(REFLECTIONS ON Deuteronomy 26:1-19)

10 Now behold, I have brought the first of the produce of the ground which You, O Lord have given me.’ And you shall set it down before the Lord your God, and worship before the Lord your God; 11 and you and the Levite and the alien who is among you shall rejoice in all the good which the Lord your God has given you and your household. (New American Standard Bible, NASB)

As Israel receives the blessings of the land, the Promised Land, they are to bring the first of the produce to the Lord because it is the Lord that has given these blessings to them. God is the source of blessings, and so it isn’t that the Lord is taking away what they have worked for and earned, but rather Israel is thanking God for what He has given and blessed them with.

They shall set down the first of the produce and worship before the Lord. Worship should be done with a thankful heart, and not only thankfulness of the heart, but it is a physical act giving to the Lord a portion of the abundance that He has already given.

Worship should also be done with the Levite and alien that does not have their own land, and it shall be done with a rejoicing heart and spirit because of all the good that the Lord has done. This was the way Israel was to thank the Lord. To worship with a joyful heart, bringing gifts to the Lord, and to do so with all the Levites and aliens in their midst.

An “alien” in Deuteronomy is a resident foreigner who lives among Israel, shares in God’s protection and worship, but lacks land, power, and social security—therefore demanding Israel’s justice, generosity, and joy.

This reminds us of how we are to worship as well. We are to worship with a joyful heart, and not a heart of complacency, complaint, or disingenuousness. Our worship should be true, from the heart, and not only from the heart, but with our first fruits, the first of the produce, as a spiritual offering and also physical offering in thanksgiving for the blessings of the Lord.

This also reminds us that our worship shall be done with the alien, with a thankful heart, and together as a community. The alien amongst us is the one that we don’t know, the one that is different from us, the one that perhaps doesn’t have a leadership position, and may in fact be the one that no one pays attention to.

The church community is to worship with all that are in our midst, not picking and choosing who deserves to worship with us, but with all those that are willing to gather together and be part of the community. The alien is the Good Samaritan that broke social norms in order to help his social enemy, the Jew, and thus portrayed the neighbor in Jesus’ parable.

Let us then open our hearts and arms and embrace the community of worshipers in our midst, breaking social norms, rather than being a barrier for all those that desire to worship the Lord.

Pastor Michael Lu
Enduring Word Bible Commentary: Deuteronomy 26