10:1–2 Elsewhere Nadab and Abihu are prominently mentioned as Aaron’s oldest sons (Ex. 6:23), in line to inherit the high priesthood. They, together with their father and seventy elders, had been invited to feast in the presence of the Lord, who received them and “did not lay his hand” on them (Ex. 24:11). They were permitted to approach halfway up the mountain but no further (Ex. 24:1–2). After the construction of the tabernacle and the beginning of public worship there is a standing invitation to approach (partway) into the Lord’s presence and continue to eat at his covenant table.

In a rash move perhaps heightened by emotion at the appearance of the Lord in fire Nadab and Abihu fill their firepans to present “unauthorized” fire. This may also be translated as “foreign” or “strange” fire, meaning something alien to the holy environment of the tabernacle, suggesting they introduce something common into a space that is holy. As this incident is brought up again in the legislation for the Day of Atonement, looking to chapter 16 can help clarify what goes wrong. Aaron is instructed “not to come at any time into the Holy Place inside the veil” (Lev. 16:2), leaving us to infer that Nadab and Abihu try to enter the holiest part of the tent, which is off limits except for once a year to make atonement for the nation. On that day the high priest alone is to bring a firepan filled with coals and incense from the golden altar before the Most Holy Place (16:12–13). The coals are holy because they come from the sacrificial altar that the Lord ignited by the fire of his presence and never extinguished (6:13). The incense is holy because it is exclusive to the sanctuary, with aromas of the Lord’s personal presence (Ex. 30:34–37). Any fire other than that lit by coals from the altar or burning anything other than sacred incense is foreign to the sanctuary. When once a year the high priest is given access to the Lord’s most holy throne room, he must come with holy fire and incense as the one consecrated by holy oil (Ex. 29:7; Lev. 21:10) and dressed in holy garments (Ex. 28:2). Nadab and Abihu presumably attempt to intrude into the holiest realms of God’s presence with “unauthorized incense” (Ex. 30:9), that is, a recipe other than the sanctuary’s. In this way they demonstrate error in judgment by not respecting the Lord’s most holy things and treating the holy as profane.

Fire comes out from the Most Holy Place and consumes the priests who trespass into his presence.113 The Lord strikes them down with punishment that fits the crime: if one tries to present unauthorized fire, he will be consumed by fire itself. Before the eyes of all the people the commands on offering the right sacrifices (Leviticus 1–7) must now seem more relevant than ever.

10:3 Moses is given a message to pass on to Aaron that is sure to be passed down to all the priesthood with every retelling of this transgression. Its memorable quality is due to its delivery in poetic verse of two parallel lines. The first line refers to the priests. They are the ones “who draw near to me to minister to me” (Ezek. 43:19), chosen from all the tribes of Israel to approach the Lord. The very essence of priesthood consists of “access to the presence of God, particularly the presence of God associated with the altar, and above all the sanctuary.”114 Among the priests the Lord will show himself to be holy, as he has done on this day to defend his holiness.

The parallel line expands upon the first by broadening the audience to all Israel. To the people he will reveal himself in his weighty glory as he has just done to consume their offerings—“the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people” (Lev. 9:23)—and as he will do to consume anything that profanes his presence (22:9). The Lord will display his glory in both mercy and judgment (Ex. 33:18; 34:6–7), depending on priestly mediation. In this instance he does so in judgment, as though to say, “If you do not set me apart by your actions as the God worthy of reverence, I will use your death as an opportunity to remind all the people that I am indeed the God who is to be revered above all.”115 The first to be in need of atonement are those who have been called into God’s service (cf. 1 Tim. 1:15–16).

Aaron’s silence speaks volumes. He does not protest the Lord’s chastisement but humbly receives his hand of discipline. By his actions Aaron acknowledges the Lord’s just judgment in the transgression of his holiness. At the same time Aaron’s silence is also a sign of mourning (Job 2:13).

10:4–5 The order of first importance is to remove the ritually defiling corpses from before the Most Holy Place. Moses calls Aaron’s cousins Mishael and Elzaphan to take the bodies outside the camp for burial. For Eleazar and Ithamar to touch their brothers’ corpses would be ritually defiling and render them unfit for service (Lev. 21:2), and Aaron is not permitted to tend to their bodies at all (21:11). The cousins carry them by their linen tunics so that they avoid even touching those who have fallen under the judgment of God (Num. 19:11).

10:6–7 After the shock of Nadab and Abihu’s sudden death it would be natural for Aaron to begin mourning by raising his voice in lament, tearing his garments, removing his turban, and disheveling his hair (cf. Ezek. 24:17), as is the custom. But Moses tells Aaron and his remaining sons that this is not fitting for priests. Mourning at the time of their consecration would be defiling to their holy status (even though at a different time this would be permissible for the brothers; cf. Lev. 21:2). The consecrating oil of anointing has been poured out upon them, moving them out of the sphere of the common and into the Lord’s domain as his very own set-apart servants (8:12, 30). They are therefore not to leave the sanctuary but to remain in its courts for the remainder of their consecration period (9:7), which includes the inaugural service (8:33). To leave and bury their dead would be to make Nadab and Abihu’s mistake in reverse by bringing holy things (their bodies) into profane space. Instead, Aaron and his sons are called to make a distinction between their holy, set-apart status and the necessities of burying the dead, something that Jesus himself would call his followers to do (Luke 9:60). The rest of the nation will mourn, including perhaps their mother, sisters, wives, children, and “all . . . Israel,” as later at Aaron’s death (Num. 20:29).

10:8–11 For the only time in Leviticus the Lord speaks to Aaron directly, without an intermediary. He holds Aaron accountable for the conduct of his sons and entrusts to him their oversight. He commands them particularly not to indulge in wine or strong drink when they exercise their priestly duties. (Wine was present at the tabernacle and offered twice daily to the Lord as part of the daily offering; Ex. 29:40–41.) Though not always evident in English, there are three reasons given for the command.

The first is so the priests do not die (Lev. 10:9). Entering into holy space is potentially dangerous for the simple reason that missteps here could show severe disrespect to the Lord’s holiness, with lethal consequences—as Nadab and Abihu have just made clear.116 Second, priests must refrain from consuming alcohol while they are serving at the tent precisely because it dulls discernment on matters of the holy and the profane (v. 10). The priesthood is especially called to observe distinctions between the ritual categories the Lord has ordained for holy living. The holy is that which has been dedicated to the Lord’s use and brought into his sacred sphere of ownership; the common is that which is ordinary and nonholy. Something common could be either clean or unclean.117 While the normal state of things is that they are clean, uncleanness must be dealt with through ritual purification to restore the item in question to a clean state. These binary categories define all Israel’s decisions of obedience, and priests must be ready at all times while on duty to distinguish between them properly.

Third, an important aspect of priestly ministry is teaching Israel how to live life in light of God’s holiness, keeping away from practices that pollute and embracing practices that sanctify (vv. 10–11; cf. Ezek. 22:26). Priestly instruction encompasses such specific things as proper offerings, celebrating holy days, clean and unclean foods, and diagnosing skin disease, all in obedience to the all-encompassing covenant they will read aloud every seven years in the people’s hearing (Deut. 31:10–13). Drunken priests would falter in their holy charge to render judgments (Deut. 17:8–13) when instead the “lips of a priest should guard knowledge, and people should seek instruction from his mouth, for he is the messenger of the Lord of hosts” (Mal. 2:7).

10:12–15 The tabernacle’s inaugural service concludes when the priests partake their portion of the offerings. After the events of the day eating could hardly seem appropriate (cf. Deut. 26:14). How could Eleazar and Ithamar feast when their brothers had perished? Yet eating at the Lord’s table today is more important than ever because it declares unwavering covenant solidarity with him. Aaron and his sons are entitled to the most holy “grain offering” (Lev. 9:17) meant to be eaten in the holy precincts by the altar, while the breast and thigh (9:21) could be eaten in any ritually clean place, such as their homes and with their families. While these instructions might come across as a mundane concern, they underscore the distinctions between holy and most holy food, the people who would consume it, and the places where it could be consumed (10:10). The theme of clean and unclean distinctions in food consumption will continue into the next chapter.

10:16–18 Moses now inquires about the goat that had been sacrificed as a sin offering for the people (9:3, 15), only to find that Aaron and his sons burned it. Proper protocol called for them to eat its meat in the tabernacle’s court (6:26). The only occasion for burning it would be when its blood had been brought into the Holy Place for atonement (6:30), as in the case of purification rites for the sin of the congregation (4:20; 16:15).

The handling of the sin offering is no trifling matter. When properly consumed, it contributes to the people’s atonement by allowing for the priests to bear their sin (10:17).118 They act as substitutes, bearing the sin of the nation until it was placed on an animal substitute and driven away from the camp (Leviticus 16). They, however, are not touched by its consequence because of their holy status. When priests eat the sin offering, they embody “a profound theological statement: holiness has swallowed impurity; life can defeat death.”119

10:19–20 It is fitting that Aaron responds on behalf of his sons after the Lord’s direct charge to him in verses 9–10. His response assumes responsibility and also to some measure guilt for his family. How could they bear sin, atone for the people, if they themselves have fresh guilt with which to deal? Nadab and Abihu’s sacrilege was committed after the sin offering had been offered for the priestly household (9:11), leaving Aaron to believe that another offering for atonement was needed on behalf of the priestly family. He may reasoned that the sin offering for the people atoned for the priests as well, in which case they should not have eaten its meat (4:3–12).

Moses is satisfied that Aaron’s reasoning has been with attention to distinguishing between the holy and common and his actions have been in keeping with honoring the Lord and the spirit of the law. Moses’ approval is as the Lord’s approval.