TORAH: Numbers 16:1-18:32
HAFTARAH: 1 Samuel 11:14-12:22
GOSPEL: John 19:1-17
Portion Summary
Korah (korach, קורח) was the name of a prominent Levite. It is also the name of the thirty-eighth reading from the Torah. It comes from the first verse of this week’s reading, which says, “Now Korah the son of Izhar… took action” (Numbers 16:1). This week’s Torah reading tells the story of how Korah led an unsuccessful rebellion against Moses and Aaron. After thwarting the insurrection, God confirms Aaron in the priesthood and provides additional legislation regarding priestly and Levitical privileges and responsibilities.
Portion Outline:
Torah
Numbers 16:1 | Revolt of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram
Numbers 17:1 | The Budding of Aaron’s Rod
Numbers 18:1 | Responsibility of Priests and Levites
Numbers 18:8 | The Priests’ Portion
Prophets
1Sa 11:1 | Saul Defeats the Ammonites
1Sa 12:1 | Samuel’s Farewell Address
Portion Commentary:
Who is the Boss?
When a man regards himself as a big somebody, he becomes angry with others who do not acknowledge his ego.
Though Dathan and Abiram accused Moses of arrogance, he was actually the most humble man on earth. At the burning bush, he had argued with God against his appointment, and he only reluctantly stepped into the role of prophet and redeemer. He regarded himself as nobody special. It was not that Moses had poor self-esteem; he simply had an accurate assessment of his own worth before God.
And they rose up before Moses, together with some of the sons of Israel, two hundred and fifty leaders of the congregation, chosen in the assembly, men of renown. (Numbers 16:2)
“You’re not the boss of me.” That’s what we used to say when we were kids. And it was probably true. Your older brother or the bully on the playground wasn’t the boss of you, even if he thought he was. Korah and his followers rose up against Moses and said, “You’re not the boss of us.”
In Numbers 16:3, we read that Korah and his followers “assembled together against Moses and Aaron, and said to them, ‘You have gone far enough, for all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the LORD is in their midst; so why do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the LORD?'” They accused Moses and Aaron of taking the first-boss positions. They questioned whether Moses had really heard from the LORD, and they refused his authority over their lives.
In reality, Moses never said, “I’m first boss. I should be the leader of all Israel. I am fit to be a leader.” Moses never said, “I am really something. I am a big somebody.”Neither He nor Aaron volunteered for their positions, submitted an application for their jobs or campaigned for their offices. They were simply serving God in the positions to which He had appointed them.
Read complete commentary at First Fruits of Zion.
