Deuteronomy 26:13

13 And thou shalt speak in the sight of thy Lord God, and say, I have taken away that that is hallowed of mine house, and I gave it to the deacon, and to the comeling, and to the fatherless, either motherless child, and to the widow, as thou commandedest to me; I passed not (over) thy commandments, I forgot not thy behest. (And thou shalt say before the Lord thy God, I have brought forth from my house what was dedicated to thee, and I have given it to the Levite, and the newcomer, and the fatherless or the motherless child, and the widow, as thou hast commanded me; I have not passed over thy commandments, I have not forgotten thy charge, or thy orders.)

Deuteronomy 26:13 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 26:13

Then thou shalt say before the Lord thy God
Make the following declaration as in his presence; for this was not made in the tabernacle or temple at, Jerusalem, since the tithe was to be eaten with the poor in the gates of the owner, as in ( Deuteronomy 26:12 ) :

I have brought away the hallowed things out of [mine] house:
which Aben Ezra and Onkelos interpret of the tithe; but it seems, besides that, to take in everything devoted to all holy uses, be they what they will, which were at this time to be separated from a man's own common goods, and applied to the purposes for which they were designed and devoted, and particularly what was to be given to the poor:

and also have, given them unto the Levite, and unto the stranger, to
the fatherless, and to the widow, according to all thy commandments
which thou hast commanded me;
giving to each according as the law directs; which the Targum of Jonathan and Jarchi interpret as before, giving the first tithe to the Levites, and the second tithe to the rest:

I have not transgressed thy commandments, neither have I forgotten
[them]:
neither broken them wilfully, nor omitted them through carelessness, negligence, and forgetfulness, but was mindful to observe them punctually and exactly.

Deuteronomy 26:13 In-Context

11 thou shalt eat in all the goods which thy Lord God gave to thee, and to thine house, thou, and the deacon, and the comeling that is with thee. (thou shalt make joy for all the good things which the Lord thy God hath given thee, and thy family, thou, and also the Levite, and the newcomer who is with thee.)
12 When thou hast fulfilled the tithe of all thy fruits, in the third year of thy tithes, thou shalt give (them) to the deacon, and to the comeling, and to the fatherless, either the motherless child, and to the widow, that they eat within thy gates, and be full-filled. (When thou hast taken the tithe of all thy fruits in the third year, which is the tithe-year, thou shalt give them to the Levite, and the newcomer, and the fatherless or the motherless child, and the widow, so that they can eat it within thy gates, and be filled full.)
13 And thou shalt speak in the sight of thy Lord God, and say, I have taken away that that is hallowed of mine house, and I gave it to the deacon, and to the comeling, and to the fatherless, either motherless child, and to the widow, as thou commandedest to me; I passed not (over) thy commandments, I forgot not thy behest. (And thou shalt say before the Lord thy God, I have brought forth from my house what was dedicated to thee, and I have given it to the Levite, and the newcomer, and the fatherless or the motherless child, and the widow, as thou hast commanded me; I have not passed over thy commandments, I have not forgotten thy charge, or thy orders.)
14 I ate not of those things in my mourning, neither I separated them in(to) any uncleanness, neither I spended of those anything in burying of a dead body (I did not eat any of it while mourning, I did not put any of it aside for unclean uses, and I did not spend any of it for burying a dead body). I obeyed to the voice of my Lord God, and I did all things as thou commandedest to me.
15 Behold thou from thy saintuary, from the high dwelling place of heaven, and bless thou thy people Israel, and the land which thou hast given to us, as thou hast sworn to our fathers, the land flowing with milk and honey.
Copyright © 2001 by Terence P. Noble. For personal use only.