Korah

June 21, 2016

The revolt against Aaron (Sir 45:18-45:22)

“Outsiders conspired against Aaron.

They envied him in the wilderness.

There was Dathan with his followers.

There was Abiram with his followers.

There was the company of Korah.

They were filled with wrath and anger.

The Lord saw it.

He was not pleased.

In the heat of his anger

They were destroyed.

He performed wonders against them.

He consumed them in a flaming fire.

He added glory to Aaron.

He gave him a heritage.

He allotted to him

The best of the first fruits.

He prepared bread of first fruits

In abundance.

They eat the sacrifices of the Lord.

He gave it to him

And his descendants.

But in the land of the people

He has no inheritance.

He has no portion

Among the people.

The Lord himself

Is his portion

The Lord himself

Is his inheritance.”

In this section Sirach is relying on Numbers, chapter 16, about a revolt of some Levi tribe members, particularly Korah, along with Dathan and Abiram from the tribe of Reuben. It was not clear why Sirach called them outsiders since there were about 250 of those Israelites in the desert who actually revolted against Moses and Aaron. This uprising was put down, when Moses called for an incense face-off. Then Yahweh made the ground catch fire and split up so that this fire swallowed up these trouble makers. Aaron was then given more glory. This is why he and his descendants receive the best of the first fruits of the harvest. However, the Levites were not given any territory in the new Promise Land like the other tribes. Their portion was the Lord himself. That was their inheritance. Once again, this was an attempt to explain the situation of the later Levitical priests.

November 12, 2015

Prayer for help (Ps 88:1-88:2)

A song, a psalm of the Sons of Korah. To the choirmaster leader, according to Mahalath Leannoth, a Maskil of Heman the Ezrahite

“Yahweh!

God of my salvation!

At night,

I cry out in your presence!

Let my prayer come before you!

Incline your ear to my cry!”

Psalm 88 is a psalm of the sons of Korah, the Temple singers. However, this Mahalath Leannoth refers to some kind of musical instrument for those who were sick. On top of that this is called a maskil of Heman, the Ezrahite. Who is he? He may have been a grandson of Samuel, the man called Heman appointed by David to be a Temple Singer in 1 Chronicles, chapter 6. However, there he is called a Kohathite, not an Ezrahite. This is a cry of desperation. God is his salvation. He cries all night in the presence of God. He wanted his prayers to come to God. In the classical sense he wanted God’s ear to listen to his cry.

November 9, 2015

Song of praise for the Temple (Ps 84:1-84:2)

To the choirmaster leader, according to the Gittith, a psalm of the Sons of Korah

“How lovely is your dwelling place!

Yahweh of hosts!

My soul longs,

Indeed it faints

For the courts of Yahweh.

My heart sings for joy!

My flesh sings for joy!

I sing to the living God!”

Psalm 84 is a choral song of praise for the Temple on Mount Zion. This psalm is part of the series of Korah psalms, the Temple singers, using Gittith, a stringed instrument. This psalmist loves the house of Yahweh as his soul longs for and faints for the courtyards of Yahweh. His heart and flesh sings for joy to the living God.

October 1, 2015

Listen to God (Ps 49:1-49:4)

To the choirmaster leader, a psalm of the Korahites

“Hear this!

All you peoples!

Give ear!

All inhabitants of the world!

Both low and high!

Rich and poor together!

My mouth shall speak wisdom.

The meditation of my heart shall be understanding.

I will incline my ear to a proverb.

I will solve my riddle to the music of the harp.”

Psalm 49 continues the string of choral psalms of the Sons of Korah of the last few psalms. This psalmist is like a wise sage. He wanted all the people of the whole world to hear him. This was not confided to Israel, but the more universal wisdom literature. He wanted the ears of the high and the low people as well as the rich and the poor. This is another indication that classism and economic woes have a long history. The mouth of the psalmist would speak with wisdom and understanding. He knew about proverbs and riddles with the background music of the harp.

September 30, 2015

Beautiful Mount Zion (Ps 48:1-48:3)

A song, a psalm of the Korahites

“Great is Yahweh!

Greatly to be praised

In the city of our God!

His holy mountain,

Beautiful in elevation,

Is the joy of all the earth.

Mount Zion is

In the far north,

In the city of the great king.

Within its citadels

God has shown himself

A sure defense.”

Psalm 48 is yet another of the 11 psalms of the sons of the Korah, like the preceding ones. There is a glorification of Mount Zion, the northern mountain in Jerusalem, where the Temple and the palace of David were built. Yahweh was great and thus greatly praised. His holy beautiful mountain was a joy to the whole world. This Mount Zion was in the far northern part of the city of the great king, the city of David. Within its walls, God had shown himself to be a great defender of this mountain.

September 29, 2015

God is with us (Ps 46:1-46:3)

To the choirmaster leader, a psalm of the Korahites, according to Alamoth, a song

“God is our refuge.

God is our strength.

He is a very present help in trouble.

Therefore we will not fear!

Even though the earth should change.

Even though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea.

Even though its waters roar and foam.

Even though the mountains tremble with its tumult.”

Selah

Psalm 46 is another of the psalms or songs of the sons of Korah. However, this is a victory song that inspired Martin Luther to write his famous hymn, “A Mighty Fortress.” In fact, it is a hymn of Mount Zion that was to be sung by an Alamoth, who was a soprano or female voice. God was their refuge and strength. He was present during any time of trouble. Therefore they would not fear. Even though great changes on the earth were taking place, they would not be afraid. There was a mention of the underwater earthquakes, tsunamis, or above ground earthquakes, when God would be there. At this thought there is a musical interlude or pause, a Selah.

September 28, 2015

My tongue is like a pen (Ps 45:1-45:1)

To the choirmaster, according to Lilies, a Maskil of the Korahites a love song

“My heart overflows with a goodly theme.

I address my verses to the king.

My tongue is like the pen of a ready scribe.”

This psalm is like a love song at a royal wedding. It is obviously a choral song. Once again, it is like the preceding psalms, this is a Maskil of the sons of Korah, who were first mentioned in 1 Chronicles, chapter 9. There name appears on 11 psalms, 3 of them right here. The melody for this must have been like the tune about the lilies, perhaps a 6th chord. Psalm 69 has the same melody. The psalmist said that his heart was overflowing with goodness. This is clearly not David. He was addressing these verses to the king. His tongue was a pen so that he was a worthy scribe.

November 5, 2014

The Levite cantor Heman the Kohathite (1 Chr 6:33-6:38)

“These are the men who served the temple and their sons. Of the sons of the Kohathites there was Heman the singer, son of Joel, son of Samuel, son of Elkanah, son of Jeroham, son of Eliel, son of Toah, son of Zuph, son of Elkanah, son of Mahath, son of Amasai, son of Elkanah, son of Joel, son of Azariah, son of Zephaniah, son of Tahath, son of Assir, son of Ebiasaph, son of Korah, son of Izhar, son of Kohath, son of Levi, son of Israel.”

This is really a passage about one person, Heman, the singer, who then traced his lineage right back to Israel in 22 generations, via (1) Levi, (2) Kohath, (3) Izhar, (4) Korah, (5) Ebiasaph, (6) Assir, (7) Tahath, (8) Zephaniah, (9) Azariah, (10) Joel, (11) Elkanah, (12) Amasai, (13) Mahath, (14) Elkanah, (15) Zuph, (16) Toah, (17) Eliel, (18) Jeroham, (19) Elkanah, (20) Samuel, (21) Joel and then himself (22) Heman. Heman is called a singer and not a musician. The names are pretty much the same as earlier in this chapter, but there are a few different names here compared to the earlier genealogy. Heman is clearly the grandson of the prophet Samuel via Joel. Instead of Eliab it is now Eliel which is the name of 9 different people in the biblical literature. Nahath has become Toah, but this is the only time that this name appears. Zophai has become Zuph, which is also a place. Mahath has been added since there is one other person beside this one. Amminadab has become Izhar. Uriel his son, Uzziah his son, and Shaul have been dropped. Otherwise it is the same.

November 4, 2014

The descendents of Kohath (1 Chr 6:22-6:28)

“The sons of Kohath were Amminadab his son, Korah his son, Assir his son, Elkanah his son, Ebiasaph his son, Assir his son, Tahath his son, Uriel his son, Uzziah his son, and Shaul his son. The sons of Elkanah were Amasai and Ahimoth, Elkanah his son, Zophai his son, Nahath his son, Eliab his son, Jeroham his son, Elkanah his son. The sons of Samuel were Joel his first-born and the second son Abijah.”

This genealogy goes to 22 generations. Right from the beginning there is a problem. (2) Amminadab is not listed as a son of (1) Kohath earlier in this chapter or elsewhere. Most believe that this is an error and it should refer to Izhar. Amminadab in Exodus, chapter 6, refers to the man of Judah, the father of Nahshon and Elisheba who married Aaron. (3) Korah is called the son of Izhar in the same passage. This Korah played a major role in the revolt against Moses in Numbers, chapter 16, where he was clearly called the son of Izhar, son of Kohath. He died with his whole family when the earth split and devoured him. There is another (4) Assir who is a son of (6) Ebiasaph, who was the son of (5) Elkanah who was the son of this Assir (7).   This Elkanah was the grandson of Korah who had rebelled against Moses. Notice that were 3 other people in this lineage who were also named (12) (15) Elkanah. (8) Tahath was both the name of a person and a place. There were a couple of people with the name of (9) Uriel. There were 5 people with the name of (10) Uzziah, including the famous King Uzziah or Azariah of Judah from 781-740. (11) Shaul is sometimes referred to as Saul, but this is not King Saul. There are 3 other people named (13) Amasai. This is the only mention of (14) Ahimoth and (16) Zophai. There were 3 people with the name of (17) Nahath but 7 people with the name of (18) Eliab. There were 7 people with the name of (19) Jeroham. However, this one is the father of (20) Elkanah who was the father of (21) Samuel as in 1 Samuel, chapters 1-2. There seems to be about 5 or 6 people with this name, mostly Levites. Samuel’s sons were (22) Joel and (22) Abijah as indicated in 1 Samuel, chapter 8, who did not follow in the footsteps of their father. Their official functional roles were laid out in Numbers, chapter 4.

 

October 25, 2014

The descendents of Caleb (1 Chr 2:42-2:45)

“The first born son of Caleb the brother of Jerahmeel was Mareshah, who was the father of Ziph. Another son of Mareshah was Hebron. The sons of Hebron were Korah, Tappuah, Rekem, and Shema. Shema was the father of Raham, who was the father of Jorkeam. Rekem became the father of Shammai. The son of Shammai was Maon, who became the father of Bethzur.”

Once again, we are back at Caleb, whom this biblical writer is very interested in. This is the 3rd time that we see descendents of (1) Caleb. He clearly was the brother of Jerahmeel called Chelubai, a very busy man. So far he had 3 sons by his 1st wife Azubah, Jesher, Shobab, and Ardon. Then he had 1 son with his 2nd wife Ephrath called Hur. Finally he had Ashhur by Abijah, his step mother. Here we have 10 generations of his children through (2) Mareshah, his first born, whose children were Ziph and (3) Hebron. There was a town in Judah named after Mareshah. Hebron was also the name of a town, but it is one of the most ancient cities existing today, nearly 4,000 years old, with a connection to Abraham, in Genesis, chapter 13. Ziph was also a town mentioned in Joshua, chapter 15. It also was a place that David visited. Hebron’s sons were Korah, Tappuah, Rekem, and (4) Shema. We do not hear about the children of his brother Ziph, Korah or Tappuah. Shema had a son named (5) Raham and his son was called (6) Jorkeam. (7) Rekem had a son named (8) Shammai who had a son named (9) Maon who had a son named (10) Bethzur. There were 4 people with the name of Korah, but the most famous is the Levite in Numbers, chapter 26, who used the wrong incense. There are a couple of towns with the name Tappuah. Besides this Rekem, that was the name of one of the 5 kings of Midian in Numbers, chapter 31. His son was Shammai, the same name as the son of Onam. Maon, his son, as well as Bethzur were also places in Judah. Finally Shema was also a name of a Benjamite and a Simeonite as well as a place in Judah. His son was Raham, and Raham’s son was Jorkeam, both of which only appear here in the biblical literature. This may have been a way to show how towns got their names.