First fruit proclamation[1]
ובאת אל-הכהן אשר יהיה בימים ההם ואמרת אליו הגדתי היום ליקוק אלקיך כי-באתי אל-הארץ אשר נשבע יקוק לאבתינו לתת לנו
You shall come to the Kohen that will be in those days, and say to him: “I state today to Hashem your G-d that I have come to the land which Hashem swore to our forefathers to give to us”[2]
One of the final mitzvos that is discussed in the Torah is known as Bikkurim. There is a mitzvah to bring our first fruits to the Temple, declare our thanks to Hashem, and give them to the Kohen for consumption. There are some questions that can be asked on this whole ceremony. First of all, the verse says to come to the Kohen who will be in those days. Which other Kohen could I possibly go to? Our Sages teach us[3] that this is stressing that we have to suffice with the Kohen which will be in our days, even if he’s not on the level of earlier generations. However, the Ramban is unsatisfied with this teaching[4]. We find a similar one with the mitzvah not to rebel against the Sages. We are to heed their words, even if they’re not on the level of earlier generations. This teaching makes sense, but why would we need the same teaching with respect to the Kohanim and Bikkurim?