Offering First Fruits

26 “Then it shall be, when you enter the land which the Lord your God gives you as an inheritance, and you possess it and live in it, that you shall take some of (A)the first of all the produce of the ground which you bring in from your land that the Lord your God gives you, and you shall put it in a basket and (B)go to the place where the Lord your God chooses to establish His name. You shall go to the priest who is in office at that time and say to him, ‘I declare this day to the Lord [a]my God that I have entered the land which the Lord swore to our fathers to give us.’ Then the priest shall take the basket from your hand and set it down before the altar of the Lord your God. You shall answer and say before the Lord your God, ‘(C)My father was a [b]wandering Aramean, and he went down to Egypt and [c]sojourned there, (D)few in number; but there he became a (E)great, mighty and populous nation. And the (F)Egyptians treated us harshly and afflicted us, and imposed hard labor on us. Then (G)we cried to the Lord, the God of our fathers, and the Lord heard our voice and saw our affliction and our toil and our oppression; (H)and the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm and with great terror and with signs and wonders; and He has brought us to this place and has given us this land, (I)a land flowing with milk and honey. 10 Now behold, I have brought the first of the produce of the ground (J)which You, O Lord have given me.’ And you shall set it down before the Lord your God, and worship before the Lord your God; 11 and you and (K)the Levite and the alien who is among you shall (L)rejoice in all the good which the Lord your God has given you and your household.

12 (M)When you have finished [d]paying all the tithe of your increase in the third year, the year of tithing, then you shall give it to the Levite, to the stranger, to the [e]orphan and to the widow, that they may eat in your [f]towns and be satisfied. 13 You shall say before the Lord your God, ‘I have removed the sacred portion from my house, and also have given it to the Levite and the alien, the [g]orphan and the widow, according to all Your commandments which You have commanded me; (N)I have not transgressed or forgotten any of Your commandments. 14 I have not eaten of it [h]while mourning, nor have I removed any of it while I was unclean, nor offered any of it to the dead. I have listened to the voice of the Lord my God; I have done according to all that You have commanded me. 15 (O)Look down from Your holy habitation, from heaven, and bless Your people Israel, and the ground which You have given us, (P)a land flowing with milk and honey, as You swore to our fathers.’

16 “This day the Lord your God commands you to do these statutes and ordinances. You shall therefore be careful to do them (Q)with all your heart and with all your soul. 17 (R)You have today declared the Lord to be your God, and [i]that you would walk in His ways and keep His statutes, His commandments and His ordinances, and listen to His voice. 18 The Lord has today declared you to be (S)His people, a treasured possession, as He promised you, and [j]that you should keep all His commandments; 19 and [k]that He will (T)set you high above all nations which He has made, for praise, fame, and honor; and that you shall be (U)a consecrated people to the Lord your God, as He has spoken.”

Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 26:3 So with Gr; Heb your
  2. Deuteronomy 26:5 Or perishing
  3. Deuteronomy 26:5 Or lived as an alien
  4. Deuteronomy 26:12 Lit tithing
  5. Deuteronomy 26:12 Or fatherless
  6. Deuteronomy 26:12 Lit gates
  7. Deuteronomy 26:13 Or fatherless
  8. Deuteronomy 26:14 Lit while in my
  9. Deuteronomy 26:17 Lit to walk in
  10. Deuteronomy 26:18 Lit to keep all
  11. Deuteronomy 26:19 Lit to set you

Firstfruits and Tithes

26 When you have entered the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance and have taken possession of it and settled in it, take some of the firstfruits(A) of all that you produce from the soil of the land the Lord your God is giving you and put them in a basket. Then go to the place the Lord your God will choose as a dwelling for his Name(B) and say to the priest in office at the time, “I declare today to the Lord your God that I have come to the land the Lord swore to our ancestors to give us.” The priest shall take the basket from your hands and set it down in front of the altar of the Lord your God. Then you shall declare before the Lord your God: “My father was a wandering(C) Aramean,(D) and he went down into Egypt with a few people(E) and lived there and became a great nation,(F) powerful and numerous. But the Egyptians mistreated us and made us suffer,(G) subjecting us to harsh labor.(H) Then we cried out to the Lord, the God of our ancestors, and the Lord heard our voice(I) and saw(J) our misery,(K) toil and oppression.(L) So the Lord brought us out of Egypt(M) with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm,(N) with great terror and with signs and wonders.(O) He brought us to this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey;(P) 10 and now I bring the firstfruits of the soil that you, Lord, have given me.(Q)” Place the basket before the Lord your God and bow down before him. 11 Then you and the Levites(R) and the foreigners residing among you shall rejoice(S) in all the good things the Lord your God has given to you and your household.

12 When you have finished setting aside a tenth(T) of all your produce in the third year, the year of the tithe,(U) you shall give it to the Levite, the foreigner, the fatherless and the widow, so that they may eat in your towns and be satisfied. 13 Then say to the Lord your God: “I have removed from my house the sacred portion and have given it to the Levite, the foreigner, the fatherless and the widow, according to all you commanded. I have not turned aside from your commands nor have I forgotten any of them.(V) 14 I have not eaten any of the sacred portion while I was in mourning, nor have I removed any of it while I was unclean,(W) nor have I offered any of it to the dead. I have obeyed the Lord my God; I have done everything you commanded me. 15 Look down from heaven,(X) your holy dwelling place, and bless(Y) your people Israel and the land you have given us as you promised on oath to our ancestors, a land flowing with milk and honey.”

Follow the Lord’s Commands

16 The Lord your God commands you this day to follow these decrees and laws; carefully observe them with all your heart and with all your soul.(Z) 17 You have declared this day that the Lord is your God and that you will walk in obedience to him, that you will keep his decrees, commands and laws—that you will listen to him.(AA) 18 And the Lord has declared this day that you are his people, his treasured possession(AB) as he promised, and that you are to keep all his commands. 19 He has declared that he will set you in praise,(AC) fame and honor high above all the nations(AD) he has made and that you will be a people holy(AE) to the Lord your God, as he promised.