Aaron’s Priestly Line after Nadab and Abihu

Numbers 3 begins by looking back. Aaron had four sons—Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar—but Nadab and Abihu died before YHWH after offering strange fire. They left no children, so Eleazar and Ithamar continue the priestly ministry in Aaron’s lifetime.\ \ Where this fits in the story: Leviticus 10 tells the judgment itself. Numbers 3 assumes the reader remembers it and explains the priestly family situation that follows.\ \ Why it matters: priestly service is not treated as casual access to holy things. The chapter opens with a reminder that sacred service has boundaries and consequences.\ \ Evidence boundary: Numbers 3 does not add new details about the nature of the “strange fire.” Do not fill the gap with speculation about drunkenness, occult fire, or some other specific offense beyond what the texts actually establish.