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Numbers Chapter
Sixteen
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO NUMBERS 16
This
chapter gives an account of a sedition of Korah and others against Moses and
Aaron, Numbers 16:1, with
whom Moses expostulates, and shows the unreasonableness of their clamour
against Aaron, Numbers 16:5; sends
for Dathan and Abiram, who were in the confederacy, but refused to come, which
greatly angered Moses, Numbers 16:12;
orders Korah and his company to appear before the Lord the next day, with
Aaron, to have the controversy decided, Numbers 16:16; when
all the congregation gathered together would have been, consumed had it not
been for the intercession of Moses and Aaron, Numbers 16:19; and
who, being separated from the rebels by the command of the Lord, some of the
rebels were swallowed up in the earth, and others destroyed by fire from
heaven, Numbers 16:23; and
their censers were made a covering for the altar, as a memorial of their sin, Numbers 16:36; on
which there was a new insurrection of the people, which brought a plague upon
them, and destroyed 14,700 persons, and which was stopped at the intercession
of Aaron, Numbers 16:41.
Numbers 16:1 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;
YLT
1And Korah, son of Izhar,
son of Kohath, son of Levi, taketh both Dathan and Abiram sons of Eliab, and On
son of Peleth, sons of Reuben,
Now Korah, the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi,.... A great
grandson of Levi's, and own cousin to Moses and Aaron, being brothers children;
for Amram the father of Moses and Aaron, and Izhar the father of Korah, were
own brothers, both of them the sons of Kohath, and Amram the eldest, and Izhar
the next, Exodus 6:16; this
man is mentioned first, being the contriver, and plotter, and ringleader of the
following sedition, and which is called "the gainsaying of Core", Judges 1:11; when
this was made is not certain; Aben Ezra thinks this affair happened in the
wilderness of Sinai, when the firstborn were exchanged, and the Levites were
separated for holy service, Numbers 3:1; but,
according to the Targum of Jonathan, it was after the law concerning the
fringes was given, which it here follows, and was on that account; for it says,
that Korah took his coat, which was all blue, and that the men with him rose
up, and in the face of Moses taught the rite concerning the blue ribbon; when
Moses declared he had it from God, that the fringe should be of white, and one
thread of blue should be in it; but Korah and his company made their coats and
fringes all of blue, which the Lord commanded not: but what Korah is said to
take is either himself, or men, or both, and not clothes, as follows:
and Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and On the son of Peleth,
sons of Reuben, took men; which men are described
in Numbers 16:2, even
princes of the assembly, &c. or he, Korah, took himself, as Ben Melech, or
divided himself, as Onkelos, separated himself from the congregation, and set
himself at the head of a party he gathered together; and the "vau" or
"and" before "Dathan" may be additional or superfluous, as
Chaskuni observes, and so Abendana; and then the sense is, that Korah took
Dathan, Abiram and On, apart by themselves, and entered into a consultation and
confederacy with them against Moses and Aaron, with whom he was offended on
account of the priesthood being bestowed on the latter by the former; and these
men he associated to him, being the sons of Reuben, who would the rather listen
to him, and join with him, because the right of the firstborn was taken from
them, and the camp of Judah was placed before them; and with these men he could
more easily commune, because the camp of Reuben and the Kohathites lay on the
same side of the tabernacle, Numbers 2:10;
Eliab, the father of Dathan and Abiram, was the son of Pallu, the second son of
Reuben, Numbers 26:5; but
as for On, no mention is made of him elsewhere, nor any more in this place; it
is thought he separated from his company after he had heard what Moses said to
them; and the Rabbins say, his wife delivered him out of their hands, as
Abendana observes.
Numbers 16:2 2 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.
YLT
2and they rise up before
Moses, with men of the sons of Israel, two hundred and fifty, princes of the
company, called of the convention, men of name,
And they rose up before Moses,.... To his face, openly
and publicly, in a bold and audacious manner; with impudence, as the Targum of
Jonathan:
with certain of the children of Israel; some out of
the several tribes, but perhaps chiefly of the tribe of Reuben, as Jarchi:
two hundred and fifty princes of the assembly; or
"congregation"F9עדה
"congregationis", Pagninus. , who were princes in the several tribes
to which they belonged, heads of houses and families of their fathers, rulers
of thousands, hundreds, &c.
famous in the congregation; or "called"F11קראי "vocati", Montanus, Drusius. to the
tabernacle of the congregation; who, when the great men among the people were
gathered together to consult about any affair, were called, as Ben Melech
observes:
men of renown, or "of name"F12אנשי שם "viri nominis",
Montanus, Drusius. ; in high esteem among the people for their birth and rank,
their wealth and riches, wisdom and prudence; and were so before they came out
of Egypt, as Aben Ezra remarks; so that the persons concerned in this rebellion
were not the mob and dregs of the people, but men of the greatest figure and
fame, and therefore was likely to be of bad consequence.
Numbers 16:3 3 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?”
YLT
3and they are assembled
against Moses and against Aaron, and say unto them, `Enough of you! for all the
company -- all of them [are] holy, and in their midst [is] Jehovah; and
wherefore do ye lift yourselves up above the assembly of Jehovah?'
And they gathered themselves together against Moses, and against
Aaron,.... They met together by appointment, and went up in a body to
Moses and Aaron:
and said unto them, ye take too much upon you; the one to be
king, and the other to be priest; for they imagined that Moses took the civil
government into his hands, and Aaron the priesthood, of themselves, without any
call of God to either; but the contrary is most certain, Hebrews 3:2; the
Israelites, those of the other tribes besides Levi and Reuben, thought that
Moses took too much upon him of his own head, to take the Levites instead of
the firstborn, and confer a dignity on his own brethren, the sons of Kohath,
who were near akin to him, and on all the sons of Levi, as Aben Ezra observes;
and the Levites they conspired against him, because they were given to Aaron
and his sons; and Dathan and Abiram entered into a conspiracy, as the same
writer thinks, because he had removed the birthright from Reuben their father,
and had given it to Joseph; for it is probable they suspected him, because of
Joshua his minister; and Jarchi conjectures that Korah was angry because Moses
had conferred the government of the Kohathites on Elizaphan, the son of Uzziel,
the youngest son of Kohath, when he himself, Korah, was the eldest son of an
elder son of Kohath: or "it is", or "let it be enough for
you"F13רב "sat est vel satis
sit", Pagninus, Vatablus, Drusius, Junius & Tremellius, Piscator; so
Aben Ezra. ; or more than enough, as Jarchi; it is sufficient that you have had
the government, both in things civil and religious, so long as you have; it is
time to give it up to others, who are as well qualified as yourselves. The time
past may suffice for the exercise of your despotic and arbitrary power; though
it seems to be chiefly levelled against Aaron, and his priesthood, which they
thought Moses had conferred on his brother of himself, any instruction from
God:
seeing all the congregation are holy, everyone of them; having all
heard the words of the Lord on Sinai, as Jarchi notes; and were all fit to be
priests, and to offer sacrifice in and for their families, as they had used to
do, before the separation of Aaron and his sons to the priesthood:
and the Lord is among them; in the tabernacle, to
whom they could approach and offer their offerings without a priest to do it
for them:
wherefore then lift ye up yourselves above the congregation of the
Lord? since they were all upon a level, everyone holy to the Lord, and
might draw nigh unto him, and officiate as priests; wherefore they represent it
as great pride and vanity in them; in Moses to take upon him to dispose of the
priesthood at his pleasure, and make Aaron the high priest of the people; and
in Aaron to take this office upon him, and to be an high priest, and not all
the sons of Levi, but over all the children of Israel.
Numbers 16:4 4 So when Moses heard it, he fell on his face;
YLT
4And Moses heareth, and
falleth on his face,
And when Moses heard it,.... What they said,
their complaint against him, for setting up Aaron for an high priest, and
against Aaron for taking this honour to himself:
he fell upon his face; through shame, as the
Targum of Jonathan, blushing at their sin, in opposing the ordinance of God;
and through fear of the divine displeasure, and of the wrath of God coming upon
them for such wickedness; and in order to pray to God for them to make them
sensible of their sin, and give them repentance for it, and pardon of it, and
avert his judgments from them such a conduct called aloud for.
Numbers 16:5 5 and he spoke to Korah and all his company, saying,
“Tomorrow morning the Lord will show who is His and who
is holy, and will cause him to come near to Him. That one whom He
chooses He will cause to come near to Him.
YLT
5and he speaketh unto Korah,
and unto all his company, saying, `Morning! -- and Jehovah is knowing those who
are his, and him who is holy, and hath brought near unto Him; even him whom He
doth fix on He bringeth near unto Him.
And he spake unto Korah, and unto all his company,.... The two
hundred fifty princes that were with him; what follows was said to them apart
from Dathan and Abiram, who seem not to be present at this time; and this was
after Moses had finished his prayer to God, and had received instructions from
him, by an impulse on his mind, what he should say unto them, and was now risen
up from the earth he fell upon:
saying, even tomorrow the Lord will show who are his; his priests,
whom he had chosen, and put into that office; this he would make known so
clearly and plainly, that there would be no room left to doubt of it, and which
was revealed to Moses while upon his face in prayer to God:
and who is holy; or whom he has separated
to such an holy office and service:
and will cause him to come near unto him; and do his
work as a priest, without fear of danger, and without any hurt, which is
suggested would befall others; and they may expect it, who intrude themselves
into such an office, and engage their hearts in a bold audacious manner, to
draw nigh to God in it:
even him whom he hath chosen will he cause to come near
unto him: meaning Aaron with his sons, whom the Lord would make to appear
that he had chosen, and put into the office of priesthood, and that it was not
what Moses did of himself.
Numbers 16:6 6 Do this: Take censers, Korah and all your company;
YLT
6This do: take to yourselves
censers, Korah, and all his company,
This do, take you censers,.... Vessels to put
incense in to offer, which was the business of the priests:
Korah, and all his company; the two hundred fifty
princes that were with him, for so many we read took censers, and offered
incense, Numbers 16:18.
Numbers 16:7 7 put fire in them and put incense in them before the Lord tomorrow, and it shall be that the man whom the Lord chooses is the holy one. You take too much upon
yourselves, you sons of Levi!”
YLT
7and put in them fire, and
put on them perfume, before Jehovah to-morrow, and it hath been, the man whom
Jehovah chooseth, he [is] the holy one; -- enough of you, sons of Levi.'
And put fire therein,.... Into the censers:
and put incense in them; on the coals of fire in
the censers:
before the Lord; not at the altar of incense in the holy
place, into which none but Aaron and his sons might come, but at the door of the
tabernacle of the congregation, where the glory of the Lord appeared, Numbers 16:18; and
this they were to do
tomorrow; the day following that on which the insurrection was made, and
in the morning of that day, which was the usual time of judgment; this was
delayed until the morrow, that they might have opportunity to reflect upon what
they had done, and repent of their sin, and consider what they were to do, and
the danger which might attend it; as in the case of Nadab and Abihu, who,
though sons of the high priest, yet offering strange fire, were consumed by
fire, Numbers 10:1; and
so might they for assuming the priesthood, and officiating in any part of it,
which did not belong to them:
and it shall be, that the man whom the Lord doth choose, he
shall be holy: meaning Aaron, with his sons; for though the Lord had already
chosen him, and ordered him and his family to be separated from the rest of the
Israelites, to exercise the priestly office, and he was actually invested with
it, and had entered upon it; yet he would at this time, in a visible way and
manner, make it manifest that he had done it, and therefore should be as it
were afresh set apart for holy service, and be continued in it:
ye take too much upon
you, ye sons of Levi: of which tribe Korah was; and it looks as if those with him were
chiefly of that tribe; however, these here addressed certainly were, and Moses
retorts their own language upon them; they had said, that he and Aaron had
taken too much upon them, though no more than what God had called them to; and
now he says that they had taken too much upon them, to resist the ordinance of
God, and to endeavour to remove from their office whom God had put into it, in
order to substitute themselves: or "it is enough for you", or
"let it suffice you"; be content with the honour put upon you, the
dignity you are raised to, to be next to the priests, and assistants to them;
be not ambitious of more; let what you have satisfy you.
Numbers 16:8 8 Then Moses said to Korah, “Hear now, you sons of Levi:
YLT
8And Moses saith unto Korah,
`Hear ye, I pray you, sons of Levi;
And Moses said unto Korah,.... Continued his
discourse to him, as the head of the conspiracy, and the ringleader of it:
hear, I pray you, ye sons of Levi; to whom also he had been
before speaking; though Aben Ezra thinks the first speech was made to Korah and
his company, and what follows to the Levites.
Numbers 16:9 9 Is it a small thing to you that the God of
Israel has separated you from the congregation of Israel, to bring you near to
Himself, to do the work of the tabernacle of the Lord, and to
stand before the congregation to serve them;
YLT
9is it little to you that
the God of Israel hath separated you from the company of Israel to bring you
near unto Himself, to do the service of the tabernacle of Jehovah, and to stand
before the company to serve them? –
Seemeth it but a small thing
unto you,.... It should not; for it was a great thing which the Lord had
done for them, and with which they should have been satisfied, and for it
thankful:
that the God of Israel hath separated you from the congregation of
Israel: this was a special favour, and ought to have been esteemed such,
that God, who was the God of the whole people of Israel in common, should
separate the tribe of Levi from all the rest of the tribes of Israel:
to bring you near to himself; next to the priests
their brethren of the same tribe, to be joined to them, and assist them in
their service, and officiate in the court of the tabernacle, where the divine
Majesty dwelt:
to do the service of the tabernacle of the Lord; to watch it,
and guard it, and keep out persons until to enter into it; to take it down and
set it up, as occasion required, and bear and carry the holy things in it, and
take care of them:
and to stand before the congregation to minister unto them? which Jarchi
interprets of their singing in the desk songs of praise before them; but Aben
Ezra, better, of the service they did for them, when they brought their
offerings and sacrifices, which they took of them, and carried to the priests
to offer for them.
Numbers 16:10 10 and that He has brought you near to Himself,
you and all your brethren, the sons of Levi, with you? And are you seeking the
priesthood also?
YLT
10yea, He doth bring thee
near, and all thy brethren the sons of Levi with thee -- and ye have sought
also the priesthood!
And he hath brought thee near to him,.... To be in
his courts, to watch in his house, and wait on his priests, for which an ample
provision was made by tithes. Korah is there personally addressed:
and all thy brethren, the sons of Levi, with thee; the whole
tribe of them, excepting Aaron and his family, who were advanced to be priests:
and seek ye the priesthood also? the high priesthood, as
the Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan; this opens the true cause of their discontent
and rebellion; they could not be satisfied with being the ministers of the
priests, but wanted to be priests themselves, and Korah perhaps to be high
priest.
Numbers 16:11 11 Therefore you and all your company are gathered
together against the Lord. And what is Aaron that
you complain against him?”
YLT
11Therefore, thou and all thy
company who are met [are] against Jehovah; and Aaron, what [is] he, that ye
murmur against him?'
For which cause, both thou and all thy company are
gathered together against the Lord,.... For gathering
together against his ministers, whom he had put into office to act under him,
and endeavouring to overturn a constitution of his erecting, and resisting and
not submitting to an ordinance of his, is interpreted gathering against him,
and acting in opposition to him; see Romans 13:1,
and what is Aaron, that ye murmur against him? what is his
transgression? what has he done? as Aben Ezra paraphrases it; he is not
chargeable with any fault, he did not take upon him the office of high priest
of himself, God called him to it, and put him in it; he is only his minister,
and by no means to be blamed, and therefore it is unreasonable to envy him, or
murmur against him; and, indeed, murmuring against him is murmuring against the
Lord.
Numbers 16:12 12 And Moses sent to call Dathan and Abiram the sons of
Eliab, but they said, “We will not come up!
YLT
12And Moses sendeth to call
for Dathan and for Abiram sons of Eliab, and they say, `We do not come up;
And Moses sent to call Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab,.... He sent
messengers to call them to the house of judgment, as the Targum of Jonathan, to
the court of judicature, where the Jews suppose Moses, with the seventy elders,
were now sitting: it seems these two men departed either before. Moses rose up
from prayer, or however before he had finished his speech to Korah and the
Levites; which being particularly directed to them, these men might think they
had no concern in it, and went away to their own tents:
which said, we will not come up; this answer they
returned to the messengers, and by them to Moses, declaring that they denied
his power, despised his authority, and would not obey his orders, and therefore
refused to come up to the tabernacle, or to the tent of Moses, or to the court
of judicature, wherever it was; perhaps the first is best. Aben Ezra thinks,
that as the tabernacle was in the midst of the camp, it was on an eminence,
wherefore those that came to it might be said to come up to it.
Numbers 16:13 13 Is it a small thing that you have brought us up
out of a land flowing with milk and honey, to kill us in the wilderness, that
you should keep acting like a prince over us?
YLT
13is it little that thou hast
brought us up out of a land flowing with milk and honey to put us to death in a
wilderness that thou also certainly makest thyself prince over us?
Is it a small thing
that thou hast brought us up out of a land that floweth with milk and honey?.... Meaning
Egypt, as the Targum of Jonathan expresses it; which, though a plentiful
country, never had, nor deserved to have this epithet given it, which is
peculiar to the land of Canaan, and is here given, in opposition to the
description of that land, which the Lord himself had so described; and argues
great impudence and want of reverence of the divine Being, as well as great
ingratitude to Moses, the instrument of their being brought out of Egypt, where
they laboured under bondage and servitude intolerable; and yet here represent
it as an injury done to them, and as if the intent and design of it was purely
to destroy them: for they add:
to kill us in the wilderness; with want of food, of
which they had plenty in Egypt, they suggest; referring, it may be, to what the
Lord by Moses had said to them, that their carcasses should fall in the
wilderness; but that would not be for want of provisions, but because of their
sins. It was bad enough, they intimate, to be brought out of such a plentiful
country, into a barren wilderness; but what was still worse, the despotic and
tyrannical government of Moses, as they represent it, they were brought under:
except thou make thyself altogether a prince over us? ruling in an
arbitrary way, making laws, and setting up offices and officers at pleasure, so
that it is more eligible to be in bondage in Egypt than under thy government.
Aben Ezra takes their meaning to be, as if the end of bringing them out of
Egypt was to assume and exercise such rule and authority over them. His words
are,"hast thou brought us up out of Egypt, that thou mayest exercise
dominion over us as a prince, yea, many dominions, thou and thy brother?'and
who also observes, that Egypt lay to the south of the land of Israel, so that
one that came from Egypt to the land of Canaan may be truly said to come up,
that part of Canaan lying higher than Egypt.
Numbers 16:14 14 Moreover you have not brought us into a land flowing
with milk and honey, nor given us inheritance of fields and vineyards. Will you
put out the eyes of these men? We will not come up!”
YLT
14Yea, unto a land flowing
with milk and honey thou hast not brought us in, nor dost thou give to us an
inheritance of field and vineyard; the eyes of these men dost thou pick out? we
do not come up.'
Moreover, thou hast not brought us into a land that floweth with
milk and honey,.... Meaning the land of Canaan; but this was no fault of Moses,
he had brought them to the borders of it, he had bid them go up and possess it;
but they refused, and chose to have spies first sent into it, who brought an
ill report of it, which they listened to, and had so provoked the Lord thereby,
that he ordered them to turn back, and threatened them with a consumption of
them in the wilderness; or "certainly"F14אל "certe", Noldius, p. 97. No. 468. so Onkelos.
, verily thou hast not brought us, &c. though the Septuagint version
renders it affirmatively, "thou hast brought us"; and the Vulgate
Latin version, indeed thou hast brought, directly contrary to the text; unless
it is to be understood ironically, as it is by some:
or given us inheritance of fields and vineyards; that is, in
the land of Canaan, as were promised them; they suggest, had this been the
case, they could have been content that he should have been their prince, and
they would have submitted to his government; but having received no advantage
from him, but a great deal of hurt and damage, they could not but consider him
not only as a tyrant, but as an impostor and deceiver:
wilt thou put out the eyes of these men? or
"dig" them outF15תנקר
"effodies", Pagninus, Piscator; "vis effodere", Fagius;
"fodies", Junius & Tremellius, Drusius. ; either in a literal
sense, wilt thou be so cruel and merciless as to put out the eyes of these men,
Korah and his company, and us for our opposition to thy government? or though
thou shouldest do so:
we will not come up; we are determined not to
obey thee, but to shake off the yoke, let our punishment be what it will; or
figuratively, dost thou take us for blind persons, whose eyes thou hast put
out, and think to lead us at thy pleasure? or dost thou cast a mist before the
eyes of this whole congregation, that they are not able to see through thy
designs? are the people so bewitched by them, as not to see thy deceits and
impostures? pretending to bring them into a land flowing with milk and honey,
which thou art not able to do, and now sayest that thou hast a message from God
to return again towards the Red sea, and talkest of our posterity inheriting
the land forty years hence; who is it that cannot see through all this? Aben
Ezra thinks, by "these men" are meant the elders that were with
Moses, whom he led as he pleased, and so blinded them with his delusions, as
these pretended, that they could not see through them.
Numbers 16:15 15 Then Moses was very angry, and said to the Lord, “Do not respect their offering. I have not taken one donkey from
them, nor have I hurt one of them.”
YLT
15And it is very displeasing
to Moses, and he saith unto Jehovah, `Turn not Thou unto their present; not one
ass from them have I taken, nor have I afflicted one of them.'
And Moses was very wroth,.... Or "it heated
Moses exceedingly"F16ויחר למשה מאד "et excanduit Mosi
valde", Drusius. ; made him very angry, caused him to burn with wrath
against them; even the speech they made, the words they uttered, not so much on
account of their ill usage of him, as for the dishonour cast upon the Lord:
and said unto the Lord, respect not thou their offering; their
"Minchah", the word is commonly used for the meat or bread offering.
Aben Ezra observes, that Dathan and Abiram were great men, and had offered such
kind of offerings before this fact; and therefore Moses desires that the Lord
would have no respect to any they had offered, but have respect to him, who had
never injured any of them. Jarchi gives it as the sense of some, that whereas
these men had a part in the daily sacrifices of the congregation (with which a
meat offering always went), the request is, that it might not be received with
acceptance by the Lord; but he himself thinks it is to be understood of the
offering of incense they were to offer on the morrow; and Moses desires that
God would show his disapprobation of it, and which is the common
interpretation. The Targums of Jonathan and Jerusalem render it, "their
gift":
I have not taken one ass from them; either by force, or as a
bribe, or by way of gratuity for any service done them; the sense is, that he
had not taken from them the least thing in the world, anything of the meanest
worth and value, on any consideration. Aben Ezra interprets the word
"take", of taking and laying any burden upon an ass of theirs; so far
was he from laying any burdens on them, and using them in a cruel and
tyrannical manner, as they suggested, that he never laid the least burden on
any ass of theirs, and much less on them:
neither have I hurt any of them; never did any injury to
the person or property of anyone of them, but, on the contrary, had done them
many good offices.
Numbers 16:16 16 And Moses said to Korah, “Tomorrow, you and all your
company be present before the Lord—you and
they, as well as Aaron.
YLT
16And Moses saith unto Korah,
`Thou and all thy company, be ye before Jehovah, thou, and they, and Aaron,
to-morrow;
And Moses said unto Korah,.... Who was still with
him, when the messenger returned from Dathan and Abiram, and who heard what
Moses said in his own defence:
be thou and all thy company before the Lord; at the
tabernacle, at the door of it; the Targum of Jonathan is, at the house of
judgment, the court of judicature, where this affair was to be tried, and that
was at the tabernacle, as appears by what follows:
thou, and they, and Aaron, tomorrow; the day after Moses had
sent to Dathan and Abiram, on the morning of the next day; which as it was the
time of sitting in judgment, so of offering incense; meaning Korah and his
company, the two hundred fifty men with him, and not Dathan and Abiram; and
Aaron also, he was ordered to appear, whom they opposed, and with whom the
trial was to be made.
Numbers 16:17 17 Let each take his censer and put incense in it, and
each of you bring his censer before the Lord, two
hundred and fifty censers; both you and Aaron, each with his censer.”
YLT
17and take ye each his
censer, and ye have put on them perfume, and brought near before Jehovah, each
his censer, two hundred and fifty censers; and thou and Aaron, each his
censer.'
And take every man his censer, and put incense therein,.... Which
they were to bring with them the next day from their own tents; and these might
be censers which they had in their several families, and which they had used in
them before the order of priesthood was set up in Aaron's family, and limited
to that; or they might be a sort of chafing dishes, or vessels like censers,
and would serve the present purpose; they were ordered to put fire into them,
that was to be taken from the altar of burnt offering; for strange fire might
not be used:
and bring ye before the Lord every man his censer, two hundred and
fifty censers: according to the number of the men that were gathered with
Korah:
thou also, and Aaron, each of you his censer; Korah and
Aaron were to bring each their censers, between whom lay the contest concerning
the high priesthood; which was to be determined by their offering incense
before the Lord, and by his approbation or disapprobation of it.
Numbers 16:18 18 So every man took his censer, put fire in it, laid
incense on it, and stood at the door of the tabernacle of meeting with Moses
and Aaron.
YLT
18And they take each his
censer, and put on them fire, and lay on them perfume, and they stand at the
opening of the tent of meeting, with Moses and Aaron.
And they took every man his censer, and that fire in them,.... That is,
they came the next morning, according to order, prepared with their censers and
incense; and they took fire from off the altar of burnt offering, which stood
in the court of the tabernacle:
and laid incense thereon: upon the fire in their
censers, and so burned it:
and stood in the door of the tabernacle of the congregation; not in the
holy place, where the altar of incense was, for that would not hold them; nor
indeed in the court of the tabernacle, but at the door of it, or the outside of
it, that so they might be seen by all the people who came to be spectators and
witnesses of this affair: and they stood
with Moses and Aaron; in a bold and
presumptuous manner, as if they were their equals, disputing their authority,
and putting themselves upon their trial before the Lord about it: the Targum of
Jonathan says, these men stood on one side (of the door of the tabernacle), and
Moses and Aaron stood on the other side of it.
Numbers 16:19 19 And Korah gathered all the congregation against them
at the door of the tabernacle of meeting. Then the glory of the Lord appeared to all the congregation.
YLT
19And Korah assembleth
against them all the company unto the opening of the tent of meeting, and the
honour of Jehovah is seen by all the company.
And Korah gathered all the congregation against them,.... Not his
own company only, but as many of the whole congregation of Israel as he could
get together, and especially the principal men; so that it seems there was a,
general prevailing inclination in the people to take part with him against
Moses and Aaron, who wished him success in his undertaking, and readily came
together to animate and encourage him in it, and to see the issue of it. Jarchi
suggests, that all night he was going to the several tribes, persuading them
that it was not for his own private interest, but for the public good, that he
acted against two men, who had taken to themselves, the one the kingdom, and
the other the priesthood, and by this means got a great multitude together:
unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation; that is,
before it, where Korah and his company stood, whose part they took, and had
like to have suffered severely for it, had it not been for the interposition of
Moses and Aaron:
and the glory of the Lord appeared unto all the congregation; the
Shechinah, or divine Majesty, which dwelt between the cherubim in the most holy
place, removed and came to the door of the tabernacle, where the people were
assembled, in the sight of them, showing some visible token of his presence,
though no similitude of himself was seen; or, however, he appeared in the cloud
that was over the tabernacle, in which was seen a glory, a brightness and
splendour, or such coruscations and flashes of lightning as were very unusual
and amazing, and plainly showed the Lord was there; so Jarchi says, that he
came in the pillar of cloud.
Numbers 16:20 20 And the Lord spoke to
Moses and Aaron, saying,
YLT
20And Jehovah speaketh unto
Moses and unto Aaron, saying,
And the Lord spake unto Moses, and unto Aaron,.... Out of
the cloud:
saying; as follows.
Numbers 16:21 21 “Separate yourselves from among this congregation,
that I may consume them in a moment.”
YLT
21`Be ye separated from the
midst of this company, and I consume them in a moment;'
Separate yourselves, from among this congregation,.... Not only
from Korah's company, but from the congregation of the children of Israel, whom
Korah had got together, besides the two hundred fifty men that were at first
with him; who by their words and behaviour, and particularly by their
association and standing along with him, showed them to be on his side, which
greatly provoked the Lord:
that I may consume them in a moment; by fire from him, as the
two hundred fifty men were afterwards consumed, Numbers 16:35.
Numbers 16:22 22 Then they fell on their faces, and said, “O God, the
God of the spirits of all flesh, shall one man sin, and You be angry with all
the congregation?”
YLT
22and they fall on their
faces, and say, `God, God of the spirits of all flesh -- the one man sinneth,
and against all the company Thou art wroth!'
And they fell upon their faces,.... That is, Moses and
Aaron, in order to deprecate the wrath of God, and beseech him to avert the
threatened judgment; and so the Targum of Jonathan has it,"they bowed
themselves in prayer upon their faces;"
and said, O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh; the Maker of
all men, as of their bodies, which are flesh, so of their souls or spirits,
which are immaterial and immortal; hence he is called "the Father of
spirits", Hebrews 12:9, who,
as the Targum, puts the spirit in the bodies of men; or, as others, who knows
the spirits of men; their thoughts, as Jarchi, the inward frames and
dispositions of their minds; who knows who have sinned, and who not; and
whether their sins proceed from weakness, and being misled, or whether from a
malevolent disposition, presumption, and self-will:
shall one man sin: meaning Korah, who was the ringleader:
and wilt thou be wroth with all the congregation? who, through
ignorance and weakness, and by artifice and imposition, are drawn in to join
with him; the plea is much the same with that of Abraham, Genesis 18:25.
Numbers 16:23 23 So the Lord spoke to
Moses, saying,
YLT
23And Jehovah speaketh unto
Moses, saying,
And the Lord spake unto Moses,.... When on his face in
prayer, and bid him rise up, and told him he had granted his request, and then spoke
to him:
saying; as follows.
Numbers 16:24 24 “Speak to the congregation, saying, ‘Get away from the
tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram.’”
YLT
24`Speak unto the company,
saying, Go ye up from round about the tabernacle of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram.'
Speak unto the congregation,.... Not to Korah's
company, but to the people of Israel, of the several tribes that were assembled
together:
saying, get ye up from about the tabernacle of Korah, and Dathan,
and Abiram; which was either the same with their tents, as in Numbers 16:26;
though, as they were of different tribes, Korah of the tribe of Levi, and
Dathan and Abiram of the tribe of Reuben, their tents must be in distinct and
different places, though both encamped on the same side of the tabernacle, and
pretty near to each other; the camp of Levi was nearest the tabernacle, and the
camp of Reuben next to it. It may be, there was a single tabernacle erected on
this occasion, for all these men to meet at when they judged it necessary. Aben
Ezra is of opinion, Korah had a tent for his men and substance, at a distance
from the camp of the Levites, and to his tent joined the tents of Dathan and
Abiram.
Numbers 16:25 25 Then Moses rose and went to Dathan and Abiram, and the
elders of Israel followed him.
YLT
25And Moses riseth, and goeth
unto Dathan and Abiram, and the elders of Israel go after him,
And Moses rose up,.... Either from the ground, upon which he
fell on his face, or from the seat on which he sat at the door of the
tabernacle; though he seems to have stood there; it may be, it only signifies
that he obeyed the divine order, and went about it directly, as often in
Scripture persons are said to arise, when they go about any thing they are
directed, or choose to do:
and went unto Dathan and Abiram; to endeavour to convince
them of their evil, and bring them to repentance for it, and to reclaim them
from their folly:
and the elders of Israel followed him; either some
principal persons of the tribes, called elders, both from their age and
prudence; or the seventy elders lately chosen to assist Moses in the affairs of
government, as Aben Ezra thinks these followed him to show their respect unto
him, and their approbation of his conduct, and for vindication of his
character, which had been aspersed by those men, and to give the more weight to
what should be said unto them, for their conviction and reformation.
Numbers 16:26 26 And he spoke to the congregation, saying, “Depart now
from the tents of these wicked men! Touch nothing of theirs, lest you be
consumed in all their sins.”
YLT
26and he speaketh unto the
company, saying, `Turn aside, I pray you, from the tents of these wicked men,
and come not against anything that they have, lest ye be consumed in all their
sins.'
And he spake unto the congregation,.... To the people of
Israel assembled together on this occasion: some, out of ill will to Moses and
Aaron, inclining to the side of Korah and his accomplices, and some out of
curiosity to see the issue of this affair
saying, depart, I pray you, from the tents of these wicked men; these
turbulent, seditious, and ill-designing men, disturbers of the commonwealth and
church of Israel, enemies to the peace of its civil and ecclesiastic state: and
when Moses desires the people to depart from their tents, he means not only
that they would remove in person, and stand at a distance, but such who had
their tents, and families, and substance near them, would take care to remove,
lest they should be destroyed with them:
and touch nothing of theirs; not carry off anything
belonging to them along with their own, being all devoted to destruction:
lest ye be consumed in all their sins; lest
partaking of their sins they should of their plagues, and die in their sins, as
they would, or for them.
Numbers 16:27 27 So they got away from around the tents of Korah,
Dathan, and Abiram; and Dathan and Abiram came out and stood at the door of
their tents, with their wives, their sons, and their little children.
YLT
27And they go up from the
tabernacle of Korah, Dathan and Abiram, from round about, and Dathan, and
Abiram have come out, standing at the opening of their tents, and their wives,
and their sons, and their infants.
So they gat up from the tabernacle of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram,
on every side,.... The place where they met together and made their general
rendezvous; this it seems was encompassed on all sides by people out of the
several tribes, who either wished them well in their undertaking, or were
curious to know how it would issue:
and Dathan and Abiram came out; out of the tabernacle of
Korah, and went to their own tents; and came out of them:
and stood in the door of their tents, and their wives, and their
sons,
and their little children; in an audacious manner,
as not fearing God nor man; they carried their heads high, and were not in the
least daunted at what they were threatened with; and by their looks and
gestures bid defiance to Moses and the elders with him.
Numbers 16:28 28 And Moses said: “By this you shall know that the Lord has sent me to do all these works, for I have not done
them of my own will.
YLT
28And Moses saith, `By this
ye do know that Jehovah hath sent me to do all these works, that [they are] not
from my own heart;
And Moses said, hereby ye shall know that the Lord hath sent me to
do all these works,.... To bring the people of Israel out of Egypt, to exchange the
firstborn for the Levites, to make Aaron and his sons priests, to give the
Levites to them, and to set Elizaphan over the Kohathites, things which these
men found fault with, and questioned his authority for doing them:
for I have not done them of my own mind; or "not
out of my heart"F17כי לא מלבי "quod non de corde
meo", Pagninus, Montanus. ; he had not devised them himself, and done them
of his own head, and in any arbitrary way, without the will of God or any
authority from him, as these men suggested.
Numbers 16:29 29 If these men die naturally like all men, or if they
are visited by the common fate of all men, then the Lord has not sent me.
YLT
29if according to the death
of all men these die -- or the charge of all men is charged upon them --
Jehovah hath not sent me;
If these men die the common death of all men,.... Or
"as every man dies"F18כמות כל האדם "ut moriuntur omnes
homines", Pagninus; "reliqui homines", Junius & Tremellius;
"alii homines", Piscator. , or the generality of men, who for the
most part die of one disease or another, as a fever, and the like, or through
old age:
or if they be visited after the visitation of all men; with such
visitations as men in all ages for their sins are visited with, meaning public
calamities, such as pestilence, famine, and sword:
then the Lord hath
not sent me; it may be concluded that I had no mission nor commission from
the Lord to do what I have done, but may be reckoned a deceiver and an
impostor; and I am content to be accounted so, should either of the above
things be the case of these men.
Numbers 16:30 30 But if the Lord creates a
new thing, and the earth opens its mouth and swallows them up with all that
belongs to them, and they go down alive into the pit, then you will understand
that these men have rejected the Lord.”
YLT
30and if a strange thing
Jehovah do, and the ground hath opened her mouth and swallowed them, and all
that they have, and they have gone down alive to Sheol -- then ye have known
that these men have despised Jehovah.'
But if the Lord make a new thing,.... Or "create a
creation", or "creature"F19בריאה
יברא "creationem, creaverit", Pagninus,
Montanus, Munster, Fagius; "creaturam", Vatablus, Drusius. , what
never was before, or put those persons to a death that none ever in the world
died of yet; what that is he means is next expressed:
and the earth open her mouth and swallow them up, with all that appertain
unto them; their persons, their wives, children and substance:
and they go down quick into the pit; alive into the grave the
opening earth makes for them; this is the new thing created; though the Rabbins
sayF20Pirke Abot, c. 5. sect. 6. Pirke Eliezer, c. 19. , the mouth
of the earth, or the opening of the earth, was created from the days of the
creation, that is, it was determined or decreed so early that it should be:
then ye shall understated that these men have provoked the Lord; by rising up
against Moses and Aaron, and so against the Lord; by falsely accusing his
servants, and endeavouring to set the people against them, and so alter the
constitution of things in church and state.
Numbers 16:31 31 Now it came to pass, as he finished speaking all these
words, that the ground split apart under them,
YLT
31And it cometh to pass at
his finishing speaking all these words, that the ground which [is] under them
cleaveth,
And it came to pass, as he had made an end of speaking all these
things,.... As soon as he had finished his discourse, which was
addressed to the congregation, and, according to JosephusF21Antiqu.
l. 4. c. 3. Sect. 2. , after a long prayer to God, which that writer gives at
large; immediately so it was:
that the ground clave asunder that was under them; on which they
stood, not from any natural cause, as by subterranean volcano, forcibly making
their way and bursting the earth, and so getting vent, which has been thought
to be the cause of earthquakes; but this was by the immediate hand and almighty
power of God, and came to pass just as Moses suggested it would, and as soon as
he had uttered his words, which made it the more observable.
Numbers 16:32 32 and
the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up, with their households and all
the men with Korah, with all their goods.
YLT
32and the earth openeth her
mouth, and swalloweth them, and their houses, and all the men who [are] for
Korah, and all the goods,
And the earth opened her mouth and swallowed them up,.... Dathan
and Abiram, their wives, sons, and little ones, that stood at the door of their
tents with them, and all their goods, as follows: the earth, as if it was a
living creature or a beast of prey, opened its mouth and swallowed them up, as
such a creature does its prey:
and their houses; which may be meant both of their families
or households, and of the tents they dwelt in, which were their houses; see Deuteronomy 1:6,
and all the men that appertained unto Korah: not Korah
himself, for he was with the two hundred fifty men that had censers, and with
Aaron at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation offering incense, and
thereby making trial to whom the priesthood belonged; and who, it is highly
probable, perished by fire with the two hundred fifty men, as Josephus, Aben
Ezra, and others are of opinion; but the family of Korah, and not all of them,
for his sons died not at that time, Numbers 26:11; and
there were of his posterity in the times of David, to whom several of the
psalms are inscribed, Psalm 42:1; these
were either out of the way upon business, the providence of God so ordering it
for their safety; or they disliked the proceedings of their father, and joined
not with him; or if they did at first, repented of it and forsook him, as it is
probable on of the tribe of Reuben also did, since no mention is made of him in
the destruction:
and all their goods: their household goods,
their substance and riches, their gold, silver, cattle, and whatever they were
possessed of: a very extraordinary case this and which perhaps gave rise to
some fabulous things among the Heathens; however, if they can be credited, this
ought not to be thought incredible; as Amphiaraus, who with his chariot and its
rider are said to be swallowed up in the earth, struck by a thunderbolt from
Jupiter, and were never seen moreF23Apollodorus de Deorum Origine,
l. 3. p. 157. ; and other stories are told of persons praying to their deities
for secrecy and shelter, and the earth has opened and hid them; as Althemenes,
when he had slain his fatherF24lb. p. 134. ; and the nymph Thalia
pregnant by Jupiter, who, for fear of Juno, wished the earth might open and
take her in, and it accordingly did, as is reportedF25Macrob.
Saturnal. l. 5. c. 19. .
Numbers 16:33 33 So they and all those with them went down alive into
the pit; the earth closed over them, and they perished from among the assembly.
YLT
33and they go down, they, and
all that they have, alive to Sheol, and the earth closeth over them, and they
perish from the midst of the assembly;
They, and all that appertained unto them, went down alive
into the pit,.... The grave which the opening earth made for them, they and
their families:
and the earth closed upon them; and covered them over;
this it did of itself, as Aben Ezra remarks: this was a wonderful instance of
almighty power, that it should open in such large fissures as to swallow up
such a number of men, with their tents, goods, and cattle, and then close again
so firmly, as not to have the least appearance upon it of what had happened, as
Josephus observesF26Antiqu. ut supra, (l. 4. c. 3.) sect. 3. :
and they perished from among the congregation; and had a
name and a place no more with them.
Numbers 16:34 34 Then all Israel who were around them fled at
their cry, for they said, “Lest the earth swallow us up also!”
YLT
34and all Israel who [are]
round about them have fled at their voice, for they said, `Lest the earth
swallow us;'
And all Israel that were round about them fled at the cry of them,.... Or
because of it, as Aben Ezra; their cry was so loud, their shrieks so dreadful
and piercing, that the Israelites about them fled to get out of the sound of
them, as well as for their own safety. The Targum of Jonathan not only
represents their cry as terrible, but gives the words they expressed at
it;"and all Israel that were round about them fled, because of the terror
of their voice, when they cried and said, the Lord is righteous and his
judgments truth, and truth are the words of Moses his servant, but we are
wicked who have rebelled against him:"
for they said, lest the earth swallow us up also; which they
might fear, since they had provoked the Lord, by associating with these men,
and countenancing them by their presence, as they had done; who would have
consumed them in a moment at first, had it not been for the intercession of
Moses and Aaron.
Numbers 16:35 35 And a fire came out from the Lord and consumed the two hundred and fifty men who were offering
incense.
YLT
35and fire hath come out from
Jehovah, and consumeth the two hundred and fifty men bringing near the perfume.
And there came out a fire from the Lord,.... Flashes
of lightning from the cloud in which he was:
and consumed the two hundred and fifty men that offered incense; not that it
reduced them to ashes, but took away their lives, struck them dead at once, in
like manner as Nadab and Abihu were, who though said to be devoured by the
fire, yet their bodies remained, Leviticus 10:2; and
is often the case of persons killed by lightning; though JosephusF1Antiq.
l. 4. c. 3. sect. 4. thinks they were so consumed as that their bodies were no
more seen, and who is express for it that Korah perished with them in this
manner; which is not improbable, since he took his censer and offered incense
with them, and was the ringleader of them, and the person that contended with
Aaron for the priesthood, which was to be determined in this way; and though he
is not mentioned it may be concluded, as Aben Ezra observes, by an argument
from the lesser to the greater, that if the men he drew in perished, much more
he himself; and the same writer observes, that in the song of the Red sea, no
mention is made of the drowning of Pharaoh in it, only of his chariots and his
host, and yet he himself was certainly drowned: now these men burning incense
which belonged only to the priests of the Lord, were by just retaliation
consumed by fire, and which made it plainly appear they were not the priests of
the Lord; and the judgment on them was the more remarkable, that Moses and
Aaron, who stood by them, remained unhurt. This was an emblem of the vengeance
of eternal fire, of everlasting burnings, Judges 1:11.
Numbers 16:36 36 Then the Lord spoke to
Moses, saying:
YLT
36And Jehovah speaketh unto
Moses, saying,
And the Lord spake unto Moses,.... Immediately after
these men were consumed by fire from him; out of the same cloud from whence
that proceeded, he spoke:
saying: as follows.
Numbers 16:37 37 “Tell Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, to pick up
the censers out of the blaze, for they are holy, and scatter the fire some
distance away.
YLT
37`Say unto Eleazar son of
Aaron the priest, and he lifteth up the censers from the midst of the burning,
and the fire scatter thou yonder, for they have been hallowed,
Speak unto Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest,.... His
eldest son, that was to succeed him as high priest, and who perhaps was upon
the spot to see the issue of things; and who, rather than Aaron, is bid to do
what follows, partly because Aaron was now officiating, burning incense, and
that he might not be defiled with the dead bodies; and partly because it was
more proper and decent for the son to do it than the father; and it may be also
because it was for the further confirmation of the priesthood in the posterity
of Aaron:
that he take up the censers out of the burning; either out
from among the dead bodies burnt with fire from the Lord, or out of the burning
of the incense in them; these were the censers of Korah and the two hundred
fifty men with him:
and scatter thou the fire yonder; the fire that was in the
censers; the incense burning in them was to be cast out and scattered here and
there, or carried to some unclean place at a distance, as a token of the
rejection of the services of these men: and thus the Lord answered the prayer
of Moses, that he would not have respect to their offering, Numbers 16:15; if
incense is intended there; though that seems to refer only to Dathan and
Abiram, and not to these two hundred fifty men:
for they are hallowed, incense being offered in
them before the Lord, and therefore were not to be made use of in common
service.
Numbers 16:38 38 The censers of these men who sinned against their own
souls, let them be made into hammered plates as a covering for the altar.
Because they presented them before the Lord, therefore
they are holy; and they shall be a sign to the children of Israel.”
YLT 38[even] the censers of these
sinners against their own souls; and they have made them spread-out plates, a
covering for the altar, for they have brought them near before Jehovah, and
they are hallowed; and they are become a sign to the sons of Israel.'
The censers of these sinners against their own souls,.... Who by
burning incense in them sinned, and by sinning hurt and ruined their souls:
let them make them broad plates for a covering of the altar; the altar of
burnt offering, which, though it had a covering of brass, another made of these
were to be over it, for the further security of it, being of from the fire
continually burning on it; these censers were to be beaten into broad plates,
by the workmen who understood how to do it:
for they offered them before the Lord, therefore they are hallowed; they offered
them in his presence, they burned incense in them, and to him, though it was
not their business, but the business of the priests; yet these being done, and
by his orders, for an open trial who were his priests and who not, they were
not to be put to common use:
and they shall be a sign unto the children of Israel; a memorial
sign, a sign bringing this affair to remembrance, as it is explained in Numbers 16:40; this
was a sign to the priests, that they only were to offer every kind of
offerings, and to the Levites, who attended the priests at the altar
continually, and so had every day a sight of it and of those plates upon it,
which would remind them of this fact, and teach them not to usurp the priest's
office; and to all the children of Israel, to learn from hence that none were
to burn incense but the priests of the Lord, for doing which Uzziah, though a
king, was punished, 2 Chronicles 26:18.
Numbers 16:39 39 So Eleazar the priest took the bronze censers, which
those who were burned up had presented, and they were hammered out as a
covering on the altar,
YLT
39And Eleazar the priest
taketh the brazen censers which they who are burnt had brought near, and they
spread them out, a covering for the altar –
And Eleazar the priest took the brazen censers,.... The metal
of which these censers were made is particularly observed, to show that they
were fit for the use they were ordered to be put unto, namely, for a covering
of the altar of burnt offering, which was covered with brass, that being very
suitable, since fire was continually burning on it; and by this it appears that
these censers were different from those of Aaron and his sons, for theirs were
silver ones; the high priest on the day of atonement indeed made use of golden
one, but at all other times he used a silver oneF2Misn. Yoma, c. 4.
sect. 4. ; and so did the common priests every day, morning and night, when
they offered incenseF3Misn. Tamid, c. 5. sect. 5. :
wherewith they that were burnt had offered; the two
hundred fifty men burnt with fire from the Lord, having offered incense to him
with the brazen censers:
and they were made broad plates for a covering of the altar; not by
Eleazar, but by workmen skilled in the art of drawing or beating any kind of
metal into thin plates, by the direction and order of Eleazar.
Numbers 16:40 40 to be a memorial to the children of Israel that
no outsider, who is not a descendant of Aaron, should come near to offer
incense before the Lord, that he might not become like
Korah and his companions, just as the Lord had said
to him through Moses.
YLT
40a memorial to the sons of
Israel, so that a stranger who is not of the seed of Aaron doth not draw near
to make a perfume before Jehovah, and is not as Korah, and as his company, --
as Jehovah hath spoken by the hand of Moses to him.
To be a memorial
unto the children of Israel,.... The whole body of them; this explains
what is meant by sign, Numbers 16:38; that
it was to put or keep in mind what follows:
that no stranger which is not of the seed of Aaron come
near to offer incense before the Lord; not only any Gentile but
any Israelite, and not any Israelite only, but any Levite; none but those of
the family of Aaron might offer incense before the Lord:
that he be not as Korah and as his company; this makes it
clear that Korah perished at this time, though it is nowhere expressed; and it
seems pretty plain from hence that he perished by fire, as his company, the two
hundred fifty men with censers, did:
as the Lord said unto him by the hand of Moses; either to
Korah, who is the immediate antecedent, and who perished as the Lord had told
him by Moses he should; so some understand it, mentioned by Aben Ezra and Jarchi;
or else to Aaron, as they interpret it; and then the sense is, that none but
those of Aaron's seed should offer incense, as the Lord had declared to him by
Moses; see Numbers 3:10; or it
may be rather to Eleazar, as Abendana, who did as the Lord spake to him by
Moses, took up the censers of the men that were burnt, and got them beaten into
broad plates, and covered the altar of burnt offering with them.
Numbers 16:41 41 On the next day all the congregation of the children
of Israel complained against Moses and Aaron, saying, “You have killed the
people of the Lord.”
YLT
41And all the company of the
sons of Israel murmur, on the morrow, against Moses and against Aaron, saying,
`Ye -- ye have put to death the people of Jehovah.'
But on the morrow,.... The day following the dreadful
catastrophe, the earth swallowing up Dathan and Abiram, and all that belonged
to them, the burning of Korah and the two hundred fifty men of his company:
all the congregation of the children of Israel murmured against
Moses,
and against Aaron; not the princes and heads of the people
only, but the whole body of them; though the above persons that murmured
against them had but the day before been made such dreadful examples of divine
vengeance. This is a most surprising instance of the corruption and depravity
of human nature, of the blindness, hardness, and stupidity of the hearts of
men, which nothing but the grace of God can remove; the images of the awful
sights many of them had seen must be strong in their minds; the shrieks of the
wretched creatures perishing must be as yet as it were in their ears; the smell
of the fire was scarce out of their nostrils; and yet, notwithstanding this
shocking scene of things, they fell into the same evil, and murmur against the
men, whose authority, being called in question, had been confirmed by the above
awful instances:
saying, ye have killed the people of the Lord; so they
called the rebels, and hereby justified them in all the wickedness they had
been guilty of; and though their death was so manifestly by the immediate hand
of God, yet they lay it to the charge of Moses and Aaron, because it was in
vindication of them that it was done, and because they did not intercede by
prayer for them; though it is certain they did all they could to reclaim them
from their sin, and prevent their ruin; yet the people insist on it that they
were the cause or occasion of their death, as the Targums of Onkelos and
Jonathan express it.
Numbers 16:42 42 Now it happened, when the congregation had gathered
against Moses and Aaron, that they turned toward the tabernacle of meeting; and
suddenly the cloud covered it, and the glory of the Lord appeared.
YLT
42And it cometh to pass, in
the company being assembled against Moses and against Aaron, that they turn
towards the tent of meeting, and lo, the cloud hath covered it, and the honour
of Jehovah is seen;
And it came to pass, when the congregation was gathered against
Moses and against Aaron,.... To kill them, as the Targum of Jonathan adds; who, perhaps,
upon uttering their murmurs, made up to them, and by their gestures showed an
intention to murder them:
that they looked toward the tabernacle of the congregation; either the
people did, to see whether they could observe any appearance of the displeasure
of God against them; or rather Moses and Aaron looked that way for help and
deliverance in this extreme danger, knowing there was no salvation for them but
of the Lord, Jeremiah 3:23,
and, behold, the cloud covered it; as when it was first
erected, and which was a token of the divine Presence, Numbers 9:15;
perhaps it had dispersed immediately upon the death of the rebels, and now
returned again in favour of the servants of the Lord:
and the glory of the Lord appeared; in the cloud, as in Numbers 16:19; to
encourage Moses and Aaron, and to deliver them out of the hands of the people,
and to the terror of them.
Numbers 16:43 43 Then Moses and Aaron came before the tabernacle of
meeting.
YLT
43and Moses cometh -- Aaron
also -- unto the front of the tent of meeting.
And Moses and Aaron came before the tabernacle of the
congregation. Whose tent was not far from it, about which the people of Israel
were gathered; and from whence they came to the tabernacle, both for shelter
and safety, and for advice and instruction how to behave in this crisis; they
did not go into it, but stood before it; the Lord being in the cloud over it,
they stood in the door of it, Numbers 16:50; so
the Targum of Jonathan,"and Moses and Aaron came from the congregation to
the door of the tabernacle.'
Numbers 16:44 44 And the Lord spoke to
Moses, saying,
YLT
44And Jehovah speaketh unto
Moses, saying,
And the Lord spake unto Moses,.... Out of the cloud:
saying; as follows.
Numbers 16:45 45 “Get away from among this congregation, that I may
consume them in a moment.”
And they fell on their faces.
YLT
45`Get you up from the midst
of this company, and I consume them in a moment;' and they fall on their faces,
Get you up from among this congregation,.... That is,
withdraw from them, and be separate, that they might not be involved in the
same destruction with them, as well as that they might have no concern for
them, or plead with the Lord in prayer on their account, but let him alone to
destroy them, as follows:
that I may consume them in a moment; as he was able to do,
and had proposed to do it before, but they entreated him that he would not, Numbers 16:21; as
they again do:
and they fell upon their faces; in prayer, as the
Targums of Jonathan and Jerusalem; and so Aben Ezra observes, it was to pray to
deprecate the wrath of God, and to implore his pardoning mercy for this sinful
people; which shows what an excellent temper and disposition these men were of,
to pray for them that had so despitefully used them as to charge them with
murder, and were about to commit it on them; see Matthew 5:44.
Numbers 16:46 46 So Moses said to Aaron, “Take a censer and put fire in
it from the altar, put incense on it, and take it quickly to the
congregation and make atonement for them; for wrath has gone out from the Lord. The plague has begun.”
YLT
46and Moses saith unto Aaron,
`Take the censer, and put on it fire from off the altar, and place perfume, and
go, hasten unto the company, and make atonement for them, for the wrath hath
gone out from the presence of Jehovah -- the plague hath begun.'
And Moses said unto Aaron, take a censer,.... Which lay
in the tabernacle:
and put fire therein from off the altar; the altar of
burnt offering, from whence fire only was to be taken for burning incense; and
lest Aaron in his hurry should forget to take it from thence, but elsewhere,
and offer strange fire as his sons had done, Moses expresses the place from
whence he should take it:
and put on incense: upon the fire, in the censer, which he was
to do when he came into the camp, and not as soon as he took the fire from the
altar: the censer with fire in it he carried in one hand, and the incense in
the other; and when he was in the midst of the congregation, he put the incense
on the fire, and burnt it, as appears from Numbers 16:47, this
was an emblem of prayer, and a figure of the intercession and mediation of
Christ, Psalm 141:2,
and go quickly unto the congregation; the case
required haste:
and make an atonement for them; which was usually done
by the sacrifice of a sin or trespass offering, but now there was no time for
that, and therefore incense, which was of quicker dispatch, was used for that
purpose instead of it:
for there is wrath gone out from the Lord; some token of
it, some disease was inflicted, which Moses had information of from the Lord,
and therefore expressly says:
the plague is begun; a pestilence was sent
among the people.
Numbers 16:47 47 Then Aaron took it as Moses commanded, and ran
into the midst of the assembly; and already the plague had begun among the
people. So he put in the incense and made atonement for the people.
YLT
47And Aaron taketh as Moses
hath spoken, and runneth unto the midst of the assembly, and lo, the plague
hath begun among the people; and he giveth the perfume, and maketh atonement
for the people,
And Aaron took as Moses commanded,.... A censer with fire
in it from the altar, and also incense:
and ran into the midst of the congregation: though a man
in years and in so high an office, and had been so ill used by the people; yet
was not only so ready to obey the divine command, but so eager to serve this
ungrateful people, and save them from utter destruction, that he ran from the
tabernacle into the midst of them:
and, behold, the plague was begun among the people; he saw them
fall down dead instantly in great numbers:
and he put on incense; upon the fire in the
censer, which though it was not in common lawful to burn but in the holy place
on the altar of incense, yet, upon this extraordinary occasion, it was
dispensed with by the Lord, as it had been the day before when he offered it at
the door of the tabernacle with the two hundred fifty men of Korah's company;
and perhaps the reason of it now was, that the people might see Aaron perform
this kind office for them, and give them a fresh convincing proof of his being
invested with the office of priesthood from the Lord, or otherwise he could have
done this in its proper place, the sanctuary:
and made an atonement for the people; by offering
incense, which God smelt a sweet savour in, and accepted of, and his wrath was
appeased and the plague stayed: in this Aaron was a type of our Lord Jesus Christ,
and of his mediation, atonement, and intercession; wrath is gone forth from God
for the sins of men, which is revealed in the law; and death, the effect of it,
has taken place on many in every sense of it, corporeal, spiritual, and
eternal: Christ, as Mediator, in pursuance of his suretyship engagements, has
made atonement for the sins of his people by the sacrifice of himself; and now
ever lives to make intercession for them, which is founded upon his sacrifice
and satisfaction, his sufferings and death, signified by the fire in which the
incense was put.
Numbers 16:48 48 And he stood between the dead and the living; so the
plague was stopped.
YLT
48and standeth between the
dead and the living, and the plague is restrained;
And he stood between the dead and the living,.... The
plague beginning at one end of the camp, and so proceeded on, Aaron placed
himself between that part of it wherein it had made havoc, and that wherein yet
it was not come; the Targum of Jonathan is,"he stood in prayer in the
middle, and made a partition, with his censer, between the dead and living;'in
this he was a type of Christ, the Mediator between God and man, the living God
and dead sinners; for though his atonement and intercession are not made for
the dead in a corporeal sense, nor for those who have sinned, and sin unto
death, the unpardonable sin, nor for men appointed unto death, but for the
living in Jerusalem, or for those who are written in the Lamb's book of life;
yet for those who are dead in sin, and as deserving of eternal death as others,
whereby they are saved from everlasting ruin:
and the plague was stayed; it proceeded no further
than where Aaron stood and offered his incense, and made atonement: so the
consequence of the atonement and intercession of Christ is, that the wrath of
God sin deserves comes not upon those that have a share therein, the second
death shall not seize upon them, nor they be hurt with it; for, being justified
by the blood of Christ, and atonement for their sins being made by his
sacrifice, they are saved from wrath to come.
Numbers 16:49 49 Now those who died in the plague were fourteen
thousand seven hundred, besides those who died in the Korah incident.
YLT
49and those who die by the
plague are fourteen thousand and seven hundred, apart from those who die for
the matter of Korah;
Now they that died in the plague were fourteen thousand and seven
hundred,.... 14,700. Thus what they were threatened with, that their
carcasses should fall in the wilderness, Numbers 14:29, was
more and more fulfilled:
beside them that died about the matter of Korah; these are not
taken into the number here, even the two hundred fifty men of Korah's company,
and the families of Dathan and Abiram, Numbers 16:32; how
many they were is not certain, but they were but few in comparison of these.
Numbers 16:50 50 So Aaron returned to Moses at the door of the
tabernacle of meeting, for the plague had stopped.
YLT
50and Aaron turneth back unto
Moses, unto the opening of the tent of meeting, and the plague hath been
restrained.
And Aaron returned unto Moses,.... After he had by his
atonement and intercession put a stop to the wrath of God broken forth upon the
people:
unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation; where Moses
was waiting for his return, and to know the issue of this affair:
and the plague was stayed: even before Aaron left
the camp, and is here repeated for the certainty of it, and to intimate that it
continued to cease, and broke not out again.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》