כי תבוא

As the Israelites prepared to enter the land God was giving them, Moses described a special harvest ceremony. “When you come in and settle,” he said, “take some of the first fruit you pick and place it in a basket.” This offering was called bikkurim, which means “first fruits.” They were to bring the basket to the place God would choose, and to the priest serving there.

Standing near the altar, the giver would say, “Today I admit that I have entered the land God promised our ancestors.” Then they would tell their people’s story out loud: “My father was a wandering Aramean. We went down to Egypt with only a few people, but we became a great nation. The Egyptians oppressed us, and we cried to God. God brought us out with mighty power and brought us to this land, flowing with milk and honey.” After leaving the basket and bowing, they would celebrate the bounty with the Levite and the stranger among them.

Moses explained another moment of giving: in the third year, “the year of the tithe,” the people were to set aside a tenth of their harvest for the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, so everyone could eat their fill. When it was done, they would say a careful statement before God: they had taken the sacred portion out of their homes, given it to the right people, and followed the commands. Then they would ask God to look down from heaven and bless the people and the soil.

Next came instructions for what to do right after crossing the Jordan. “Set up large stones,” Moses said, “coat them with plaster, and write the words of this Teaching clearly.” On Mount Ebal they were to build an altar of uncut stones, no iron tools, bring offerings, and eat and rejoice there. The levitical priests called, “Silence! Today you have become the people of God.” Then some tribes would stand on Mount Gerizim for blessing and others on Mount Ebal for curse, and the people would answer, “Amen.”

Moses spoke about what life could look like in the land. If the people listened to God and kept the commandments, blessings would “catch up” to them: blessing in town and field, healthy children, strong herds and flocks, full baskets and kneading bowls, and rain in its season. Enemies who attacked would be driven back, and Israel would be known as a holy people.

But Moses also warned that refusing to listen would bring the opposite. He described fear, sickness, drought, defeat, and being scattered among other nations, where people might end up serving gods of wood and stone. Some pictures were harsh: towns under siege and terrible hunger.

Afterward Moses reminded them of what they had already seen: God’s wonders in Egypt, forty years in the wilderness when their clothes and sandals did not wear out, and victories over King Sihon of Heshbon and King Og of Bashan. Their lands were given to Reuben, Gad, and half of Manasseh. “So keep the covenant,” Moses said, “and you will succeed in what you do.”