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A priest pressures Joseph into accepting Mary by invoking the fate of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram from Numbers 16, comparing his potential refusal to the rebellion that caused the earth to swallow them alive.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
Numbers 16:32
Hebrew Bible
30 But if the Lord does something entirely new, and the earth opens its mouth and swallows them up along with all that they have, and they go down alive to the grave, then you will know that these men have despised the Lord!” 31 When he had finished speaking all these words, the ground that was under them split open, 32 and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them, along with their households, and all Korah’s men, and all their goods. 33 They and all that they had went down alive into the pit, and the earth closed over them. So they perished from among the community. 34 All the Israelites who were around them fled at their cry, for they said, “What if the earth swallows us too?”
Protoevangelium of James 9
Gospel of James
Pseudepigrapha
9 And Joseph, throwing down his axe, went out to meet them; and when they had gathered, they went to the high priest, each bringing their rods. The high priest, taking all their rods, went into the temple to pray; and after he finished, he took the rods and returned them to the men, but no sign appeared in any of them. Joseph took his rod last, and behold, a dove emerged from it and flew onto Joseph’s head. The priest said to Joseph, “You have been chosen by lot to take into your care the virgin of the Lord.” But Joseph protested, saying, “I have children, and I am an old man, while she is a young girl. I’m afraid I’ll become a laughingstock among the sons of Israel.” The priest replied, “Fear the Lord your God, and remember what the Lord did to Dathan, Abiram, and Korah, when the earth opened and swallowed them because of their rebellion. Now, Joseph, fear lest the same thing happen in your house.” Joseph, fearful, accepted her into his care. He said to Mary, “Behold, I have received you from the temple of the Lord; now I leave you in my home while I go to build my buildings, and I will return to you. The Lord will protect you.”
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Notes and References
“... the high priest reminds Joseph of Dathan, Abiram, and Korah, the three sons of Levi who offer “strange fire” and are eaten by the earth in punishment in Numbers 16:1-35. In other words, the text likens the possibility of Joseph’s rejection of Mary to the offering of an impure sacrifice ...”
Vuong, Lily
Accessing the Virgin: Gender and Purity in the Protoevangelium of James
(p. 178) McMaster University, 2010
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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