Nadab
“Liberal or willing”
Summary
Nadab was the eldest son of Aaron who was consumed by fire from the Lord for offering unauthorized incense; the name is also borne by a king of Israel who was assassinated after a brief reign.
☩Nadab Son of Aaron
Nadab was the eldest of the four sons of Aaron by Elisheba, who were anointed with their father to be priests of the Lord. He and his brother Abihu, along with Aaron and seventy elders of Israel, were led out from the assembled people and permitted to stay and worship God 'afar off' below Mount Sinai, while Moses alone came near to the Lord. Subsequently, Nadab and Abihu offered incense with 'strange fire' to the Lord—fire not taken from the altar of burnt offerings where fire was perpetually kept burning. They were immediately consumed by fire from the presence of God and left no children. From the injunction given immediately after their death forbidding wine to priests when they enter the tabernacle, it has been inferred that the brothers may have been intoxicated when they committed their offense.
☩Nadab King of Israel
Nadab was the son and successor of Jeroboam on the throne of Israel, reigning for two years. He followed the evil policy of his father. During his reign, the Israelite army besieged Gibbethon, a Levitical town in Dan that had been occupied by the Philistines. A conspiracy broke out in the midst of the army, and Nadab was slain by Baasha, a man of Issachar, who then proceeded to destroy the entire house of Jeroboam in fulfillment of Ahijah's prophecy. Remarkably, when a similar destruction fell upon the family of the usurper Baasha twenty-four years later, the Israelite army was again engaged in a siege of Gibbethon.
Related Verses24 mentions
References
- 1.John McClintock and James Strong, "Nadab," in Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, vol. VI (Harper & Brothers, 1867–1887).
- 2.James Orr (ed.), "Nadab," in International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, vol. IV (Howard-Severance Company, 1915).