🔢WEB · Numbers 16:27
What does Numbers 16:27 mean?
"So they went away from the tent of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, on every side. Dathan and Abiram came out, and stood at the door of their tents, with their wives, their sons, and their little ones."
— Numbers 16:27 (World English Bible)
Surrounding context
“Speak to the congregation, saying, ‘Get away from around the tent of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram!’”
Moses rose up and went to Dathan and Abiram; and the elders of Israel followed him.
He spoke to the congregation, saying, “Depart, please, from the tents of these wicked men, and touch nothing of theirs, lest you be consumed in all their sins!”
So they went away from the tent of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, on every side. Dathan and Abiram came out, and stood at the door of their tents, with their wives, their sons, and their little ones.
Moses said, “Hereby you shall know that Yahweh has sent me to do all these works; for they are not from my own mind.
If these men die the common death of all men, or if they experience what all men experience, then Yahweh hasn’t sent me.
But if Yahweh makes a new thing, and the ground opens its mouth, and swallows them up, with all that belong to them, and they go down alive into Sheol; then you shall understand that these men have despised Yahweh.”
Explanation
Numbers 16:27 describes a tense moment just before God's judgment falls on a group of rebels in the Israelite camp. The verse says that the community obeyed Moses' warning and physically withdrew from the tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, creating a clear distance on every side. Meanwhile, Dathan and Abiram (Korah is not mentioned here, likely because he was elsewhere, perhaps at the tabernacle entrance with his followers) came out and stood defiantly at their tent doors, joined by their wives, sons, and even their small children — the whole family unit exposed together in the moment of crisis.
The context is the rebellion recorded in Numbers 16, where Korah, a Levite, along with Dathan and Abiram from the tribe of Reuben, led a challenge against the God-given authority of Moses and Aaron. They gathered 250 prominent men and accused Moses of exalting himself improperly over the congregation, essentially disputing God's chosen structure of leadership and priesthood. Moses, following God's instruction, told the rest of the people to separate themselves from these three men's households, warning that judgment
Compare translations
Go deeper with ScriptureCompanion AI
Ask questions about any verse, follow reading plans, write personal prayers, and track your daily habit — all grounded in verified scripture text.