(AN: I can't believe I messed this up. The incident with Nadab and Abihu happens before they are cursed to wander for forty years, not after. I totally forgot that, please forgive my oversight. I therefore brought it forward so that it would work with what else is going on here. Once again, my bad)

(And thank you for reviewing. Yeah, I know that last scene was a little bit of an 'aww' moment, but I'm not that good at writing romances, much less biblical ones. Hopefully you will enjoy this chapter, where I've had some elbow room to elaborate and do more than just go by the movements.)


Rebellion

"Another dedication ceremony?" Abihu queried.

"That's what I said!" Nadab returned, after taking a long draught from his cup.

"I mean," Abihu continued. "If we're all going to die out here, what's the point?"

"Point of what?"

"Of rededicating the Tabernacle, of even bothering with that laundry list of rules Uncle Moses and father make us all follow, on pain of death, I might add!"

"Here, give me that jar!" Nadab passed his younger brother the jar of wine, which he drank from directly.

"After all," he said, handing the clay jar back to his brother. "We weren't excluded from Moses' curse, the whole forty years thing."

"I know," Abihu nodded hazily.

"One way or the other, we're gonna die, you and I, brother. Better to die…happy, disobeying those damn rules and having fun than at the next plague or calamity that Moses is going to bring us into."

The other nodded, and they continued their drinking with reckless abandon.

They were later called back to the Tabernacle for the dedication ceremony. Once they placed the incense in their censers and passed through into the Holy Place, there was a sudden flash of fire…and the sound of two bodies hitting the floor sounded later.

"Oh, God save us!" Aaron sighed, turning to Moses. "What's happened?"

"Your sons are dead," Moses said. "They have p-pr-profaned the Holy Place. For the LORD has said: 'I shall be sanctified in those that come nigh to Me, and glorified before all the people.' But your s-s-s-s-sons have done foolishly by offering strange fire before the LORD!"

"Not my sons!" Aaron wept. "Not my sons!"

"Silence!" Moses shouted. "Do not weep for them, for it would be condoning their evil." He turned to his brother and placed his hands on his shoulders.

"I know this is t-t-t-tragic, but you must be strong. You and your sons must not remove your ephods or tear your garments."

Aaron nodded. "What must I do?"

"Your uncle has t-t-two sons," Moses continued. "Mishael and Elzaphan. Bring them here, and have them carry out Nadab and Abihu from out of the presence of the LORD."

The old man nodded meekly, then shuffled away, trying hard to suppress his grief.

From the side of the outer court, one of the sons of Kohath watched the proceedings with great interest, with profound disgust and with a calculated mind.

The time had come to strike.


"Friends, brothers, good people of Israel," Korah, son of Izhar and grandson of Kohath, said to those gathered in the large tent later that evening. He walked around them, those who were close to him and those others who had heeded the call: his comrades in the tribe of Reuben, Dathan, On and Abiram, and two hundred and fifty others.

"Listen to what I say," Korah continued. "Just this morning, at the dedication of the Tabernacle, Aaron's two sons were killed. Of course, Moses invented some cock-n-bull story that they had offered 'strange fire' before the "LORD", whatever that means. I specifically saw Moses giving directions to Aaron's third son Eleazar. You know what this means, surely?"

Scattered murmurs echoed through the gathering.

"It means," Korah stated. "That Moses intends to pass the title of High Priest on to a boy, not even twenty years of age! And his reign of tyranny shall increase and know no end until we are all consumed!"

"Hear hear!" exclaimed Dathan. Several others returned the statement.

"I've gathered you here," Korah said. "Two hundred and fifty respected members of the congregation, because you all believe as I do: that Moses, not this phantom God of his, has led us out into the wilderness to die. He must be stopped!"

Cries of "aye!" and "hear here!" echoed through the tent.

"And we are the ones to stop him." Korah said.

"Why, Rabbi Korah?" a young voice asked. "Is not the LORD God with us? Has not He appointed Moses as our leader?"

Korah walked over to the side of Judah, where Nashon and his son Salmon stood, listening intently to the discussion.

"Nashon, my old friend," Korah said to Salmon's father. "You'll kindly restrain your brat from speaking out in a court of men!"

Salmon looked at them, and then walked out of the tent. Nashon remained.

"As I was saying, before I was so rudely interrupted," Korah continued. "Something must be done about this tyrant Moses and his lies. It has not been several months since the incident at Paran." Some murmuring echoed through the tent.

"The ten honest spies were slain by some mysterious plague, and then after that, we were routed when we earnestly tried to take the so-called 'Promised Land.' Thousands slaughtered because we were determined to take what was ours by force! Moses declared quite plainly that his rule will see us all rot in the desert!

"By what fault of ours are we doomed to die? We've done nothing wrong, and yet Moses forces a hard dictatorship upon us, where even if we think about questioning his rule, we are condemned to death! All the evil that has happened on this death march is the fault of Moses and his ilk!"

He then stood before them all, hands spread open.

"Let me lead you, my good people." He said. "I will lead you back to a land of plenty. For I ask you this; when was life harder than here in the desert, and when was life easier than back at the fleshpots of Egypt?"

Cheers came up from one and all.

"Tomorrow," he said. "When I go up before Moses and Aaron, can I count on your support? Will you stand by me, oppose tyranny and speak out in defense of freewill and freedom?"

It sounded like an army cheering for certain victory in that tent.


In the tent of Judah, Salmon waited angrily for the return of his father.

"I can't believe he would do this!" he exclaimed to Mered and Bithiah, who sat nearby. "It's bad enough that I will have to see my own father die before I do myself, but to have him take up arms against Moses! We've seen the hand of the LORD, haven't we?"

"Yes, we have." Mered returned.

He shook his head, turned about and saw the tent door open and the face of Nashon in the door. He dismissed Mered and Bithiah, then turned angrily toward his son.

"How dare you speak to Korah with such foolish presumption!"

"But he is wrong!"

"Wrong? So it's wrong to care about the safety of our people? It's wrong to want to see us free at last, to see us in peace and safety, to have us fed and watered without having to come crawling before that traitor Moses? That's wrong, is it?"

"You're disobeying the LORD, father!"

"Son," Nashon turned to his son, calming down a little. "Listen to me: one day you will lead the people of Judah. When that day comes, you will understand, as I do now, that you cannot put your trust in dreams and ghostly fears."

"But the LORD…"

"When you have the responsibility of tens of thousands on your hands, my son, you will put your principles and your beliefs aside for the greater good of the people, or else you will not last long as the lord of Judah."

Nashon dismissed his son, then went off to sleep. Salmon was heavy of heart as he walked outside the tent and fell asleep near the camp-fire.


When morning came at last, Moses and Aaron found themselves confronted by a small band of lords, led by none other than one of their own number: Korah son of Izhar, of the Kohathites.

"We're gathered against you, Moses!" he shouted, at which the others cheered in agreement.

"For what purpose?" Aaron asked. Dathan, On and Abiram pushed Aaron aside and walked off, while Korah stood before Moses.

"You take too much upon yourself, old man!" Korah said. "Is not your God in the midst of this congregation, and are we not all good, holy people? By whose authority to you raise yourself over the rest of us?"

Moses fell down to the ground on his knees. At this Korah smiled and turned to his associates.

"See?" he queried. "If his God were real, would he really be so weak?"

They laughed in mockery, but Moses was no longer listening. Someone else was speaking to him.

"It is you who takes too much upon yourself, son of Levi." Moses said as he rose up slowly from off the ground. "Is it not enough that the LORD has raised you yourselves above all the tribes of Israel, by consecrating you unto His service? He has brought you close unto Him, you and all your brethren, and yet you seek the priesthood also?"

Korah remained unmoved.

"Tomorrow," Moses said. "You and your brethren take incense and burn it before the LORD: He shall choose who are indeed His and show whom He has called." He then looked over at Dathan, On and Abiram, who looked upon Moses with hate.

"Will you not come forth and do as your leader?" he asked.

"No!" Dathan said. "It is not enough that you've led us out here into the wilderness to die?"

"Not just that, but you've made yourself a prince and judge over us!" Abiram returned.

"You've showed us no such land filled with milk and honey!" On shouted in defiance. "Only death and misery!"

"We will not be at your beck and call as your servants, worker of evil!" Dathan concluded.

The crowds slowly dispersed, save for Korah.

"You shall be there on the m-m-morrow?" Moses asked.

"I will be there." he returned.

"So be it."


In the morning, the two hundred and fifty rebels were gathered out in front of the Tabernacle, along with a great company of the people of Israel. Dathan, On and Abiram had refused to come and sat instead in their own tents, eating and drinking as if nothing was going on. Korah and his associates were burning incense at the door of the Tabernacle when suddenly Moses appeared, his veil removed and his face shining like the sun.

"Get away from these wicked men!" he shouted, strength in his voice. "Touch nothing of theirs or you shall be consumed by their evil!"

A large group of people started moving away from Korah. Even the two hundred and fifty rebels took a step back. From the nearby camp of Reuben, Dathan, On and Abiram stood out in their tent-doors. On the other side of the camp, Korah's wife and her children walked towards the rest of the people.

"Not you too!" Korah shouted. "Woman, you betray me even now? Get back to my tent and leave my children alone! I forbid you to go over..."

But the deed was done. From the camp of Reuben, On turned to Dathan and Abiram and then took his family and joined the rest of the congregation.

"That you may know," Moses said slowly, his anger simmering just beneath the surface. "That the LORD has sent me, and that all that I have done has been through His power and not mine: behold, if these..." He pointed to Korah, then to Dathan and Abiram. "...shall die by natural ways, whether by sickness or by the sword, then I have not been sent by the LORD. But should the LORD command the very earth to open her mouth and swallow them up and all that pertains to them, then you shall know that it was the LORD that these men have provoked!"

The earth shook violently, even as they stood about. Cries of alarm echoed up from the people. Cracks formed in the ground, and two tents from the camp of Reuben disappeared, with all that stood before them. Another crack appeared and Korah's tent was swallowed up. Suddenly there came forth another breach, violent and hard, the very earth trembling, and Korah vanished from before the face of the people.

Suddenly, flashes of fire shot down from the Pillar of Cloud. More cries arose as the two hundred and fifty rebels were incinerated one by one where they stood.

When all was quiet at last, the cracks in the earth gone and nothing left of the rebellion by piles of ash, the people gathered in an angry mob around the Tabernacle.

"Murderers!" On shouted. "They have killed good men!"

"They were men of God! They told us what we wanted to hear!"

"Butchers! Stone him to death!"

"You have killed men of God!"

As suddenly as they had arrived, they were thrown back, cowering in fear and crying out again as if stricken. All about the congregation, people cried out in pain: fourteen thousand and seven hundred afflicted. Moses summoned Aaron to him and whispered instructions to him.

Among the congregation, three of the people of Judah stood in silence, unafflicted by the plague, as they realized what had happened.

"My lord!" Mered exclaimed, turning to Salmon.

He bowed, and Bithiah with him. He realized then what had happened. His father had joined with the rebels and had paid for his rebellion against the LORD with his life.

Now he, Salmon, was prince of Judah.


The next day, Moses surveyed the damage. Fourteen thousand seven hundred dead, apart from the two hundred and fifty rebels and Korah, Dathan and Abiram, along with the families of the latter two. Even though He knew the LORD had spoken to him, had heard the Voice as clear as upon Sinai, he began to doubt. The words of the rebels had sunk into his heart.

Had he really led the people out to their utter ruin? Every turn, they were being punished for their sins with great vengeance. What was he even doing out here anymore? Just leading the people in circles for the next forty years, until everyone was dead...

Until even he was dead?

"Aaron," he said to his brother. "T-The LORD has spoken: take the rods of the p-p-p-princes of the tribes of Israel, and have them write their names upon the staves, and they shall be placed b-b-b-before the Ark of the Covenant."

"Who shall be for the tribe of Levi, brother?" Aaron asked.

"You will." he returned.

"Me? But why?"

"The LORD shall see an end to these rebellious murmurings." he said at last. "He shall s-show proof, final and in-d-d-d-disputable proof, of whom He has chosen."

"It shall be done, brother." Aaron then stopped, and turned back to Moses. "Uh, what will be the sign of the LORD's choosing?"

"The one that buds," Moses said. "Is the one He has c-chosen."

He nodded, then departed. Moses sighed, hoping that this, at last, would bring an end to the rebellion, an end to all the punishments upon the people.

Maybe...at last...


(AN: The ending may have been a bit rushed, but there will definitely be more and better chapters later on. Maybe two more chapters then I will skip ahead some forty years towards the tale end and have that explicated. I'm definitely going to do the wedding of Mered and Bithiah, perhaps have some more flash-backs of older Bereshith tales [aka. Genesis], where they be relevant, of course.)

(Stay tuned for more)