1. Aaron's sons Nadab and Abihu, each took his fire pan, put live coals in it, added incense, and presented it to the Lord. But this fire was not holy, because the Lord had not commanded them to present it.
2. Suddenly the Lord sent fire, and it burnt them to death there in the presence of the Lord.
3. Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord was speaking about when he said, ‘All who serve me must respect my holiness; I will reveal my glory to my people.’ ” But Aaron remained silent.
4. Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, the sons of Uzziel, Aaron's uncle, and said to them, “Come here and carry your cousins' bodies away from the sacred Tent and put them outside the camp.”
5. So they came and took hold of the clothing on the corpses and carried them outside the camp, just as Moses had commanded.
6. Then Moses said to Aaron and to his sons Eleazar and Ithamar, “Do not leave your hair uncombed or tear your clothes to show that you are in mourning. If you do, you will die, and the Lord will be angry with the whole community. But all your fellow-Israelites are allowed to mourn this death caused by the fire which the Lord sent.