Part 7 | The Only True God – God is Holy (Part 1)

By Vic Gill

Friday 19th February 2010

The holiness of God pervades the Scriptures from cover to cover. God undeniably, unashamedly and repeatedly draws attention to His own holiness. It is impossible to read the Bible and miss this piercing attribute of holiness which uniquely belongs to God. What separates Christianity from all the other religions of the world is that the God of the Bible is infinitely holy. God is so very holy that He even swears by His own holiness. However, there is also much confusion and ignorance in regards to what it means that God is holy and for this reason a detailed study is paramount.

Whilst there are several Scriptures which one can turn to in regards to the attributes of God’s holiness, this study concerns itself with Leviticus 10, because of the intensity of the revelation. Whilst many other portions of Scripture have also been considered, in particular the prophet Isaiah’s vision (Isaiah 6) it was felt that due attention should be paid to Leviticus 10:1-3. Therefore part 1 of this study is an exposition of these verses. Part 2 on the other hand will examine the meaning of the word ‘holy’ and observe some illustrations which help us understand this majestic attribute of God.

Then Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron,

• Nadab and Abihu were the eldest son’s of Aaron. Nadab was the eldest son and his name meant ‘willing’ or ‘liberal.’ Abihu, the second son meant ‘my father is he.’ Both sons had been chosen to be priests by virtue of birth because they were the sons of Aaron and neither was married or had children.
• Aaron was the brother of Moses. He was also Israel’s first high priest and chosen by God to carry out the priestly duties in the temple. It would be his lineage which would continue this divine ordinance from generation to generation. Aaron was married to Elisheba.
• Nadab and Abihu had two younger brothers, Eleazar and Ithamar.
• Numbers 3:1-4 gives us a further genealogy of this family.

…each took his censer and put fire in it, put incense on it,

The censer was a vessel used for offering incense before God in temple worship. Each priest had his own censer and was responsible for its use and keeping. (Numbers 16:17-18). God has also commanded very specifically how the incense was to be prepared. God commanded that the incense used to worship Him must be strictly used for His worship alone (Exodus 30:37-38). This incense was to be burned in the temple as an aroma for worship. As the incense was burned smoke was produced which filled the temple. This may have been done through the use of hot fire coals which produced the heat to burn the incense.

…and offered profane fire before the LORD,

The priest was meant to put fire and incense in their censer, but it was to be a specific fire as God has instructed. Nadab and Abihu however offered a different fire from what God had clearly commanded. They should have done it according to Leviticus 16:12-13. However they offered profane fire, which was strange and unauthorised. The Hebrew word zarah means ‘strange’, ‘from outside.’ It was an unauthorised fire which God had strictly forbidden. It’s almost as if they said ‘this fire will do.’

…which He had not commanded them.

God had not commanded them. To presume upon God was sinful enough. To act upon presumption was sin leading to death. Not even Moses and Aaron had commanded Nadab and Abihu to perform these priestly duties just yet. Yes, they were consecrated and chosen to do perform priestly duties in the temple, but observe that we do not see a mandate given for the two son’s of Aaron to burn incense. In Luke’s Gospel (1:-8-9) we read that Zacharias the priest burned incense to the Lord God at the right time. Each priest was on a type of rota where a lot was cast to decide who should burn the incense. Temple worship and priestly duties were not based on a random schedule. There was an appointed time and the sin of Nadab and Abihu was presumption.

Not only had they sinned against God by casually doing something they shouldn’t have done. But they also sinned by offering a profane and foreign fire which God had clearly forbidden. Throughout Leviticus it was repeated verse after verse, that everything was being done ‘as the Lord commanded’, but here, suddenly we see the two eldest sons’ of Aaron doing ‘what the Lord had not commanded them.’ This was not an accident slip or minor mistake for the priest. It was almost as if they had said ‘any fire will do.’ There was the sin of presumption and casualness. They of all people knew that God was holy and glorious, yet they approached Him as if He was common. This can be likened to a Christian minister in the middle of administering the Communion, implementing a satanic ritual. King Uzziah tried to do a similar thing:

So Azariah the priest went in after him, and with him were eighty priests of the LORD—valiant men. And they withstood King Uzziah, and said to him, “It is not for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the LORD, but for the priests, the sons of Aaron, who are consecrated to burn incense. Get out of the sanctuary, for you have trespassed! You shall have no honour from the LORD God.” Then Uzziah became furious; and he had a censer in his hand to burn incense. And while he was angry with the priests, leprosy broke out on his forehead, before the priests in the house of the LORD, beside the incense altar. (2 Chronicles 26:17-19)

So fire went out from the LORD and devoured them, and they died before the LORD.

Their common and false fire was met by God’s holy and real fire. Before this dramatic incident, (9:24) everything was being done as God had commanded. As a sign of God accepting their sacrifice, the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people and fire came out from before the Lord and consumed the offering. It was God demonstrating His acceptance of their offering and as a display of worship; the people rejoiced and fell on their faces. Now the scriptures do not tell us the exact detail of how the offering was consumed, but evidently it struck the people with awe and fascination that led them to fall prostrate before God.

Likewise, Nadab and Abihu’s offering is met with fire. But on this occasion, it is not in acceptance, but in rejection. God not only rejected the offering, but the priests who offered it. The false and profane fire of which Nadab and Abihu had so casually and presumptuously offered was met the real fire of His holy anger. So fire went out from the Lord and devoured them and they died. God killed Nadab and Abihu. He devoured them. Instead of a fire that produced a shout of joy, there came judgement that produced shocked silence.

Does this make you uncomfortable? When you came to the Bible study tonight, did you expect to hear these words? God’s holy anger consumed with fire the two ordained priests. They died right in front of the Lord and God did it. He not only killed them, but He was satisfied in their death. His holy anger was kindled by their death. If this offends your Christianity, then I am afraid you have been reading a different Bible. If this troubles you, then you have not known God as He ought to be known. Beloved, the reason there are many preachers today who warn men of the coming judgement is because they have had a glimpse of the God of the Bible. Yes, He is a God of love, mercy and grace. But He is also an intense, all consuming fire who blazes with majesty. It is this God which we shall all face on that appointed day.

The God of the Bible is consistent. He doesn’t change for you just because you want a ‘Santa Claus’ type of God. It is not sufficient to say that the God of the Old Testament is different to the God of the New Testament. The New Testament teaches that it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God (Hebrews 10:31) and that He is an all consuming fire (Hebrews 12:29). Jesus Himself warned that we should “not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” (Matthew 10:28) Do you see when you begin to seriously read the Bible how different He is compared to the God who is preached from most pulpits today?

And Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the LORD spoke, saying:

Moses then seeks to take control and speak into the shocked silence. He is the only one who remains sober and is able to hear God’s voice and speak. Aaron has just lost his two son’s and he is speechless. It may be that Moses, the uncle of Nadab and Abihu was also shocked and withdrew to seek God and ask why. But God spoke to Moses and giving Words of warning and a justification for His anger. Not that God needed to do this, but nevertheless as words of caution and warning He told them their error and sin.

Even on judgement day when the entire world stands before God at the great white throne judgement, no one will be able to accuse God and say ‘you didn’t tell us.’ The Bible says:

God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; (Hebrews 1:2)

‘By those who come near Me I must be regarded as holy; And before all the people I must be glorified.’

God’s holy anger was aroused because those who approached Him did not regard Him as holy; and consequently He was not glorified as He ought to have been. God would not tolerate being regarded so casually and presumptuously as if He was just some deaf and dumb idol who could be pacified like the heathen gods with any old sacrifice. He would not allow His priests who were to set the highest example to casually disobey God and begin profaning His holy presence. When God is not regarded as holy by His own people, how then will He be glorified amongst them and the world?

This is why the world does not take Christianity seriously. It’s because those who call themselves by His name do not regard God as holy. “Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.” (2 Timothy 2:19). We turn the church into a circus and preach about Him presumptuously, fitting Him into all our vain and worldly ideas. Is there any doubt as to why His glory has departed from?

You must understand this as intrinsic to knowing God. God demands to be regarded as holy. He does not merely wish to be regarded as holy; He demands it. When the disciples asked Jesus saying “Lord teach us to pray…” Jesus replied back and said “Our Father in heaven, hallowed (holy) be Your name” (Luke 11:1-2). In our prayer life we are to regard the holiness of God’s name. We are to give Him honour for His name and bring glory to His name in our every day lives. It ought to be a priority for us that His name be hallowed. What torments await those who have cursed that holy name without repenting and acknowledging whom they speak of so carelessly.

He will not accept anything less. He is holy; this is who He is and He will not settle with anything else. He jealously guards His own glory, name and honour (Isaiah 42:8) The prophet Isaiah’s vision gives us an intimation of what it looks like when God is regarded as holy.

In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple. Above it stood seraphim; each one had six wings: with two he covered his face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one cried to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory!” And theposts of the door were shaken by the voice of him who cried out, and the house was filled with smoke. So I said: “Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.” Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a live coal which he had taken with the tongs from the altar. And he touched my mouth with it, and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your iniquity is taken away, and your sin purged.” (Isaiah 6:1-7)

The difference here is that the angels of God and Isaiah trembled with fear in His presence and regarded God as holy. The seraphim cover their faces and feet and cry aloud. Isaiah crumbles and falls down, unable to get up. Nadab and Abihu on the other hand walked in on their own terms and did as they pleased.

So Aaron held his peace.

As a result, Aaron, the one who created a golden calf some years before, was silenced and withdrew. He had nothing to say because in the past he and his two sons had seen a glimpse of the glory of God. They knew too well the God who they were dealing with was not a deaf and dumb idol, but the Creator of the universe. This is the awful consequence of regarding God’s holiness as nothing special. Aaron held his peace because he knew he was indirectly responsible for their sin. Fear gripped him that he dare not open his mouth again.

Summary

Let us further summarise and observe Leviticus 10 to search out further clues as to the sudden death of Nadab and Abihu.

1. Nadab and Abihu were not strangers to God’s glory. They witnessed His holiness and majesty for themselves. (Exodus 24:9-10)
2. God had called them by name. (Exodus 24:1)
3. Both were in favoured and privileged positions. (Leviticus 8:9)
4. Their father (Aaron) and uncle (Moses) had given instructions on the priestly duties, so they were trained, ordained and consecrated. (Leviticus 9:1-2)
5. It was not commanded of them to perform any duties.
6. They used profane fire which they clearly knew not to use.
7. The context of the chapter strongly suggests they were drunk. It is likely they were intoxicated and their senses had become dull (v 8-10).

Conclusion

God does not need to justify or defend Himself to us. Yet in His great love, wisdom and mercy He speaks to Moses and gives His reason for consuming the two priests. The seven reasons mentioned above are sure evidences confirming that God’s actions are always based on His character. God’s holiness is not based on fits of rage or emotional instability, but on all His attributes. God is intense. He is holy to the degree that He is prepared to consume those and that which opposes His holiness. The episode in Leviticus 10 is a reminder to those who teach that God is some sort of pacified deity who stands back and tolerates everything in the name of love. He is an all consuming fire and this means He hates everything and anything which stands against or contradicts His holy name and character. His holiness cannot be changed nor bribed and He does not compromise His holiness like men. The priesthood would certainly have this incident etched deeply into their minds. It is an unforgettable display of God’s holy anger.

Tags: Aaron, Censer, God is Holy, Holiness, Holiness of God, Holy, Holy Anger, Incense, Isaiah 6, Leviticus 10, Moses, Nadab and Abihu, Profane Fire, Seraphim, Strange Fire

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