Taste of Torah
A Bima-Ready D'var Torah 

30 Sivan 5782
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Parashat Korach
Crime & Punishment
Torah Portion: Numbers 16:1-18:32
Haftarah Portion: I Samuel 11:14-12:22

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Shalom!

​​This week’s parashah recounts a notorious incident called Korach’s Rebellion. For those of us familiar with the story, Korach is the bad guy. Anyone following him must be crazy. But we have the benefit of hindsight; as these events were unfolding, things might not have been so cut and dry.

First of all, we often overlook the fact that Korach was a well-respected part of the community. He was a member of the tribe of Levi, the most prestigious tribe amongst the Israelites. He was not a Cohen (Aaron’s direct familial line) but he was still a member of the priestly class. He was also wealthy—one of the richest people amongst the Israelites. When they had despoiled the Egyptians,[i] Korach came away with so much wealth that it took 300 mules to carry.[ii] Indeed, throughout all of our history, few could compare with Korach’s wealth and influence; only our enemy Haman came close to the amount of wealth that Korach possessed.[iii]

Because of his wealth and his status as a Levite, Korach enjoyed power and influence in the community. But, as we often see in history, powerful people are often swayed by pride. Two weeks before this week’s Torah portion, in Parashat Beha’alotcha, the Levites were commanded to purify themselves in preparation for serving Adonai. God commanded: “Sprinkle on them water of purification, and let them go over their whole body with a razor, and wash their clothes; thus they shall be purified” (Numbers 8:7).

According to the Arizal,[iv] the creator of Lurianic Kabbalah, the reason the Levites were commanded to be shaved bald in the first place was as a way to soften their tendency to be judgmental; in Kabbalistic thought, hair is symbolic of din, “judgement.”[v] So, the Levites were shaved bald as a way to reduce their pride, and hopefully, make them be more empathetic to other Israelites.

This might not sit well with someone like Korach. Indeed, setting someone up for public humiliation is perhaps not the best way to go about teaching them humility. Korach was upset with his newly-hairless state post-purification. According to Midrash Tanchuma, Korach began to get angry at Moses because “he began to go around all Israel, but they did not recognize him.”[vi] Not only was he humiliated based on his personal appearance, but his public standing—his sense of where he stood in the community—was threatened. Moreover, while Korach and the Levites were being shaved, Moses “brought his brother Aaron, adorned him like a bride, and had him sit in the tent of meeting.”[vii] So, in Korach’s eyes, while the Levites were being demeaned, Moses was indulging in a bit of nepotism by further elevating his own brother.

Thus Korach began rallying others discontented with the current leadership to rebel against Moses. Korach ends up confronting Moses, and, after a series of events, God causes Korach and his main supporters—including their wives, children, and entire households—to be swallowed by the earth (Numbers 16:31-33).

When we encounter this text, we are typically taught to categorically condemn Korach as wicked and rebellious, for how could anyone who goes against Moses have redeeming qualities? We, as readers of the Torah, know that God was the one calling the shots, commanding the Levites to be purified in one way and Aaron to be sanctified in another. But Korach didn’t have the benefit of the hindsight we now have. He believed his cause was just.

Like many of us, when his pride was wounded, he lashed out. It was wrong for Korach to attempt to overthrow Moses—certainly, he could have addressed his grievances in other ways. But did the punishment fit the crime? The condemnation of his entire family and the families of his followers seems particularly harsh. Korach was rebellious, yes, but he was also profoundly human, and the price paid for his pride seems extraordinarily high.

At the same time, the Israelites were constantly on the brink of catastrophe. They were not yet a well-established people. They did not trust easily. They acted out more than once, and their faith was easily shaken. Challenging the only-recently-established leader and deity was not a mere act of pride; it represented a grave threat to the very stability of the community.

Still, it’s a passage that raises difficult – and important – questions. How do we weigh stability with justice? When is an action even more significant than it seems? How do we challenge leaders without harming our community?

​When presented with such questions, may we be reflective in pursuing answers. May we seek to be more compassionate, to balance justice with mercy. May this be God’s will, and our own.

Shabbat shalom!
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Rabbi Caroline Sim
ISJL Director of Rabbinical Services

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[i] See Exodus 12:36.
[ii] TB Pesachim 119a.
[iii] Numbers Rabbah 22:7.
[iv] Isaac ben Solomon Luria Ashkenazi (1534-1572), aka “HaAri” or simply “Isaac Luria,” was a renowned rabbi and mystic from the community in Safed, Israel. His teachings about the Zohar are the foundation of modern Kabbalah (Lurianic Kabbalah).
[v] Sha’ar HaGilgulim, chapter 34.
[vi] Midrash Tanchuma, Korach 3.
[vii] Ibid.

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