Fire also came out from the Lord and consumed the 250 men who were offering the incense.
Parallel translations
- WEB Fire came out from Yahweh, and devoured the two hundred fifty men who offered the incense.
- KJV And there came out a fire from the LORD, and consumed the two hundred and fifty men that offered incense.
- BSB And fire came forth from the LORD and consumed the 250 men who were offering the incense.
- NKJV And a fire came out from the Lord and consumed the two hundred and fifty men who were offering incense.
- NLT Then fire blazed forth from the Lord and burned up the 250 men who were offering incense.
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 the LORD consumed the 250 men who had offered incense. God judged the presumptuous priestly claimants directly.
Overview
While the earth swallowed Korah's allies, fire from the LORD devours the 250 who dared to offer incense. Their destruction confirms that only God's appointed priest could approach him acceptably. The episode underscores the holiness of God's worship, fulfilled in Christ, the one mediator through whom alone we may draw near (Hebrews 12:28-29).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- Num 26:10and the earth opened its mouth, and swallowed them up together with Korah, when that company died; at the time the fire devoured two hundred fifty men, and they became a sign.
- Lev 10:2Fire came out from before Yahweh, and devoured them, and they died before Yahweh.
- Ps 106:18A fire was kindled in their company. The flame burned up the wicked.
- Num 11:1–3The people were complaining in the ears of Yahweh. When Yahweh heard it, his anger burned; and Yahweh’s fire burned among them, and consumed some of the outskirts of the camp.
- Num 16:17Each man take his censer, and put incense on them, and each man bring before Yahweh his censer, two hundred fifty censers; you also, and Aaron, each his censer.”
- Num 16:2They rose up before Moses, with some of the children of Israel, two hundred fifty princes of the congregation, called to the assembly, men of renown.
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Christ at the center
In the wilderness Christ is the water from the rock, the bronze serpent lifted up that the dying might look and live (John 3:14), and the star and scepter that Balaam saw rising out of Jacob.
How Numbers 16:35 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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