Chapter 1
Moses then said to Aaron, "This is what the Lord declared, saying, 'I will be sanctified by those who come near me, and before all the people I will be glorified.'" And Aaron held his peace. - Leviticus 10:3
These words represent Moses speaking to his brother Aaron, attempting to soothe and console him during a time of undoubtedly profound distress following the sudden and severe loss he experienced with the deaths of his two sons, Nadab and Abihu. The story unfolds as follows:
After Aaron's sons were ordained into the priesthood, they began their duties by offering incense to God on their very first day. However, they made the mistake of using unauthorized fire, different from what God had specified. As a result, God's wrath was ignited, and both sons were instantly killed in the sanctuary in front of everyone, during a significant ceremony marking the beginning of the priesthood's consecration. Understandably, Aaron was deeply distressed by the sudden death of his two sons. In response, Moses approached him and said, "This is what the Lord declared: 'I will be treated as holy by those who come near me, and before all the people I will be honored.'" Following this, Aaron remained silent.
We learn that there was a time when fire descended from Heaven as an act of Mercy to consume the sacrifices. However, now fire has descended from Heaven as an act of Judgment to consume the sacrificers themselves, specifically Nadab and Abihu. These individuals were the sons of Aaron, a devout man and the High Priest. They were his eldest sons, as Aaron had other sons besides Nadab and Abihu, namely Eleazar and Ithamar, but Nadab and Abihu were the eldest. They were young men, struck down in the prime of their lives.
Their sin involved presenting unauthorized fire, as the text indicates that they offered strange fire, which God had not commanded them to do, as mentioned at the beginning of the chapter.
Did God explicitly prohibit it? Where in the scriptures, from Genesis up to this point, do we find God explicitly stating that only one specific type of fire should be offered, forbidding any other? There is no passage in the Bible that directly states, "You shall offer no other fire but this one." Yet, they were consumed by divine fire for offering what is termed "strange fire."
Some believe that the fire originated from the Altar, yet it is clear that it was not any ordinary fire that consumed Nadab and Abihu at that time. As you will see in the verse following my text, the bodies of Nadab and Abihu were not consumed by the fire, nor were their clothes. They were killed by the fire, yet their clothes remained intact.
He does not come in the usual manner of visiting your relatives. Oh, you must accept this: no, instead, he comes and applies the Word of God, demonstrating how God must be sanctified; through this, he seeks to calm the heart of his brother Aaron. "This is what the Lord has said," Moses declares. He aims to soothe the heart of his brother with the words that God spoke.
Aaron remained silent. It is possible that previously, he had been vocalizing his grief, expressing profound sorrow through his words; but now, he was quiet and had nothing further to say. Through his silence, Aaron acknowledged that, although his children were dear to him, it was appropriate for God to be glorified regardless of what happened to his children. Therefore, Aaron chose to remain silent.
The first point to note is that in worshiping God, we must offer only what He has commanded. Whatever we engage in during the worship of God must be supported by a directive from the word of God.
The second point to note is that in matters of worship, God values even the seemingly minor details. What may appear trivial to us is often of significant importance to God when it comes to worship.
Another point to note is this: No privileges or ranks held by individuals can protect them from God's intervention. Moses, a man of God, was their uncle; Aaron, a significant instrument of God's glory, was their father. They were newly consecrated priests, renowned and highly esteemed by God. Yet, when they dared to disobey God in even a minor matter, God's wrath was swift, resulting in their immediate death.
