Numbers 16:35 kjv
And there came out a fire from the LORD, and consumed the two hundred and fifty men that offered incense.
Numbers 16:35 nkjv
And a fire came out from the LORD and consumed the two hundred and fifty men who were offering incense.
Numbers 16:35 niv
And fire came out from the LORD and consumed the 250 men who were offering the incense.
Numbers 16:35 esv
And fire came out from the LORD and consumed the 250 men offering the incense.
Numbers 16:35 nlt
Then fire blazed forth from the LORD and burned up the 250 men who were offering incense.
Numbers 16 35 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference Note |
|---|---|---|
| Lev 10:1-2 | Nadab and Abihu... offered strange fire before the LORD... fire came out from the LORD and devoured them. | Unauthorized priesthood; divine fire |
| Nu 3:10 | You shall appoint Aaron and his sons, and they shall tend their priesthood... any outsider who comes near shall be put to death. | Exclusivity of Aaronic priesthood |
| Nu 16:16-17 | Moses said to Korah... tomorrow you and all your company are to appear before the LORD... each of you take his censer and put incense on it... | Moses' challenge to the rebels |
| Nu 16:30 | But if the LORD creates a new thing, and the earth opens its mouth and swallows them... then you will know... | Prophecy of divine judgment on rebels |
| Nu 16:38-39 | The censers of these men who have sinned at the cost of their lives... make hammered plates from them as a covering for the altar. | Perpetual warning sign |
| Psa 106:16-18 | They envied Moses in the camp and Aaron, the holy one of the LORD... The earth opened... a fire consumed the wicked. | Historical record of Korah's rebellion |
| Jude 1:11 | Woe to them! For they have gone in the way of Cain and abandoned themselves for the sake of gain to Balaam’s error and perished in Korah’s rebellion. | New Testament warning against rebellion |
| Heb 5:4 | And no one takes this honor for himself, but only when called by God, just as Aaron was. | God-appointed priesthood |
| Deut 4:24 | For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God. | God's nature as consuming fire |
| Deut 9:3 | Understand therefore today that the LORD your God is He who goes over before you as a consuming fire. | God's powerful presence |
| Heb 12:29 | For our God is a consuming fire. | God's divine holiness and judgment |
| 2 Chr 26:16-21 | When he was strong, he grew proud, to his destruction... He went into the temple of the LORD to burn incense... Uzziah became a leper. | Judgment for priestly usurpation |
| Exo 24:17 | Now the appearance of the glory of the LORD was like a consuming fire on the top of the mountain. | Divine glory as fire |
| 2 Kgs 1:10, 12 | If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you... | Divine fire in judgment |
| Isa 33:14 | Who among us can dwell with the consuming fire? Who among us can dwell with everlasting burnings? | God's unapproachable holiness |
| Rev 8:3-4 | And another angel came... much incense to offer with the prayers of all the saints... and the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, rose before God. | Incense symbolizing prayers |
| Isa 66:15 | For behold, the LORD will come in fire, and His chariots like the whirlwind... to render His anger with fury, and His rebuke with flames of fire. | God's coming judgment |
| Zeph 1:18 | Their silver and their gold will not be able to deliver them... and all the earth shall be devoured by the fire of His jealousy. | God's righteous wrath |
| Mal 3:2 | But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner's fire. | God's purifying/judgmental fire |
| Psa 97:3 | Fire goes before Him and burns up His adversaries all around. | God's active judgment |
| Jer 5:14 | Behold, I am making My words in your mouth a fire, and this people wood, and it shall devour them. | God's word as a consuming power |
| Amo 7:4 | Thus the Lord GOD showed me: behold, the Lord GOD was calling for a judgment by fire, and it devoured the great deep. | Judgment by fire |
Numbers 16 verses
Numbers 16 35 Meaning
The verse describes the swift and definitive divine judgment on the two hundred and fifty men who presumed to offer incense to the LORD. This act was reserved exclusively for the Aaronic priesthood. The fire, emanating directly from God, signified His unapproachable holiness and His righteous indignation against those who challenged His established order and sacred laws, leading to their immediate consumption.
Numbers 16 35 Context
Numbers chapter 16 details a formidable rebellion against Moses and Aaron's leadership and God's established order for worship. The verse follows the dramatic divine judgment upon Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, who, along with their households and possessions, were swallowed by the earth for their defiance against Moses' civil authority. The 250 men mentioned in this verse, who were also prominent leaders, had gathered with Korah to challenge Aaron's priestly authority by bringing their own censers and offering incense—a sacred ritual reserved exclusively for Aaron and his sons. God's response in Numbers 16:35 immediately clarifies and affirms the divinely appointed roles, emphasizing the severe consequences of infringing upon sacred boundaries and usurping the functions of the priesthood.
Numbers 16 35 Word analysis
- And: Hebrew 'וְ' (veh), a simple conjunction indicating continuation of the narrative and linking this judgment to the prior one, showing both are part of God's response to the rebellion.
- a fire: Hebrew 'אֵשׁ' (esh). Not just any fire, but divine, supernaturally ignited fire. In biblical context, fire often symbolizes God's presence, purity, glory, judgment, and wrath (Exo 24:17, Deut 4:24, Heb 12:29). Its instantaneous appearance signals God's direct intervention.
- came out: Hebrew 'יָצְאָה' (yatza'ah). Implies an emanation, a direct proceeding from God. It was not a fire from human sources, nor was it accidental.
- from the LORD: Hebrew 'מֵאֵת יְהוָה' (me'et YHWH). This phrase explicitly attributes the source of the fire to the unchangeable, covenant-keeping God (YHWH). It leaves no doubt that the judgment was divine, asserting His supreme authority and validating His appointed leaders and ordinances.
- and consumed: Hebrew 'וַתֹּאכַל' (va-tokhal), meaning "and it ate up." This verb indicates a complete and utter destruction, leaving no trace or escape for the men. It highlights the swiftness and finality of God's judgment.
- the two hundred and fifty men: A specific, large number of prominent men (Nu 16:2), underscoring the scale and severity of the rebellion beyond just the initial ringleaders. Their inclusion demonstrates that participation in spiritual rebellion, even by many, does not escape divine justice.
- who offered incense: Hebrew 'מַקְרִיבֵי הַקְּטֹרֶת' (maqriv'ei ha-q'toret). This crucial phrase defines their precise transgression. "Incense" (qetoret) was sacred and represented the prayers and worship of the people, with its offering strictly limited to the Aaronic priests (Exo 30:7-9). Their unauthorized offering was an act of sacrilege, a direct challenge to the divinely established covenant relationship and priestly mediation.
Words-group Analysis
- "And a fire came out from the LORD": This opening emphasizes the supernatural, direct, and unassailable origin of the judgment. It firmly roots the event in God's action, not Moses' vengeance, affirming divine justice.
- "consumed the two hundred and fifty men": This clarifies the scope and impact of the judgment, showing a targeted destruction specific to the men who undertook the forbidden act of offering incense, distinguishing their fate from those swallowed by the earth.
- "who offered incense": This phrase directly identifies the specific offense, highlighting the spiritual nature of their rebellion. Their sin was a deliberate violation of the sacred protocols regarding worship and access to God, a presumption of priestly authority not granted to them.
Numbers 16 35 Bonus section
- The brazen censers from the consumed men were later hammered into a covering for the altar (Nu 16:39), serving as a perpetual memorial and warning to the Israelites, especially priests, of the sacredness of the altar and the severity of defying God's ordained system of worship.
- This event solidified the boundaries between the Levites (like Korah) and the Aaronic priests, demonstrating that not all Levites were authorized for all sacred duties, specifically priestly ones.
- The fire consumption, much like the case of Nadab and Abihu (Lev 10:1-2), demonstrates that God holds those closest to sacred service to the highest standard of accountability.
Numbers 16 35 Commentary
Numbers 16:35 powerfully underscores God's absolute holiness and His meticulous concern for the order of worship and leadership He establishes. The immediate incineration of the 250 men, directly following the earth's consumption of Korah's household, serves as a dual manifestation of divine wrath. While the earth swallowed those who rejected Moses' civil authority and ownership of the land, the fire targeted those who desecrated the sacred priestly office by presumptuously offering incense. This act was not merely a ceremonial infraction; it was a profound spiritual challenge to God's authority, a defiance of His clear boundaries between the common and the holy, the authorized and the unauthorized. The swift judgment served as an undeniable, terrifying object lesson for all of Israel, forever cementing the unique and exclusive role of the Aaronic priesthood and warning against the peril of approaching God on one's own terms rather than His prescribed way. It reveals that God's jealousy for His name and His worship is severe and that presumptuous worship, even if seemingly zealous, is utterly detestable in His sight. This incident reminds believers to respect the divinely appointed spiritual authority and sacred roles within God's community and to approach God with humility, reverence, and according to His revealed will.