy. Priesthood is a call received, never a rank seized.
Further, he says, "No one takes this honor for himself, but only when he is called by God, just as Aaron was." God called Aaron. Korah rebelled with his company. He lifted himself up against Moses, and against Aaron the priest. What was the result? They were summoned before the sanctuary, every man with his censer. These men wanted to push their way into the high priest's office. As they drew near, fire from God's holy presence comes out and destroys them. Korah and his companions are witnesses that no one could force a way into the priestly office — only those whom God called.
The rebuke names them "sons of Levi". These men already held an honour from God, and that very honour fed their reaching for more.
Unbelief shows itself constantly in this very form. God may put an honour on a man, and the man may not receive it as from Him. Then the honour becomes a stepping stone for despising the God who gave it, while he grasps after what God has never given. Nothing breeds dissatisfaction like a heart that fails to value what God has allotted to us. Whatever is His will alone secures real joy and strength, and happy results to the glory of the Lord.
Korah's own duties were anything but small, which is what makes the trade so ruinous.
How much better it would have been for Korah had he rested content with his Levite service, which was of the very highest order. His work as a Kohathite was to carry some of the most precious vessels of the sanctuary, but he aimed at the priesthood, and fell into the pit.
Three names mark one downward road, and Korah's is the last.
"The way of Cain" is the great departure at the start of this world's moral history. There brother killed brother, jealous of his acceptance with God. "The error of Balaam" is the evil of turning the name of God into a means of earthly honour and gain, not without hypocrisy. The last is "the rebellion of Korah," and here those who depart from God perish. This is not just the selfish twisting of truth into a way of getting ahead, bad as that was. It is open, deliberate rebellion against the rights of Christ Himself. Moses was the apostle of the Jewish faith, as Aaron was its high priest. Christ is the apostle and high priest of the faith we confess.
Paul seems to look back at this day when he writes to Timothy.
It seems that the Apostle Paul refers to this incident in 2 Timothy 2:19. In our chapter Moses says, "The LORD will show who is His, and who is holy," and of Dathan and Abiram, "Depart from the tents of these wicked men." These two statements clearly point forward to the instruction the apostles give us, for the times when we meet error face to face. Such error attacks the foundations of our faith, and it overthrows the faith of those who fall under its influence. We are neither sovereign nor all-knowing. God is both, and in due season He will make clear who are His. We are, however, responsible to act in line with His word, and avoid all part in the error and evil.
- Show — the verb is God's, not Moses'. Moses says nothing in his own defence and leaves the case to the Lord's choice.
- Chosen — God gives nearness and holiness; no one claims them. No one takes the honour of priesthood for himself. God called Aaron.
- Censer — the test made the claim public. Men who wanted priesthood had to act as priests before God, and the outcome was His to give.
- Content — Korah already held a place God gave him. A heart that fails to value what God allots starts reaching for what He never gave.
- Depart — God will make clear who are His. Our part is to keep clear of the error meanwhile.