Bostoner Torah Insights: Bostoner ‘Chassidus’ in Hebrew and English: Parshas Korach – 2 Tamuz 5785
Bostoner Torah Insights - Yerushalayim
Bostoner Torah Insights
Bostoner ‘Chassidus’ in English
Parshas Korach – 2 Tamuz 5785
Bostoner Rebbe shlit”a – Yerushalayim
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Seemingly, Korach was not satisfied with his tremendous wealth (Sandhedrin 110a) and his position to be one of those select few to carry the Aron (Tanchuma, Korach 2). The Midrash (Bamidbar Raba 18:8) relates that Korach was able to foresee that Shmuel HaNavi would come from him as well as other descendants that would prophesize with Ruach HaKodesh. Korach felt that he deserved more, and he decided to take an active role to fulfill his personal aspirations.
Rashi (Bamidbar 16:1), paraphrasing the Midrash Tanchuma, explains that Korach was jealous of his younger cousin Elitzafan ben Uzziel who became the Nasi of Bnei Kehas. Korach reasoned that Kehas had four sons: Amram, Yitzhar, Chevron and Uzziel. Amram's sons were Moshe, who became the leader and de facto king, while Aharon was the Kohen Gadol. The next in line should logically be Korach, who was the firstborn of Yitzhar (Shemos 6:21), the second son of Kehas. It was this 'outrage' and 'injustice' that pushed Korach to challenge Moshe and 'nullify his words'.
It would seem that Korach wanted to bring about new Jewish leadership for quite some time, as Elitzafan was appointed back in Iyar of that year. He found that after Tisha B'Av, when the Chet HaMeraglim led to the decree that his generation would die in the desert as an opportune time to rally his generation around him and take on Moshe Rabbeinu. His propaganda consisted of accusing Moshe Rabbeinu self-imposing his own flawed man-made laws, rather than transmitting the true Torah.
The Midrash continues that Korach challenged Moshe with two questions. The first question was: Does a four-cornered garment completely composed of Techeles require Tzitzis? Moshe answered in the affirmative. Korach argued: How is possible that a garment completely made of Techeles will not exempt itself from the obligation of Tzitzis, but an additional four strands of Techeles will fulfill the obligation? The second Kasha posed by Korach was: Does a domicile (home where people live) full of Sifrei Torah require a Mezuzah by the entrance? Once again Moshe related that Halacha that it does require a Mezuzah. Korach argued: The entire Torah, which includes the two parshiyos of Mezuzah will not exempt the house from the obligation, but an additional two parshiyos of the Mezuzah will fulfill such an obligation. At this point, Korach had 250 garments of Techeles made and collected 250 distinguished men, most of whom were from the tribe of Reuven, such as their Nasi, Elitzur the son of Shdeiur, and had them demonstrate in protest before Moshe, wrapped in these garments without Tzitzis.
The Talmud Yerushalmi (Sanhedrin 10:1) relates a third question. Korach queried about Tzaraas the size of a Gris (barley grain); Moshe answered Tamei. Then he asked what the law would be if the entire body was covered with Tzaraas; Moshe answered Tahor. At that moment Korach declared, "Torah is not from heaven, Moshe is not a prophet, and Aharon is not the Kohen Gadol". Once Moshe Rabbeinu's reputation as the true transmitter of Hashem's Word was questioned, not only can every Torah law become suspect to falsification, but every appointment of leadership was suspect as well.
I would like to suggest earlier instances where Moshe seemed to be doing things of his own accord, which could have aroused the suspicions of Korach early on. Around the same time that Elitzafan was appointed as Nasi, Moshe and Aharon counted the 22,000 non-Bechor Leviim and the 22,273 firstborn Bechorim. Hashem commanded Moshe, "Take the Leviim in place of every firstborn of Bnei Yisrael, and the Leviim will be Mine – I am Hashem. And as for the redemption of the 273 firstborn of Bnei Yisroel in excess of the Leviim, take five shekel…and give the money to Aharon and his sons…(Bamidbar 3:45-48)
The Gemara (Sanhedrin 17a) says that Moshe made 22,273 lots. On 22,000 of them was written "a Levi" and on the remaining 273 was written "5 Shekel". The Torah Temimah explains that if Moshe Rabbeinu were to approach any Bechor for 5 Shekel, each could counter that Moshe could not prove that the were obligated to pay, because perhaps they were redeemed by a Levi. He implies that Moshe designed this idea of drawing lots on his own – without any divine instruction. If so, under what authority was Moshe's lottery binding to obligate those firstborn to pay the 5 Shekel of redemption money
It is interesting that the 250 distinguished men that Korach collected, closely corresponds to the 273 firstborn that had to redeem their sanctity with money. I would suggest that perhaps Korach rounded up 250 of these firstborn and convinced them that Moshe actions were not sanctioned by Hashem, and therefore as Bechorim they still had the right to serve in the Mikdash like the Kohanim. Many were from the tribe of Reuven, because the firstborn of Reuven had an additional grievance. Not only were they biological firstborn, but they were also the from Reuven, the firstborn of Yaakov, and their entire tribe should have an opportunity to serve in the Mikdash, similar to the Leviim. Korach convinced them that they should offer Ketores, which was their birthright, and they had little to lose, since they were destined to die in the Midbar and would never enter Eretz Yisroel.
May this week's Parsha inspire us to quell our feelings of jealousy and avoid Machlokes and infighting at all costs. In this merit, may we see the Beis HaMikdash speedily rebuilt, and the Avodah restored, for the benefit of all Klal Yisrael.
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