So fire came out from the presence of the LORD and consumed them, and they died in the presence of the LORD.
Parallel translations
- WEB Fire came out from before Yahweh, and devoured them, and they died before Yahweh.
- KJV And there went out fire from the LORD, and devoured them, and they died before the LORD.
- NKJV So fire went out from the Lord and devoured them, and they died before the Lord.
- NASB And fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord.
- NLT So fire blazed forth from the Lord’s presence and burned them up, and they died there before the Lord.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Fire from Yahweh devours Nadab and Abihu, and they die before him. God's holiness is deadly serious and judges presumptuous worship.
Overview
The same fire that signaled acceptance in 9:24 now brings judgment, showing that nearness to a holy God is perilous for the disobedient. This is not arbitrary cruelty but the just response of holiness to sacrilege. It magnifies the grace of the gospel, where the consuming judgment our sin deserves fell upon Christ so that we might draw near safely.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 19
- Num 26:61but Nadab and Abihu died when they offered unauthorized fire before the LORD.
- Lev 9:24Fire came out from the presence of the LORD and consumed the burnt offering and the fat portions on the altar. And when all the people saw it, they shouted for joy and fell facedown.
- Num 16:35And fire came forth from the LORD and consumed the 250 men who were offering the incense.
- Num 3:3–4These were Aaron’s sons, the anointed priests, who were ordained to serve as priests.
- 2 Sam 6:7And the anger of the LORD burned against Uzzah, and God struck him down on the spot for his irreverence, and he died there beside the ark of God.
- Acts 5:10At that instant she fell down at his feet and died. Then the young men came in and, finding her dead, carried her out and buried her beside her husband.
- 2 Kgs 1:12Again Elijah replied, “If I am a man of God, may fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men.” And the fire of God came down from heaven and consumed the captain and his fifty men.
- Num 16:32–33and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them and their households—all Korah’s men and all their possessions.
- Num 16:49But those who died from the plague numbered 14,700, in addition to those who had died on account of Korah.
- 2 Kgs 1:10Elijah answered the captain, “If I am a man of God, may fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men.” And fire came down from heaven and consumed the captain and his fifty men.
- 1 Sam 6:19But God struck down some of the people of Beth-shemesh because they looked inside the ark of the LORD. He struck down seventy men, and the people mourned because the LORD had struck them with a great slaughter.
- 1 Cor 10:11Now these things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come.
- 1 Chr 13:10And the anger of the LORD burned against Uzzah, and He struck him down because he had put his hand on the ark. So he died there before God.
- Acts 5:5On hearing these words, Ananias fell down and died. And great fear came over all who heard what had happened.
- Isa 30:33For Topheth has long been prepared; it has been made ready for the king. Its funeral pyre is deep and wide, with plenty of fire and wood. The breath of the LORD, like a torrent of burning sulfur, sets it ablaze.
- Lev 16:1Now the LORD spoke to Moses after the death of two of Aaron’s sons when they approached the presence of the LORD.
- Lev 10:5So they came forward and carried them, still in their tunics, outside the camp, as Moses had directed.
- 1 Chr 15:13It was because you Levites were not with us the first time that the LORD our God burst forth in anger against us. For we did not consult Him about the proper order.”
- 1 Chr 24:2But Nadab and Abihu died before their father did, and they had no sons; so Eleazar and Ithamar served as priests.
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Christ at the center
Every sacrifice, every priest, and every day of atonement points beyond itself to the one perfect offering and the great High Priest who, by his own blood, makes the unclean holy once for all.
How Leviticus 10:2 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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