Korach

The danger of Jealousy

Author: Rabbi Moshe Pruzansky

What caused korach to rebel, the sin which ultimately caused him to be punished with the horrific and public death of being swallowed alive by the ground? Jealousy. Korach was jealous of Aharon and desired to be the Kohen Gadol. The character flaw that fueled this jealousy and which ultimately brought about his utter destruction was his lack of appreciation for the gifts that Hashem had already given him.

Korach had a lot going for him. He was not only a tremendous and well-respected Torah scholar, he was also a Levi; he was from the Shevet that was destined to have the honor of working in the Beis HaMikdash. Furthermore, he and his descendants would have been privileged to enjoy financial security for the rest of their lives, as Levi’im are supported by the Jewish nation via their ma’aser. On top of that, he would have been privileged to have all the honor one could hope for, as the Levi’im would spend their days singing Hashem’s praises in front of all of those who visited the Beis HaMikdash each day. Regarding the Levi’im, Korach’s tribe, Hashem said (Bamidbar 3:12), “The Levi’im shall be mine.” (See also Bamidbar 8:14.) How privileged and honored was Korach! yet, that just wasn’t enough. As a result of Korach’s constant greed for more, he sacrificed it all, ultimately losing everything. What caused Korach to make such an eternally grave life-error?

a young man from a wealthy family was preparing to graduate college. Knowing there was nothing his dad couldn’t afford, the young man informed his father that an appropriate gift to mark the occasion would be a beautiful sports car that he had long admired. Graduation day approached, and with unconcealed enthusiasm, the young man awaited signs that his father had purchased the car. Finally, the day came. after a grand cere- mony, his father told him how much he loved him and handed him a beautifully wrapped gift box. The young man tore off the wrapping, opened the box, and found a leather-bound photo album containing pictures of him at every stage of his life. hardly taking the time to look through the album, the young man yelled, “With all your money, this is the best you could do?!” he stormed out of the house in a rage. he rarely called his father after that episode and never visited him again. Even after much time had passed, he refused to make peace with his disappoint- ment. The young man grew to become a parent. one day, before his own daughter’s eighth-grade graduation, she asked to visit her grandfather, whom she had never seen before. he began to make arrangements, but in the interim, he received a telegram informing him that his father had passed away and had willed him all his possessions. When he searched through his father’s important papers, he discovered the still-new photo album, as he turned the pages, his childhood passed before his eyes. When he came to the final page, he was shocked to find a sealed envelope nestled between the pages. he opened it up and two items dropped out: the car key to his dream car and a tag which read “Paid in Full,” marked with the date of his grad- uation.

Korach may not have had it all, but he certainly had been granted an incredible opportunity to serve in the capacity of a Levi. Had he accepted his role, he would have ranked among the leading families in the Jewish nation and enjoyed immense respect, financial security, and adulation. Instead, Korach completely lost sight of the gift that he had possessed all along — that was the source of his downfall. His legacy is that of a jealous rasha who, like the young man in the above-mentioned story, chose to focus on the packaging, never taking the time to examine his gifts. He did not realize that just because something is not packaged the way we expect it, does not mean that it is not a gift. (Heard from Rabbi elazar Meisels, Partnersintorah.org.)

Why is it that the commandment against jealousy is listed among the Ten Commandments — ten of the most fundamental aspects of Judaism? The answer is because we can only be jealous when we lack a fundamental principle of emunah: the understanding that Hashem runs every aspect of our lives and loves us even more than we love ourselves. Hashem gives us everything that is beneficial for us! Hence, there is no room for jealousy. The Chafetz Chaim once asked some- one how things were going. The man answered something we hear all too often: “Could be better.” The Chafetz Chaim corrected him and said, “No, they can’t be. If they could be any better, rest assured that your loving Father would have made it so.” Our life’s circumstances are always optimal and filled with blessing, whether we realize it or not. This understanding is so fundamental to our beliefs that it is included in the Ten Commandments.

We are all incredibly wealthy and privileged. May we always re- frain from focusing too much on the packaging, and put more focus into fully appreciating all of the many incredible gifts that Hashem has given us.