Leviticus 10

10 ¹Nadab and Abihu, Aaron's sons, each took his censer, put fire in it, added incense, and offered unauthorized fire before our Father, which he had not commanded them. ²Fire came out from our Father's presence and consumed them, and they died before our Father. ^a a v2 The very fire that fell from our Father to accept the people's worship now falls to consume those who approached him carelessly — his nearness is both gift and holy fire.

³Moses said to Aaron, "This is what our Father spoke: 'Among those near me I will show myself holy, and before all the people I will be honored.'" Aaron was silent.

⁴Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, sons of Uzziel, Aaron's uncle, and said to them, "Come near, carry your brothers from in front of the sanctuary, outside the camp." ⁵They came near and carried them still in their tunics out of the camp, as Moses had said.

⁶Moses said to Aaron and his sons Eleazar and Ithamar, "Don't let your hair hang loose or tear your clothes, or you will die and wrath will come on the whole community. But your relatives, the whole house of Israel, may weep for the burning our Father kindled. ⁷Don't leave the Tent of Meeting entrance, or you'll die—our Father's anointing oil is on you." They did as Moses said.

⁸Our Father spoke to Aaron, saying,

⁹"You and your sons must not drink wine or strong drink when you enter the tent of meeting, or you will die. This is a lasting statute for your generations, ¹⁰to distinguish holy from common, and unclean from clean, ¹¹and so you can teach the people of Israel all the statutes I told them through Moses."

¹²Moses told Aaron and his surviving sons, Eleazar and Ithamar: "Take the grain offering left from the fire offerings to our Father, and eat it without yeast beside the altar—it is most holy. ¹³Eat it in a holy place—it is your portion and your sons' portion from the fire offerings to our Father, for that is what I was commanded. ¹⁴But you, your sons, and your daughters may eat the waved breast and the raised thigh in a clean place; they are given as your portion and your sons' portion from Israel's peace offerings. ^b b v14 A wave offering was a ritual gesture in which the priest moved the portion toward the altar and back, symbolically presenting it to God and receiving it back as a priestly portion. ¹⁵They must bring the raised thigh and the waved breast, with the fat offerings burned by fire, waving them as a wave offering before our Father; they are yours and your sons' as a lasting portion, as our Father commanded."

¹⁶Moses carefully inquired about the sin offering's goat and found it burned up. He was angry with Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron's remaining sons, and said, ¹⁷"Why didn't you eat the sin offering in the place of the sanctuary? Since it is most holy, our Father gave it to you to remove the congregation's guilt and make atonement for them before our Father. ¹⁸Since its blood wasn't brought into the sanctuary, you should have eaten it in the sanctuary, as I commanded."

¹⁹Aaron said to Moses, "Look, today my sons offered their sin offering and their burnt offering before our Father, and yet all this happened to me. Had I eaten the sin offering today, would it have pleased our Father?"

²⁰When Moses heard that, he was satisfied.