1Now Korah, the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, took men with him. So did Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and On, the son of Peleth, who were sons of Reuben.
2They stood up against Moses, along with some of the children of Israel: two hundred and fifty leaders of the assembly, well known in the community, men of great name.
3They gathered together against Moses and against Aaron, and said to them, "You take too much upon yourselves. The whole community is holy, every one of them, and the LORD is among them. Why then do you lift yourselves up above the assembly of the LORD?"
4When Moses heard it, he fell on his face.
5He said to Korah and to all his company, "Tomorrow the LORD will show who are his, and who is holy, and he will bring that man near to himself. The one he has chosen he will bring near to himself."
6"Do this: take censers, Korah, and all your company."
7"Put fire in them, and put incense in them before the LORD tomorrow. The man whom the LORD chooses shall be the holy one. You take too much upon yourselves, you sons of Levi."
9"Does it seem only a small thing to you that the God of Israel has set you apart from the rest of Israel, to bring you near to himself, to do the work of the tabernacle of the LORD, and to stand before the community to serve them?"
10"He has brought you near to himself, and all your brothers the sons of Levi with you. And now do you seek the priesthood as well?"
11"So you and all your company have gathered together against the LORD. And what is Aaron, that you complain against him?"
12Then Moses sent to call Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab. But they said, "We will not come up."
13"Is it a small thing that you have brought us out of a land flowing with milk and honey, to kill us in the wilderness? Must you also make yourself a ruler over us?"
14"What is more, you have not brought us into a land flowing with milk and honey, or given us fields and vineyards to own. Will you put out the eyes of these men? We will not come up."
15Moses was very angry, and said to the LORD, "Do not accept their offering. I have not taken one donkey from them, and I have not hurt one of them."
16Moses said to Korah, "You and all your company come before the LORD tomorrow: you, and they, and Aaron."
17"Let each man take his censer and put incense in it, and let each man bring his censer before the LORD, two hundred and fifty censers. You also, and Aaron, each with his censer."
18So each man took his censer, put fire in it, and laid incense on it. They stood at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation with Moses and Aaron.
19Korah gathered all the community against them at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. Then the glory of the LORD appeared to all the community.
21"Separate yourselves from this community, so that I may destroy them in a moment."
22They fell on their faces and said, "O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, will one man sin, and will you be angry with the whole community?"
23The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
24"Speak to the community and say, 'Get away from around the tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram.'"
25Moses got up and went to Dathan and Abiram, and the elders of Israel followed him.
26He spoke to the community and said, "Move away, please, from the tents of these wicked men, and touch nothing of theirs, or you will be swept away in all their sins."
27So they moved away from around the tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, on every side. Dathan and Abiram came out and stood at the doors of their tents, with their wives, their sons, and their little children.
28Moses said, "By this you shall know that the LORD has sent me to do all these things, and that I have not done them out of my own mind."
29"If these men die the ordinary death of all men, or if what happens to all men happens to them, then the LORD has not sent me."
30"But if the LORD does a new thing, and the earth opens her mouth and swallows them up with everything that belongs to them, and they go down living into the pit, then you will know that these men have insulted the LORD."
31As soon as he had finished speaking all these words, the ground under them split apart.
32The earth opened her mouth and swallowed them up, with their households, and all the men who belonged to Korah, and all their goods.
33They and all who belonged to them went down alive into the pit, and the earth closed over them. So they perished from among the community.
34All the Israelites around them fled at their cry, for they said, "The earth may swallow us up too."
35Then a fire came out from the LORD, and burned up the two hundred and fifty men who were offering the incense.
36The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
37"Speak to Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest. Tell him to pick up the censers out of the burning, and to scatter the fire far away, for the censers are holy."
38"The censers of these men who sinned against their own lives are to be beaten into broad plates as a covering for the altar. They offered them before the LORD, so they are holy. They shall be a sign to the children of Israel."
39So Eleazar the priest took the bronze censers that the men who were burned had offered, and they were beaten into broad plates as a covering for the altar.
40This was a reminder to the children of Israel that no stranger who is not of the family of Aaron should come near to offer incense before the LORD, so that he would not become like Korah and his company, as the LORD had said to him through Moses.
41But the next day all the community of the children of Israel complained against Moses and against Aaron, saying, "You have killed the people of the LORD."
42When the community had gathered against Moses and against Aaron, they looked toward the tabernacle of the congregation. Look, the cloud covered it, and the glory of the LORD appeared.
43Moses and Aaron came to the front of the tabernacle of the congregation.
44The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
45"Get away from this community, so that I may destroy them in a moment." And they fell on their faces.
46Moses said to Aaron, "Take a censer, put fire in it from the altar, and put incense on it. Go quickly to the community and make atonement for them, for wrath has gone out from the LORD. The plague has begun."
47Aaron did as Moses commanded, and ran into the middle of the community. Look, the plague had begun among the people. He put on the incense and made atonement for the people.
48He stood between the dead and the living, and the plague was stopped.
49Those who died in the plague were fourteen thousand seven hundred, besides those who died because of Korah.
50Aaron returned to Moses at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and the plague was stopped.