Nu 16: prelude to a plague

         16:1 Now Korah, the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, and Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and On, the son of Peleth, sons of Reuben, took men: 2 And they rose up before Moses, with certain of the children of Israel, two hundred and fifty princes of the assembly, famous in the congregation, men of renown: 3 And they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said unto them, Ye take too much upon you, seeing all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the LORD is among them: wherefore then lift ye up yourselves above the congregation of the LORD?

       Korah was the grandson of Kohath. The Kohathites were assigned specific duties around the tabernacle (Numbers 4). From what Moses says in response, Korah and his followers weren’t content with their role as Levites (caring for the tabernacle articles); they wanted the priesthood also. Moses stands up for Aaron: what is Korah’s problem with Aaron?

       The rebellion grows to 250 leaders in the congregation. Dathan and Abiram are Reubenites. (On is a Reubenite. He is only mentioned in this verse in the whole bible.) It appears that they have a separate but simultaneous quarrel with Moses.

            4 And when Moses heard it, he fell upon his face:

       What does it take you to fall upon your face? Granted, this may be a common display in certain cultures. It’s not common in the US, at least not in Vermont.

       I found the phrase “fell upon” and “face” and its derivatives ~29 times in the Bible. In each case, profound emotional circumstances surround it. It shows worship, awe, horror, humility, wonder or extreme gratitude. In verse 4 above, it seems that Moses' display is a mix of horror and fear for what is likely to come.

       Moses fell on his face more than once. I linger on this thought because one of my desires in “opening the Old Testament” is for you to see these characters as real people with passions and foibles very like our own.

       I truly believe Moses loved these people. Like crazy. How often has he interceded for them? He once killed a man for the injustice he perceived (Exodus 2). He gave up a promise of an amazing heritage in order to talk God out of destroying Israel. Even when pushed to the brink of suicide, Moses pulls it together to continue to lead.

       Misunderstood and maligned, slandered and accused, Moses nevertheless does everything he can to guide and protect the children of Israel from stupidity in its many forms.

       I don’t wish to wax political in a bible study, but here is one thing for certain: when I see a would-be leader, if that man or woman has this kind of heart for a nation, that person will definitely draw my consideration. May our loving God raise up those kind of men and women in our lifetimes.

Numbers 4: the Kohathites

Numbers 4: 19a But thus do unto [the Kohathites], that they may live, and not die,

       Who were the Kohathites? Why were they warned that they could die if they approached the most holy things?

       Kohath was a direct descendant of Levi and the grandfather of Aaron.

       Ge 46:11 And the sons of Levi; Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.

       Ex 6:18 And the sons of Kohath; Amram, and Izhar, and Hebron, and Uzziel: and the years of the life of Kohath were an hundred thirty and three years.

       The Kohathites were Levites and relatives of Aaron but not descendants of Aaron. Because they were descendants of Levi they were included in the service of the tabernacle.  Numbers 4 directs them to do service, but they can’t touch or look upon the holy tabernacle items. The sons of Aaron had to cover everything first.

       Upon a second (or third) reading of Numbers 4, verse 18 jumps out:

         Cut ye not off the tribe of the families of the Kohathites from among the Levites:

       The word for “cut off” [trk karath] means anything from breaking a covenant to cutting off a body part to failing. Most likely it is in the sense of breaking a covenant. (It seems to be a word like our English “set.” It has lots of definitions and the meaning is derived from context.)

       Could it be that God was anticipating future disagreements or entitlement disputes? God made provision for all of Levi’s descendants, not just the priests. The priests did have a slightly different “salary,” so to speak, but the other Levites were not to be excluded.

       We see similar guidelines for the descendants of Levi’s sons Gershon and Merari. They are Levites and entitled to the benefits of the family line, but they are not part of the priestly line.

       Of note, one Levites census was for Levites 30-50 years old. It seems the age limit was 30-50 years old for priestly and ancillary service for the work of the tabernacle, but then in Numbers 8, it says 25-50 years old. If I discover anything conclusive, I'll let you know. Maybe the 5 years are kind of a training period?

Have a day full of good "Numbers!"

Numbers 1: On Repetition.

       I love how God reveals Himself in the Old Testament. In Numbers, God is BIG and HOLY. Not only that, but you will read of the big and holy things people did out of zeal for God’s holiness and out of zeal for God’s people. Sometimes the accounts seem harsh. Sometimes you will see great mercy.

       True, in Numbers you will find genealogies, and lots of them. Some are phenomenally repetitive. In our bible study class, we discussed reasons for this. The bible scenes and accounts were first an oral tradition. Repetition helps the listener to remember the story. Also, there were literary devices familiar to the Hebrew tongue, devices that don’t always translate well. These are often in patterns of repetition.

       “But repetition is boring,” you say? Hmm, how do I say this lovingly? Get over it. God wants you to be able to read Numbers. If He wants you to do something, He'll help you. See what He says in Deuteronomy 30:11-14.

         For this commandment which I command thee this day, it is not hidden from thee, neither is it far off. It is not in heaven, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go up for us to heaven, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it? Neither is it beyond the sea, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go over the sea for us, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it? But the word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth, and in thy heart, that thou mayest do it.

       In the days before blu-ray, DVD, VHS and even television or radio, children everywhere loved stories. They still do. Anyone who has had a child or cared for one knows that sometimes there was one story, a favorite, that you had to read over and over and over and over. Talk about boring.

       But then, something happens. There comes a point when that story becomes so familiar that you move past the boring to actually enjoying it with the child.

       I have favorite songs that never get old, some albums, too. I can watch Ben Hur over and over and over. Sure, I know Messala comes to the same nasty end, but his dying words to Judah are still just as horrific: “Look for them in the valley of the lepers.” Messala has won. (Or has he?)

       Many of us, if we're really honest, look forward to A Christmas Story, that crazy retro celebration of blue-collar Christmases. For several years now, a television station has been playing it for 24 hours straight at Christmastime. And we complain because the bible is repetitious. Ouch!

       Look at that: a whole page and I haven’t even started a study on Numbers. Let me remedy that:

       Numbers 1 gives a census of every Israelite who could go to war. The total number was 603,550. For the detail lover, the census numbers wax and wane through the course of Israel's history. (I've never tracked them.) The Levites were not counted in this census. Their principle duty was to the tabernacle. They were to pitch round about the tabernacle that there be no wrath [Puq qetseph] upon the congregation of Israel.

         Selah.