ספורנו — ובאת אל הכהן אשר יהיה בימים ההם / הגדתי היום לה' אלקיך

Q — Rashi reads "אשר יהיה בימים ההם" as the famous "אין לך אלא כהן שבימיך" — don't look down on the contemporary kohen. Sforno takes the same phrase but draws a different implication. What does he add?

A — For Sforno, the verse anticipates a specific failure of kavod. The kohen of "those days" may indeed be unimpressive — "לא יהיה גדול בחכמה" — and the one bringing bikkurim might naturally drop into a casual register with him. The Torah pre-empts that by *scripting* the bikkurim address: "הגדתי היום לה' אלקיך." This particular formula — "ה' אלקיך," addressed personally to another — is normally reserved for kings and prophets (cf. Shmuel II 18:28; Melachim I 17:12). Using it for the contemporary kohen elevates the encounter regardless of his personal stature. And the kohen's next act — "ולקח הכהן הטנא מידך והניחו לפני מזבח ה' אלקיך" — reinforces the chiddush: "להראות ולהודיע שהביכורים לא הובאו לכהן אבל הובאו אל האל יתברך והוא נתנם לכהן עם שאר מתנות כהונה." The bikkurim are tribute to the *Owner of the Land*, channeled through His representative. Both bringer and receiver must know this; the כבוד is built into the script.