In this week’s Torah portion, Korach, we read about the rebellion of Korach and his cohorts Datan and Aviram. At one point, G-d commanded Moses “Speak to the congregation saying, ‘withdraw from the dwellings of Korach, Datan and Aviram.’” Then it says “And Moses arose and went to Datan and Aviram, and all the elders of Israel followed him.” It continues, “And he spoke to the congregation...”
The Torah doesn’t say anything extra. Why then does it say that Moses arose, and that all the elders followed him? It could have just said that Moses went to Datan and Aviram. What moved the elders to follow him?
Rashi explains, “And Moses arose” because he thought that Datan and Aviram would show him respect, but they didn’t.
This was already after G-d gave the command to separate from the rebels. At this point their fate was, so to speak, sealed. It was beyond the point of reconciliation and repentance. For that matter, going to talk to them, would be going against G-d’s command, to separate from them. And even more, Moses was on a mission from G-d to warn the people to separate themselves from Korach, Datan and Aviram, it would be highly inappropriate for him to do anything before completing his mission!
Even though Datan and Aviram’s fate was sealed, and even though they acted brazenly against Moses and were instigators of the rebellion, still Moses, out of his great love for every Jew, sought to find a way to save Datan and Aviram from their looming fate.
He couldn’t go talk to them nor do anything that would interfere with his mission. This is why Moses arose, meaning, he used his position and stature, as king and leader of the Jewish people in the hope that it would affect Datan and Aviram to at least show respect, saving them from being swallowed by the earth.
This is also why the elders followed him, because Moses was acting in the capacity of the king, and where the king goes, so do the elders. This added to the prestige of the event, but unfortunately it still didn’t have the desired effect on the conspirators.
If Moses found love in his heart to try and find ways to save these evil people, how much more so must we find ways to include and accept all Jews!
We have many brothers and sisters who were not granted a proper Jewish education, for what ever reason. We must take a page of Moses’s play book and Moses’s love, and seek to find ways to include these Jews as well into the life of Torah which is an everlasting life.
More than anything else, it is our love of every Jew, that is the key to bringing Moshiach, which all Jews will experience together. May he come now!