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Going Biblical: Fascinating Divine Punishments Recounted in the Old Testament

Khalid Elhassan May 9, 2025 19 min

Punishment - The expulsion of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden — The expulsion of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden. Encyclopedia Britannica

11. Making the Earth Swallow Up Those Who Displeased God

Punishment - Death of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, by Gustave Dore, 1865 — Death of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, by Gustave Dore, 1865. Wikimedia

God ordered Moses and Aaron to separate from the assembly so He could destroy them. Moses and Aaron begged for mercy on behalf of the people, and God heeded their plea and agreed to spare the rebels, but not their leaders. He commanded the Israelites to distance themselves from the tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, and Moses declared that if these men died of natural causes, it would mean the Lord had not sent him.

However, if the earth opened up and swallowed them, it would mean that they had offended the Lord. Soon as Moses finished speaking, the ground split apart and swallowed up the rebels, their families, and possessions. Simultaneously, God sent a fire that consumed the 250 men challenging Aaron in the incense competition.

Written by

Khalid Elhassan

A lifelong history buff, I developed a particular passion for WW2 history as a child, when I spent hours listening to my grandfather, enraptured, as he recounted his wartime experiences in the British East African Campaign and with the British 8th Army in North Africa.

I graduated with a history BA from George Mason University, then went on to get a JD from the University of Virginia School of Law. After lawyering for a decade, I moved to sunny Rio de Janeiro and a less demanding career, opening a tourism agency in Copacabana.

A big chunk of my free time is spent blogging (you can follow me on Quora https://www.quora.com/profile/Khalid-Elhassan ) or freelance writing, mostly about my favorite subject, history.