Leviticus Chapter 10

The Death of Nadab and Abihu

¹ Nadab and Abihu, Aaron’s sons, put fire in their firepans. They put incense on it and offered before the LORD fire different from what he’d commanded them. ² Fire came out from the LORD and consumed them, and they died. ³ Moses told Aaron, “That’s what the LORD meant when he said,

‘Those who come near me will treat me as holy

in front of the people.’”

So Aaron kept quiet.

⁴ Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, the sons of Aaron’s uncle Uzziel, “Carry your relatives outside the camp from in front of the sanctuary.” ⁵ They carried them outside the camp still in their tunics. ⁶ Then Moses told Aaron and his sons Eleazar and Ithamar,

“Don’t uncover your heads or tear your clothes so you won’t die and make him angry with the whole community. But your kin, the whole House of Israel, will wail over the burning the LORD brought about. ⁷ Don’t even go out of the Tent of Meeting; you’ll die because the LORD’s anointing oil is on you.” 

They did what Moses said.

Lev 10:1-7

⁸ The LORD told Aaron,

⁹ “Don’t drink wine or alcohol when you or your sons come into the Tent of Meeting so you won’t die—an ongoing permanent statute. ¹⁰ That’s to distinguish the holy from the profane, the ceremonially clean from unclean. ¹¹ It’s to teach the Israelites the statutes the LORD has given them through Moses.”

¹² Then Moses told Aaron and his surviving sons Eleazar and Ithamar,

“Take the grain offering that’s left over from the LORD’s offerings by fire and eat it without yeast beside the altar; it’s most holy. ¹³ Eat it in a holy place; it’s for you and your sons from the LORD’s offerings by fire. That’s what God commanded me. ¹⁴ The breast and thigh of the wave offering, however, you and your sons and daughters can eat in a clean place; those parts are for you and your offspring. ¹⁵ The thigh offered by lifting up and the breast offered by waving, they’ll take with the burnt offerings of the fat portions to present in a wave offering before the LORD. It’s for you and your sons permanently.” 

Lev 10:8-15

¹⁶ Moses looked all over for the goat from the sin offering, but it had been burned up. He was mad at Aaron’s surviving sons Eleazar and Ithamar,

¹⁷ “Why didn’t you eat the sin offering at the holy place? It’s most holy, and the LORD gave it to you to carry away the guilt of the community, to atone for them. ¹⁸ Since its blood hadn’t been brought into the sanctuary, you should have eaten it in the sanctuary like I commanded.”

                  ¹⁹But Aaron told Moses,

                           “This very day they presented their sin offering and burnt offering to the LORD. But this tragedy has happened to me. If I’d eaten a sin offering today, would the LORD have considered it good?”

      ²⁰ That made sense to Moses.                                                                                          

Lev 10:16-20