Offering Firstfruits and Tithes
Moses sets the scene for the firstfruits offering: once Israel is settled in the land, they are to bring the first produce to the place the LORD chooses and present it before the priest.
W1hen you enter the land that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, and you take possession of it and settle in it, 2you are to take some of the firstfruits of all your produce from the soil of the land that 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, 3to the priest who is serving at that time, and say to him, “I declare today to the LORD your God that I have entered the land that the LORD swore to our fathers to give us.” 4Then the priest shall take the basket from your hands and place it before the altar of the LORD your God,
The worshiper recites Israel's story from wandering ancestor to slavery, deliverance, and gift of the land, then presents the firstfruits and rejoices before the LORD with the Levite and the foreigner.
5and you are to declare before the LORD your God, “My father was a wandering Aramean, and he went down to Egypt few in number and lived there and became a great nation, mighty and numerous. 6But the Egyptians mistreated us and afflicted us, putting us to hard labor. 7So we called out to the LORD, the God of our fathers; and the LORD heard our voice and saw our affliction, toil, and oppression. 8Then the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, with great terror, signs, and wonders. 9And He brought us to this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. 10And now, behold, I have brought the firstfruits of the land that You, O LORD, have given me.” 11Then you are to place the basket before the LORD your God and bow down before Him. So you shall rejoice — you, the Levite, and the foreigner dwelling among you — in all the good things the LORD your God has given to you and your household.
For the third-year tithe, the giver distributes the sacred portion to the Levite, foreigner, fatherless, and widow, then declares faithful obedience and asks the LORD to bless Israel and the land.
12When you have finished laying aside a tenth of all your produce in the third year, the year of the tithe, you are to give it to the Levite, the foreigner, the fatherless, and the widow, that they may eat and be filled within your gates. 13Then you shall declare in the presence of 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 the commandments You have given me. I have not transgressed or forgotten Your commandments. 14I have not eaten any of the sacred portion while in mourning, or removed any of it while unclean, or offered any of it for the dead. I have obeyed the LORD my God; I have done everything You commanded me. 15Look down from Your holy habitation, from heaven, and bless Your people Israel and the land You have given us as You swore to our fathers— a land flowing with milk and honey.”