[[📚 Explore the Bible Books]] [[Numbers Overview]] [[Numbers 15]] [[Numbers 17]] # Numbers 16 📖 > [!info] Table of Contents > [[#📜 Scripture Text (NET)]] [[#📖 Verse-by-Verse Commentary]] [[#🧠 Chapter Summary]] [[#🔎 Key Principles / 🛟 Life Application]] [[#✍️ Key Verses to Remember]] > [[#🤔 Interesting Facts]] [[#🔗 Related Passages/Cross Reference]] [[#🙏 Devotional Reflection]] ## 📜 Scripture Text (NET) (The NET Bible: New English Translation. Biblical Studies Press, 2005) ### The Rebellion of Korah [[#Verse 01.]]  Now Korah son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, and Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and On son of Peleth, who were Reubenites, took men  [[#Verse 02.]] and rebelled against Moses, along with some of the Israelites, 250 leaders of the community, chosen from the assembly, famous men.  [[#Verse 03.]] And they assembled against Moses and Aaron, saying to them, “You take too much upon yourselves, seeing that the whole community is holy, every one of them, and the Lord is among them. Why then do you exalt yourselves above the community of the Lord?” [[#Verse 04.]] When Moses heard it he fell down with his face to the ground. [[#Verse 05.]] Then he said to Korah and to all his company, “In the morning the Lord will make known who are his, and who is holy. He will cause that person to approach him; the person he has chosen he will cause to approach him.  [[#Verse 06.]] Do this, Korah, you and all your company: Take censers,  [[#Verse 07.]] put fire in them, and set incense on them before the Lord tomorrow, and the man whom the Lord chooses will be holy. You take too much upon yourselves, you sons of Levi!” [[#Verse 08.]] Moses said to Korah, “Listen now, you sons of Levi!  [[#Verse 09.]] Does it seem too small a thing to you that the God of Israel has separated you from the community of Israel to bring you near to himself, to perform the service of the tabernacle of the Lord, and to stand before the community to minister to them?  [[#Verse 10.]] He has brought you near and all your brothers, the sons of Levi, with you. Do you now seek the priesthood also?  [[#Verse 11.]] Therefore you and all your company have assembled together against the Lord! And Aaron—what is he that you murmur against him?” [[#Verse 12.]] Then Moses summoned Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, but they said, “We will not come up.  [[#Verse 13.]] Is it a small thing that you have brought us up out of the land that flows with milk and honey, to kill us in the wilderness? Now do you want to make yourself a prince over us?  [[#Verse 14.]] Moreover, you have not brought us into a land that flows with milk and honey, nor given us an inheritance of fields and vineyards. Do you think you can blind these men? We will not come up.” [[#Verse 15.]] Moses was very angry, and he said to the Lord, “Have no respect for their offering! I have not taken so much as one donkey from them, nor have I harmed any one of them!” [[#Verse 16.]] Then Moses said to Korah, “You and all your company present yourselves before the Lord—you and they, and Aaron—tomorrow.  [[#Verse 17.]] And each of you take his censer, put incense in it, and then each of you present his censer before the Lord: 250 censers, along with you, and Aaron—each of you with his censer.”  [[#Verse 18.]] So everyone took his censer, put fire in it, and set incense on it, and stood at the entrance of the tent of meeting, with Moses and Aaron.  [[#Verse 19.]] When Korah assembled the whole community against them at the entrance of the tent of meeting, then the glory of the Lord appeared to the whole community. ### The Judgment on the Rebels [[#Verse 20.]] The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron:  [[#Verse 21.]] “Separate yourselves from among this community, that I may consume them in an instant.”  [[#Verse 22]] Then they threw themselves down with their faces to the ground and said, “O God, the God of the spirits of all people, will you be angry with the whole community when only one man sins?” [[#Verse 23.]] So the Lord spoke to Moses:  [[#Verse 24.]] “Tell the community: ‘Get away from around the homes of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram.’”  [[#Verse 25.]] Then Moses got up and went to Dathan and Abiram; and the elders of Israel went after him.  [[#Verse 26.]] And he said to the community, “Move away from the tents of these wicked men, and do not touch anything they have, lest you be destroyed because of all their sins.”  [[#Verse 27.]] So they got away from the homes of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram on every side, and Dathan and Abiram came out and stationed themselves in the entrances of their tents with their wives, their children, and their toddlers.  [[#Verse 28.]] Then Moses said, “This is how you will know that the Lord has sent me to do all these works, for I have not done them of my own will.  [[#Verse 29.]] If these men die a natural death, or if they share the fate of all men, then the Lord has not sent me.  [[#Verse 30.]] But if the Lord does something entirely new, and the earth opens its mouth and swallows them up along with all that they have, and they go down alive to the grave, then you will know that these men have despised the Lord!” [[#Verse 31.]] When he had finished speaking all these words, the ground that was under them split open,  [[#Verse 32.]] and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them, along with their households, and all Korah’s men, and all their goods.  [[#Verse 33.]] They and all that they had went down alive into the pit, and the earth closed over them. So they perished from among the community.  [[#Verse 34.]] All the Israelites who were around them fled at their cry, for they said, “What if the earth swallows us too?”  [[#Verse 35.]] Then a fire went out from the Lord and devoured the 250 men who offered incense. ### The Atonement for the Rebellion [[#Verse 36.]] (17:1) The Lord spoke to Moses:  [[#Verse 37.]] “Tell Eleazar son of Aaron the priest to pick up the censers out of the flame, for they are holy, and then scatter the coals of fire at a distance.  [[#Verse 38.]] As for the censers of these men who sinned at the cost of their lives, they must be made into hammered sheets for covering the altar, because they presented them before the Lord and sanctified them. They will become a sign to the Israelites.”  [[#Verse 39.]] So Eleazar the priest took the bronze censers presented by those who had been burned up, and they were hammered out as a covering for the altar.  [[#Verse 40.]] It was a memorial for the Israelites, that no outsider who is not a descendant of Aaron should approach to burn incense before the Lord, that he might not become like Korah and his company—just as the Lord had spoken by the authority of Moses.  [[#Verse 41.]] But on the next day the whole community of Israelites murmured against Moses and Aaron, saying, “You have killed the Lord’s people!”  [[#Verse 42.]] When the community assembled against Moses and Aaron, they turned toward the tent of meeting—and the cloud covered it, and the glory of the Lord appeared.  [[#Verse 43.]] Then Moses and Aaron stood before the tent of meeting. [[#Verse 44.]] The Lord spoke to Moses:  [[#Verse 45.]] “Get away from this community, so that I can consume them in an instant!” But they threw themselves down with their faces to the ground.  [[#Verse 46.]] Then Moses said to Aaron, “Take the censer, put burning coals from the altar in it, place incense on it, and go quickly into the assembly and make atonement for them, for wrath has gone out from the Lord—the plague has begun!”  [[#Verse 47.]] So Aaron did as Moses commanded and ran into the middle of the assembly, where the plague was just beginning among the people. So he placed incense on the coals and made atonement for the people.  [[#Verse 48.]] He stood between the dead and the living, and the plague was stopped.  [[#Verse 49.]] Now 14,700 people died in the plague, in addition to those who died in the event with Korah.  [[#Verse 50.]] Then Aaron returned to Moses at the entrance of the tent of meeting, and the plague was stopped. ## ==📖 Verse-by-Verse Commentary== ###### Overall. ###### Verse 01. ###### Verse 02. ###### Verse 03. ###### Verse 04. ###### Verse 05. ###### Verse 06. ###### Verse 07. ###### Verse 08. ###### Verse 09. - When we lose perspective on how blessed we already are, we want what we don’t have. They were already blessed but wanted more. The result was to scorn what they had already received. ###### Verse 10. ###### Verse 11. ###### Verse 12. ###### Verse 13. ###### Verse 14. ###### Verse 15. ###### Verse 16. ###### Verse 17. ###### Verse 18. ###### Verse 19. ###### Verse 20. ###### Verse 21. ###### Verse 22. ###### Verse 23. ###### Verse 24. ###### Verse 25. ###### Verse 26. ###### Verse 27. ###### Verse 28. ###### Verse 29. ###### Verse 30. ###### Verse 31. ###### Verse 32. ###### Verse 33. ###### Verse 34. ###### Verse 35. ###### Verse 36. ###### Verse 37. ###### Verse 38. ###### Verse 39. ###### Verse 40. ###### Verse 41. ###### Verse 42. ###### Verse 43. ###### Verse 44. ###### Verse 45. ###### Verse 46. ###### Verse 47. ###### Verse 48. ###### Verse 49. ###### Verse 50. ## 🤔 Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights - coming soon. %% PRIVATE NOTES (only I see this) Write down things that are not straight from commentary but interesting facts that ground the text in history. %% ## 🧠 Chapter Summary - coming soon. %% PRIVATE NOTES (only I see this) Write a short paragraph (3–5 sentences) summarizing what happens in this chapter. - What is the main event or teaching? - How does this chapter fit the book’s overall story? - What stands out immediately? Anything Apologetic to point out? %% ## 🔎 Key Principles / 🛟 Life Application - coming soon. %% PRIVATE NOTES (only I see this) - 📌 Observation 1 - 📌 Observation 2 - 📌 Observation 3 - (Add more as needed.) %% %% #### Today, I can apply this chapter by: - ✅ Application 1 - ✅ Application 2 Make these very practical: - "Trust God's timing in an uncertain situation." - "Speak truth even when it’s unpopular." Think: - What do we learn about God here? - What do we learn about people? - Are there promises, commands, or warnings? %% ## ✍️ Key Verses to Remember - coming soon. %% PRIVATE NOTES (only I see this) - 📖 [Verse Reference] – "Quote of important verse." - 📖 [Verse Reference] – "Quote of another important verse." (You can link to deeper notes if you want later.) %% ## 🔗 Related Passages/Cross Reference - 🔗 coming soon. - 🔗 coming soon. %% Examples: - John 1:1 and Genesis 1 - Romans 5 and Genesis 3 %% ## 🙏 Devotional Reflection - coming soon. %% PRIVATE NOTES (only I see this) Write 3–6 sentences reflecting on: - How this chapter encourages your faith, - Convicts your heart, - Reveals God's character. Optional format: "In light of this chapter, I am challenged to..." or "I am comforted by..." %% ##### 📂 Internal Links/Personal Notes