This passage reminds us that God takes rebellion seriously and calls His people to honor His holiness through faithful obedience.
When the psalmist proclaims, “The earth opened and swallowed up Dathan, And engulfed the company of Abiram” (v.17), he recalls the sobering episode in Israel’s history when Dathan and Abiram joined with Korah to oppose Moses’ authority during the wilderness wanderings. Their rebellion occurred around 1440 BC, after the Exodus from Egypt. In Numbers 16, these men challenged the leadership that God had bestowed on Moses, and the result was an extraordinary display of divine judgment as the ground literally parted beneath them, delivering a clear demonstration that God’s holiness and chosen order cannot be dismissed without repercussion.
Dathan and Abiram were from the tribe of Reuben, and they conspired among the Israelites in the wilderness of Sinai. The place of their rebellion was likely within the Israelite encampment, located at various times between Egypt and the plains of Moab as they journeyed toward the Promised Land. When the earth swallowed them, it signified both the terrifying power of God to avenge wrongdoing and His commitment to protect the purity of His covenant community. The psalmist includes this event to caution readers against maintaining a hardened heart, reminding them that God desires humble faithfulness rather than insolence and revolt.
This verse also foreshadows how the Lord in the New Testament calls believers to heed His authority in Christ (Hebrews 12:25). In resisting God’s appointed direction, Dathan and Abiram modeled a form of disobedience that persists as a warning today, demonstrating that persistent rebellion yields dire consequences, while submission to God’s will leads to life and blessing.
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Psalms 106:17 meaning
When the psalmist proclaims, “The earth opened and swallowed up Dathan, And engulfed the company of Abiram” (v.17), he recalls the sobering episode in Israel’s history when Dathan and Abiram joined with Korah to oppose Moses’ authority during the wilderness wanderings. Their rebellion occurred around 1440 BC, after the Exodus from Egypt. In Numbers 16, these men challenged the leadership that God had bestowed on Moses, and the result was an extraordinary display of divine judgment as the ground literally parted beneath them, delivering a clear demonstration that God’s holiness and chosen order cannot be dismissed without repercussion.
Dathan and Abiram were from the tribe of Reuben, and they conspired among the Israelites in the wilderness of Sinai. The place of their rebellion was likely within the Israelite encampment, located at various times between Egypt and the plains of Moab as they journeyed toward the Promised Land. When the earth swallowed them, it signified both the terrifying power of God to avenge wrongdoing and His commitment to protect the purity of His covenant community. The psalmist includes this event to caution readers against maintaining a hardened heart, reminding them that God desires humble faithfulness rather than insolence and revolt.
This verse also foreshadows how the Lord in the New Testament calls believers to heed His authority in Christ (Hebrews 12:25). In resisting God’s appointed direction, Dathan and Abiram modeled a form of disobedience that persists as a warning today, demonstrating that persistent rebellion yields dire consequences, while submission to God’s will leads to life and blessing.