Parashat Korah- Korah – Too Smart for His Own Good?
Korah instigated and led an ill-fated rebellion against Moshe and Aharon, which resulted in his and his followers’ death – some by fire, and some by the ground which opened and devoured them. His confrontation with Moshe was certainly doomed to failure from the outset. Why, then, did Korah initiate this crusade?
The Sages teach that Korah was not a fool. To the contrary, he was a distinguished scholar and was even endowed with Ru’ah Ha’kodesh (divine insight). How, then, could he had instigated such a foolish campaign? Did he not realize that he could not possibly defeat Moshe Rabbenu?
Rashi explains that "his vision misled him" – it was specifically Korah’s unique wisdom and insight that brought about his downfall. He beheld through Ru’ah Ha’kodesh that the great prophet Shemuel, who has been compared to Moshe and Aharon, would be among his descendants. Korah further saw twenty-four groups of righteous Leviyim that would descend from his children. This illustrious progeny led Korah to feel confident in his superior stature. His campaign for power could not fail, he mistakenly thought, because his family was destined for greatness. When Moshe challenged Korah and his followers to offer incense together with Aharon to determine whom God has chosen as the Kohen Gadol, Korah felt assured of victory. Certainly, he reasoned, as the ancestor of the prophet Shemuel, he would not suffer defeat.
Where did Korah go wrong? Why, in fact, did his illustrious progeny not prove his superior stature?
The Be’er Yosef (work by Rabbi Shemuel Salant of Jerusalem, 1816-1909) explains that God rewards people for all the good they perform regardless of whether or not it was intended. If a person benefits the world unintentionally, he receives reward for his contribution. Thus, for example, the Gemara in Masechet Gittin teaches that descendants of Haman taught Torah in Bneh Brak. As evil and sinful as Haman was, the fact remains that he caused the Jewish people to repent. And although this was certainly not his intent, he was nevertheless rewarded in the form of righteous and scholarly descendants.
When Korah saw prophets and righteous men among his descendants, he did not realize that this was his reward for the great Kiddush Hashem (glorification of God’s Name) that he caused through his rebellion. Along with Korah’s punishment, he also received reward for having indirectly – and unintentionally – reinforced Beneh Yisrael’s faith in Moshe and God. The great miracles that occurred when the ground opened and a heavenly fire came to destroy Korah’s followers demonstrated without doubt God’s unlimited power and that Moshe was the true prophet who acted in accordance with God’s will. Korah was rewarded for his role in bringing about this Kiddush Hashem, by having illustrious descendants like the prophet Shemuel.
It thus emerges that Korah was too smart for his own good. His Ru’ah Ha’kodesh, his ability to see future events, is what misled him and caused his downfall. He saw the prophet Shemuel – but failed to realize that this was the result of his sinful rebellion against Moshe.
Another example of this mistake is the story told in the Gemara of the king Hizkiyahu, who foresaw through Ru’ah Ha’kodesh that his son would worship idols. Hizkiyahu decided not to marry, in order not to beget an idolatrous child. But the prophet Yeshayahu later approached the king and warned that he would die for failing to fulfill the Misva of procreation. Yeshayahu rhetorically asked Hizkiyahu, "What business do you have with these secrets of the Almighty?" Like Korah, Hizkiyahu initially used his fortune-telling capabilities to disobey God. Upon hearing the prophet’s warning, he married and begot children. And even though his son indeed became an idolater, Hizkiyahu acted correctly by fulfilling his responsibilities as commanded by the Torah.
Today there is a growing tendency to consult with mystics to learn about what lies ahead in the future. The Torah exhorts in the Book of Debarim (18:13), "Tamim Tihye Im Hashem Elokecha" ("You shall be simple with Hashem your God"). We must fulfill our religious responsibilities regardless of what the future holds in store for us. Even if we do have the ability to access this information, it should not affect the way we conduct ourselves. Our job is to observe the Torah and perform Misvot to the best of our ability with "simple" faith, without complicated calculations and without trying to "beat the system" through alleged knowledge of future events.
