Dathan, Korah and Abiram (A Rabbinical Perspective)

he Torns That Were Detorned!

Dathan and Abiram, descendants of Reuben, are mentioned in the Torah in conjunction with Korah’s rebellion. According to Jewish tradition, however, that wasn’t their only rodeo. Midrash and Talmud tell us that their antagonism to Moses began at the very outset of Jewish slavery in Egypt and continued unabated until their premature passing.

The Midrash confirms that Dathan desired to usurp Moses, and Abiram to usurp Aaron.
In Egypt during Egyptian slavery, Dathan and Abiram served as Israelite overseers who had to report each day’s work to Egyptian taskmasters. Many of the overseers were whipped in the Jews’ stead and were ultimately rewarded by being appointed as the first Jewish elders.

Dathan and Abiram, however, were less noble;4 according to the Talmud they were wicked from beginning to end.
We are first introduced to the brothers when Moses, who was raised in Pharaoh’s palace, ventured outside to witness his people’s suffering: Moses grew up and went out to his brothers and looked at their burdens, and he saw an Egyptian man striking a Hebrew man of his brothers.

According to one opinion in the Midrash, the Hebrew victim was none other that Dathan. The Egyptian had been secretly assuming Dathan’s identity at night to be intimate with his wife.

Now that Dathan had found out, the taskmaster intended to kill him.
To save the unfortunate man’s life, Moses killed the Egyptian using God’s four-letter name and buried him in the sand.
The next day, Moses went out again and saw two Jews arguing.
Midrash, once again, identifies Dathan and Abiram as the squabblers.
Some commentators posit that the two stories above are connected. They say that Dathan wanted to end his marriage when he found out what the Egyptian had been doing with his wife. His brother Abiram vehemently disagreed and this led to the argument.

In the course of their skirmish, Dathan raised his hand to strike his brother, prompting Moses to admonish, “Why would you hit your fellow?”
Our sages teach us that although no blows were dealt, the verse calls Dathan “wicked” for the mere act of lifting his hand with the intent to hit.

Dathan and Abiram were not pleased with the meddlesome youth.
16 “Who made you a man, a prince, and a judge over us? Do you plan to slay me as you have slain the Egyptian?” Moses, they fumed, was neither an appointed judge nor a minister with executive power.
17 Intent on having Moses executed, Dathan and Abiram slandered him to Pharaoh.
18 Moses miraculously survived the attempt on his life and escaped to Midian.
In this episode, we begin to see the extent of the animosity they felt toward Moses, and the lengths they were willing to go to ensure his complete removal.
During the Exodus
According to Targum Yonathan, when the Jews were finally freed from Egypt, Dathan and Abiram remained behind.19 We know that they were obsessed with Egypt, evidenced by their descriptions of the country.20 But according to another tradition, Dathan and Abiram simply didn’t get the memo! Moses had told Pharaoh that the Israelites were departing for a mere three days,21 but the truth—that they were planning to leave with no return—was spread clandestinely only through the Israelite community. Because Dathan and Abiram were known informants, no one told them the real plan, and they continued to believe that the Exodus was temporary.

Spoiled Manna and Bird Food
The next time we bump into these characters is when the Jews run out of food in the desert. They complain to Moses and he promises them manna, bread from heaven. God wanted to train the Israelites in the art of faith, so no one was to keep the manna from one day to the next;26 it would fall daily.
Dathan and Abiram, however, did not heed Moses’ warning and kept their portion overnight.
The manna became wormy and then spoiled, defying the natural order where food first rots and then the worms come. Why is the order important? G‑d wanted the miracle to be witnessed and had the manna first become putrid, Dathan and Abiram might have thrown it out.
Popular Jewish lore records another episode surrounding Dathan, Abiram, and the manna: That first Friday after the manna began to fall, Moses told the Israelites to gather a double portion so the manna would not fall on the Sabbath.
Dathan and Abiram went outside late Friday night and spread out the extra portion of manna they had gathered, hoping the rest of the Israelites would wake up, see the manna, and believe Moses had been wrong. But a miracle occurred to protect Moses’ integrity—birds swooped in and consumed every last morsel of manna before any other Israelites awoke.

During the Incident of the Spies

As the Israelites neared the Promised Land, Dathan and Abiram sowed doubt in their hearts, once again defying God and His messenger on earth.
At the request of the Israelites, Moses sent spies to scour the Holy Land with the simple task of reporting on the size and might of the enemy. The news they brought back was bleak, “The people who inhabit the land are mighty and the cities are extremely huge and fortified. We even saw the offspring of giants there!” The spies assured the Israelites that even God could not defeat the Canaanites; “We are doomed to die if we enter Canaan,” they said.
The Israelites lamented that entire evening, and when morning came Dathan and Abiram called a gathering. “Appoint us instead of Moses and Aaron and we will take you back to Egypt!” they roared. “We would rather be living slaves than dead freedmen!”
Moses and Aaron were devastated by their remarks for they displayed a complete lack of faith in the Almighty. God would look after the Israelites as per His word, they assured the people.
God was angry as well. “How long will this people provoke Me? How much longer will they not believe in Me after all the signs I have performed in their midst?”
As punishment for their obstinance, the Israelites were doomed to wander the desert for the next 40 years until everyone from that generation had passed. They had lost their right to the land; their children would inherit it instead.

Korah’s Rebellion
The grossest example of Dathan and Abiram’s hostile attitude is their treatment of Moses during Korah’s rebellion.
Korah, son of Izhar, was Moses’ and Aaron’s cousin and a Levite who served in the Tabernacle; he even carried the Ark of the Covenant.
For a while, Korah was upset at Moses because he hadn’t been appointed to a distinguished position among the Levites.
Those feelings festered among Korah’s small group of cohorts but were never aired publicly because Moses was too popular among the people. After the incident of the spies, people began to lose faith in Moses’ leadership and Korah was ready to launch his coup.
He parlayed with his neighbours to the south, the tribe of Reuben, and played to their insecurities, “You’re of the firstborn tribe,” Korah told them. “Shouldn’t you be the priests and the Levites? Why did Moses appoint only his tribesmen?”
His gamble paid off; 250 of the greatest Reubenites joined his cause, inspiring the adage, “Woe for the wicked, woe for his neighbour.”
Dathan and Abiram, Reubenites themselves, jumped at the opportunity to further antagonize Moses, and became leaders in the mutiny.
When Moses no longer felt like he could talk to Korah, he tried to reason with Dathan and Abiram.
“Please come to my tent for a meeting,” he pleaded. “Even if you gouged our eyes, we would not meet with you, Moses,” they retorted. “Is it not enough that you have brought us out of Egypt, a prosperous land, to have us die in the desert? You want to exercise authority over us as well!?” These remarks greatly distressed Moses and he prayed that God punish the participants of the rebellion.
The next day, Moses warned everyone to stay away from the tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram lest they be inadvertently struck. Suddenly, the ground began to open and a huge chasm formed under Korah’s tent. Korah, Dathan, Abiram, their families, and all their belongings began to be pulled toward the hole as if by magnets. And like that... they were gone.
That is how the story of the world’s greatest pair of Jewish villains came to an end—in dust and smoke.

PS: As a leader of God's people, it is important to take a look at the legacy of those who had led God's people before you.
You learn a lot from their experiences and pitfalls.
I found myself drawn to the story Dathan, Korah and Abiram a few weeks ago.
I decided to read about them from a Jewish rabbi's perspective and understand what made them who they became.
A leader has a duty to observe those close to him and spot signs that might or might not be there so as to ensure matters get addressed peaceably and concerns maturely laid to rest even if such concerns are mere gossip, false assumptions and rumours.
Wrong information leads one to make wrong decisions, assumptions lead to wrong projections, a leader must address all doubts objectively and on rare occasions, a leader must put down the rabid dogs if need be.