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What a day—or rather, what a week (8:33)—for the inner circle of leadership in the camp of Israel. In Leviticus 8–10, after the spiritual high of being consecrated and faithfully doing everything the Lord commanded, tragedy struck Aaron’s family. Two of his sons, Nadab and Abihu, were struck dead in the line of service. The Bible tells us:

“…each took his censer and put fire in it and laid incense on it and offered unauthorized fire before the Lord, which he had not commanded them.” (Leviticus 10:1)

We aren’t given the details of what this “unauthorized fire” was, only that it was something God had not commanded. It could have been an unintentional yet careless mistake—perhaps using coal that didn’t come from the altar. Or it could have been something more deliberate, such as performing their service while drunk or using their own incense rather than what God had dictated in Exodus 30:37 (this was always my assumption). Whatever the case, the key lesson here is that God is holy and sovereign, while we are are not. This is why we are called to walk humbly and carefully with the Lord (Micah 6:8).

This tragic event happened on the very first day of the priests’ service in the newly established tabernacle. As sad as this event was, ministry in the camp did not stop. The responsibilities of Aaron, as the spiritual leader, continued. As the high priest, Aaron was not permitted to mourn in the usual way, as doing so would have undermined the holiness he had attained through a rigorous consecration process.

On this same day, another mistake was made after the first. Instead of eating the designated portion of the sacrifice in the Tabernacle, as prescribed by law (6:26–29), Aaron’s remaining two sons burned up the sacrifice entirely. Moses, overseeing the process to ensure nothing else went wrong, was understandably livid at this second misstep. He confronted the sons, but Aaron stepped in, taking responsibility. He explained in Leviticus 10:19:

"Behold, 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, would the Lord have approved?"

Aaron demonstrated both reverence for God’s holiness and an understanding of the uniqueness of this moment. While they had not followed the letter of the law, he discerned that, under these circumstances, it would be better to disobey the prescribed law rather than risk dishonoring God in his current state. It took guts making the decision that he did. Moses, recognizing Aaron’s wisdom, was satisfied with the explanation.

Takeaway: This passage reminds me of James 3:1, which warns:

"Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness."

Those who have the privilege of being consistently closest to God will bear greater responsibility in representing His holiness and glory. The closer someone is to Him, the more their lives will reflect His standards. Let’s approach our service to God with humility, reverence, and a deep commitment to His holiness.