Deuteronomy 26
New English Translation
Presentation of the Firstfruits
26 When[a] you enter the land that the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance, and you occupy it and live in it, 2 you must take the first of all the ground’s produce you harvest from the land the Lord your God is giving you, place it in a basket, and go to the place where he[b] chooses to locate his name.[c] 3 You must go to the priest in office at that time and say to him, “I declare today to the Lord your[d] God that I have come into the land that the Lord[e] promised[f] to our ancestors[g] to give us.” 4 The priest will then take the basket from you[h] and set it before the altar of the Lord your God. 5 Then you must affirm before the Lord your God, “A wandering[i] Aramean[j] was my ancestor,[k] and he went down to Egypt and lived there as a foreigner with a household few in number,[l] but there he became a great, powerful, and numerous people. 6 But the Egyptians mistreated and oppressed us, forcing us to do burdensome labor. 7 So we cried out to the Lord, the God of our ancestors, and he[m] heard us and saw our humiliation, toil, and oppression. 8 Therefore the Lord brought us out of Egypt with tremendous strength and power,[n] as well as with great awe-inspiring signs and wonders. 9 Then he brought us to this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. 10 So now, look! I have brought the first of the ground’s produce that you, Lord, have given me.” Then you must set it down before the Lord your God and worship before him.[o] 11 You will celebrate all the good things that the Lord your God has given you and your family,[p] along with the Levites and the resident foreigners among you.
Presentation of the Third-year Tithe
12 When you finish tithing all[q] your income in the third year (the year of tithing), you must give it to the Levites, the resident foreigners, the orphans, and the widows[r] so that they may eat to their satisfaction in your villages.[s] 13 Then you shall say before the Lord your God, “I have removed the sacred offering[t] from my house and given it to the Levites, the resident foreigners, the orphans, and the widows just as you have commanded me.[u] I have not violated or forgotten your commandments. 14 I have not eaten anything when I was in mourning, or removed any of it while ceremonially unclean, or offered any of it to the dead;[v] I have obeyed you[w] and have done everything you have commanded me. 15 Look down from your holy dwelling place in heaven and bless your people Israel and the land you have given us, just as you promised our ancestors—a land flowing with milk and honey.”
Narrative Interlude
16 Today the Lord your God is commanding you to keep these statutes and ordinances, something you must do with all your heart and soul.[x] 17 Today you have declared the Lord to be your God, and that you will walk in his ways, keep his statutes, commandments, and ordinances, and obey him. 18 And today the Lord has declared you to be his special people (as he already promised you) so you may keep all his commandments. 19 Then[y] he will elevate you above all the nations he has made and you will receive praise, fame, and honor.[z] You will[aa] be a people holy to the Lord your God, as he has said.
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 26:1 tn Heb “and it will come to pass that.”
- Deuteronomy 26:2 tn Heb “the Lord your God.” The pronoun has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons to avoid redundancy.
- Deuteronomy 26:2 sn The place where he chooses to locate his name. This is a circumlocution for the central sanctuary, first the tabernacle and later the Jerusalem temple. See Deut 12:1-14 and especially the note on the word “you” in v. 14.
- Deuteronomy 26:3 tc For the MT reading “your God,” certain LXX mss have “my God,” a contextually superior rendition followed by some English versions (e.g., NAB, NASB, TEV). Perhaps the text reflects dittography of the kaf (כ) at the end of the word with the following preposition כִּי (ki).
- Deuteronomy 26:3 tc The Syriac adds “your God” to complete the usual formula.
- Deuteronomy 26:3 tn Heb “swore on oath.”
- Deuteronomy 26:3 tn Heb “fathers” (also in vv. 7, 15).
- Deuteronomy 26:4 tn Heb “your hand.”
- Deuteronomy 26:5 tn Though the Hebrew term אָבַד (ʾavad) generally means “to perish” or the like (HALOT 2-3 s.v.; BDB 1-2 s.v.; cf. KJV “a Syrian ready to perish”), a meaning “to go astray” or “to be lost” is also attested. The ambivalence in the Hebrew text is reflected in the versions where LXX Vaticanus reads ἀπέβαλεν (apebalen, “lose”) for a possibly metathesized reading found in Alexandrinus, Ambrosianus, ἀπέλαβεν (apelaben, “receive”); others attest κατέλειπεν (kateleipen, “leave, abandon”). “Wandering” seems to suit best the contrast with the sedentary life Israel would enjoy in Canaan (v. 9) and is the meaning followed by many English versions.
- Deuteronomy 26:5 sn A wandering Aramean. This is a reference to Jacob whose mother Rebekah was an Aramean (Gen 24:10; 25:20, 26) and who himself lived in Aram for at least twenty years (Gen 31:41-42).
- Deuteronomy 26:5 tn Heb “father.”
- Deuteronomy 26:5 tn Heb “sojourned there few in number.” The words “with a household” have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons and for clarity.
- Deuteronomy 26:7 tn Heb “the Lord.” See note on “he” in 26:2.
- Deuteronomy 26:8 tn Heb “by a powerful hand and an extended arm.” These are anthropomorphisms designed to convey God’s tremendously great power in rescuing Israel from their Egyptian bondage. They are preserved literally in many English versions (cf. KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV).
- Deuteronomy 26:10 tn Heb “the Lord your God.” See note on “he” in 26:2.
- Deuteronomy 26:11 tn Or “household” (so NASB, NIV, NLT); Heb “house” (so KJV, NRSV).
- Deuteronomy 26:12 tn Heb includes “the tithes of.” This has not been included in the translation to avoid redundancy.
- Deuteronomy 26:12 tn The terms “Levite, resident foreigner, orphan, and widow” are collective singulars in the Hebrew text (also in v. 13).
- Deuteronomy 26:12 tn Heb “gates.”
- Deuteronomy 26:13 tn Heb “the sacred thing.” The term הַקֹּדֶשׁ (haqqodesh) likely refers to an offering normally set apart for the Lord but, as a third-year tithe, given on this occasion to people in need. Sometimes this is translated as “the sacred portion” (cf. NASB, NIV, NRSV), but that could sound to a modern reader as if a part of the house were being removed and given away.
- Deuteronomy 26:13 tn Heb “according to all your commandment that you commanded me.” This has been simplified in the translation for stylistic reasons.
- Deuteronomy 26:14 sn These practices suggest overtones of pagan ritual, all of which the confessor denies having undertaken. In Canaan they were connected with fertility practices associated with harvest time. See E. H. Merrill, Deuteronomy (NAC), 335-36.
- Deuteronomy 26:14 tn Heb “the Lord my God.” See note on “he” in 26:2.
- Deuteronomy 26:16 tn Or “mind and being”; cf. NCV “with your whole being”; TEV “obey them faithfully with all your heart.”
- Deuteronomy 26:19 tn Heb “so that.” Verses 18-19 are one sentence in the Hebrew text, but the translation divides it into three sentences for stylistic reasons. The first clause in verse 19 gives a result of the preceding clause. When Israel keeps God’s law, God will bless them with fame and honor (cf. NAB “he will then raise you high in praise and renown and glory”; NLT “And if you do, he will make you greater than any other nation”).
- Deuteronomy 26:19 tn Heb “for praise and for a name and for glory.”
- Deuteronomy 26:19 tn Heb “and to be.” A new sentence was started here for stylistic reasons.
Deuteronomio 26
La Biblia de las Américas
Ofrendas de las primicias
26 Y sucederá que cuando entres en la tierra que el Señor tu Dios te da por herencia, tomes posesión de ella y habites en ella, 2 tomarás las primicias de todos los frutos del suelo que recojas de la tierra que el Señor tu Dios te da(A), y las pondrás en una canasta e irás al lugar que el Señor tu Dios escoja para establecer[a] su nombre(B). 3 Y te presentarás al sacerdote que esté en funciones en esos días y le dirás: «Declaro hoy al Señor mi[b] Dios que he entrado en la tierra que el Señor juró a nuestros padres que nos daría». 4 Entonces el sacerdote tomará la canasta de tu mano, y la pondrá delante del altar del Señor tu Dios. 5 Y responderás y dirás delante del Señor tu Dios: «Mi padre fue un arameo errante[c](C) y descendió a Egipto y residió[d] allí, siendo pocos en número(D); pero allí llegó a ser una nación grande, fuerte y numerosa(E). 6 Y los egipcios nos maltrataron y nos afligieron y pusieron sobre nosotros dura servidumbre(F). 7 Entonces clamamos al Señor, el Dios de nuestros padres, y el Señor oyó nuestra voz y vio nuestra aflicción, nuestro trabajo y nuestra opresión(G); 8 y el Señor nos sacó de Egipto con mano fuerte y brazo extendido, con gran terror, con señales y milagros(H); 9 y nos ha traído a este lugar y nos ha dado esta tierra, una tierra que mana leche y miel(I). 10 Ahora, he aquí, he traído las primicias de los frutos de la tierra que tú, oh Señor, me has dado(J)». Entonces las pondrás delante del Señor tu Dios, y adorarás delante del Señor tu Dios. 11 Y te alegrarás, tú y también el levita y el forastero que está en medio de ti(K), por todo el bien que el Señor tu Dios te ha dado a ti y a tu casa(L).
Los diezmos de un pueblo consagrado
12 Cuando acabes de pagar[e] todo el diezmo de tus frutos en el tercer año, el año del diezmo, entonces lo darás al levita, al forastero, al huérfano y a la viuda, para que puedan comer en tus ciudades[f] y sean saciados(M). 13 Y dirás delante del Señor tu Dios: «He sacado de mi casa la porción consagrada y también la he dado al levita, al forastero, al huérfano y a la viuda conforme a todos tus mandamientos que me has mandado; no he violado[g] ni olvidado ninguno de tus mandamientos(N). 14 No he comido de ella estando de[h] luto, ni he tomado de ella mientras estaba inmundo, ni he ofrecido de ella a los muertos. He escuchado la voz del Señor mi Dios; he hecho conforme a todo lo que me has mandado. 15 Mira desde tu morada santa, desde el cielo(O), y bendice a tu pueblo Israel y a la tierra que nos has dado, una tierra que mana leche y miel(P), como juraste a nuestros padres».
16 El Señor tu Dios te manda hoy que cumplas estos estatutos y ordenanzas. Cuidarás, pues, de cumplirlos con todo tu corazón y con toda tu alma(Q). 17 Has declarado hoy que el Señor es tu Dios(R) y que andarás[i] en sus caminos y guardarás[j] sus estatutos, sus mandamientos y sus ordenanzas, y que escucharás su voz. 18 Y el Señor ha declarado hoy que tú eres su pueblo, su exclusiva posesión[k](S), como Él te prometió, y que debes guardar[l] todos sus mandamientos; 19 y que Él te pondrá[m] en alto sobre todas las naciones que ha hecho(T), para alabanza, renombre y honor; y serás un pueblo consagrado al Señor tu Dios(U), como Él ha dicho.
Footnotes
- Deuteronomio 26:2 O, hacer habitar
- Deuteronomio 26:3 Así en la versión gr. (sept.); en heb., tu
- Deuteronomio 26:5 O, a punto de perecer
- Deuteronomio 26:5 O, vivió como extranjero
- Deuteronomio 26:12 Lit., diezmar
- Deuteronomio 26:12 Lit., puertas
- Deuteronomio 26:13 O, transgredido
- Deuteronomio 26:14 Lit., mientras en mi
- Deuteronomio 26:17 Lit., y para andar
- Deuteronomio 26:17 Lit., y para guardar
- Deuteronomio 26:18 O, su tesoro especial
- Deuteronomio 26:18 Lit., y para guardar
- Deuteronomio 26:19 Lit., y para ponerte
Deuteronomy 26
New King James Version
Offerings of Firstfruits and Tithes
26 “And it shall be, when you come into the land which the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance, and you possess it and dwell in it, 2 (A)that you shall take some of the first of all the produce of the ground, which you shall bring from your land that the Lord your God is giving you, and put it in a basket and (B)go to the place where the Lord your God chooses to make His name abide. 3 And you shall go to the one who is priest in those days, and say to him, ‘I declare today to the Lord [a]your God that I have come to the country which the Lord swore to our fathers to give us.’
4 “Then the priest shall take the basket out of your hand and set it down before the altar of the Lord your God. 5 And you shall answer and say before the Lord your God: ‘My father was (C)a [b]Syrian, (D)about to perish, and (E)he went down to Egypt and [c]dwelt there, (F)few in number; and there he became a nation, (G)great, mighty, and populous. 6 But the (H)Egyptians mistreated us, afflicted us, and laid hard bondage on us. 7 (I)Then we cried out to the Lord God of our fathers, and the Lord heard our voice and looked on our affliction and our labor and our oppression. 8 So (J)the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and with an outstretched arm, (K)with great terror and with signs and wonders. 9 He has brought us to this place and has given us this land, (L)“a land flowing with milk and honey”; 10 and now, behold, I have brought the firstfruits of the land which you, O Lord, have given me.’
“Then you shall set it before the Lord your God, and worship before the Lord your God. 11 So (M)you shall rejoice in every good thing which the Lord your God has given to you and your house, you and the Levite and the stranger who is among you.
12 “When you have finished laying aside all the (N)tithe of your increase in the third year—(O)the year of tithing—and have given it to the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, so that they may eat within your gates and be filled, 13 then you shall say before the Lord your God: ‘I have removed the [d]holy tithe from my house, and also have given them to the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, according to all Your commandments which You have commanded me; I have not transgressed Your commandments, (P)nor have I forgotten them. 14 (Q)I have not eaten any of it [e]when in mourning, nor have I removed any of it [f]for an unclean use, nor given any of it for the dead. I have obeyed the voice of the Lord my God, and have done according to all that You have commanded me. 15 (R)Look down from Your holy [g]habitation, from heaven, and bless Your people Israel and the land which You have given us, just as You swore to our fathers, (S)“a land flowing with milk and honey.” ’
A Special People of God
16 “This day the Lord your God commands you to observe these statutes and judgments; therefore you shall be careful to observe them with all your heart and with all your soul. 17 Today you have (T)proclaimed the Lord to be your God, and that you will walk in His ways and keep His statutes, His commandments, and His judgments, and that you will (U)obey His voice. 18 Also today (V)the Lord has proclaimed you to be His special people, just as He promised you, that you should keep all His commandments, 19 and that He will set you (W)high above all nations which He has made, in praise, in name, and in honor, and that you may be (X)a [h]holy people to the Lord your God, just as He has spoken.”
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 26:3 LXX my
- Deuteronomy 26:5 Or Aramean
- Deuteronomy 26:5 As a resident alien
- Deuteronomy 26:13 hallowed things
- Deuteronomy 26:14 Lit. in my mourning
- Deuteronomy 26:14 Or while I was unclean
- Deuteronomy 26:15 home
- Deuteronomy 26:19 consecrated
Deuteronomy 26
New International Version
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, 2 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) 3 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.” 4 The priest shall take the basket from your hands and set it down in front of the altar of the Lord your God. 5 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. 6 But the Egyptians mistreated us and made us suffer,(G) subjecting us to harsh labor.(H) 7 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) 8 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) 9 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.
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