Bible Commentaries

22. Firstfruits and Prayer

CHAPTER 26

1. The basket of first-fruits, confession and rejoicing (Deuteronomy 26:1-11)

2. Obedience yielded and prayer (Deuteronomy 26:12-15)

3. Jehovah acknowledges His people (Deuteronomy 26:16-19)

The possession of the land is anticipated and a most beautiful ceremony is appointed for confession and worship in the place the Lord chose to place His Name there. The first of all the fruit of the land was to be gathered and put in a basket. This basket was presented unto the priest with the following words: “I profess this day unto the LORD thy God, that I am come unto the country which the LORD sware unto our fathers for to give us.” The priest then set it down before the altar. It was an acknowledgment of His Grace and His faithfulness in keeping His promise and bringing them into the land. The Lord had brought them in and the basket of fruits witnessed to the fact that they possessed the good things promised unto them. They could truly say, the Lord kept His Word, He promised us this land and now we are in it; it is ours. And we know, as saved by grace and in Christ, that we are blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies. We too are brought In and have the right of access into His presence. And this blessed consciousness that we are redeemed and belong to Christ is essential to true worship in spirit and in truth.

Most beautiful is the confession Moses gave to Israel, to be used when the basket of firstfruits was set before Jehovah. “A Syrian ready to perish was my father.” Lovely words! They brought to remembrance what they were and the grace which Jehovah manifested, when that Syrian ready to perish was called out. And this is but a picture of what we are by nature, “ready to perish.” Then comes the story of Egypt and their deliverance out of the house of bondage. Even so we are delivered. They were to rejoice in every good thing the Lord had given unto them; and we rejoice in the Lord and all His goodness to us. And this joy was practically expressed in giving to the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, the widow; they ate and were filled. Thus they could tell Jehovah, “I have not transgressed Thy commandments, neither have I forgotten them.” While we rejoice in the Lord, know that we are saved and worship in the spirit, may we also remember that it is written, “But to do good and to communicate forget not; for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.” How often we forget this! Yet it must ever be an outflow from true worship.