Korah’s Rebellion

“Now Korah the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, with Dathan and Abiram the sons of Eliab, and On the son of Peleth, sons of Reuben, took men; and they rose up before Moses with some of the children of Israel, two hundred and fifty leaders of the congregation, representatives of the congregation, men of renown. They gathered together against Moses and Aaron, and said to them, ‘You take too much upon yourselves, for all the congregation is holy, every one of them, and the Lord is among them. Why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the Lord?’ So when Moses heard it, he fell on his face.” Num. 16:1-4.

Korah’s children are still up to their old tricks in churches today. If God chooses certain instruments to care for the things that He wants cared for, then some of the children of Korah will typically rise up and ask: “Why do you exalt yourself above God’s assembly? Isn’t everything just fine the way it is? Aren’t we all holy children of God? Aren’t we just the way God wants us to be?”

Every man of God who has done anything for the kingdom of God knows about these people and has come up against them. Paul was very familiar with them. He preached the gospel free of charge among the Corinthians and received wages from other churches to minister to them. He did that for one reason—to overcome these children of Korah who claimed to be apostles of Christ when, in fact, they were false apostles and deceitful workers. 2 Cor. 11. Paul preached free of charge in order to expose these men to the Corinthians for what they really were. He said, “What I do, I will also continue to do, that I may cut off the opportunity from those who desire an opportunity to be regarded just as we are in the things of which they boast.”

Jude did not write much, but in the few words he did write, he felt compelled to pour out his holy wrath over the men of Korah. No doubt he had experienced a lot of problems with them. Verse 11. They participated in the love feasts without fear, serving only themselves, but they were spots in those feasts, Jude writes.

It is not surprising that Paul was willing to abstain from everything in order to put people like this on the outside. They probably chose to leave rather than to be like Paul in this matter, since their goal actually was to serve themselves and to seek honor. Paul used his wisdom here; he abstained from food so that, at the same time, he could starve out and expel these men of Korah who seemingly had such great care for the church. The treatment worked, and it still works today. Give these children of Korah this starvation treatment, and they will say farewell to the church entirely and take to their heels to find a better market. Since Paul said “Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ,” let us also follow him in this matter.

It is such a strong tendency to want to be considered holy and to be just as highly regarded as the instruments that are used by the Lord. Such people are among the most prominent men in the meetings; they speak eloquently and are highly esteemed—especially among those who, like Lot’s wife, always have their heart and their eyes fixed on the city of Sodom from which they previously escaped. That is why these children of Korah become leaders for such a flock. It can even get so bad that God leads things in such a way that people like this, with their perverted hearts, are exposed and then forced out of the assembly of God to perish in their rebellion.

As surely as there are weeds in a garden, Korah is present when a church of God begins to develop. But usually the church’s spiritual development is at such a low level that no one dares to take up the battle against him. The light is too weak. People think that it is love and tolerance to allow Satan to wreak havoc and disrupt the work. What a strange understanding of love! Moses and Paul were saved from this spirit of cowardliness and discouragement. They were filled with the Spirit of God—the spirit of power and of a sound mind, coupled with the knowledge of God. That’s why they took up the battle without wavering and overcame these enemies of God.

Korah wanted to do away with Moses completely so that he could have Moses’ position of leadership. But what happened? “The earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up, with their households and all the men with Korah, with all their goods.” Num. 16:32. “And a fire came out from the Lord and consumed the two hundred and fifty men . . .” —those who were the leaders of the congregation, representatives of the congregation, men of renown.

If this mind of Korah tried to destroy such a mighty leader for the Lord as Moses, how much more will that same mind try to destroy men with less strength? We are living in a time when virtually everyone says that they are rich, have abundance, and are lacking nothing. Don’t you think Korah is reveling in all this abundance? The Spirit says, “You . . . do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked.”