Leviticus 10: Nadab and Abihu

Nu 26:60-61 And unto Aaron was born Nadab, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. And Nadab and Abihu died, when they offered strange fire before the LORD.

         Strange fire? Who were these men and what happened to them?

Background:

       Nadab and Abihu were two of Aaron’s four sons (Exodus 6:23; Numbers 3:2; I Chronicles 6:3).

       Nadab [bdn] means “generous” in the sense of giving willingly, offering freely. Abihu [awhyba] means “he is my father.” As children of Aaron, they are to minister before God as priests. In Exodus 24, they went with Moses, their father Aaron and 70 elders to see the LORD.

       Ex 24:1 And he said unto Moses, Come up unto the LORD, thou, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel; and worship ye afar off.

            Ex 24:9-11 Then went up Moses, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel: And they saw the God of Israel: and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness. And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: also they saw God, and did eat and drink.

       Nadab and Abihu saw the glory of God and lived. They were to minister alongside their father. What happened to change everything?

       In Leviticus 9, Aaron, his sons and the elders of Israel are about to offer sacrifices. In 9:7, Moses tells them:

            Go unto the altar, and offer thy sin offering, and thy burnt offering, and make an atonement for thyself, and for the people: and offer the offering of the people, and make an atonement for them; as the LORD commanded.

       After the offering, in verses 22+, God “shows up.”

         And Aaron lifted up his hand toward the people, and blessed them, and came down from offering of the sin offering, and the burnt offering, and peace offerings. And Moses and Aaron went into the tabernacle of the congregation, and came out, and blessed the people: and the glory of the LORD appeared unto all the people.

             And there came a fire out from before the LORD, and consumed upon the altar the burnt offering and the fat: which when all the people saw, they shouted, and fell on their faces.

Strange [rwz zuwr] fire:

       We don’t know the span of time between the last verse of 9 and the first verse of Leviticus 10. It may have been minutes or weeks. We don’t know the motivation of Nahab and Abihu, either. Were they zealous and a bit too eager? Did they think their fire was good enough? Regardless, two men fell dead:

         Leviticus 10:1-2 And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the LORD, which he commanded them not. And there went out fire from the LORD, and devoured them, and they died before the LORD.

Duties in spite of grief:

       Moses warns Aaron he must continue his duties.

         10:3 Then Moses said unto Aaron, This is it that the LORD spake, saying, I will be sanctified in them that come nigh me, and before all the people I will be glorified. And Aaron held his peace.

       Moses directs Aaron’s cousins:

         10:4-5 And Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, the sons of Uzziel the uncle of Aaron, and said unto them, Come near, carry your brethren from before the sanctuary out of the camp. So they went near, and carried them in their coats out of the camp; as Moses had said.

       Then Moses directs his brother Aaron one more time.

         10:6-7 And Moses said unto Aaron, and unto Eleazar and unto Ithamar, his sons, Uncover not your heads, neither rend your clothes; lest ye die, and lest wrath come upon all the people: but let your brethren, the whole house of Israel, bewail the burning which the LORD hath kindled. And ye shall not go out from the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, lest ye die: for the anointing oil of the LORD is upon you. And they did according to the word of Moses.

       What strikes  me most about this account is the heavy requirement of holiness in spite of grief. The anointing oil of the LORD was upon Aaron when all this transpired. Aaron must not, for his own safety, be involved in even touching his sons’ bodies. Let instead, the whole of Israel grieve. Aaron holds his peace [Mmd damam, to be silent, cease, grow dumb].

       Then, in Leviticus 10:12-19, Aaron and his remaining sons haven’t eaten the offering according to the directions. Moses is angry [Puq qatsaph] with Aaron and Eleazar and Ithamar. Aaron answers in 19:

Behold, this day have they offered their sin offering and their burnt offering before the LORD; and such things have befallen me: and if I had eaten the sin offering to day, should it have been accepted in the sight of the LORD?

       Aaron has a good point. In their distress, would they have been in the right heart to comply with their directive?

       In verse 20:

            And when Moses heard that, he was content.

       The word for content [bjy yatab] means to be glad, joyful, pleased. It can even mean “merry.” I infer that Moses sees that Aaron “gets it.” Aaron and his sons are looking not only at the letter of the law but also its intent.

       This hasn't been the easiest of subjects. I know I haven't answered some of the bigger questions. What this passage shows me is the humanity of the people involved in a terrible situation.

       Later on, Moses will face his own grief and test when his sister Miriam dies. (Numbers 20).