Reclaiming Korah

Psalm 46, with it’s famous line, “Be still and know that I am God,” was a worship song written by what we might call a ‘band’ today named ‘the sons of Korah.’ Interestingly, that name is a direct reference to one of the bolder heretics of the Old Testament. Korah opposed Moses and died a very unpleasant death, apparently connected to his false claims. Here’s the brief summary of that story:

Korah son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, and certain Reubenites—Dathan and Abiram, sons of Eliab, and On son of Peleth—became insolent and rose up against Moses.With them were 250 Israelite men, well-known community leaders who had been appointed members of the council. They came as a group to oppose Moses and Aaron…

As soon Moses he finished speaking, the ground under them split apart 32 and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them and their households, and all those associated with Korah, together with their possessions. - Numbers 16: 1-3, 31-32

So what does it mean to call your worship band ‘the sons of Korah’ when Korah was everything a good Israelite didn’t want to be? It’s hard not to interpret this as a way of reclaiming what had gone wrong and perhaps an acknowledgment that we all get all mess up. It seems like a nod to our shared humanity, as if to say, “Look, if God wanted to find cause to swallow me whole, I’m sure there’s plenty of evidence for me to deserve it.” In some ways it’s like naming your child Eve or Adam, isn’t it? After all, those are the original mess-ups, right? And yet we still give their names to our children because they are more than their worst mistake.

Imagine today that you are more than your worst mistake. How does that connect with you? What is it about our shared humanity that gives you hope today?