The following is a brief summary of a thought said over by R' Frand in his shiur this evening. I have attempted to reproduce this vort to the best of my ability. Any perceived inconsistencies are the result of my efforts to transcribe the shiur and should not be attributed to R' Frand.
Parshas Korach begins with the words "Vayicach Korach" (and Korach took). The famous question that is asked is - what did he take? Indeed, since the Torah then goes on to describe what Korach said, it should have begun with the words "Vayomer Korach (and Korach said).
The gemara in Sanhedrin 109b, states that Korach took a "Mecach Ra" or a bad purchase. R' Frand then asked, but what was his purchase? A person can have a fool hardy transaction, such as buying land in the Everglades, but at least there is a purchase. In the parsha, there is no statement that Korach purchased anything.
The Be'er Yakov (quoting the Zayit Ra'anan) answers the question by making reference to Rashi on Korach 16:7. The Torah states that Moshe suggested a contest that the people should see whose incense will be accepted. Rashi asks, but Korach is a bright man, why would he think that his incense would be accepted, he has no better that a 1 in 250 chance? Rashi answers that Korach looked at his future generations and saw that Shmuel Hanavi and twenty four mishmaros of nevi'im would come from him. He assumed that meant that he had a great z'chus and therefore he would prevail in this contest with Moshe.
The Zayit Ra'anan then asks - if this is the case (and we know that Shmuel did come from him) then why did the z'chus not protect Korach from his fate of being swallowed alive by the earth and spending eternity in Gehinnom with a constant restart of his punishment every thirty days?
R' Frand prefaced the answer by making reference to the Alter M'Kelem. In discussing bechorim (first born children), the Alter asks, why do they have holiness? Because they were part of a great kiddush Hashem in Egypt that the first born children of the Egpytians died, while they lived. But it can asked - the bechorim did not do anything, all they did was live because Hashem allowed them to live? The answer is - yes, however Hashem rewards everyone who effectuates a kiddush Hashem, even if their role is passive as they are still the vehicle through which the kiddush Hashem has occurred.
The Zavit Ra'anan writes that Korach was zocheh to have Shmuel as a decendant, because he was responsible for the great kiddush Hashem of having Moshe established as the unchallenged leader and the Jews having proclaimed "Moshe Emes V'Soraso Emes" (Moshe is truthful and his Torah is truthful). Since he caused this great kiddush Hashem, Korach was rewarded with Shmuel and the nevi'im.
The problem was that Korach paid too large a price for the transaction of having famous descendants. Indeed, the cost of having a Shmuel come from Korach was his life and his reward in the world to come. In reality, Korach paid with his olam hazeh and olam haba and was resigned to eternity in Gehinnom in exchange for having famous descendants. This was his problem, he was able to see the future, he just did not realize that it was not the effect of his actions to date, it was a result of what he was about to cause.
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