Study Desk

He stood between the dead and the living, and the plague was stopped. Those dying from the plague numbered 14,700 — besides those who died in the Korach incident. Aharon returned to Moshe at the entrance to the tent of meeting, and the plague was stopped. (v) Adonai said to Moshe, "Speak to the people of Isra'el, and take from them staffs, one for each ancestral tribe from each leader of a tribe, twelve staffs. Write each man's name on his staff; and write Aharon's name on the staff of Levi, for each tribe's leader is to have one staff. Put them in the tent of meeting in front of the testimony, where I meet with you. The staff of the man I am going to choose will sprout buds — in this way I will put a stop to the complaints the people of Isra'el keep making against you." Moshe spoke to the people of Isra'el, and all their leaders gave him staffs, one for each leader, according to their ancestral tribes, twelve staffs. Aharon's staff was among their staffs. Moshe put the staffs before Adonai in the tent of the testimony. The next day Moshe went into the tent of the testimony, and there he saw that Aharon's staff for the house of Levi had budded — it had sprouted not only buds but flowers and ripe almonds as well. Moshe brought out all the staffs from before Adonai to all the people of Isra'el, and they looked, and each man took back his staff. (vi) Adonai said to Moshe, "Return Aharon's staff to its place in front of the testimony. It is to be kept there as a sign to the rebels, so that they will stop grumbling against me and thus not die." Moshe did this; he did as Adonai had ordered him. But the people of Isra'el said to Moshe, "Oh no! We're dead men! Lost! We're all lost! Whenever anyone approaches the tabernacle of Adonai , he dies! Will we all perish?"

Adonai said to Aharon, "You, your sons and your father's family line will be responsible for anything that goes wrong in the sanctuary. You and your sons with you will be responsible for anything wrong in your service as cohanim.

I myself have taken your kinsmen the L'vi'im from among the people of Isra'el; they have been given as a gift to Adonai for you, so that you can perform the service in the tent of meeting.

Adonai said to Aharon, "I myself have put you in charge of the contributions given to me. Everything consecrated by the people of Isra'el I have given and set aside for you and your sons; this is a perpetual law.

Here is what is to be yours of the especially holy things taken from the fire: every offering they make — that is, every grain offering, sin offering and guilt offering of theirs that they turn over to me — will be especially holy for you and your sons.

You are to eat it in an especially holy place; every male may eat it; it will be set apart for you.

The sum to be paid for redeeming anyone a month old or over is to be five shekels of silver [two ounces], as you value it, using the sanctuary shekel (this is the same as twenty gerahs).

But the firstborn of an ox, sheep or goat you are not to redeem; they are holy — you are to splash their blood against the altar and make their fat go up in smoke as an offering made by fire, as a fragrant aroma for Adonai .

All the contributions of holy things which the people of Isra'el offer to Adonai I have given to you, your sons and your daughters with you; this is a perpetual law, an eternal covenant of salt before Adonai for you and your descendants with you."

(vii) "To the descendants of Levi I have given the entire tenth of the produce collected in Isra'el. It is their inheritance in payment for the service they render in the tent of meeting.

Only the L'vi'im are to perform the service in the tent of meeting, and they will be responsible for whatever they do wrong. This is to be a permanent regulation through all your generations. They are to have no inheritance among the people of Isra'el,

because I have given to the L'vi'im as their inheritance the tenths of the produce which the people of Isra'el set aside as a gift for Adonai . This is why I have said to them that they are to have no inheritance among the people of Isra'el."

"Tell the L'vi'im, ‘When you take from the people of Isra'el the tenth of the produce which I have given you from them as your inheritance, you are to set aside from it a gift for Adonai , one tenth of the tenth.

In this way you will set aside a gift for Adonai from all your tenths that you receive from the people of Isra'el, and from these tenths you are to give to Aharon the cohen the gift set aside for Adonai .

You may eat it anywhere, you and your households; because it is your payment in return for your service in the tent of meeting.

Moreover, because you will have set aside from it its best parts, you will not be committing any sin because of it; for you are not to profane the holy things of the people of Isra'el, or you will die.'" Haftarah Korach: Sh'mu'el Alef (1 Samuel) 11:14 – 12:22 B'rit Hadashah suggested readings for Parashah Korach: 2 Timothy 2:8–21; Y'hudah (Jude) 1–25

A man who is clean is to collect the ashes of the heifer and store them outside the camp in a clean place. They are to be kept for the community of the people of Isra'el to prepare water for purification from sin.

The one who collected the ashes of the heifer is to wash his clothes and be unclean until evening. For the people of Isra'el and for the foreigner staying with them this will be a permanent regulation.

"Anyone who touches a corpse, no matter whose dead body it is, will be unclean for seven days.

Anyone who touches a corpse, no matter whose dead body it is, and does not purify himself has defiled the tabernacle of Adonai . That person will be cut off from Isra'el, because the water for purification was not sprinkled on him. He will be unclean; his uncleanness is still on him.