11

The Spy and the Leper

And the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up.

NUMBERS 16:32.

Amalek’s attack had failed but the spy Korah persisted in trying to foil his half brother’s plans. Korah knew he would suffer if Reuel ever ruled Edom. Forced to lay low during the bloody purge that followed the golden calf apostasy, he had marveled at the audacity of Reuel’s performance in his role as the shining-faced Moses. His keen eye also noted the vulnerability of the troubled Israelites who found themselves oppressed by an endless set of harsh rules and regulations.

The Levite scribes did not want it revealed that Korah was kin to Reuel. They created the perfect cover-up—a false family tree. Elias Auerbach writes,

According to the description in our text Korah is a Levite and contests Moses’ and Aaron’s privileges. This is a flaw in the account; the original source could never have reported it in that way. For, what are the privileges of the leader which Korah rebels against? The priesthood? But, according to all the ancient sources, all the Levites are priests. . . . In reality Korah cannot have been a Levite at all; the rebellion is, rather, an attempt of the non-Levites to assail the priesthood of the Levites.¹ [Italics added]

In Genesis 36:5 we learn that Korah was Reuel’s half brother, an Edomite. But who were the non-Levites who conspired with him “to assail the priesthood of the Levites”? One tribe was ripe for the picking—the descendants of Reuben.

Korah had identified two susceptible men from Reuben’s tribe, Dathan and Abiram. About them Martin Noth writes, “It is completely unknown how in particular these two otherwise completely unknown Reubenites came to rebel against Moses.”² We can suggest two reasons. First, their ancestor Reuben had been disinherited by Israel, leaving them in the same situation that Reuel had once faced: forced from the line of succession that led to the leadership of the Jews. Second, their hatred for the reign of the masked Moses.

Josephus’s depiction of Korah tells us that he was “very skilful in making speeches, and having this natural talent, among others, he could greatly move the multitude with his discourses.”³ We can imagine a gathering of disgruntled Reubenites gathered around the dying embers of a fire while Korah whispered his carefully prepared incitements:

O how the mighty have fallen. Reuben is Israel’s firstborn son, yet you are all degraded. Levi has become the high priest and has taken a new name, Aaron. He pompously parades around issuing orders while my brother, an Edomite, wears a mask pretending to be Moses. Oh, how Israel must be turning in his grave! Have you no pride? What has become of your nobility? Join with me to rid ourselves of these pretenders!^*44

Part of the story of Korah’s rebellion was preserved from the ancient oral tradition but most was told by Levite scribes. The “official” version states that,

Korah, the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, and Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and On, the son of Peleth, sons of Reuben, took men: And they rose up before Moses, with certain of the children of Israel, two hundred and fifty princes of the assembly, famous in the congregation, men of renown: And they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said unto them, Ye take too much upon you, seeing all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the LORD is among them: wherefore then lift ye up yourselves above the congregation of the LORD?⁴

Why, Korah argued, should Moses and Aaron hold exclusive domain over the people? Had not all the children of Israel been chosen by Yahweh? By his bold challenge of Moses’s and Aaron’s presumption that they are more holy in the sight of God than the rest of the tribe, Korah compares to Luther who railed against the priests of Rome.

According to Jewish folklore a telling conversation followed between Moses and Korah.

[Moses said,] “I have heard that ye are not satisfied with me, and are accusing me of pride and arrogance. Have you forgotten that I went from Midian to Egypt for your sake, but never asked any reward for all my trouble and my labours? If I am now supposed to be ruling over you, it is not because I have sought greatness and been ambitious. It is the Lord who has commanded me to be your leader, and I have never done anything except what the Lord has commanded me to do.” Thus spoke Moses, but Korah replied, “Thou has done but little for us. Thou hast taken us out of Egypt, where we lived in plenty, but has not brought us to Canaan, the land thou didst promise to give us.” And when the followers of Korah heard his words, they rose against Moses and were almost on the point of stoning him.⁵

The tribe’s bitter complaint that Moses hadn’t fulfilled his promise to give them precious land to compensate for leaving their lives of “plenty” in Egypt hardly seems the natural reaction of a people said to be traumatized by terrible memories of centuries of cruel bondage.

Korah’s challenge was a serious one. Reuel was forced to play for time. He ordered the rebels to bring incense to his tent the following day at which time, he declared, Yahweh (the LORD) would be the sole judge of their complaints. In the non-Levite segment of the story Dathan and Abiram refuse. “We will not come up: Is it a small thing that thou hast brought us up out of a land that floweth with milk and honey, to kill us in the wilderness, except thou make thyself altogether a prince over us? Moreover, thou hast not brought us into a land that floweth with milk and honey, or given us inheritance of fields and vineyards: wilt thou put out the eyes of these men? we will not come up.”⁶

The text then abruptly switches back to the Levite account in which Moses successfully commands Korah and his supporters to report the next day and face Yahweh.

Reuel had one night to prepare his trap.

WHEN THE EARTH OPENED HER MOUTH

We know the motives of the rebels. The Reubenites wanted fertile land, to be rid of Reuel, and to restore their family name. Korah wanted to prevent Reuel from using the army of the children of Israel to conquer Edom. Reuel stood in everyone’s way.

The brilliant magician faced danger from some very determined foes. All the tricks of his trade had to be spun into immediate action. This was a battle that must be won. It demanded his artistry in the application of two powerful illusions. The confusion and fear brought with fire and smoke spewing from Yahweh to serve as misdirection from hidden trapdoors must be played perfectly if Reuel hoped to remain in control.

He plotted and prepared all night. His tent stood outside the camp and as we’ve seen was guarded night and day by Joshua.⁷ This isolation and security provided Reuel with an opportunity to dig a large pit within the tent, complete with trap door. When it was finished, he ordered the tent moved away from the hole, leaving the invisible trap door in front. The next morning Korah’s rebels waited before the tent’s entrance beside Moses and Aaron. Excitedly anticipating Yahweh’s first appearance the rest of the tribe gathered at a distance.

The text offers scant details of their God’s first appearance, simply describing the holy figure as “the glory of the LORD.” But the anxious people hardly had time to concentrate on the entity’s features. A thundering voice riveted them to where they stood. The billowing smoke and flashes of fire that emanated from the sacred tent erased any doubt that they were in the awe-inspiring presence of Yahweh.

But whose impressive voice really inspired such terror? Moses and Aaron were outside the tent. Only Joshua was left inside to speak on behalf of Yahweh. Joshua may have feigned Yahweh’s voice, lit the fireworks, and fanned the smoke. “And Korah gathered all the congregation against them unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation: and the glory of the LORD appeared unto all the congregation. And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, Separate yourselves from among this congregation, that I may consume them in a moment.”⁸

Ominously, “Yahweh” commands Moses (Reuel) and Aaron (Levi) to move away from the rebels. Obeying, the two go to their knees, on either side of the entry where they seem to be worshipping the voice of God. But their true purpose is much more nefarious than the act of prayer.

Moses hammers home the message that it is the all-powerful Yahweh who is responsible for the tragedy that is about to unfold:

And Moses said, Hereby ye shall know that the LORD hath sent me to do all these works; for I have not done them of mine own mind. If these men die the common death of all men, or if they be visited after the visitation of all men; then the LORD hath not sent me. But if the LORD makes a new thing, and the earth open her mouth, and swallow them up, with all that appertain unto them, and they go down quick into the pit; then ye shall understand that these men have provoked the LORD.⁹

Moses (Reuel) and Aaron (Levi) seize the ropes that release the trapdoor to send Korah and his rebels plummeting to a certain death at the bottom of the pit.

And it came to pass, as he had made an end of speaking all these words, that the ground clave asunder that was under them: And the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up, and their houses, and all the men that appertained unto Korah, and all their goods. They, and all that appertained to them, went down alive into the pit, and the earth closed upon them: and they perished from among the congregation. And all Israel that were round about them fled at the cry of them: for they said, Lest the earth swallow us up also.¹⁰

When the earth splits open the children of Israel flee in terror. No witnesses are left as Reuel’s confederates kill the rebels where they lie helpless in the yawning pit. The purge is complete when the trapdoor is lowered, locked above, and soil thrown across it. With this standard magician’s trick, the disappearing act, Reuel had successfully annihilated Korah’s rebellion.

After the pit engulfs its victims it closes as quickly as it opened—suggesting the very real presence of a cleverly designed mechanical device rather than supernatural intervention. (The non-Levite text^*45 states that the rebels’ tents and households also disappeared into the great pit. This was probably an exaggeration added to enhance the impression of Yahweh’s glory and might.)

How did Reuel learn of Korah’s rebellion in time to prepare his defence? It is probable that there was a spy embedded within the ranks of Korah’s conspiracy. A likely candidate was the Reubenite “On,” who is mentioned in the opening lines of Numbers 16 as being one of Korah’s rebels. According to Jewish folklore, On’s wife persuaded him not to participate in the rebellion:

One man, however, had a lucky escape, owing his salvation to his wife. His name was On, the son of Peleth. His wife was a clever woman, and when she saw Korah talking to her husband and persuading him to rebel against Moses and Aaron and depose them from both leadership and priesthood, she did not approve of the plot. On had given his promise to Korah to join him, but when the leader of the rebellion left, and On was discussing the matter with his wife, the latter said to him:

“I do not approve of this plot, and as for thyself, my dear husband, no benefit will ever accrue to thee from the rebellion, whether it be successful or not. If Moses gains the victory and is master, thou wilt be subject to him, and if Korah is successful, thou wilt be subject to him.”

“Thou are right,” admitted On, struck by the truth of his wife’s argument, “but what can I do now? I have given an oath to Korah to join him when he comes to our tent to fetch me, and it is incumbent upon me to keep my oath.”

“Do not worry,” said On’s wife, “and leave the matter to me.”¹¹

It transpires that her urgent advice was compelled by more than just political savvy and wifely worry about her husband’s fate. On’s wife was Reuel’s spy. She plies her husband with wine so that he is too drunk to participate in the rebellion. By alerting Reuel to the coming rebellion she gives him time to construct his trap. Like the man-sized puppet wielded by Hur and Aaron during the Israelites’ battle with the Amalekites that was designed to trick the tribe into believing Moses was still alive, Reuel again made canny use of illusion for political rather than religious or entertainment ends. The ultimate magician had still more deadly acts of illusion to retrieve from his precious cache of tricks, which we will see in chapter 12.

Korah’s insistence that all the children of Israel were chosen by Yahweh and that Moses and Aaron had no divine right to rule was ignored. The death of the rebels was proof to the people that their stance was anathema to Yahweh. But Korah’s cause still held some life. Another revolt would present an even more serious challenge to Reuel’s rule when two of his inner circle, Aaron and Miriam, rose against him.

THE LEPER

The immediate cause of the fresh revolt was a reaction to Moses’s marriage to an Ethiopian woman. “And Miriam and Aaron spake against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married: for he had married an Ethiopian woman.”¹²

Central to this book is our suggestion that Reuel, using the name Hur, was married to Miriam. He held a dual identity—Hur during his normal activities and Moses of the shining face when he prophesied. Today, we’re all familiar with the fantasy dual identities of characters like Batman, Spiderman, and of course, Superman. But in the biblical era such a disappearance into another persona was an extraordinary event even if survival could depend upon it.

The name Miriam means “rebellion”¹³ in Hebrew, which further suggests that Miriam was not her original name. Her parents would hardly have the foresight to see that their daughter would grow up to become a rebel. At that time obedience, not rebellion, was the critical sign of a woman’s piety. Miriam’s original identity was that of the rape-disgraced daughter of Israel, Dinah, who had already been reinvented as a prophetess. But in adopting this new façade a serious problem was thrown her way. In the eyes of the children of Israel she was married to Hur, not Moses, so she had to advance another reason for rebelling against Moses besides a new marriage. So, she persuaded her brother, Aaron, to join her in challenging Moses’s claim to exclusivity as the sole spokesman for Yahweh. “And they said, Hath the LORD indeed spoken only by Moses? hath he not spoken also by us? And the LORD heard it.”¹⁴

Korah had made the bold claim that any of the chosen people might know the wishes of God through their personal visions and dreams. Miriam and Aaron weren’t buying it. They were not interested in such an egalitarian approach. They insisted that they too must belong to the elite chosen to speak for Yahweh. They dared to seek parity with the masked Moses.

Sharing power was hardly in the magician Reuel’s nature. Caught off guard by the duo’s outrageous public challenge, he was forced to think fast. He slipped into the sacred tent and whispered instructions to Joshua. While Reuel ducked behind the curtain that concealed the Ark of the Covenant Joshua quickly dressed in Moses’s garments and pulled his mask over his face. Appearing as Moses, Joshua rejoined Miriam and Aaron before the assembled Israelites while Reuel lifted another costume from among the collected treasures to be found within the Ark—he would become Yahweh.

As the Israelites are manipulated by the magician, Joshua, disguised as Moses, remains silent. Using the power of his voice to “become” Yahweh, Reuel makes his entrance as God incarnate:

And the LORD spake suddenly unto Moses, and unto Aaron, and unto Miriam, Come out ye three unto the tabernacle of the congregation. And they three came out. And the LORD came down in the pillar of the cloud, and stood in the door of the tabernacle, and called Aaron and Miriam: and they both came forth. And he said, Hear now my words: If there be a prophet among you, I the LORD will make myself known unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream. My servant Moses is not so, who is faithful in all mine house. With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches; and the similitude of the LORD shall he behold: wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant Moses? And the anger of the LORD was kindled against them; and he departed. And the cloud departed from off the tabernacle; and, behold, Miriam became leprous, white as snow: and Aaron looked upon Miriam, and, behold, she was leprous.¹⁵

Miriam did not suddenly contract the curse of leprosy. Her bloodless complexion was the result of fear. Speechless. Defenseless. Shame had rekindled her terrible memories of the time as a young girl (Dinah) when her rape by Shechem had become public knowledge. Aaron knew how traumatic this experience had been for his sister:

And Aaron said unto Moses, Alas, my lord, I beseech thee, lay not the sin upon us, wherein we have done foolishly, and wherein we have sinned. Let her not be as one dead, of whom the flesh is half consumed when he cometh out of his mother’s womb. And Moses cried unto the LORD, saying, Heal her now, O God, I beseech thee. And the LORD said unto Moses, If her father had but spit in her face, should she not be ashamed seven days? let her be shut out from the camp seven days, and after that let her be received in again. And Miriam was shut out from the camp seven days: and the people journeyed not till Miriam was brought in again.¹⁶

The reference to her father spitting in her face was a bitter reminder of how Israel must have punished Dinah when he learned of her rape. Martin Noth comments that Miriam’s penance is one “in which a girl is punished who is guilty of an offense which is shameful.”¹⁷ The terrible “leprosy” she experienced disappeared as quickly as it came, suggesting that humiliation and fear, not disease, was its source.¹⁸ The women of the camp were full of sympathy for Miriam and refused to abandon the area where the prophetess was forced to spend her seven days of penance.

Biblical scholars have long been bewildered by the “strange leniency toward Aaron” in the wake of his open rebellion.¹⁹ Just as guilty as Miriam—he receives no punishment. Richard Elliott Friedman asks, “Why does Miriam suffer while Aaron does not?”²⁰ His explanation is that Aaron’s exalted status would be in peril if he was seen to be accountable for such a revolt. “In that position he cannot suffer any direct punishment from God, which would both disqualify him and demean the office of high priest.”²¹ But the actual explanation is much simpler once we realize that both Levi and Dinah had assumed new identities—as Aaron and Miriam.

Reuel had struck at the weakest point in the rebels’ armor—their hearts.

Aaron feared that Miriam’s shame would so overwhelm her that she might become like a miscarried child, “of whom the flesh is half consumed when he cometh out of his mother’s womb.”²² This is a subtle reference to Dinah’s rape—the shame that Reuel knew had secretly dominated her for so long. Levi’s affection for his sister was so strong that he had sacrificed the love and respect of their father when he defied him by slaughtering the men of Shechem in revenge for her rape. His plea with Moses on Miriam’s behalf once again reveals that side of his character. Even if Aaron’s prestige provided a shield against more dire consequences for his actions he was forced to endure his sister’s further humiliation.

The next we hear of Miriam she has died in Kadesh.²³

The religious complaint of who could or couldn’t be Yahweh’s prophet was a secondary impetus for Miriam and Aaron’s rebellion.²⁴ They were enraged that Reuel had taken a wife as the masked Moses. In this regard their rebellion is very different from Korah’s. But their audacity sealed Reuel’s determination to display the extent of his power once and for all. The magician would not tolerate another uprising. His appearance as Yahweh would announce his last word about prophets. It would be made clear that none could equal, or should attempt to challenge, Moses. It was critical to establish that he alone embodied the authority to speak face-to-face with Yahweh.

WHO WAS MOSES’S ETHIOPIAN WIFE?

There is no agreement among biblical scholars about the identity of the woman Moses married who so incited the siblings to such anger that they openly rebelled. Richard Elliott Friedman believes that she was “probably Ethiopian.”²⁵ Martin Noth initially favors the “Cushites,” a tribe like the Midianites, as her original people but in a later work concludes that “all possible conjectures are without any certain foundation.”²⁶ He does not believe that she was Moses’s original wife, Zipporah.²⁷ Frank Moore Cross disagrees, suggesting that Moses’s new wife was indeed the Midianite, Zipporah.²⁸ If he is correct, then our conviction that Zipporah was Miriam’s daughter puts the story in a new light.

Knowing that her husband had married their daughter could well have been too much for Miriam—she exploded. Also, if Reuel had married his daughter then Zipporah’s conspicuous absence from the rest of the Torah makes sense. Why else would the wife of the greatest prophet disappear unless there was something so unsavory about her that it warranted that she be erased from the holy text? We can’t know if Zipporah became the masked Moses’s new wife, but we do know that she was last seen alive in the company of Reuel.²⁹