Exodus 23:19
The first of the firstfruits of thy land thou shalt bring into the house of the LORD thy God. Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother’s milk. The first of the firstfruits of thy land thou shalt bring into the house of the LORD thy God. Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother’s milk.
This command is one of the commandments of God from Sinai that Moses was to gather up and carry out before the people in practice. It is part of the statutes and judgments given to Israel, which were to be strictly obeyed and to be studied by all with a heart to obey. These directions were given by Jesus Christ and are not of a lower order than the statutes given in the present age. Obedience to His commandments was the condition for being kings and priests unto God and for God communicating with His people and His people communicating with God. Israel with lifted voice and hands to heaven agreed to comply with the conditions and be obedient, but when Moses was away temptation came and they broke them by making a calf.
The first produce and increase of the land were to be given to the Lord before anything else, brought into the house of the Lord as an offering. This included the firstfruits of the harvest and vintage, as well as of the wool and grain, which were consecrated to Him. The same system that set apart property for God also required offerings from the firstborn of the flocks and the first gathering of the harvest, requiring people to return part of what they receive from Him. The firstfruits were presented at the sanctuary and then devoted to the priests.
Alongside this, gleanings and the edges of the fields were reserved for the poor, and the poor, widows, orphans, and strangers were included in the feasts. This practice taught that God must come first, that He owns the fields and flocks and provides the means for their increase, and that people hold their possessions as His stewards. At the close of each year, the people were also required to declare whether they had obeyed these commands.