On my first day of work at a McDonald’s restaurant, my cash drawer was short 10 dollars, and my manager wrote me up, leaving me worried about keeping my job. But I was not afraid of being struck dead. We’ve all made mistakes and had some rough days at work, so we might wonder why Nadab and Abihu were struck dead when they began to work as priests. What went wrong?

Nadab and Abihu’s sin was not just a minor oversight or a misstep. After God had given detailed instructions about the priests’ responsibilities, Aaron’s sons ignored God’s rules in favor of their own. This is a pattern as old as the human race; sin begins when we decide we know better than God does. But God is holy, and we are not free to improvise our own ways of approaching or relating to God. Tragically, just as “fire came out” and consumed the offering brought by Aaron (Leviticus 9), fire came out against Nadab and Abihu and consumed them. Even Aaron was silent in response, likely indicating that he accepted God’s judgment—though he must have felt deep sorrow.

Must we fear the same today? In all of history only one priest, Jesus, was flawless and worthy to enter God’s presence. And when he did that for our sake, he took the wrath of God upon himself as it broke out against him—in our place. But this is good news for us! Jesus’ sacrifice covered all our sin so that we never need to fear God’s judgment.