Why did a moral god kill Nadad & Abihu?

[Brakeman]

In Leviticus 10 God smites Nadad & Abihu for using "common fire" instead of "Holy Fire" in their offering. Now in modern days we know that fire is not a "thing" it is simply a chemical reaction and it's source is the chemicals involved and nothing more, yet two men were killed for this? (1) Why?

Secondly, the men's bodies were not to be touched and the men not mourned by commandment of god. (2) Why would a loving god forbid the mourning as an expression of love. I thought god loved everyone, and jesus was quite the love man, but here the men are to be hated for making a mistake in the method they worshiped god.

Why has god not punished all the hundreds of various judeo christian doctrines and religions that exist today? (3) Why would he kill his worshipers for using the "wrong" fire, yet let Joe Smith of the mormons peer through rocks to divine his message?

Leviticus 10
10:1 And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the LORD, which he commanded them not.
10:2 And there went out fire from the LORD, and devoured them, and they died before the LORD.
http://www.skepticsannotatedbible.com/lev/10.html#1

[Jackalope]

Jesus made it all OK. Derp.

[Minimalist]

Yahweh is portrayed as a murdering fuckhead.

Amazing how little it takes to impress the theistic mind, eh?

[Brakeman]

Is it ok for us to morn the cruelly murdered by god today? What's the verdict theists?

[Drich]

In Leviticus 10 God smites Nadad & Abihu for using "common fire" instead of "Holy Fire" in their offering. Now in modern days we know that fire is not a "thing" it is simply a chemical reaction and it's source is the chemicals involved and nothing more, yet two men were killed for this? (1) Why?

Because God said do A and they did B. Doing B when God said do A is a death sentence no matter how trivial to someone else.

Secondly, the men's bodies were not to be touched and the men not mourned by commandment of god. (2) Why would a loving god forbid the mourning as an expression of love.

Not true. Read the account again:4 Then Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, the sons of Uzziel the uncle of Aaron, and said to them, “Come near, carry your brethren from before the sanctuary out of the camp.” 5 So they went near and carried them by their tunics out of the camp, as Moses had said.

I thought god loved everyone,

Noope you thought wrong. God does not love everyone
http://atheistforums.org/thread-12703.html

and jesus was quite the love man, but here the men are to be hated for making a mistake in the method they worshiped god.

Good point! So what you are saying is without Jesus' attoning sacerfice we would be held to the letter of God's Expressed will? I absolutely agree!

Why has god not punished all the hundreds of various judeo christian doctrines and religions that exist today?

It's like you said above. For the same attonement that covers our sin when we are willfully outside of the expressed will of God also covers us when we make mistakes in our most heart felt worship.
http://atheistforums.org/thread-12406.html

(3) Why would he kill his worshipers for using the "wrong" fire, yet let Joe Smith of the mormons peer through rocks to divine his message?

Because those two in lev 10 established the high standards God demands for worship without the attoning Grace offered by the blood of Christ. Smitty took avantage of the same grace offered by Christ to those who try and worship Him with all of their being. Christ told us that He would allow the wheat (believers) and Weeds (people who may look like wheat but are not) to grow along side each other, until the final judgement.

It is after this judgement that men like that will experience the 'holy fire' these two men did in lev 10.

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Is it ok for us to morn the cruelly murdered by god today? What's the verdict theists?

Begs the question

[Darkstar]

So, you just dodged it and said "because god says so"...
How can one use the "wrong" fire when there is only one kind of fire?

[Drich]

So, you just dodged it and said "because god says so"...
How can one use the "wrong" fire when there is only one kind of fire?

God said Get fire from here, they got fire from there. They were punished because God said do A and they did B the fact that fire is used to illustrate Do A and Not B, makes the focous of the point of this story, all the more on "God said do A and Not B."

As you two science badge 'winners' have pointed out Fire is fire. That puts the focous on What God said do, rather than the fire itself...

What else you got?

[John V]

Drich has covered it for the most part. I just want to add that critics generally don't consider the purpose of the law, probably because they don't know it.

Exodus 19
5 Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. 6 And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel.”

7 So Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and laid before them all these words which the Lord commanded him. 8 Then all the people answered together and said, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do.” So Moses brought back the words of the people to the Lord.

Note that the purpose of the law was not just to maintain order as in any other nation. It was to make Israel a special treasure above other nations.

So, when you argue that the law seems severe, well...yes, it is. The law wouldn't make them special relative to other peoples if it was pretty much the same as any other law.

Also note that God did not impose the law on them. He offered it, with reward if obeyed and punishment if not, and they voluntarily accepted it.

[Fidel_Castronaut]

Also note that God did not impose the law on them. He offered it, with reward if obeyed and punishment if not, and they voluntarily accepted it.

Yes, because the threat of horrible everlasting punishments didn't sway their decision at all. Much in the same way I could offer someone a great deal: Give me your car and I won't stab you. That they gave me their car was completely of their own volition, naturally. :\

[John V]

Yes, because the threat of horrible everlasting punishments didn't sway their decision at all.

I'm not sure what passage you're referring to. Can you give the citation?