JUNE 22 • 2023 | 33

SPIRIT

Meritocracy 
vs. Elitism
K

orach is not only a story 
about rebellion; for 
present-day readers in 
particular, the story is also about 
the complicated relationship 
between the Jewish ideal of cho-
senness and an exaggerat-
ed sense of entitlement. 
At the heart of Korach’s 
dissent is what he claims 
to be the unfair selection 
of Moses and Aaron to 
unique positions of prom-
inence and authority. 
“You have gone too far,
” 
Korach protests to Moses 
and Aaron, “The entire 
congregation of Israel, 
they are holy with God in 
their midst; why then do 
you raise yourselves above 
God’s people?”
At first glance, his claim 
seems to be a reasonable chal-
lenge to established leadership. 
Korach purports to be a pop-
ulist protestor, speaking in the 
name of rank-and-file Israelites 
against the usurping of political 
and theological leadership and 
power by a single elite family. 
Korach is apparently not 
aware that the heart and soul 
of God’s relationship with the 
Children of Israel has been 
elevating divinely chosen indi-
viduals Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, 
Joseph, Judah, and finally Moses 
and Aaron to the very sort of 
prominence that Korach now 
challenges. He fails to recognize 
a central pillar of meritocracy: 
Not everyone is equally suited to 
do everything, and so not every-
one gets to do whatever they feel 
they deserve. 
Korach is not interested in 
elevating the entire people of 
Israel to the level of Moses and 
Aaron, but only himself. As 

much as Korach tries to mask a 
sense of entitlement by speaking 
in populist terms “we are all 
holy,
” the claim of elitism that 
he slings at Moses and Aaron is 
driven by selfish aims. He is the 
proverbial elitist who feels 
entitled to replace those 
he decries as entitled 
elitists.
As ignoble as Korach’s 
self-serving claims are, 
even more cringe-worthy 
is the fact that others 
bought what he was 
peddling and followed 
him, due in no small 
part to Korach stoking 
the fear and uncertainty 
born of the precarious-
ness of the moment. As 
Nachmanides explained, Korach 
put up with the high office filled 
by Aaron and Moses’ accolades 
until, following a series of cri-
ses that included the death of 
Miriam, the catastrophe of the 
spies, and the punishment of 40 
additional years of wandering 
he found opportunity to start 
his mutiny, hence his reference 
to Moses bringing the people to 
die in the wilderness. 
Korach’s self-serving, manip-
ulative campaign for leadership 
is the polar opposite of Moses’ 
humility. Moses refuses leader-
ship even when offered by God; 
Korach demands it even when 
no one else thought he was wor-
thy of it. His was truly the quint-
essential dispute that was not for 
the sake of heaven but only for 
the sake of one man with a trag-
ically exaggerated self-image. 

Dr. Howard N. Lupovitch is an 

associate professor of history at Wayne 

State University and director of WSU’s 

Cohn-Haddow Center for Judaic 

Studies.

TORAH PORTION

Howard 
Lupovitch

Parshat 

Korach: 

Numbers 16:1-

18:32; 

I Samuel 

11:14-12:22.

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