Leviticus 10
English Standard Version
The Death of Nadab and Abihu
10 Now (A)Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, (B)each took his censer and put fire in it and laid incense on it and offered (C)unauthorized[a] fire before the Lord, which he had not commanded them. 2 And fire (D)came out from before the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord. 3 Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord has said: ‘Among (E)those who are near me (F)I will be sanctified, and before all the people I will be glorified.’” (G)And Aaron held his peace.
4 And Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, the sons of (H)Uzziel the uncle of Aaron, and said to them, “Come near; carry your brothers away from the front of the sanctuary and out of the camp.” 5 So they came near and carried them in their coats out of the camp, as Moses had said. 6 And Moses said to Aaron and to Eleazar and Ithamar his sons, (I)“Do not let the hair of your heads hang loose, and do not tear your clothes, lest you die, and (J)wrath come upon all the congregation; but let your brothers, the whole house of Israel, bewail the burning that the Lord has kindled. 7 (K)And do not go outside the entrance of the tent of meeting, lest you die, (L)for the anointing oil of the Lord is upon you.” And they did according to the word of Moses.
8 And the Lord spoke to Aaron, saying, 9 (M)“Drink no wine or strong drink, you or your sons with you, when you go into the tent of meeting, lest you die. It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations. 10 You are to (N)distinguish between the holy and the common, and between the unclean and the clean, 11 and (O)you are to teach the people of Israel all the statutes that the Lord has spoken to them by Moses.”
12 Moses spoke to Aaron and to Eleazar and Ithamar, his surviving sons: “Take the (P)grain offering that is left of the Lord's food offerings, and eat it unleavened beside the altar, for (Q)it is most holy. 13 You shall eat it in a holy place, because it is your due and your sons' due, from the Lord's food offerings, for (R)so I am commanded. 14 But the (S)breast that is waved and the thigh that is contributed you shall eat in a clean place, you and your sons and your daughters with you, for they are given as your due and your sons' due from the sacrifices of the peace offerings of the people of Israel. 15 (T)The thigh that is contributed and the breast that is waved they shall bring with the food offerings of the fat pieces to wave for a wave offering before the Lord, and it shall be yours and your sons' with you as a due forever, as the Lord has commanded.”
16 Now Moses diligently inquired about (U)the goat of the sin offering, and behold, it was burned up! And he was angry with Eleazar and Ithamar, the surviving sons of Aaron, saying, 17 (V)“Why have you not eaten the sin offering in the place of the sanctuary, since (W)it is a thing most holy and has been given to you that you may bear the iniquity of the congregation, to make atonement for them before the Lord? 18 Behold, (X)its blood was not brought into the inner part of the sanctuary. You certainly ought to have eaten it in the sanctuary, (Y)as I commanded.” 19 And Aaron said to Moses, “Behold, (Z)today they have offered their sin offering and their burnt offering before the Lord, and yet such things as these have happened to me! If I had eaten the sin offering today, (AA)would the Lord have approved?” 20 And when Moses heard that, he approved.
Footnotes
- Leviticus 10:1 Or strange
Leviticus 10
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Nadab and Abihu
10 Now Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu each took his censer, put fire in it, and laid incense on it, and they offered unholy fire before the Lord, such as he had not commanded them.(A) 2 And fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord.(B) 3 Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord meant when he said,
‘Through those who are near me
I will show myself holy,
and before all the people
I will be glorified.’ ”
And Aaron was silent.(C)
4 Moses summoned Mishael and Elzaphan, sons of Uzziel the uncle of Aaron, and said to them, “Come forward and carry your kinsmen away from the front of the sanctuary to a place outside the camp.”(D) 5 They came forward and carried them by their tunics out of the camp, as Moses had ordered. 6 And Moses said to Aaron and to his sons Eleazar and Ithamar, “Do not dishevel your hair and do not tear your vestments, or you will die, and wrath will strike all the congregation; but your kindred, the whole house of Israel, may mourn the burning that the Lord has sent.(E) 7 You shall not go outside the entrance of the tent of meeting, lest you die, for the anointing oil of the Lord is on you.” And they did as Moses had ordered.(F)
8 And the Lord spoke to Aaron, 9 “Drink no wine or strong drink, neither you nor your sons, when you enter the tent of meeting, that you may not die; it is a statute forever throughout your generations.(G) 10 You are to distinguish between the holy and the common and between the unclean and the clean,(H) 11 and you are to teach the Israelites all the statutes that the Lord has spoken to them through Moses.”(I)
12 Moses spoke to Aaron and to his remaining sons, Eleazar and Ithamar, “Take the grain offering that is left from the Lord’s offerings by fire,[a] and eat it unleavened beside the altar, for it is most holy;(J) 13 you shall eat it in a holy place, because it is your due and your sons’ due, from the offerings by fire[b] to the Lord, for so I am commanded. 14 But the breast that is elevated and the thigh that is raised, you and your sons and daughters as well may eat in any clean place, for they have been assigned to you and your children from the sacrifices of well-being of the Israelites.(K) 15 The thigh that is raised and the breast that is elevated they shall bring, together with the offerings by fire[c] of the fat, to raise for an elevation offering before the Lord; they are to be your due and that of your children forever, as the Lord has commanded.”(L)
16 Then Moses made inquiry about the goat of the purification offering, and it had already been burned! He was angry with Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron’s remaining sons, and said, 17 “Why did you not eat the purification offering in the sacred area? For it is most holy, and God[d] has given it to you that you may remove the guilt of the congregation, to make atonement on their behalf before the Lord.(M) 18 Its blood was not brought into the inner part of the sanctuary. You should certainly have eaten it in the sanctuary, as I commanded.” 19 And Aaron spoke to Moses, “See, today they offered their purification offering and their burnt offering before the Lord, and yet such things as these have befallen me! If I had eaten the purification offering today, would it have been agreeable to the Lord?”(N) 20 And when Moses heard that, he agreed.
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New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.