Korah perished when the earth opened and swallowed him and his company for his rebellion.
In the Old Testament, Numbers 16 records that the earth opened her mouth and swallowed Korah, his house, and all that belonged to him, and they perished from among the congregation. Jude 1:11 later references this event as the 'gainsaying of Korah,' and Les Feldick highlights it as a warning for false teachers.
Numbers 16:31-33 — This is the direct Old Testament account of Korah's fate — the earth opening and swallowing his company.
Jude 1:11 — This is the New Testament verse Les cites that connects Korah's 'gainsaying' to false teachers.
In Numbers 16, after Moses had finished speaking, "the ground clave asunder that was under them: And the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up, and their houses, and all the men that appertained unto Korah, and all their goods. They, and all that appertained to them, went down alive into the pit, and the earth closed upon them: and they perished from among the congregation" (Numbers 16:31-33). Later, Jude 1:11 refers to Korah's rebellion when warning about false teachers: "Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core."
Les Feldick points to Jude 1:11 as a chain of three Old Testament examples of false teachers. He explains that false teachers "have gone in the way of Cain" (whose problem was no faith), that they "have run greedily after the error of Balaam for reward," and that "they perished in the gainsaying of Korah." Les calls Korah's rebellion "another Old Testament event" and uses it as the final warning in this series. In the same teaching context, Les describes these false teachers as people who "speak evil of those things which they know not" and who operate from natural, fleshly thinking — "as brute beasts." He does not retell the full Numbers 16 story in this clip, but he makes clear that those who follow that pattern perish as Korah did.
Numbers 16 records Korah's rebellion against God's appointed leadership. After Moses had finished speaking, the ground broke apart beneath them, the earth opened her mouth and swallowed them up, and they went down alive into the pit. The text then says plainly: "They, and all that appertained to them, went down alive into the pit, and the earth closed upon them: and they perished from among the congregation."
In Jude 1:11, false teachers are said to have "perished in the gainsaying of Core." Les Feldick teaches that this is the third Old Testament warning for false teachers, after the way of Cain and the error of Balaam. He also notes that these false teachers "speak evil of those things which they know not" and act according to natural, fleshly thinking.
Jude's Description of False Teachers
Les explains that Jude's false teachers 'speak evil of those things which they know not' and operate by natural, fleshly thinking — the context for Jude's three Old Testament warnings.
Korah Named as the Third Warning
Les walks through Jude 1:11 and notes that false teachers have 'perished in the gainsaying of Korah,' placing Korah alongside Cain and Balaam as a warning example.
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Numbers 16:31-33: And it came to pass, as he had made an end of speaking all these words, that the ground clave asunder that was under them: And the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up, and their houses, and all the men that appertained unto Korah, and all their goods. They, and all that appertained to them, went down alive into the pit, and the earth closed upon them: and they perished from among the congregation.
This is the direct Old Testament account of Korah's death — the earth opening and swallowing him and all that belonged to him.
Jude 1:10: But these speak evil of those things which they know not: but what they know naturally, as brute beasts, in those things they corrupt themselves.
This verse matches Les's teaching about false teachers who speak against what they do not understand and act from natural, fleshly thinking.
Jude 1:11: Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core.
This is the verse Les uses to name Korah as the third Old Testament warning for false teachers.
Korah was the leader of the rebellion recorded in Numbers 16 that Moses confronted. In that account, the ground split and the earth opened her mouth and swallowed him and all that belonged to him, and he perished from among the congregation.
Jude 1:11 warns that certain false teachers 'perished in the gainsaying of Core.' Les Feldick explains that this is the third Old Testament example of false teachers, following the way of Cain and the error of Balaam.
Les points to Jude 1:11, where the way of Cain, the error of Balaam, and the gainsaying of Korah are all given as warnings for false teachers. He adds that these false teachers speak evil of things they do not know and act from natural, fleshly thinking.
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