Nehemiah 10:37
And that we should bring the firstfruits of our dough, and our offerings, and the fruit of all manner of trees, of wine and of oil, unto the priests, to the chambers of the house of our God; and the tithes of our ground unto the Levites, that the same Levites might have the tithes in all the cities of our tillage.
This pledge belongs to the instruction in the law given at Jerusalem after the rebuilding of the wall, when the book of the law was read distinctly and its sense was given in the language of the people so that all could understand. Ezra joined with priests and Levites in this plain reading and explaining of the law. Such careful explanation was necessary because intermarriage with other nations had corrupted the Hebrew language, so great care was required to make the law clear to the hearers.
The pledge shows provision made to support the public worship of God as part of Israel's return to the Lord. In addition to the tithe, the congregation bound themselves by a yearly stated sum for the service of the sanctuary. They further pledged to bring the firstfruits of the ground and the firstfruits of all fruit of trees year by year to the house of the Lord. With these they were to bring, as written in the law, the firstborn of sons and of cattle and the firstlings of herds and flocks.