Always take another look…

 Vayikra 10:6 “… your brethren the entire House of Israel shall bewail the fire that Hashem ignited”

  What did they do wrong? Whenever we contemplate the deaths of Nadav and Avihu we ask ourselves: “What was their sin?” Indeed, there are many attempts to explain their wrongdoing .However there is another aspect to the story to which our attention should be reverted and that is that Hashem himself was directly involved in their passing and it is that aspect of the story which concerned the Israelites.

 Nadav and Avihu were so special that the entire nation of Israel broke out into tears over the “burning that Hashem burnt”. That Hakadosh Baruch Hu (The Almighty) himself delivered the deaths of Nadav and Avihu was an indication of their high stature. This was a direct sign for all of Klal Yisrael that although they had brought a ‘foreign fire’, they were still nevertheless still held in the highest regard by Hashem. Which is why Moshe told Aaron, “They are greater than both you and I”.

 Sometimes we are too judgmental, we look at people like Nadav and Avihu and we assume that because they went against the rules and were punished for them, they must be bad people. Looking at it from a different perspective it turns out that these people were holier than the average man, and thus deserve recognition.