Why Korah wanted Aharon’s position, not Moshe’s

Much has been written about Korah, most of it speculative, conjectural, fantastic. But the one question that is not asked is; why did Korah want to replace Aharon rather than Moshe? After all, if he felt he was the right man for leadership why settle for being Kamala Harris when he could be Joe Biden? (Well that’s not a fair comparison. I mean, NOBODY wants to be Kamala Harris, and not too many want to be Joe Biden either.)

As well, the job of the כהן גדול (High Priest) would appear much more mundane and demanding than that of an all-purpose leader. A כהן גדול must remain pure at all times. His conjugal options are limited. His presence in the משכן (Tabernacle) is mandatory, and his sacral obligations are time-consuming, time sensitive, and not always pleasant.

By contrast, Moshe’s job description is far more fluid. He could come and go as he pleased.He could marry who he wanted. He could speak his mind. He has no defined office hours. And he didn’t have to slaughter animals, sprinkle their blood and turn ashes as part of his job requirements.

What we do know about Korah is that we was very rich, perhaps the wealthiest Israelite in the desert. The Talmud regales us with fanciful, and likely fictitious, descriptions, of his thousands of pure white donkeys laden with treasures locked into impregnable bags with special leather keys. Surely a man like this had enough. Why would he want more? What could he possibly want with the burdens of the כהונה (priesthood)?

The same question might be asked of the Borgias, the rapacious family of Spanish oligarchs who usurped the Catholic papacy in the 15th and 16^th Centuries. Of what possible interest could the high priesthood of Roman Catholicism have for men who already had it all?

The key to understanding Korah’s challenge lays in the very fact of his preference for Aharon’s title rather than that of Moshe.

To a magnate like Korah, the fundamental difference, between Moshe and Aharon was that Moshe’s title was not hereditary while Aharon’s was. Moshe could not bequeath his title to his progeny. Aharon could.

Ultimately there is much greater power in a hereditary fiefdom than in a closed-ended term of office, even if the term is for a lifetime.

For Korah this meant that the כהונה, the priesthood, like personal wealth, could be passed on to future generations. The combination of money and priestly prestige would make it virtually impossible – so he thought – to undo his dynasty. The concentration of material power on the one hand and spiritual power on the other seemed unbeatable — and only he, Korah, had both the pedigree and the means to pull it off.

The Borgias did exactly the same during the Renaissance. They used their money, influence and utter lack of scruples to seize control of the Vatican. They violated every vow of celibacy, poverty, and obedience in order to enjoy both temporal and spiritual power. This included, especially, having children who would fill key ecclesiastical, military and commercial positions.

Had Korah succeeded in his quest, he would have been the Pope Alexander VI of his time — a corrupt כהן גדול with unlimited funds, answerable to no one and free, if it suited him, to indulge in adultery, simony, theft, rape, bribery, incest and murder – if it served his purposes.

Wealth and the power of wealth can lead some to a life of noblesse oblige and a sense of responsibility for the greater welfare of society. Sadly, this is the exception. More often, wealth leads to excess, especially an excessive sense of entitlement. More is never enough: More money. More things. More power.

Above all, unbridled wealth leads to a desire for immortality, which can only be achieved through dynastic continuity.

Money alone is no guaranty of such continuity. Economies shift. Mistakes are made. Generational fertility can dilute the loot. But the כהונה, well that is something else entirely. Because the Jewish priesthood is genetic. The children of Aharon would be priests forever. And priests have power. For Korah, like for the Borgias, claiming the כהונה was the only way to consolidate power in a manner that would guaranty immortality by giving his children and grandchildren for all generations – regardless of their intellectual or spiritual gifts – power over the entire nation of Israel.

This might explain why he challenged Moshe and Aharon to begin with, but why ultimately it was Aaron’s portfolio that he coveted specifically.