The Sin of Nadab and Abihu

10 Aaron’s sons, Nadab and Abihu, each took his fire pan, put fire in it, and put special perfume on it. They gave a fire that was not holy to the Lord because the Lord had not told them to do this. ² So the Lord sent out fire that burned them up and they died before the Lord. ³ Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord meant when He said, ‘I will show Myself holy among those who are near Me. I will be honored in front of all the people.’” And Aaron said nothing. ⁴ Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, the sons of Uzziel, the brother of Aaron’s father. He said to them, “Come, carry your brothers away from the holy place and away from the tents.” ⁵ So they came and carried them in their coats away from the tents, as Moses had said. ⁶ Then Moses said to Aaron and his sons Eleazar and Ithamar, “Do not take the covering off your heads and do not tear your clothes, so you will not die and God will not be angry with all the people. But your brothers, the whole house of Israel, will cry in sorrow because of the burning the Lord has done. ⁷ Do not even go out the door of the meeting tent, so you will not die. For the holy oil of the Lord is upon you.” And they did what Moses said.

How the Religious Leaders Were to Act

⁸ The Lord said to Aaron, ⁹ “Do not drink wine or strong drink, you or your sons, when you come into the meeting tent, so you will not die. It is a Law forever for all your people. ¹⁰ You are to know the difference between what is holy and what is not, and between what is clean and what is not. ¹¹ You are to teach the people of Israel all the Laws which the Lord has told them by Moses.” ¹² Then Moses said to Aaron and his sons who were left, Eleazar and Ithamar, “Take the grain gift that is left from the gifts by fire to the Lord. And eat it without yeast beside the altar, for it is most holy. ¹³ Eat it in a holy place, because it is yours and your sons’, from the gifts by fire to the Lord. For so I have been told. ¹⁴ But you and your sons and daughters may eat in a clean place the breast of the wave gift and the thigh that is given. For they are given to you as your right and your sons’ right, from the peace gifts of the people of Israel. ¹⁵ They will bring the thigh that is given and the breast of the wave gift, with the gifts by fire of the fat. They will wave them before the Lord for a wave gift. They will be yours and your sons’, as your right forever, as the Lord has said.”

¹⁶ But Moses looked and looked for the goat of the sin gift, and found that it had been burned up! So he was angry with Aaron’s sons who were left, Eleazar and Ithamar, saying, ¹⁷ “Why have you not eaten the sin gift in the holy place? For it is most holy and He gave it to you to take away the guilt of the people, to take away their sins before the Lord. ¹⁸ See, its blood has not been brought inside the holy place. You should have been sure to eat it in the holy place, as I told you.” ¹⁹ But Aaron said to Moses, “See, today they have given their sin gift and their burnt gift to the Lord. When things like these happened to me, if I had eaten a sin gift today, would it have been good in the eyes of the Lord?” ²⁰ And when Moses heard that, he was not angry any more.