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having presented in the tent the work that came into being according to his will. And thus he indicated the presence. A mist came over the tent alone, neither deep and condensed and like clouds, nor very thin and sparse, so that sight could pass through it; but a sweet dew flowed from it. And Moses sacrificed in the court of the tent for seven days, and on the eighth he proclaimed a festival to the people and ordered them to sacrifice. And they vied with one another. And while the sacred offerings were on the altar, a fire was kindled spontaneously and consumed everything on the altar. And the elder sons of the four sons of Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, having sacrificed contrary to what was commanded, were burned on their chests and their faces, a fire having broken out spontaneously and having consumed them; whose bodies were carried outside the camp and were buried. And having set apart the tribe of Levi from the others, he purified it, and handed over to them the tent and the sacred vessels, so that as the priests direct, they might serve. After this he decided to number the people, and there were found six hundred and three thousand, six hundred and fifty of those able to bear arms. These were they who had passed their twentieth year and had reached up to their fiftieth. And instead of the Levitical tribe, they enrolled among the tribal leaders the sons of Joseph, Manasseh and Ephraim, according to the command of their forefather Jacob. And the Levites, having been numbered, were found to be twenty-three thousand, eight hundred and eighty. Then the multitude rebelled, accusing1.53 Moses that having removed them from a good land, he had made them wander in a desert. And leading them from there to the place called Pharanx, which was near the land of the Canaanites, he took one from each tribe and sent them to spy out both the power of the Canaanites and the quality of the land. And having traversed the land in forty days, they returned, bringing fruit from that land, and they praised the country as good, but frightened the multitude, saying that taking possession of it was impossible because of the size of its rivers, the difficulty of its mountains, and the fortifications of its cities. And the multitude was again angry with Moses, and they intended to stone both him and Aaron and to return to Egypt. But of the spies, only Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb encouraged the people, insisting that they would meet with no difficulty. And Moses and Aaron besought God to make the multitude cease from their folly. And the cloud was present at the tent and signified the appearance of God. And Moses, taking courage, spoke to the multitude, and said that God was angry, but would not destroy them all nor wipe out their race, but would not give them Canaan, but would leave them in the desert for forty years, and would give the land to their children. When Moses said these things, the multitude was in grief. Then they wished to engage the Canaanites, even though God forbade this; and attacking they were defeated, and some fell, while others fled together into the camp. 1.54 And a sedition seized the multitude for such a reason. Korah, being of the Levitical tribe, and most distinguished in family and wealth and most persuasive in speech, felt envy towards Moses and cried out against the man as using tyrannical power. "For by what reason," he said, "did he assign the priesthood to Aaron and to his sons? If it is because he is from the Levitical tribe, I am more just to obtain it, being of the same family, but superior in wealth and age. But if it must be assigned to another tribe, that of Reuben will be preferred on account of its seniority, and Dathan and Abiram will receive it." These things he said maliciously, and there were arrayed with him two hundred and fifty of the first men, and the multitude was also stirred up. But Moses, standing in the midst, said, "To me, O Korah, both you and each of those arrayed with you seem worthy of honor, but God has decreed the priesthood to Aaron, and now he himself will again judge whom he wishes to be priest. Therefore in the morning, as many of you as lay claim to the priesthood, come forward,

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γνώμην αὐτοῦ τὸ εργον γενόμενον, παρουσιάσας ἐν τῇ σκηνῇ. ουτω δὲ τὴν παρουσίαν ἐδήλωσεν. ἀχλὺς ὑπὲρ τὴν σκηνὴν μόνην ἐγένετο, ουτε βαθεῖα καὶ συμπεπιλημένη καὶ νέφεσιν ἐμφερής, ουτε πάνυ λεπτή τε καὶ ἀραιά, ὡς δι' αὐτῆς διικνεῖσθαι τὴν ορασιν· ἡδεῖα δὲ ἀπ' αὐτῆς ερρει δρόσος. Μωυσῆς δὲ εθυσεν ἐν τῷ τῆς σκηνῆς αἰθρίῳ ἐφ' ἡμέρας ἑπτά, τῇ δὲ ὀγδόῃ ἑορτὴν ἐκήρυξε τῷ λαῷ καὶ θύειν ἐπέταξεν. οἱ δὲ ἀλλήλοις ἡμιλλῶντο. ἐπικειμένων δὲ τῶν ἱερῶν τῷ βωμῷ πῦρ ἀνήφθη αὐτόματον καὶ πάντα τὰ ἐπὶ τοῦ βωμοῦ ἐδαπάνησεν. οἱ δὲ πρεσβύτεροι τῶν τεσσάρων υἱῶν ̓Ααρών, Ναδὰβ καὶ ̓Αβιού, παρὰ τὰ διατεταγμένα θύσαντες κατεκαύθησαν τὰ στέρνα τε καὶ τὰ πρόσωπα, πυρὸς ἐξαφθέντος αὐτομάτου καὶ φλέξαντος αὐτούς· ων τὰ σώματα εξω τῆς παρεμβολῆς κομισθέντα ἐτάφησαν. τὴν δὲ φυλὴν τοῦ Λευὶ τῶν αλλων διακρίνας ηγνισε, καὶ παρέδωκεν αὐτοῖς τὴν σκηνὴν καὶ τὰ σκεύη τὰ ἱερά, ινα ὡς ὑφηγοῦνται οἱ ἱερεῖς, ὑπηρετῶσιν αὐτοί. μετὰ ταῦτα ἀριθμῆσαι διέγνωκε τὸν λαόν, καὶ εὑρέθησαν τῶν οπλα φέρειν δυναμένων μυριάδες ἑξήκοντα καὶ τρισχίλιοι πρὸς ἑξακοσίοις καὶ πεντήκοντα. ουτοι δ' ησαν οἱ τὸν εἰκοστὸν ὑπερβάντες ἐνιαυτὸν καὶ αχρι τοῦ πεντηκοστοῦ ἐφθακότες. ἀντὶ δὲ τῆς Λευιτικῆς φυλῆς τοῖς φυλάρχοις κατέλεξαν τοὺς παῖδας τοῦ ̓Ιωσήφ, τὸν Μανασσῆν καὶ τὸν ̓Εφραΐμ, κατὰ τὴν διαταγὴν τοῦ προπάτορος ̓Ιακώβ. οἱ δέ γε Λευῖται δισμύριοι καὶ τρισχίλιοι ἀριθμηθέντες εὑρέθησαν πρὸς ὀκτακοσίοις καὶ ὀγδοήκοντα. Ειτα στασιάζει τὸ πλῆθος τὸν Μωυσῆν αἰτιώμε1.53 νον οτι γῆς αὐτοὺς ἀγαθῆς ἀποστήσας ἐν ἐρήμῳ πλανᾶσθαι πεποίηκεν. ἀγαγὼν δὲ αὐτοὺς ἐκεῖθεν εἰς τὴν καλουμένην Φάραγγα, πλησίον ουσαν τῆς Χαναναίων γῆς, ἐξ ἑκάστης φυλῆς ενα λαβὼν κατασκοπήσοντας εστειλε τήν τε δύναμιν τῶν Χαναναίων καὶ τῆς γῆς τὴν ποιότητα. οἱ δὲ τεσσαράκοντα ἡμέραις διελθόντες τὴν γῆν ὑπενόστησαν, καὶ καρποὺς ἐκ τῆς γῆς ἐκείνης κομίζοντες, καὶ τὴν μὲν χώραν ἐπῄνουν ὡς ἀγαθήν, τὸ δὲ πλῆθος ἐφόβουν ὡς ουσης ἀπόρου τῆς αὐτῆς κατασχέσεως διά τε ποταμῶν μεγέθη καὶ ὀρῶν δυσχωρίας καὶ πόλεων ὀχυρότητας. τὸ δὲ πλῆθος πάλιν δι' ὀργῆς ειχον τὸν Μωυσῆν, καὶ ἐνενόουν καταλεῦσαι αὐτόν τε καὶ τὸν ̓Ααρὼν καὶ ὑποστρέψαι εἰς Αιγυπτον. μόνοι δὲ τῶν κατασκόπων ̓Ιησοῦς ὁ τοῦ Ναυῆ καὶ Χαλὲβ παρεθάρρυναν τὸν λαόν, μηδὲν δυσχερὲς ἀπαντήσειν αὐτοῖς ἀπισχυριζόμενοι. Μωυσῆς δὲ καὶ ̓Ααρὼν ἱκέτευον τὸν θεὸν οπως τῆς ἀπονοίας παύσῃ τὸ πλῆθος. παρῆν δὲ ἡ νεφέλη ἐν τῇ σκηνῇ καὶ ἐσήμαινε τὴν ἐπιφάνειαν τοῦ θεοῦ. καὶ Μωυσῆς θαρσήσας διειλέχθη τῷ πλήθει, καὶ ὀργισθῆναι εφησε τὸν θεόν, μὴ ἀπολεῖν μέντοι πάντας μηδὲ τὸ γένος ἐξαφανίσειν, τὴν δὲ Χαναναίαν μὴ παρέξειν αὐτοῖς, ἐᾶσαι δ' ἐπὶ τῆς ἐρημίας ἐπ' ετη τεσσαράκοντα, παισὶ δὲ τοῖς αὐτῶν παρέξειν τὴν γῆν. ταῦτα τοῦ Μωυσέως εἰπόντος ἐν λύπῃ τὸ πλῆθος ἐγένετο. ειτα συμμίξαι τοῖς Χαναναίοις ηθελον, καὶ ταῦτα κωλύοντος τοῦ θεοῦ· καὶ προσβαλόντες ἡττήθησαν, καὶ οἱ μὲν επεσον, οἱ δὲ εἰς τὴν παρεμβολὴν συμπεφεύγασι. 1.54 Στάσις δὲ τὸ πλῆθος κατέλαβεν ἐξ αἰτίας τοιαύτης. Κορὲ τῆς Λευιτικῆς τυγχάνων φυλῆς, καὶ γένει καὶ πλούτῳ περιφανέστατος καὶ ὁμιλεῖν πιθανώτατος, φθόνον εσχε πρὸς Μωυσῆν καὶ τοῦ ἀνδρὸς κατεβόα ὡς τυραννίδι χρωμένου. "τίνι γὰρ λόγῳ" ελεγεν " ̓Ααρὼν καὶ τοῖς αὐτοῦ υἱέσι τὴν ἱερωσύνην προσένειμεν; εἰ μὲν ὡς ἐκ τῆς Λευιτικῆς φυλῆς, ἐγὼ ταύτης τυχεῖν δικαιότερος, γένους μὲν ὁμοίως εχων, πλούτῳ δὲ καὶ ἡλικίᾳ διάφορος. εἰ δ' ἑτέρᾳ φυλῇ προσκυρωθῆναι δέον αὐτήν, προτιμηθήσεται ἡ τοῦ ̔Ρουβὶμ διὰ πρεσβυγένειαν, καὶ λήψονται ταύτην ∆αθάν τε καὶ ̓Αβειρών." ταῦτα ἐκεῖνος μὲν κακοήθως ελεγεν, ησαν δὲ αὐτῷ συντεταγμένοι ανδρες τῶν πρώτων διακόσιοι καὶ πεντήκοντα, ἀνηρέθιστο δὲ καὶ τὸ πλῆθος. ὁ δὲ Μωυσῆς εἰς μέσον στὰς ειπεν "ἐμοί, ω Κορέ, καὶ σὺ καὶ τῶν σοι συντεταγμένων εκαστος τιμῆς αξιοι δοκεῖτε, ὁ δὲ θεὸς τὴν ἱερωσύνην τῷ ̓Ααρὼν ἐψηφίσατο, καὶ νῦν αὐτὸς αυθις κρινεῖ ον ἱερᾶσθαι βούλεται. εωθεν ουν, οσοι τῆς ἱερωσύνης ἀντιποιεῖσθε, πάριτε,