The Mouth of the Earth

The lesson of Parashat Korach (Numbers 16:1–18:32) can be found in the concluding verses of last week's Torah portion, and it is more literal than poetic—the commandment of tzitzit, the fringes worn on the corners of the tallit katan worn by Jewish males, is meant to remind the wearer:

“That you not stray after your heart and your eyes, which have led you to go astray” - Numbers 15:39

The tzit-tzit are a daily reminder of restraint, humility, and commitment to the God of Israel; traits Korach, a Levite and cousin of Moses, sorely lacked. Though he was a respected scholar and counted among those who carried the Ark of the Covenant, he allowed ambition, dressed as righteous indignation, to lead a rebellion against Moses and Aaron. His demands for equality were, on the surface, a plea for justice—but beneath the rhetoric seethed naked jealousy, greed, and hunger for power. His accusation that Moses had “taken too much for himself” was, in fact, a reflection of his own heart—a heart inflamed by envy.

Korach's uprising was not merely a political challenge—it was spiritual revolt.

To reject Moses, appointed by God, was to reject the very existence of the Creator.

His pride blinded him to the basic truth embodied in the tzitzit—a visible thread reminding Israel not to follow the whims of the heart or eyes, which so easily fall into idolatry.

He did not need a golden calf; he worshiped at the altar of his own ego.

The result of his attempted coup was swift and terrifying.

The ground beneath his feet opened like a mouth, swallowing Korach, his followers, and all their possessions. The Sages describes a scene of epic horror that witnessed people and their possessions being sucked into the bowels of the earth, enveloped in flames. The language of the Torah characterizes the a singular phenomenon—never seen before or since:

“But if HaShem brings about something unheard-of, so that the ground opens its mouth and swallows them up with all that belongs to them, and they go down alive into Sheol, you shall know that those involved have spurned HaShem.” - Numbers 16:27

The Sages teach in Pirkei Avot 5:6 that among the ten miraculous things God fashioned at the twilight of the sixth day of Creation—when the boundaries between the physical and the miraculous blurred—was the mouth of the earth destined to swallow Korach. It was created before humanity drew its first breath, lying dormant in the earth’s depths for generations, awaiting this moment.

Another of those twilight creations was the mouth of the donkey that would later speak to Balaam when he was hired to curse the Children of Israel but could not, exposing yet another arrogant schemer who imagined he could outwit the divine.

Both the earth’s gaping chasm and the donkey’s unexpected speech—were crafted at the world’s inception to serve as reminders: pride may build its schemes, rebellion may raise its voice, but in the end, they are no match for the Creator. More importantly, the mouth of the earth and the mouth of Balaam’s donkey were instruments of salvation.

The very fact that they were put in place at the very beginning of the planet demonstrates that extraordinary measures necessary to insure the survival of Israel and her people. If Korach, and later Balaam had succeeded in their schemes, Israel would have disappeared from history, along with their mission: to represent the reality of the Creator of all things. Such a disaster that would eventually plunge the earth into chaos and destruction.

The Torah's imagery in the portion of Korach is more than ancient history—it echoes into our present. Today, as in the wilderness, Israel faces enemies driven by the same poisonous brew of envy and rage. They imagine vain things; they wage war employing lies and terror as their weapons, they seek to erase the Jewish nation from the earth. Thus, Korach's fate was measure for measure, he disappeared.

History and the Torah, testify: those who build their cause upon falsehood and hatred eventually find the ground beneath them unstable—the very earth swallowing their schemes, collapsing their bunkers, burying their pride.

This parasha, named after Korach teaches us that, in his quest for power, he completely misunderstood the Sinai experience. The revelation was not a showcase of power, but a call to faith—a nation bound not by personality but by Torah. And the tzitzit are a daily reminder to resist the whispers of the heart and eyes that lure us toward ego, idolatry, and rebellion.

Moses stands as the model of what true leadership requires. He did not seize power—he resisted it. His humility gave him clarity others could not possess. The nation of Israel survived—not through force, but through covenant; not through charisma, but through caring service to the Creator and humanity.