Speak to Bnei Yisrael and take from them a staff for each paternal house from all the leaders according to their paternal houses twelve staffs. Inscribe each man's name on his staff. Inscribe Aron's name on Levi's staff. Place the staffs before the Aron where I arrange meetings with you. What will happen is the staff of the man who I will choose will blossom. By doing so, I will rid myself from their complaints which they are directing to you. The next day behold Aron's staff blossomed and started to produce fruit and developed ripe almonds.
Let us examine the grammar of the passuk והיה האיש אשר אבחר בו מטהו יפרח . It will be that the individual who I will choose אבחר בו, his staff alone will blossom. Hashem should have said that the miracle will determine the one whom I chose in the past tense, the individual about whom you are complaining about, Aron, will be vindicated as My chosen candidate. Secondly, why was the miracle proving the appointment of Aron and his Shevet via the blossoming of almonds in particular and not another species that demonstrated miracle growth?
Korach didn't have an inkling about the madraigos of Aron and the character traits required to become a Kohen. Aron possessed an outstanding negation and bittul to Hashem and Klal Yisrael. Moshe said on him ואהרן מה הוא כי תלינו עליו . Aron is on the level of מה which depicts total subservience. He was void of all self-interests. It was never a question of "what can you do for me" but rather "what can I do for you". As the Sfas Emes writes כי לא היתה לו שום פניה רק לקבל השפעת קדושה מהבורא יתברך לבני ישראל. לכן בחר בו השי"ת להיות כהן משרת. וכל הממונה על כלל ישראל צריך שלא יהיה לו שום נגיעה בעצמותו כלל Korach was just the opposite. ויקח קרח he was a taker. He felt entitlement that things and honor are coming to him which he deserves. The Sfas Emes תרמג writes ובקשתם גם כהונה , Kehunah is not a commodity one can buy but rather he must earn it with the madraiga of מה. Korach's ויקח attitude causes jealousy upon which Chazal comment that it hastens to remove man from this world מוציאין אדם מן העולם. The gematriah of his name קרח 308 equals ורקב עצמות קנאה referring to the passuk in Mishlei 14,30 which is also 308 (Sfas Emes (תר"מ. Someone who has jealousy of others will cause his bones to rot.
We suggest that this concept of non-entitlement and jealousy is off limits in the character make up of a כהן. For the three letters of כהן spells כ "like" the letters הן . the Medrash on the passuk הן עם לבדד ישכן says Yisrael are a nation by themselves like the letters הן. The numbers 10 and 100 are numbers of shelaimus for after them the other numbers are built on them. using the Aleph Beis we put together a shidduch of numbers that reach these fundamentals. אט בח גז דו הה they all add to ten. The letter ה must go with itself. The same process is with the tens יצ כפ לע מס ננ all add up to 100 and the letter נ is by itself. הן עם לבדד ישכן just like the letters הן have no shidduch with the other letters in order to attain shelaimus, so too Am Yisrael reaches their shelaimus without having to take from the gentile nations. The title כהן means that its members must be individuals who must not have jealousy but rather to be שמח בחלקם by realizing that the grass on the other side is not greener for you in the fulfillment of your mission from Hashem. For instance the Kohen should not to look at other Shevatim who inherited land in Eretz Yisrael while they didn't. Rather look at what you have being a Kohen and not at what you don't have and your neighbor does. This applies to every Yid as we are called ממלכת כהנים .
In Pirkei Avos 5,10 the Mishna says האומר שלי שלך ושלך שלך חסיד if one says what is mine is yours what is yours is yours, he possess the level of Chassid. If he says .שלך שלי ושלי שלי רשע . We don't find Aron speaking up or reacting in this machlokes of Korach, only Moshe as the passuk saysויפל משה על פניו . The Ramban says that Aron's humility was such that his total silence conveyed that he felt that Korach's madraigah was even higher than his own but he had to listen to Moshe's decision since Moshe had a din of a Melech. The Sfas Emes תרמג writes on Ahron he was a chossid with the dictum שלי שלך that all my maalos are because of other influences upon me not my own.
To demonstrate the humility and kedusha of Aron the Medrash says 18,9 when Moshe poured the anointing oil on Aron his body immediately began to tremble and he asked Moshe saying perhaps I am not worthy to become the Kohen Gadol since I committed blasphemy on the holy oil for the Torah prohibits to pour this oil on בשר אדם (Shmos 30,32). A Bas Kol descended from heaven that proclaimed that you did not commit blasphemy at all. The Sfas Emes writes תרמז from here we see that at the moment of the anointing, Aron's body was transformed to heightened spirituality and he possessed the stature of a Malach not בשר אדם . This was the cause of his trembling. As the Navi says (Malachi 2,7) כי שפתי כהן ישמרו דעת ותורה יבקשו מפיהו כי מלאך ה' צבאות הוא .
To be a true leader for Am Yisrael one must fulfill the passuk תולה ארץ על בלימה that the earth is hanging on בלי מה on nothingness. The planet earth is miraculously suspended in mid - air without any physical attachments holding it up. Chazal (Chulin 89) however, interpret this miracle to also refer to an individual who is so disciplined and humble that he keeps his mouth shut and doesn't react or respond to the person who is involved with him in a dispute. They interpret the words בלימה as בולם פיו he keeps quiet in a quarrel. Adds the Sfas Emes only such a worked out person can merit to become a leader described in the words ,תולה ארץ where all people are dependent upon him because of his self control and his humility of כמי שאינו. He is the one who lives a life of מה which is the philosophy of "what can I do for you to make your life better". Aron's silence during the rebellion which was directly related to remove him from his position, was a testimony that he truly deserves to lead Am Yisrael and service them in the Beis Hamikdash and not Korach.
The prefix "de-" before a word typically indicates that the action of the word is being reversed, removed, or reduced. It can also indicate a downward or away-from movement. Anyone who feels through his haughtiness that he deserves an honorable position will only de-serve those he is supposed to serve.
The Sefer מחזה אברהם writes that this is the reason why Korach met his death by being swallowed up by the earth. If making peace by being silent and not adding fuel to the fire sustains the earth, someone who does just the opposite removes the sustaining energy needed by the earth. Therefore Korach lost his קיום (existence) by being devoured by the earth itself.
To understand the profundity of this greatness to remain silent in the face of a machlokes and to receive the reward of as if one gave life and sustenance to the earth, we suggest the following. The Mishna in Avos 5,1 says that Hashem created the world in Ten Sayings in order to give reward to tzadikkim and punishment to reshaiim. The sefarim explain this on a deeper level. Each mamar from Hashem cloaked His eternal light with a concealment. This purpose was in order to create a physical world which would allow for free choice. The Mishna is explaining that had Hashem created the world with only nine sayings there would be no room for equal bechira to choose good over bad for there was still enough light of Hashem to definitely sway man's choice towards the good. On the other hand, had there been eleven sayings there also would not have been bechira for man because the darkness would have naturally overpowered the choice of good over evil. Ten sayings was the perfect measure of concealing Hashem's light to create free will for there is now an equal balance between good and evil and now one must take responsibility for his actions.
This means to say that after Hashem spoke the creation of the tenth mamar of Bereishis He held back from saying an eleventh one because if not, the earth which was to be a place for free will would have been useless and created for naught. So too, man is commanded to follow Hashem's ways and middos. If a person in the midst of an argument can gird himself with self control and not say what he really wants to say after being attacked, he is then likened to Hashem who did not say an eleventh mamar which would have created a deeper level of darkness thereby making the earth dysfunctional of purpose for man by tipping the perception of evil over righteousness. It is by the בלימה when one chooses silence and shalom over stoking the fire, you have followed in the ways of Hashem of giving life energy to the world to preserve its existence.
Another example in which we are supposed to copy Hashem's conduct in the process of creation through the medium of Dibbur is found on Shabbos.
(ירושלמי שבת פט"ו ה"ג) כשהיה רואה אמו מדברת הרבה בשבת אמר לה אמי שבת היום The reason given for minimizing one's speech on Shabbos, is that since the passuk says וישבת that on Shabbos Hashem rested from work which was the creation of the world, and the process of creation was through the Ten Sayings, therefore we emulate Hashem on Shabbos by limiting our power of speech as well After the above we can begin to answer our questions. Aron was selfless to the point where his only interest was to serve Hashem and Am Yisrael. Like a malach he was embodied with his shelichus to bring Hashem's kovod. As we say in davening that the malachim נותנים רשות זה לזה להקדיש ליוצרם have no ego or jealousy towards another malach's role which might be in a higher position than their own. It is the goal that counts and whoever can do it better, he is happy for Hashem that it will bring Him more kovod than if he would have done it by himself.
While there are people who measure their growth by size and number of objects they own, there are others who cannot measure acquisitions since they follow constantly the infinite light of Hashem in creation. אהרן the first three letters of his name אהר add up to אור (with kollel). The letter nun at the end of a word, many time means constant רובץ רבצן (Baba Metzia 33). Aron Hakohen was always following the infinite light of Hashem in order to be Hashem's ambassador in the world and give Him nachas.
Such an individual realizes with a clarity that Hashem is מחדש בכל יום תמיד מעשה בראשית. Every second there is an ongoing creations and therefore what was and existed a second ago does not necessarily have to be in existence the next second. Everything depends on the will of Hashem at the next exact moment. Just because I was appointed and anointed as a Kohen Gadol five minutes ago it doesn't mean that automatically I am entitled to have that same zechus to be the Kohen Gadol this very moment. Only a person with great humility like Aron and Moshe can experience such thoughts. Yet only someone with those thoughts can become a Kohen Gadol for Hashem and for Am Yisrael.
This is what Hashem means when He says האיש אשר אבחר בו the individual who feels that from moment to moment over and over again he is being judged and chosen by Hashem , he is the person who is deserving to be given such a title and status.
This can also be the intention of the passuk (Tehillim 25,12) מי זה האיש ירא ה' יורנו בדרך יבחר a person who is truly a ירא ה' , his יראה of Hashem will lead him on the path of יבחר that he strives to be chosen by Hashem every day with renewal. He doesn't rely on yesterday's accomplishments for today. Note that the gematriah of יבחר is equal to יראה with its four letters. The truth is whether we know it or not the beracha we recite before Shma ends with הבוחר בעמו ישראל באהבה which is written in the present tense He chooses Yisrael. This teaches that everyone must strive to attain this level of יבחר.
The proof that Aron possessed such a humble character was that almonds grew out of a staff which was not connected to the earth. If one is connected to Hashem and His creation of the world from second to second, almonds can sprout from metal never mind a wooden staff. Why almonds? It takes 21 days go grow from beginning to end and the sefarim say that it symbolizes the Name of אהיה which is gematriah 21. There are people who exist and people who will beאהיה . Existing means there is no spiritual growth only cruise and automatic pilot. Those who connect to Hashem in a deep and meaningful relationship are recreating themselves all the time for no matter what spiritual heights they attain there is never a time to become complacent and glide. We must always flap our wings of ahavah and yirah to go further and rise to new horizions in order for Hashem to choose us anew to bring Him more nachas and opportunity to give berachos and hatzlachos to Am Yisrael.