Numbers 16 - Prayer Tents



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Numbers 16
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Korah’s Rebellion

16One day Korah son of Izhar, a descendant of Kohath son of Levi, conspired with Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and On son of Peleth, from the tribe of Reuben.H7141H1121H3324H1121H6955H1121H3878H1885H48H1121H446H203H1121H6431H1121H7205H3947 2They incited a rebellion against Moses, along with 250 other leaders of the community, all prominent members of the assembly.H6965H6440H4872H582H1121H3478H3967H2572H5387H5712H7148H4150H582H8034 3They united against Moses and Aaron and said, "You have gone too far! The whole community of Israel has been set apart by the LORD, and he is with all of us. What right do you have to act as though you are greater than the rest of the LORD's people?"H6950H4872H175H559H7227H5712H6918H3068H8432H5375H6951H3068 4When Moses heard what they were saying, he fell face down on the ground.H4872H8085H5307H6440 5Then he said to Korah and his followers, "Tomorrow morning the LORD will show us who belongs to him and who is holy. The LORD will allow only those whom he selects to enter his own presence.H1696H7141H5712H559H1242H3068H3045H6918H7126H977H7126 6Korah, you and all your followers must prepare your incense burners.H6213H3947H4289H7141H5712 7Light fires in them tomorrow, and burn incense before the LORD. Then we will see whom the LORD chooses as his holy one. You Levites are the ones who have gone too far!"H5414H784H2004H7760H7004H6440H3068H4279H376H3068H977H6918H7227H1121H3878 8Then Moses spoke again to Korah: "Now listen, you Levites!H4872H559H7141H8085H1121H3878 9Does it seem insignificant to you that the God of Israel has chosen you from among all the community of Israel to be near him so you can serve in the LORD's Tabernacle and stand before the people to minister to them?H4592H430H3478H914H5712H3478H7126H5647H5656H4908H3068H5975H6440H5712H8334 10Korah, he has already given this special ministry to you and your fellow Levites. Are you now demanding the priesthood as well?H7126H251H1121H3878H1245H3550 11The LORD is the one you and your followers are really revolting against! For who is Aaron that you are complaining about him?"H3651H5712H3259H3068H175H3885H3885 12Then Moses summoned Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, but they replied, "We refuse to come before you!H4872H7971H7121H1885H48H1121H446H559H5927 13Isn't it enough that you brought us out of Egypt, a land flowing with milk and honey, to kill us here in this wilderness, and that you now treat us like your subjects?H4592H3588H5927H776H2100H2461H1706H4191H4057H8323H8323H8323 14What's more, you haven't brought us into another land flowing with milk and honey. You haven't given us a new homeland with fields and vineyards. Are you trying to fool these men? We will not come."H637H935H776H2100H2461H1706H5414H5159H7704H3754H5365H5869H582H5927 15Then Moses became very angry and said to the LORD, "Do not accept their grain offerings! I have not taken so much as a donkey from them, and I have never hurt a single one of them."H4872H3966H2734H559H3068H6437H4503H5375H259H2543H7489H259 16And Moses said to Korah, "You and all your followers must come here tomorrow and present yourselves before the LORD. Aaron will also be here.H4872H559H7141H5712H6440H3068H175H4279 17You and each of your 250 followers must prepare an incense burner and put incense on it, so you can all present them before the LORD. Aaron will also bring his incense burner."H3947H376H4289H5414H7004H7126H6440H3068H376H4289H3967H2572H4289H175H376H4289 18So each of these men prepared an incense burner, lit the fire, and placed incense on it. Then they all stood at the entrance of the Tabernacle with Moses and Aaron.H3947H376H4289H5414H784H7760H7004H5975H6607H168H4150H4872H175 19Meanwhile, Korah had stirred up the entire community against Moses and Aaron, and they all gathered at the Tabernacle entrance. Then the glorious presence of the LORD appeared to the whole community,H7141H6950H5712H6607H168H4150H3519H3068H7200H5712 20and the LORD said to Moses and Aaron,H3068H1696H4872H175H559 21"Get away from all these people so that I may instantly destroy them!"H914H8432H5712H3615H7281 22But Moses and Aaron fell face down on the ground. "O God," they pleaded, "you are the God who gives breath to all creatures. Must you be angry with all the people when only one man sins?"H5307H6440H559H410H430H7307H1320H259H376H2398H7107H5712 23And the LORD said to Moses,H3068H1696H4872H559 24"Then tell all the people to get away from the tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram."H1696H5712H559H5927H5439H4908H7141H1885H48 25So Moses got up and rushed over to the tents of Dathan and Abiram, followed by the elders of Israel.H4872H6965H3212H1885H48H2205H3478H3212H310 26"Quick!" he told the people. "Get away from the tents of these wicked men, and don't touch anything that belongs to them. If you do, you will be destroyed for their sins."H1696H5712H559H5493H168H7563H582H5060H5595H2403 27So all the people stood back from the tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram. Then Dathan and Abiram came out and stood at the entrances of their tents, together with their wives and children and little ones.H5927H4908H7141H1885H48H5439H1885H48H3318H5324H6607H168H802H1121H2945 28And Moses said, "This is how you will know that the LORD has sent me to do all these things that I have done—for I have not done them on my own.H4872H559H3045H3068H7971H6213H4639H3820 29If these men die a natural death, or if nothing unusual happens, then the LORD has not sent me.H4191H4194H120H6485H6486H120H3068H7971 30But if the LORD does something entirely new and the ground opens its mouth and swallows them and all their belongings, and they go down alive into the grave, then you will know that these men have shown contempt for the LORD."H3068H1254H1278H127H6475H6310H1104H3381H2416H7585H3045H582H5006H3068 31He had hardly finished speaking the words when the ground suddenly split open beneath them.H3615H1696H1697H127H1234 32The earth opened its mouth and swallowed the men, along with their households and all their followers who were standing with them, and everything they owned.H776H6605H6310H1104H1004H120H7141H7399 33So they went down alive into the grave, along with all their belongings. The earth closed over them, and they all vanished from among the people of Israel.H3381H2416H7585H776H3680H6H8432H6951 34All the people around them fled when they heard their screams. "The earth will swallow us, too!" they cried.H3478H5439H5127H6963H559H776H1104 35Then fire blazed forth from the LORD and burned up the 250 men who were offering incense.H3318H784H3068H398H3967H2572H376H7126H7004 36And the LORD said to Moses,H3068H1696H4872H559 37"Tell Eleazar son of Aaron the priest to pull all the incense burners from the fire, for they are holy. Also tell him to scatter the burning coals.H559H499H1121H175H3548H7311H4289H996H8316H2219H784H1973H6942 38Take the incense burners of these men who have sinned at the cost of their lives, and hammer the metal into a thin sheet to overlay the altar. Since these burners were used in the LORD's presence, they have become holy. Let them serve as a warning to the people of Israel."H4289H2400H5315H6213H7555H6341H6826H4196H7126H6440H3068H6942H226H1121H3478 39So Eleazar the priest collected the 250 bronze incense burners that had been used by the men who died in the fire, and he hammered them into a thin sheet to overlay the altar.H499H3548H3947H5178H4289H8313H7126H7554H6826H4196 40This would warn the Israelites that no unauthorized person—no one who was not a descendant of Aaron—should ever enter the LORD's presence to burn incense. If anyone did, the same thing would happen to him as happened to Korah and his followers. So the LORD's instructions to Moses were carried out.H2146H1121H3478H834H4616H376H2114H2233H175H7126H6999H7004H6440H3068H7141H5712H3068H1696H3027H4872 41But the very next morning the whole community of Israel began muttering again against Moses and Aaron, saying, "You have killed the LORD's people!"H4283H5712H1121H3478H3885H4872H175H559H4191H5971H3068 42As the community gathered to protest against Moses and Aaron, they turned toward the Tabernacle and saw that the cloud had covered it, and the glorious presence of the LORD appeared.H5712H6950H4872H175H6437H168H4150H6051H3680H3519H3068H7200 43Moses and Aaron came and stood in front of the Tabernacle,H4872H175H935H6440H168H4150 44and the LORD said to Moses,H3068H1696H4872H559 45"Get away from all these people so that I can instantly destroy them!" But Moses and Aaron fell face down on the ground.H7426H8432H5712H3615H7281H5307H6440 46And Moses said to Aaron, "Quick, take an incense burner and place burning coals on it from the altar. Lay incense on it, and carry it out among the people to purify them and make them right with the LORD. The LORD's anger is blazing against them—the plague has already begun."H4872H559H175H3947H4289H5414H784H6440H4196H7760H7004H3212H4120H5712H3722H7110H3318H3068H5063H2490 47Aaron did as Moses told him and ran out among the people. The plague had already begun to strike down the people, but Aaron burned the incense and purified the people.H175H3947H4872H1696H7323H8432H6951H5063H2490H5971H5414H7004H3722H5971 48He stood between the dead and the living, and the plague stopped.H5975H4191H2416H4046H6113 49But 14,700 people died in that plague, in addition to those who had died in the affair involving Korah.H4191H4046H702H6240H505H7651H3967H4191H1697H7141 50Then because the plague had stopped, Aaron returned to Moses at the entrance of the Tabernacle.H175H7725H4872H6607H168H4150H4046H6113


New Living Translation (NLT). Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, a Division of Tyndale House Ministries, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. More details.
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