Beginning of the End - Ellen G. White

But wrath had gone out and the plague was doing its work of
death. Following his brother's instructions, Aaron took a censer and
hurried into the middle of the congregation to "make atonement for
them." "And he stood between the dead and the living." The plague
was stopped, but not until fourteen thousand Israelites lay dead.
Now the people were compelled to believe the unwelcome
truth that they were to die in the wilderness. "Surely we die," they
exclaimed, "we perish, we all perish!" They confessed that they had
sinned in rebelling against their leaders and that Korah and his
company had experienced the just judgment of God.
Don't the same evils still exist that were at the heart of Korah's
ruin? Pride and ambition are all around, opening the door to envy
and power struggles. People become separated from God and
unconsciously drawn into the ranks of Satan. Like Korah and his
companions, many are thinking, planning, and working so eagerly to
exalt themselves that they are ready to twist the truth, lying about
and misrepresenting the Lord's servants. By continuing to repeat
lies, they finally come to believe it to be true.
The Hebrews were not willing to submit to the Lord's
directions and restrictions. They were unwilling to receive
correction. This was the secret of their complaints against Moses.
All through the history of the church, God's servants have had to
meet the same spirit.
349