Torah Study Blog

The Twelve Tribes of Israel are said to be descended from the twelve sons of Jacob. Each of the Twelve Tribes were assigned land, with the exception of the tribe of Levi. Those descendants, known as Levites, became the priests of all the Israelites, and the other tribes were expected to support them. Although all priest were Levites, not all Levites were priests. The priests were a subset of the Levites who had sacred responsibilities that came with an elevated rank. The rest of the Levites were expected to serve the priests.

The stories in the Torah are thousands of years old. One thing we know for sure is that, while the environment we live in today is different from biblical times, human nature does not change very much. Today’s Torah portion tells us about a political uprising. The setting is that the Israelites are at an encampment during the years of wandering in the wilderness. Moses is the head of the camp, and his brother, Aaron, and Aaron’s sons, are given the rank of priests. In the portion, a man named Korah, a first cousin to Moses and Aaron, leads a rebellion against the establishment.

The challenge does not come from the riffraff among the Israelite people. We are told that there are more than 250 “men of repute” (Numbers 16:2) who challenge Moses and Aaron by saying:

You have gone too far! For all the community are holy, all of them, and the Lord is in their midst. Why then do you raise yourselves above the Lord’s congregation?” (Numbers 16:3)

Does Korah have a fair point? Are all the people holy? What can be done when there is a difference between how the leaders of the community act, and what the community itself wants? Is government meant to serve the people, or the privileged few?

In this story, Moses asked God to prove to the people that God was on the side of Moses. God directed Moses to have the Israelites move away, then the ground under Korah and the 250 other accusers:

...opens its mouth and swallows them up with all that belongs to them, and they go down alive into Sheol. (Numbers 16:32)

This dramatic event proved that Moses was the leader chosen by God. And it solidified the position of the Aaronite priesthood.

There had been several places of worship throughout the kingdoms of Israel and Judah. But, after the destruction of the Northern Kingdom in 722 BCE, there was a consolidation of the priesthood. The consolidation meant that there were fewer jobs for the priests who had served at the other temples. A shift in power lead to the creation of a new form of governmental organization. Close reading of Bible passages shows us the power struggle that must have taken place. Although Korah and his associates were swallowed up in this Torah story, his existence has left a mark on the Jewish community. Several Psalms in the Bible are attributed to the sons of Korah. (See Psalms 42, 44-49, 84, 85, 87, and 88.) Interestingly, the prophet Ezekiel knows about priests at the Temple, but he mentioned the Zadokites, not the Aaronites. And the prophet Jeremiah makes no mention of an Aaronite priesthood.

The haftarah reading for this week is from the book of Samuel and relates the transfer of power from the prophet Samuel to the first king of Israel, Saul. The story goes that the people clamored that they wanted a king. Samuel tried to dissuade them, but the people were adamant that they needed a king. Although Samuel would have preferred for the people to follow God only, God agreed to their demand and indicated Saul as the first king. After anointing Saul, Samuel reminded the people to, “not turn away to follow worthless things, which can neither profit nor save but are worthless.” (1 Samuel 12:21)

The Bible stories tell us that Moses, and even Saul, never asked for these elevated positions. Leadership is a burden. According to these stories, leadership was thrust upon Moses and Saul. Moses said to the people, don’t blame me if Korah and his followers are unhappy. It was God who put Moses in this position. If you rebel against that notion, you are rebelling against God.

The elevation of Saul provided a military leader whom the people could follow into battle. A big reason to have a monarchy is so that you can have a draft and a national army.

There is a push and pull in our own society today. Our governmental leaders are going in one direction, while a portion of the community wants to go in another direction. These biblical passages reflect the tensions of moving from one form of government to another, and they reflect the reality of the times in which they were written. Political tensions are as old as written history. As we know, history is written by the winners. The Aaronite priesthood is a winner of biblical history. The history of our tumultuous time is yet to be written.

As is usual, the TINW podcast is going on summer hiatus. The Torah Study group will continue to meet and will be led by guest leaders. Watch your Temple Israel email for links to be able to Zoom in to the Torah Study session. The podcast will be back at the end of August. We wish everyone a safe and happy summer!

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misquotes or misunderstandings in what Rabbi Jaech taught us are the responsibility of Tara Keiter