Deuteronomy 26:1

“And it shall be, when thou [art] come in unto the land, etc.] The land of Canaan, which they were now on the borders of, and just entering into: which the Lord thy God giveth thee [for] an inheritance; which is often mentioned, to observe that it was not through their merits, but his gift, that they should enjoy the land; and the rather here to enforce the following law concerning the basket of firstfruits: and possessest it, and dwellest therein; not only had entered into it, but got the possession of it, and settled there. This shows as Jarchi observes, that they were not bound to the firstfruits till they had subdued the land and divided it; not as soon as they were in it.”

“THE CONFESSION OF HIM THAT OFFERS THE BASKET OF FIRST FRUITS. (Deu 26:1-15) Thou shalt take of the first of all the fruit of the earth--The Israelites in Canaan, being God's tenants-at-will, were required to give Him tribute in the form of first-fruits and tithes. No Israelite was at liberty to use any productions of his field until he had presented the required offerings. The tribute began to be exigible after the settlement in the promised land, and it was yearly repeated at one of the great feasts (Lev 2:14; Lev 23:10; Lev 23:15; Num 28:26; Deu 16:9). Every master of a family carried it on his shoulders in a little basket of osier, peeled willow, or palm leaves, and brought it to the…”

“Two liturgical enactments having a clear and close reference to the whole of the preceding legislation, form a most appropriate and significant conclusion to it, namely, (1) the formal acknowledgment in deed and symbol of God’s faithfulness, by presentment of a basket filled with firstfruits, and in word by recitation of the solemn formula prescribed in Deuteronomy 26:3, Deuteronomy 26:5-10; and (2) the solemn declaration and profession on the part of each Israelite on the occasion of the third tithe Deuteronomy 26:12. return to 'Top of Page'”

“26:1-15 Under the terms of the covenant, the Great King required that his subjects render him tribute annually or even more frequently. Since Israel was an agrarian society, God required offerings of animal, vegetable, or grain products. This tribute specifically celebrated the mighty Exodus redemption.”

“Deu 5:31, Deu 6:1-10, Deu 7:1, Deu 13:1, Deu 13:9, Deu 17:14, Deu 18:9; Num 15:2, Num 15:18 Deuteronomy 26:2”

“To the exposition of the commandments and rights of Israel Moses adds, in closing, another ordinance respecting those gifts, which were most intimately connected with social and domestic life, viz., the first-fruits and second tithes, for the purpose of giving the proper consecration to the attitude of the nation towards its Lord and God. Deu 26:1-4 Of the first of the fruit of the ground, which was presented from the land received from the Lord, the Israelites was to take a portion (מראשׁית with מן partitive), and bring it in a basket to the place of the sanctuary, and give it to the priest who should be there, with the words, "I have made known to-day to the Lord thy God, that I have come…”