35 Fire also came forth from the Lord and consumed the two hundred and fifty men who were offering the incense . 36 Then the Lord spoke to Moses , saying , 37 "Say to Eleazar , the son of Aaron the priest , that he shall take up the censers out of the midst of the blaze , for they are holy ; and you scatter the burning coals abroad . 38 "As for the censers of these men e who have sinned at the cost of their lives , let them be made into hammered sheets for a plating of the altar , since they did present them before the Lord and they are holy ; and they shall be for a sign to the sons of Israel ." 39 So Eleazar the priest took the bronze censers which the men who were burned had offered , and they hammered them out as a plating for the altar , 40 as a reminder to the sons of Israel that no layman who is not of the descendants of Aaron should come near to burn incense before the Lord ; so that he will not become like Korah and his company -just as the Lord had spoken to him through Moses .
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Numbers 16:35-40
Commentary on Numbers 16:35-40
(Read Numbers 16:35-40)
A fire went out from the Lord, and consumed the two hundred and fifty men that offered incense, while Aaron, who stood with them, was preserved alive. God is jealous of the honour of his own institutions, and will not have them invaded. The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord. The censers are devoted, and, as all devoted things, must be made serviceable to the glory of God. This covering of the altar would remind the children of Israel of this event, that others might hear and fear, and do no more presumptuously. They brought destruction on themselves both in body and soul. Thus all who break the law and neglect the gospel choose and love death.