ALL, THEN NOTHING!
Second of six devotions in Proud Insolence series
Numbers 16:22-35
Numbers 16:20 “The LORD said to Moses and Aaron, ‘Separate yourselves from this assembly so I can put an end to his at once!’”
Moses turned to the council and said in a loud voice, “Clear out—every one of you! Get away from Korah, Dathan, and Abiram! Don’t take anything, but run away now!”
The men split from Korah, Dathan, and Abiram. Most ran away in the opposite direction. Dathan and Abiram fetched their wives and children and stood together in the front of their tents.
Moses warned, “This isn’t my idea. Hey, if these guys die a natural death, then I misunderstood the LORD. But…if something new happens to them, then the LORD DID send me! What if the earth opens its mouth and swallows them whole? Buried while still alive! That is proof that they disrespected the Almighty.”
That’s exactly what happened.
They were immediately flushed alive into the grave along with everything they owned! The rest of the council fled hearing cries rising up from under the earth. “The earth is going to swallow us too!” the terrified men expected.
Then fire erupted from the LORD. Every man of the 250 who offered incense succumbed in the raging fire.
Legend has it that Korah’s sons originally stood by dad’s side. Psalm 49 is supposed to be Korah’s sons repenting from deep within the earth. They evidently learned truth in their in-between worlds. Wealth is a false sense of security, it cannot buy one moment of life. One second Korah’s sons had it all, then abruptly, they had nothing! See the lesson linked below for a powerful, better ending to this devotion. We still learn from Psalm 49 today.
Take Home Nugget
Korah was extremely wealthy. The legend tells that hundreds of mules lugged the keys to Korah’s treasure houses. We think that Solomon was the richest man that ever lived. Korah must have rivaled Solomon.
Yet Solomon would have advised Korah from Ecclesiastes 5:13-14: “I have seen a grievous evil under the sun: wealth hoarded to the harm of its owner, or wealth lost to some misfortune, so that when he has a son there is nothing left for him.”
The famous Rothschild family was envied by many for their wealth. “Exactly how much do you have?” someone asked the patriarch.
“Come with me,” he enticed the curious bystander. He opened a room whose walls were decorated with documents. “These,” said the patriarch, “are my only true possessions. Only the money I gave away will accompany me to the grave.”
Holy Father, all my possessions are meaningless. Only the good I do will survive forever. Help me do good, Lord Jesus! Amen.
Adapted from “The Only True Possessions“ by Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein. www.HolyLandMoments.com. June 20, 2017.
J.D. Griffith
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