Men of Renown?
… rise up against Moses, together with two hundred and fifty Israelites, chieftains of the community, chosen in the assembly, men of renown (anshei shem).
This phrase, anshei shem, “men of renown” is only found one other place in the Torah:
It was then, and later too, that the Nephilim appeared on earth—when the divine beings cohabited with the daughters of men, who bore them offspring. They were the heroes of old, the men of renown (anshei shem).
Is this a coincidence? After all, the “men of renown” with Korach are condemned to die as a result of seeking their own glory.
The earlier “men of renown” leads directly to: G-d saw how great was man’s wickedness on earth.
What does it mean that both times the phrase is found, “men of renown” are subject to death by divine decree?
Might the commonality be that both sets of men put status and fame above doing what is right?
Two Rebellions in One?
If you read carefully, you’ll see that there seem to be two separate rebel groups. They require Moshe and Aharon to combat them in two different places, and they are dealt with in different ways. Are there really two insurrections?
If so, what makes them different from each other? Might it be that one is seeking political power, while the other is seeking religious authority?
If so, does this mean that Korach’s rebellion is against the twin pillars that Moshe and Aharon represent?
Why Does Korach Ignore G-d?
Isn’t it interesting that Korach never tries to appeal to G-d directly, that his rebellion essentially assumes G-d is indifferent to the affairs of man?
What mindset might have led him to this assumption? Might it be the idea that G-d was really like non-Jewish gods, only interested in His self interest?
If so, how could Korach have possibly made this error in understanding G-d’s desires for an entirely different relationship with mankind?
The Mystery of Incense
The rebellion’s lessons include:
[Altar plating] was to be a reminder to the Israelites, so that no outsider—one not of Aaron’s offspring—should presume to offer incense before the LORD
Followed the very next day with:
Then Moses said to Aaron, “Take the fire pan, and put on it fire from the altar. Add incense and take it quickly to the community and make expiation for them. For wrath has gone forth from the LORD: the plague has begun!” Aaron took it, as Moses had ordered, and ran to the midst of the congregation, where the plague had begun among the people. He put on the incense and made expiation for the people.
What is the meaning of the incense? How does it help against the plague?
Might it be connected to what we use to smell it? After all, G-d blew the breath of life into Adam’s nostrils. The instrument we use to smell is where G-d connected to Adam, and so connects to each of us.
If incense is used to remind us of our divine soul, and our connection to G-d through that soul, then perhaps it explains why the first time the word for incense, ketoret, is found, is when Sodom was destroyed?
looking down toward Sodom and Gomorrah and all the land of the Plain, [Avraham] saw the smoke[incense] of the land rising like the smoke [incense] of a kiln. (Gen: 19:28)
If ketoret is the link to the divine, is Sodom illustrating what happens when mankind is destroyed? The link is incinerated, and the divine investment in mankind is lost?
Does that mean that when Aharon spread the incense in the camp, he was seeking to reconnect the people to their very souls, and thus to G-d? He was trying to reverse what happened at Sodom?
Perhaps there is another angle as well. The incense was used to stop the plague, the nagaf. The first nagaf in the Torah was the plague of the frogs:
Frogs shall come up and enter your palace, your bedchamber and your bed, the houses of your courtiers and your people, and your ovens and your kneading bowls.
The nagaf literally brought people and animals together, erasing the difference between them?!
Is the nagaf, the plague, symbolic of mankind slipping downward, toward the general animal kingdom, and losing connection to the divine?
Could it be that when a Jew loses that link, as some did after the Korach rebellion, then we also lose our lives?
So is the incense the antidote to the nagaf, as a way to bring us back to our senses, to realize that we are ensouled only by G-d, and our lives have no purpose, no essence, if and when we forget that essential link?
Does this explain why only Levites can bring incense? That it must be deployed for this core purpose only by the nation’s educators?