And to bring the first of …: In the first half of this verse the same concept of first fruits is applied to products made from raw materials. First can also refer to the “prime” or “best” fruits and products (see Num 18.12).

Coarse meal includes hulled grain, dough, bread, and cake. New Living Translation translates it “flour.” It is recommended that it be translated as either “coarse meal” or “flour.” As Good News Translation indicates, this would be made from the grain from the first harvest. Contributions probably refers to products made from grain, wine and oil (see verse 39). Products from the fruit of every tree include the wine that is made from grapes and the oil that is made from olives (see Deut 18.4). The offering of wine would be new or fresh wine, and the oil would be newly made olive oil (see Ezra 6.9).

These products are to be brought to the chambers (or, rooms) of the house of our God. These are the storerooms in the Temple (see Ezra 8.29).

And to bring to the Levites the tithes from our ground: Tithes are also to be brought from the produce or crops of the ground to the Levites. A tithe was one-tenth of the produce of the land, whether it was grain or fruit, that was to be given to God (see Lev. 27.30). In languages where there is Arabic and Islamic influence, this special offering may be similar to the Muslim offering of zakat or sadaka. However, because of differences between the Old Testament practice of the tithe and the Islamic practice of zakat, the Arabic word should not be borrowed here. It is preferable to say “an offering of a tenth” or “one part in ten that belongs to God.” An explanation of the practice of the tithe may be given in the glossary.

For it is the Levites who collect the tithes in all our rural towns: The text explains that it is the Levites who collect the tithes from the people in the rural towns. All our rural towns, which is literally “all towns of our work,” refers to all towns. This may also be understood as “all the localities where we work” (Bible en français courant) or “all the cities where we work” (Traduction œcuménique de la Bible; similarly New International Version). Some versions interpret this to refer to “all our farming villages” (Revised English Bible) or “all the cities located on the lands that we cultivate” (Nouvelle version Segond révisée).

Quoted with permission from Noss, Philip A. and Thomas, Kenneth J. A Handbook on Nehemiah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2005. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .