Leviticus 10:19
And Aaron said unto Moses, Behold, this day have they offered their sin offering and their burnt offering before the LORD; and such things have befallen me: and if I had eaten the sin offering to day, should it have been accepted in the sight of the LORD?
Aaron explained to Moses that after the deaths in his family that day he had not eaten the sin offering because it might not have been accepted by the Lord in those circumstances, and when Moses heard this he accepted that Aaron was justified. The saying stands in the account of the consecration of the priests, where God's acceptance of the offerings at the sanctuary's dedication is contrasted with the death of Nadab and Abihu for transgressing his word. Their offering of unauthorized fire in place of what God had commanded was a serious violation of his ordinances, and the fire that came forth and consumed them showed that God judges those who set aside his instruction and replace his prescribed worship with human invention. The lesson is the difference between the holy and the common, that priests could not treat as common what God had made holy and that his servants must be clear-headed and temperate, for God is as particular now as then. The yearly round of offerings and priestly work in which this occurred typified the sacrifice and ministry of Jesus Christ in the heavenly sanctuary, and as Nadab and Abihu died for putting no difference between the sanctified and the unsanctified, so it makes a difference what day is offered to the Lord, for he has sanctified the seventh day.
Context and Aaron's Explanation
Leviticus 10:19 stands in chapters 8-10, which are historical narrative giving the account of the consecration of the priests and the death of Nadab and Abihu. It is included in a chapter concerning sacrifices and offerings and the consecration and duties of the priests. The details of these sacrifices had meaning and find their fuller meaning in the sacrifice, life, and work of Jesus Christ. The chapter contrasts the sanctuary's dedication and God's acceptance of the offerings with Nadab and Abihu's transgression of God's word and their death, teaching that identifying oneself with sin brings its consequences.
The verse records Aaron's explanation that, after the deaths in his family, eating that day's sin offering might not have been acceptable to the Lord. It records his question about whether he could rightly eat the sin offering after the calamity that had befallen him. The chapter in this shows the danger of becoming identified with sin and entering the Lord's presence in that condition, where the guilty are consumed with sin when God's presence is revealed. Once Moses heard the circumstances, he accepted that Aaron was justified, for his earlier reproof was right on the facts he knew, but further information changed his understanding.
Holy Worship Requires Obedience
Leviticus 10:19 belongs to the account of Nadab and Abihu's unauthorized worship and its aftermath, where two men attempted to set aside God's instruction about using common fire in the sanctuary and God's fire came forth and consumed them, demonstrating the power of God's word to bring judgment when his commands are defied. Their offering of unauthorized fire was a serious violation of God's commands, illustrating the need to respect his ordinances. Worship must follow what God has prescribed, for fire may serve its practical purpose yet it does not honor God when it is not the kind he commanded.
Priests could not treat as common what God had made holy, for offering strange fire was not equivalent to using holy fire, and God made the difference clear by putting them to death. God rejects human inventions when they replace his prescribed worship and judges those who disregard his commands, so a substitute for what God has commanded is not acceptable in his sight, and no one who follows their example of disregarding what God has plainly said and doing what he has not commanded can hope to be accepted and live. God's wrath is founded in eternal justice and is always against sin, executed against persons only when those persons have identified themselves with sin, as when Nadab and Abihu went utterly contrary to the clear command to use sacred fire in burning incense and offered strange fire which he had not commanded and fire from before Jehovah devoured them, in contrast to the prior offerings in Leviticus 9 that represented sin separated from the people where fire from Jehovah consumed the burnt offering and fat as blessed evidence that sins were forgiven.
The verse gives a striking object-lesson on the difference between the holy and the common and on the necessity for God's servants to be clear-headed, temperate men, showing that God is as particular now as then. The chapter teaches the necessity of temperance and belongs to a prohibition of the use of strong drink that is clarified by other prohibitions elsewhere in the Bible. Aaron's sons were destroyed because they identified themselves with sin and broke God's express commandments, because the wine they drank had confused their minds.
Christ and Sabbath Application
The details of the sacrifices and the consecration and duties of the priests in this chapter had meaning, and they find their fuller meaning in the sacrifice, life, and work of Jesus Christ. The verse belongs to the Levitical sanctuary service, whose yearly round of offerings and priestly work typified Christ's ministry in the heavenly sanctuary.
A substitute for what God has commanded is not acceptable in His sight, for Nadab and Abihu offered strange fire before the Lord and died for it, so no one who follows their example of disregarding what God has plainly said and doing what He has not commanded can hope to be accepted and live. This applies to those who disregard the God-appointed day and keep in its stead a rival sabbath, disobeying what God has plainly said because it is the custom. God punished Nadab and Abihu with death for putting no difference between what He sanctified and what He did not, thinking He would accept incense kindled with common fire when He had commanded sacred fire. Worship must therefore keep God's distinction between holy and profane, and to treat a common thing as acceptable in place of a sanctified thing is disobedience that makes light of God's command and hides the eyes from His Sabbaths, which means it makes a difference what day is offered to the Lord because God for a wise reason has sanctified and claimed the seventh day, and God is as jealous of His word now as then.