Category: Tithes & Tithing

INTRODUCTION

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cumin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. Matthew 23:23

This is the main verse used to justify tithing in the New Testament (book). This is especially true in the financing of church activities. Some ministers, desiring to support their fund-raising enterprises, impose the Mosaic tithing system on their congregations although the preaching of the Gospel requires no service of Priests and Levites in a Temple. This required much mutilation of the Mosaic system, making it unrecognizable.

 In addition, it is claimed that Jesus commanded the teaching in this “commendation” of the Scribes and Pharisees for their impeccable practice of the Law. In this chapter we will investigate this claim; did Jesus commend or recommend tithing among his believers?

WHAT DID JESUS TEACH?

When Christ was on earth, He endorsed the Mosaic Law which Jews were required to observe. Statements by Jesus concerning tithes, although recorded in the New Testament (book), are made under the Law because Jesus was a Minister to the circumcision who were under the law (Rom.15:8; Gal.4:4).

The reference to the Abramic Tithe in Hebrew 7 is the only passage in the New Testament (book) after the law. Yet it deals with tithing before the Law and is not a rule for the Church. Jesus could not say other than He did to those “under the law” and it was demanded for His fulfilling of the Law. These were not instructions for life in the Spirit in the Kingdom of God. Spiritually, the law ended with the preaching of the Kingdom of God by John the Baptist and Jesus (Luke 16:16; Rom. 10:10; 15:8). Jesus taught forgiveness of debt, not curse for not paying.

DID THE EARLY CHURCH TITHE?

The Church did not tithe.

The Church or Christians of the book of Acts consisted mainly of Jews who were loyal to the Temple and the Mosaic Law. The Law as expounded by Jesus and Paul required obedience until they died (Rom. 7:1); once you were born under the law, it governed your entire life until you died. If Jewish Christians paid tithes, it would have been, according to the Law, paid to the Levites, not the Church. There was no Christian authority for the collection of tithes and the Sanhedrin would have forbidden. You are guilty of adding to the scripture if you say that the Early Church tithed with no scriptures to back you up.

The Gentile Christians did not tithe.

 The Jerusalem Council (Acts 15) listed only four instructions from the Law of Moses for the Gentile Christians. There is nothing said at this Council about the Abrahamic Covenant or Melchizedek Priesthood. The Early Church pronounced the Gentiles not “under the Law;” meaning they were not under Malachi’s curse (Mal.3:10). The Council acknowledged that the Jewish Christians didn’t need to keep it too, but not openly.

Under Gospel principles, all the law is summed up in one command; “love the Lord and your neighbour as yourself.” According to Peter, each believer is his own Priest after the order of Melchizedek representing himself before God through Jesus Christ.

But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light: 1 Peter 2:9 KJV

According to this verse, each Christian is a royal priest. He is a king and a priest. A priest does not need anyone but Jesus as mediator between himself and God.

Some persons were dishonest with the Gospel for filthy lucre and were told so by Paul. Today it is not politically correct to accuse someone of preaching the Gospel for filthy lucre, but then Peter did not hesitate to say, “and through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandize of you” (2Pet. 2:3). Its effect on God’s Grace is to deny it. God causes His rain to fall and His sun to shine on the just and on the unjust.

The early church fathers did not tithe.

 None can teach tithing in the Church except they do much mangling and wresting it into the Scriptures. Those using 1Corinthians 16:2 is taking from the needy saints to give to the rich Apostle, Evangelists, etc, (Ephesians 4:11); the very people who were told by Jesus “freely you have received, freely give.”

The first New Testament Christians were Jews and therefore under the law until the temple was destroyed in AD 70 making it impossible to perform the law. This means they paid their tithes to the temple authorities, not to the Apostles.

No one has objected to the Israelite Pharisees or indeed any other Israelite of the first century practicing tithing. Yet, the use of the word “ought” in Matthew 23:23, is seen by some Preachers to be a command from Jesus for the law of the tithe to be practiced by Christians. This is quite incorrect. The Lord taught, at that time, Jews should be keeping the law because they were under the law of tithing. This phrase under the law occurs 12 times in the epistles of Paul as he tried to convince the Gentiles they were not under the Law and were not to practice it; the entire law.

 The law that Jesus was speaking of was the Mosaic Law. Many writers and preachers have sought to make Matthew 23:23 binding on Christians today. They claim Jesus was commending the Pharisees for their tithing. First, they declare the audience as well as the persons named (Pharisees) to be Christians and then conclude that the tithe has been passed to Christians. However, it is clear this was a “rebuke” rather than a commendation of the Pharisees; Jesus pronounced a “woe” rather than a commendation. Jesus is not commending the Pharisees but pronouncing a “woe” on them for neglecting judgement, mercy and faith. This is a common error with tithers, having no mercy and faith and quick to condemn others. Jesus considers and commended Judgement, Mercy and Faith as weightier matters than tithing. This is not the case with Pharisees who were lovers of money. Jesus labelled these same persons as hypocrites, not disciples or Christians.

Jesus taught tithing because He taught the Law to those who were under the Law, that is, the Jews only (Rom. 15:8). In this verse, He merely confirmed that the people He was speaking to were under the Law and that tithing was their obligation.

Jesus said “pay” tithe; not “give” tithe. A debtor always pay and the tithe is mandatory. This contrasts with Abraham’s tithe where the word “gave” is used indicating that it was voluntary and a gift (Gen.14:20; Heb. 7:2).

Christ was not talking to members of the Christian ekklesia. He was speaking to the Pharisaic leaders of the Jews. The Pharisees were still under the law or thought themselves to be under the law when Jesus made this remark. Even the Pharisees felt they were obligated to accept the Levitical regulations and Christ simply called their attention to those requirements. Jews at the time were supposed to pay the tithe. No one disputes this.

During Jesus’ Ministry the Temple was still legally active.

 The Levites were still performing their ordained functions and were the only legal recipients of the tithe. To obey the Law of Moses was the only thing Jesus could tell the Pharisees and it is not surprising that He did. Indeed, before Jesus was crucified he informed the Jewish lepers he had healed to offer animal sacrifices (Luke 5:14) according to Moses’ commandments; and to recognize the Scribes and Pharisees as sitting in Moses’ seat and to do as they commanded (Matthew 23:2–3), “but not as they do”.

Those who wish Christians to tithe because Jesus commended the Pharisees for doing so, must explain why we must not “make an offering for cleansing, just as Moses commanded you” (Luke 5:14). That’s in the New Testament and Jesus commanded it to someone:

And it came to pass, when he was in a certain city, behold a man full of leprosy: who seeing Jesus fell on his face, and besought him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. And he put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will: be thou clean. And immediately the leprosy departed from him. And he charged him to tell no man: but go, and shew thyself to the priest, and offer for thy cleansing, according as Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them. Luke 5:12-14 KJV

This incident shows that Jesus did not teach men to break the law, He taught men who were under the law to do the law. Thus, it is not surprising that He told a Pharisee that he ought to pay tithes. However, all these requirements of the law were not needed when the Christians later conducted their activities. Only the Jews were required to sacrifice animals, circumcise, pay Temple tax, and to pay tithe. The Pharisees on whom Jesus pronounced the woe of Matthew 23:23 were Jews. But after Jesus’ once for all sacrifice and resurrection, it was no longer the Law of Moses but the resurrected Jesus to be followed. The Gospel focused on Jesus and faith in Him.

This brought in a whole new paradigm based on faith. These new standards of belief had nothing of a physical Temple in Jerusalem, with physical sacrifices, a physical priesthood, or the physical tithe. The carnal regulations became redundant. They were simply “meats and drinks, and divers washings, and carnal ordinances, imposed on them until the time of reformation” (Hebrews 9:10). Since Christ’s death and resurrection, all the physical ordinances of the Old Covenant (including tithing) were done away (2 Corinthians 3:6–18).

A PRIEST CALLED MELCHIZEDEK

Some claim that Jesus Christ as our High Priest provides evidence that His followers are to tithe. They claim Jesus is our great High Priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. But, did Jesus take a tithe of His followers? Did His disciples take a tithe when He sent them out two by two? Is there any scriptural evidence of a Christian tithing? The claim is that Hebrews chapter 7 is arguing Jesus is a greater priest than any Levitical priest. Let us examine this.

In Hebrews 7, Paul first proved that Melchizedek was a greater priest than any priest in the Levitical Priesthood. This also proved Jesus’ High Priesthood is greater than the Levitical Priesthood because Psalm 110 called Him (Jesus) a High Priest after the order of Melchizedek. Paul based his argument on Abraham giving a tithe to Melchizedek. How does that tithe make Melchizedek greater than all the Levitical priests? He used the following logic:

a) When Abraham gave the tithe to Melchizedek, all of Abraham’s unborn descendants, especially Levi, were in his loins; the tribe of Levi from which Aaron and his sons came, were in his loins; all the Levitical priests were there paying tithe to Melchizedek; which means that when Abraham received the blessing from Melchizedek, all the Levitical priests were also there receiving the blessing from Melchizedek;

b) Because the one who receives the tithe and gives the blessing (Melchizedek) is greater than the one who gives the tithe and receives the blessing (Abraham on behalf of Levi), Melchizedek is greater than the Levitical priests.

c) And because Melchizedek is proven to be greater than the Old Covenant priests, that proves Jesus is also greater because he is a high priest after the order of Melchizedek.

Paul said he was drawing an analogy (verse 2); the word “interpretation” is from the Greek hermeneuo, means he is drawing an analogy. This analogy should not be stretched  further than Paul did, or it will “break down” because Jesus was also in the loins of Abraham. Taken further, this would mean Melchizedek is greater than Jesus because Jesus paid tithes to him while in the loins of Abraham. Yet this is precisely what is being claimed.

In Hebrews 8:1 the writer sums up what has been said:

Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens;

This clarifies that Paul used the incident of Abram and Melchizedek to show that we have a greater high priest than Aaron and sons. Also, this is the only incident in scripture involving Melchizedek available for Paul. He wasn’t teaching tithing to the church directly or indirectly.

In addition, we can follow the logic of Paul; he was advocating: Levi paid tithes while in the loins of Abraham; therefore, Levi did not have to pay tithes under the Law but received tithes. So too believers who are “in Christ” are also the “seed” of Abraham like Levi and do not have to pay tithes under the law because Abraham has already paid the tithes at the making of the covenant.

New Testament giving is about God giving to us and our imitation of Him, freely you have received, freely give.

In Luke 18:9-14, Jesus told a parable of two Jews under the Law; a Pharisee (holy person) and a Publican (open sinner). These two represent respectively the Jew who gave tithes and another Jew who did not tithe.

And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted. Luke 18:9-14 KJV

This parable also shows that tithing has no part in the Kingdom of God because the Publican who did not pay tithe was justified and the other man who paid was not.

THE GOSPEL AND THE TITHE

The preaching of the Gospel by the Twelve unveiled a different set of precepts for financing Christian activities. The Gospel principles are governed by Jesus’ instruction of “freely you have received, freely give.” (Matthew10:8)

The tithe erodes the Gospel Principles

The modern Church tithe is Replacement Theology. This teaching says the church has “replaced” Israel, and the Preachers and Pastors, bishops and deacons have replaced the Levites who served in the temple. The tithes are therefore the inheritance of the modern Church Clergy, and it is mandatory. If believers in Christ do not pay the tithe, they are robbing these hardworking persons, which is tantamount to robbing God. Jesus’ principle of “free giving” of the Gospel is thus compromised.

The Gospel of Jesus Christ teaches us to be willing at all times to use all our resources for the benefit of others.

The Gospel says much about distribution to the poor, contributing to its ministry and giving in general; and nothing on tithing. These teachings are overlooked because tithing, a non-Biblical sort, has been adopted as the foundational truth of the subject. Under the Gospel of Grace tithing is immaterial. It is surpassed by the greater commitment of using and doing all for the glory of God. Tithing distracts your attention to material things and keeps you from the fullness of life in Christ.

What was Jesus’ own custom?

We know after the spirit descended on Him, He was continually teaching and preaching. Did He charge for His services? Did He take pay? Did He require a tithe?

When asked for tribute money, He had none; He had to work a miracle. Today’s ministers are given a waiver on taxes by the government of their countries but extract 10% of their converts’ income plus offerings and perks, not by His command, nor by Moses’ command but by some unwritten eternal principle, known only to themselves. If a sheep dares to murmur, he is threatened with a blight of his source of income by no other name than Jesus.

The parable of the two debtors illustrates this very clearly.

Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants. And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him, which owed him ten thousand talents. But forasmuch as he had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made. The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt.

But the same servant went out, and found one of his fellow servants, which owed him an hundred pence: and he laid hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that thou owest. And his fellow servant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt. (Matthew 18:23-30)

I believe this parable speaks for itself and therefore I will not add any comments.

WAS THERE A CHANGE IN THE LAW?

The legal teaching says the tithe can be given only to the Levites or at the Temple in Jerusalem. Over the past 2,000 years this has posed a dilemma to those Pastors wishing to secure the tithe for their own use. In order to do so, church authorities often refer to the verse in Hebrews which speaks about a change of the law. Having observed that Abram paid a tithe to Melchizedek, Priest of Salem (Hebrews 7:12), the author said: “there is made of necessity a change also in the law.” Some Pastors make the “error” that this change of the law was a change in who was to receive the tithe. They claim the text means the tithe is no longer to go to the Levite but to themselves.

However, this is not what the Bible is teaching. This change was not about tithing in the first place. It was a change in the Priesthood itself. Paul said that the Levitical priesthood had been “set aside” and was no longer in force (Hebrews 7:18). The only priesthood that was now valid for Christians was that of Jesus who sacrificed Himself for us. There is another point that needs to be understood.

No Christian minister or otherwise are Melchizedek priests. The Bible clearly states that this priesthood was “an unchangeable priesthood” (Hebrews 7:24); it does not pass from one to another. There was only one priest called Melchizedek. No one else can meet the conditions of holiness and righteousness to be considered a Melchizedek priest.

Indeed, only one person can possibly fill that role and he is identified as being “holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens” (Hebrews 7:26). He is also “without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abides a priest continually” (Hebrews 7:3). Melchizedek was “made like” the Son of God, though he was not a Son of God as was Christ. Christ only came in the order of Melchizedek. To be in the order of Melchizedek shows Christ representing the priest, but the priesthood itself does not pass to another person.

There is no minister, preacher, evangelist, priest or pope who has been decorated with such honors. The pretense of ministers in Christian organizations to be  Melchizedek priests and receiving the tithe of the people is outrageous. Paul made it clear the  ekklesia today has one High Priest or Mediator between them and the Father and this is Jesus. Paul said:

There is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus (1 Timothy 2:5).

So Paul made the statement that there has now been a change in the law. No longer do Christians have to give heed to the Levitical priests and the tithing laws that were associated with them. Our priest is now Christ Jesus in his role as the one mediator or the one priest who is now in heaven at the right hand of the Father. All our attention as Christians should no longer be to the Levites and their priesthood, but on Christ Jesus who is our High Priest. We do not need any other priests.

DOES JESUS WANT YOUR TITHE TODAY?

One other teaching devised to exact the tithe from the Laity is because Jesus is God. Ministers teach that Christ should receive the tithe of his people because he is “the Christ.” This may be fine, but the problem is Jesus is now in heaven. How can the members of they give tithe directly to him? Some preachers have an answer. They say that the tithe should now be given to “Christ’s representative on earth”, His “church”. This is precisely the teaching of the Popes of the Middle Ages when people were executed for not paying tithes. They think that “the Body” of Christ is serviced by the ordained ministers of the various denominations. Thus, they have authority to receive the tithe of Christians.

This may sound reasonable on the surface, but the interpretation will not work. The reason is because the “Body of Christ” represents the whole of the ekklesia, not ministers only. If the tithing rule were applied to the “Body of Christ,” it would mean that all members would be tithing right back to themselves, because all of us represent the “Body of Christ.”

The Bible states that Christians are now “priests” (1 Peter 2:5, 9 and Revelation 5:10). But these “priests” are certainly not Melchizedek priests. Only Christ is in the order of a Melchizedek priest, not His followers. But what kind of “priests” are the Christians that Peter and John were referring to? This is simple to understand. They are priests in their relationship with the rest of the unsaved world.

In Exodus 19:5–6 Israel was called “priesthood nation” to the rest of the world, and Peter and John used the same analogy that the Christians were also a “priesthood” like early Israel. This was not a type of “priesthood” to which God said people had to pay tithe. The Christians would be paying tithe to themselves. This is utter nonsense and the Apostles gave no such command. They meant the Christians were like a “priesthood” to the rest of the world as Israel had been to the rest of the Gentile world at the Exodus. The Gentiles did not pay tithe to Israel, and tithe is not expected to be paid to a Christian minister by the people of the world today. But, the Christian is to minister to the rest of the world as John said “taking nothing of the Gentiles” (3Jn.1:7).

The ekklesia is “in Christ” and has a special relationship with the Father at the present time. Paul revealed through the Holy Spirit the position each member of the ekklesia has with the Father and Christ. This new position is “seated in heavenly places with Christ” (Ephesians 2:6; Colossians 3:1). In this wonderful position all the members of the ekklesia today cannot be bound by the laws God gave for carnal men. Once you understand your position in Christ since “the revelation of the Mystery” was given by Paul there is no longer any reason to be subject to any tithing laws. For those who do not understand their position in Christ, it is also presented by the plain teaching of Paul that the biblical laws of tithing, new moons, sabbaths, holy days and all other rituals whether they are mentioned as being the holiest ceremonies for humans are no longer necessary for Christians to observe. That is because we are now “in Christ” and we have already kept all these requirements in a perfect way by our being “in Christ” from the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:3–14). We will find that being “in Christ” on a continual basis from before the world’s foundation (2 Timothy 1:9) means that Christ has been a substitute for us in fulfilling all the requirements that God the Father has placed on all mankind to perform.

CONCLUSION

The New Testament makes it clear the law with its ordinances was abolished by the sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of this we are not sacrificing animals today. The same reason we use for not sacrificing animals is also true of tithing. Tithing was, along with animal sacrificing as well as other ordinances, part of the Mosaic Law. Whatever is valid to the one is also valid to the other. The Mosaic Law became obsolete about 2000 years ago, with Christ’s sacrifice. Together with it, animal sacrifices, tithing and the other ordinances of the law also became obsolete. While can learn from the Law, it is no longer applicable.

Concerning the words of our LORD to the Pharisees, Matt.23:23, regarding their tithing of mint and anise and cumin ‘these ye ought to have done’ cannot be taken as an exception, or as proving that the law is binding for this age; for the simple reason that the present age had not yet begun, and those to whom He spoke were still under the Levitical law.

For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed. Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto me, and I will return unto you, saith the LORD of hosts. But ye said, Wherein shall we return? Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation. Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it. Malachi 3:6-10 KJV

INTRODUCTION

These verses are often cited to support tithing as applicable to Christians today and if not paid then the Christian is guilty of robbing God; does it apply to us today? Pastors are adamant in their assertion. Do they care if they are placing, Christians, God’s people, under the curse of the Law?

At the time of Malachi’s warning there were references to four tithes in the Scriptures: Abram’s, Jacob’s, Mosaic and the King’s tithe. Which one of these was being stolen? Of these the tithe going into a storehouse of the Lord was the Mosaic.

For the office of High-priest and Priest, God chose Aaron and his sons respectively and none other under the penalty of death. It is to be noted it was God’s choice, there was no volunteering. They were forbidden to take tithes of the people, but the Levites out of their tithes (inheritance), were to give the tenth portion to the Aaronites; a tithe of the tithes. So, the only tribe paying tithes to a priest was the Levite. These, together with various first-fruits according to their devotion were the part for the Priests and High Priests.

There was no law to compel the Israelite or the Levite to pay the tithe. If they refused, they were not visited by the priest to exact the tithes; they only incurred the displeasure of disobeying the orders of God and were cursed in the field. Contrary to the actions of the Popes later, they were not executed. God has His mysterious ways of motivating people “to give over into your bosom.”

PRESENT TEACHING

It is held that although Malachi was addressing the Israelites, he was scolding them for a situation similar to the one in existence today; therefore the charge of robbing God still holds if Christians withhold the tithe.

The Church tithe, practiced today, is not after the Mosaic Law but is supposedly an “eternal principle” given to Adam and his descendants by God and therefore is binding on Christians. The local Church or the Pastor is seen as the “storehouse” referred to in the text above and those who do not bring in ten per cent of their income are cursed with a curse.

By rebuking the non-tithers, the Pastor is seeking their best interest, ensuring they do not fall under the curse.

REFUTATION OF THE PRESENT TEACHING

The persons referred to in the text are not Christians.

The prophet addressed them as the sons of Jacob” and this whole nation. They are the Israelites; it is not addressed to Christians and therefore cannot be applicable to us today. The Israelites who were obligated to pay the tithe under the Mosaic Law but had not paid nor had they provided appropriate animals for the sacrifices of the Temple. Therefore, they were “cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation” (verse 9).

Some preach this as an indictment by Malachi against the Christian notwithstanding that there were no Christians in the time of Malachi. Are Christians under a curse for not tithing? Can such a curse be on Christians when non-tithing persons are saved every day? Is Jesus saving people so they can tithe? The answers to these questions are found in the first Council of the Church in Acts of the Apostles Chapter 15. I encourage you to read the entire chapter of which the following excerpt is relevant:

But there rose up certain of the sect of the Pharisees which believed, saying, that it was needful to circumcise them (Gentile who believe), and to command them to keep the law of Moses. And when there had been much disputing, Peter rose up, and said unto them, Men and brethren, ye know how that a good while ago God made choice among us, that the Gentiles by my mouth should hear the word of the gospel, and believe. And God, which knoweth the hearts, bare them witness, giving them the Holy Ghost, even as he did unto us; And put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith. Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear? But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they. Acts 15:5 – 11 KJV.

The “Pharisees who believed” desired to have the “Gentiles who believed” “keep the Law of Moses,” Notice, in this council, circumcision was a separate issue from the keeping of the Law of Moses. We will not discuss circumcision here, but will focus on the tithe, which was included in the Law of Moses (Lev. 27:30-34). Peter, in this passage, called the Law “a yoke of bondage upon the neck of the disciples…”

The Galatian disciples, whether they were Jew or Gentiles matters not, attempted to keep the Law and the Apostle Paul called them “foolish”; furthermore, he said they were not obeying the truth:

O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you? Gal. 3:1 KJV

Returning to the passage in Malachi, this tithe was not ordained for Christians in the first place!

“But ye say: Wherein shall we return?” Who is the “ye” who does not wish to return? To whom Malachi is referring? The answer is plainly given. It was those called “the sons of Jacob”; ancient Israelites existing in the time of Malachi. Verse 8: “Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me, But ye say, wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.” Who were these “robbers”? The people of Israel, “the sons of Jacob”. Malachi was scolding the robbers.

“Tithing brings a great blessing,”

For the LORD will “open you the windows of Heaven and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to hold it” (Mal. 3:10). The claim that there is a link between the works of the Law and the blessings of God. However, Christians are not blessed or cursed on the basis of tithing. The Lord said in the Sermon on the Mount, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”  (Matt. 6:33). On the contrary placing ourselves under the Law of Moses concerning tithing will bring us under its curse (Gal. 3:10).

It is claimed that Christians who do not tithe have stolen property, but we share rightful legal title to the goods we possess with Jesus Christ. This is stated in more than one place in the New Testament (Rom. 8:16-17; Gal.3:26-29; Tit.3:7).

Is the Church a storehouse?

For the shepherds have become stupid And have not sought the LORD; Therefore they have not prospered, And all their flock is scattered (Jeremiah 10:21).

The modern storehouse is seen as the Church or specifically the Pastor. The word translated as storehouse in Malachi 3:10 is also rendered “treasury of the Lord.” (See Jos. 6:24:19; 1Ki. 7:51; 14:26; 15:18; 2Ki.12:18). These storehouses existed apart from the Temple.

When the Kingdom of Israel was divided into the Northern Kingdom called Israel and the Southern Kingdom of Judah, a rival worship was setup in the Northern Kingdom by ten of the tribes. This resulted in a fall in the tithes collected by the Levites who now had only the tribes of Judah and Benjamin to collect tithes from. This decrease caused two things:

a) The Levite had to plant his own garden to survive.

b) Withholding of the tithe by the Levite from the sons of Aaron the priests. This action prompted the prophecy of Malachi against them. 

Tithing Only For the Land of Israel

Another factor that has often been overlooked concerning the biblical tithing system is it applied to those Jews who lived in the land of Canaan. Jews who lived outside the land of Canaan could not tithe; the tithe from outside places was “unholy.”

And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord’s: it is holy unto the Lord. Leviticus 27:30.

Notice, it is All the tithe of the land … is the Lord’s. It is used with regard to a specific piece of real estate (Exodus 3:8, 17) promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The term, as used in Leviticus 27:30, referred only to the land of Israel. See Leviticus 19:23; 20:2; 25:10, 18; 26:32. As the Gentile nations were not given tithing laws and had no counterpart to the Tribe of Levites, they were not instructed to tithe. The term “the land” in Leviticus 27:30 referred only to the land of Israel.

Gentile countries, on the other hand, such as Asia Minor, Greece or Italy were not allowed as lands which could tithe. The produce of those lands was considered as unclean, and unfit for the service of God, that is, it was not “holy unto God”. Alfred Edersheim said, even the very dust of heathen lands was reckoned as defiled. This is why tithe was not acceptable from these lands. The strict reading of the law demanded that the tithe come only from the land of Israel.

A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF MALACHI’S TITHES

For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them. Galatians 3:10 KJV

The curse in the text of Malachi above is the same as the curse given by Paul in Galatians 3:10 above.  Therefore, if you are trying to gain God’s blessings through the “works of the Law,” you are placing yourself under the curse of the Law. This is adequate proof that you who practice tithing as a Law or “universal principle” are the ones who are “cursed with a curse” and are not “obeying the truth.”

The two main “works of the Law” which Christians are guilty of trying to obtain the blessings of God with are tithing and sabbath keeping. The Apostle Paul warned the Galatian Christians; even though they had been redeemed from the curse of the Law they were again placing themselves under the curse so that Jesus’ Blood would avail them nothing.

Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace. Galatians 5:4 KJV

American preachers are guilty of teaching that their country is under a curse for not paying them (American preachers) the tithes! The USA is one of the richest and most bountifully blessed nations in existence at any time. While there may be other socio-economic and political problems in the USA, to claim that the nation is under a “financial curse” because they don’t pay 10% of the GDP to the Pastors and Preachers is preposterous. Yet gullible Christians in the US fall for it all the time. There is no country of the world that is cursed. The promise to Abraham was “in thy seed shall all nations of the earth be blessed.”

Thus, the nation warned by Malachi, was Israel; the keeping of the Law was national; for the entire nation. The whole nation had gathered at the foot of Mt. Sinai and made a covenant with God to keep the Law. This was the only country which owed a tithe and offerings to its priesthood. It is not any other country in the world past or present.

The nations of this world do not owe their priests ten per cent of their GDP, not the US, not Britain and not my country. Therefore, this scolding by Malachi, for their failure to pay tithe, and in not bringing appropriate animal sacrifices for the service of the Temple at Jerusalem, was exclusive to the nation of Israel in the time of Malachi, early fourth century B.C. It cannot be applied to any other people.

Verse 7 says “From the days of your fathers…”

This is proof that the tithe, spoken of, is not an eternal principle, but was only from the days of their fathers. God said He was robbed. Can we determine when and who robbed Him? Yes we can. Malachi’s use of the past tense, robbed, informs us it was not Christians, but the people he was addressing who had robbed God in the past. The paragraph is not a prophecy of Christians robbing God sometime in the future, but of the sons of Jacob, robbing God in the past.

The current teaching ignores the passage of time between Malachi’s warning and the Christian era to present.

The application of this warning was only until the cross; after this the believer in Christ has victory over the Devourer and his curses. If this scripture is applied to Christians today, then anyone reading it is guilty of “robbing God”, whether you pay tithes or not! God is pro-active on our behalf; Jesus is not waiting to see if we pay tithes to rebuke the devourer. He is already victorious over him. Anyone in Christ has the benefit of that total victory freely, without tithing. When Pastors turn your attention away from Jesus’ victory to tithing as a source of protection they take your eyes of Jesus and place you under the curse.

Tithing brings fear, tension and confusion upon its practitioners.

 Every Church practicing and preaching tithing, on the basis of Malachi 3:10, is riddled with fear, tension, and spiritual confusion. They are afraid of “robbing God” or afraid of the devourer destroying their livelihood. Now, fear and confusion is not from God. Those who teach tithing from Malachi 3:10 makes the Bible contradict itself. In Malachi, the tithe is the same as the Mosaic tithe (3:7). Ministers use this passage of scripture to accuse Christians who don’t tithe of robbing God and keeping stolen property. Some think the Early Church exempted the Gentiles from the Law, but they had no power to exempt anyone from the Law. The Gentiles were never under the Law and thus were never under Malachi’s curse (Mal.3:10).

The tithe discussed by Malachi is the grain and the animal tithe of the Mosaic Law.

The prophet was speaking about food, not money. The storehouses were located in the 48 cities of the Levites all over Israel and there was one in the temple at Jerusalem as well. The storehouse at Jerusalem was built by King Hezekiah (2Chronicles 31:4–10). It was for the King’s Tithe (1 Sam. 8:11-19). He then ordered to bring the tithe of the agricultural produce into the storehouse—and the people brought such abundance that the Levites had to lay it up in heaps. Hezekiah then had chambers made in the Temple to hold the surplus. They held grain, not money, they were not banks.

Malachi was a Prophet and therefore had an interest in those storehouses being full. He was also speaking on behalf of the Priests, Levites, Prophets, the poor, the fatherless, widows, strangers to have their food in the House of God. These people were fed from the “meat” in the Lord’s house. Malachi, desired the grain produce to be tithed and put in the storehouse so these people (mentioned before) would not starve or have to beg from the very people who were withholding the tithe. The tithe of the tithes which was required by law (Deuteronomy 12:6) was supposed to be sent only to the Temple at Jerusalem.

A similar situation to Malachi’s is in the thirteenth chapter of Nehemiah, a contemporary of Malachi:

“And I perceived that the portions of the Levites had not been given them; so that the Levites and the singers, that did the work, were fled every one to his field. Then contended I with the rulers, and said: Why is the house of God forsaken? And I gathered them together, and set them in their place. Then brought all Judah the tithe of the corn and the new wine and the oil unto the treasuries (storehouses).” Nehemiah 13:10–12

In the time of Nehemiah and Malachi, after the captivity, while the country was being restored there were food shortages and much poverty in Israel (Neh. 5:2–6). It was in relieving that bad environment that the prophet Malachi promised the Jewish people a help from God. But the country was in bad shape after being uncultivated for more than 70 years while the people were captive at Babylon, the land was recovering from a curse. But Malachi promised the Jews in Palestine a relief. If they would turn from the evil ways, they were to have abundance (Malachi 3:10).

“And I will rebuke the devourer for your good, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your land; neither shall your vine cast its fruit before the time in the field, saith the Lord of hosts” Malachi 3:11.

CONCLUSION

Preachers accuse Christians of not paying the Mosaic tithe and insisting they are under a curse if they don’t, have not perceived that receiving the tithe which God gave to the Levite is also robbing God and they are under the same curse.

Some of this may have shocked you; it did shock me when I did the study, but I have not presented anything debatable. These are all revealed in the Word of God and corroborated by history. Many preachers and evangelists know these facts [if they don’t, they should not be preaching about tithes], but they keep their people in the dark because they also believe the people would not fund their churches if they were aware to these facts. But all persons ought to know the truth of the Bible.

A clear understanding of the Biblical Laws of tithing is necessary to understand this warning of the Prophet Malachi to “the sons of Jacob”. It will also give you needed insight on how far Preachers and Pastors advocating a tithing system for Christians have departed from the simple truth which is in Christ Jesus. Their arrogance, carelessness and mishandling of God’s Word and resources when taking out of context the teachings is apparent.

People, with what some preachers regard as the wrong view of tithing, are still greatly blessed according to their faith and the Grace of God. God’s Grace is not sufficient for those who want to live under tithing laws and principles. Does God care for tithe, and not people? Would He curse His children if they did not give Him money?

THE END

INTRODUCTION

Have you wondered why Israel did not pay tithes during the 40 years of wandering in the desert?

The tithe of the Old Covenant, Mosaic Law, was connected to the land promised to Abram’s seed. As a result there was no tithing during the 40 years in the wilderness for this area fell outside the boundaries of the Promise Land. This is logical because no tribe had yet an inheritance and the Levites who were given the tithes of the other Tribes as their inheritance could not be given their inheritance before there was any inheritance from which to tithe.

The nature of the tithe demanded Israel’s presence in the Land. According to Deuteronomy 12:10-11 the statutes and judgments concerning the tithe were  not to take effect until Israel was in the land, and were to be observed as long as Israel stayed in the land.

For the office of High-priest and Priest, God chose Aaron and his sons respectively and none other under the penalty of death. It is to be noted, it was God’s choice, and there was no volunteering. They were forbidden to take tithes of the people, but the Levites out of their tithes, were to give the tenth portion to the Aaronites; a tithe of the tithes. So, the only tribe actually paying tithes was the tribe of Levi.

In the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates: The Kenites, and the Kenizzites, and the Kadmonites, And the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Rephaims, And the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Girgashites, and the Jebusites. Gen.15:18-21

But when ye go over Jordan, and dwell in the land which the LORD your God giveth you to inherit, and when he giveth you rest from all your enemies round about, so that ye dwell in safety; Then there shall be a place which the LORD your God shall choose to cause his name to dwell there; thither shall ye bring all that I command you; your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, your tithes, and the heave offering of your hand, and all your choice vows which ye vow unto the LORD: Deuteronomy 12:10-11 KJV

Leviticus 27:30-32 is the only place in scripture where the tithe is explained. This passage explains the tithe as the tenth part of the crops and the fruit of the land, and the tenth animal to pass under the rod. Tithing, therefore, was only on the increase of the crops, herd or flock of the farmer. For instance, if a farmer’s flock increased by 15 lambs during the year, the first lamb would be given to the priest as first-fruit and the tenth lamb would be the tithe. Therefore, his tithe to the Levite would be one lamb. If he had a hundred new lambs, the tithe would still be one lamb, the tenth (See my Blog on ‘What is Tithing’).

Tithes or tithing began amongst the Jews in the time of Moses and meant the tenth part in Israel was given by God to the Levites as an inheritance. This was not for priestly duties for these were carried out by Aaron and his sons. It was not for preaching or teaching the word of God, but for an inheritance. I reiterate, it was not tithes but an inheritance of the Levites.

PRESENT TEACHING OF MOSAIC TITHES

The tithe is perceived as a universal eternal principle established by God as provision for His Ministers of the Gospel. In particular, it is was not an ‘inheritance for the Levite but is mandatory of every individual to pay the tithe for the upkeep of the Church and the Ministers’ salary.  It is binding on all persons all over the world at all times. This eternal universal principle, God gave to Adam in the Garden of Eden and codified in the Mosaic Law.

The tenth is a “fraction” (or 10%). It is not an “ordinal number”. Some interpret the scripture as saying there are three tithes; one each for the Levite (Minister), the poor and the upkeep of the temple.

This, together with various first-fruits according to their devotion are taught as being binding on all Christians. Most churches accept money only as tithes. The tithe could be exchanged for money, justifies the acceptance of money alone as tithes. God must receive His portion first before any other expenditure for yourself. This is so on the basis of “seek ye first the Kingdom of God…”

REFUTATION OF THE CURRENT TEACHING

The Mosaic Law was given to the ancient Israelite only.

Who are Israelites; to whom pertaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises; Romans 9:4 KJV

The law was specific and defined the tithe to Israel. It was not universal, and only applied to the Land of Israel. The law was not given to other countries. The law allowed for freewill offerings but they were not the ma’aser and were not called ma’aser. The law was not divisible into units or parts and was referred to as such by Jesus and the Apostles and indeed by all Jews. Some mischievous persons have insisted on extracting only tithing as mandatory on Christians. The New Testament makes it clear that if you place yourself under any part of the law then you are obligated to fulfil the whole law. A little leaven, leavens the whole lump.

The Mosaic Law was not universal.

The poor the fatherless, widows, orphans, and strangers did not pay tithe, but instead received from the tithe. Jesus did not tithe because He was poor (2Cor.8:9). Only the landowners, and herdsmen and shepherds paid the tithe. In addition, the tithe could only be given to the Levites. It must be noted that Aaron and his sons who were the Priests and High Priests were also Levites. To give it to someone of another tribe was a grave sin.

The things tithed crops and animals also came from God or His works, not from the labor of man. Although he did not collect a tithe from the Corinthians, Paul observed this same principle in making the collection of food for the saints at Jerusalem during the famine in the time of Claudius Caesar (1Cor. 16:2).

After the exile, the country was subdivided into three different zones of “holiness” by Ezra and Nehemiah. Only tithes from the “most holy land-zone” could be brought to the temple. Tithes from lesser holy land zones within Israel could provide for local synagogues and the poor, but could not be brought to Jerusalem.

In the time of Jesus, Galilee, where the people sat in darkness, did not take their tithes to Jerusalem. However, since even the “dust” from pagan Gentile lands defiled, it is certain that no temple tithe could come from “defiled” ground. (Alfred Edersheim – Sketches of Jewish Social Life).

How many tithes; one, two, three or six?

And thou shalt eat before the LORD thy God, in the place which he shall choose to place his name there, the tithe of thy corn, of thy wine, and of thine oil, and the firstlings of thy herds and of thy flocks; that thou mayest learn to fear the LORD thy God always. And if the way be too long for thee, so that thou art not able to carry it; or if the place be too far from thee, which the LORD thy God shall choose to set his name there, when the LORD thy God hath blessed thee: Then shalt thou turn it into money, and bind up the money in thine hand, and shalt go unto the place which the LORD thy God shall choose: And thou shalt bestow that money for whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or for strong drink, or for whatsoever thy soul desireth: and thou shalt eat there before the LORD thy God, and thou shalt rejoice, thou, and thine household, Deuteronomy 14:23-26 KJV

This passage was addressed to the Levites concerning the tithe of the tithes which he had received. He had to take it to Jerusalem and give it to the Priests (Sons of Aaron) who served in the Temple. If the way was too far for him to travel with the produce and the animals, he could convert the “tithe of the tithes” into money and take the money to Jerusalem. However, he could not give the money to the Priests, he had then, to convert the money into produce and give it to the Priest.

The Levites “take a tithe of the people according to the law, that is, of their brethren,” (Heb.7:5). This verse shows there was only one tithe. The phrase, “The tithe is the Lord’s” shows there was no tithing before the law was given. If there was, the language would have been “A tithe.” However this is not a grammatical law and does not necessarily mean any of the foregoing. But, “The Law” means there was only one law of tithe and it was the law enacted in Lev.27. A law means that there are other laws.

The tithing laws as given in Leviticus was to the generation of Israelites that came out of Egypt. This is the actual law concerning tithes. The law in Numbers and Deuteronomy is the same law being expounded by Moses approximately forty years later to the new generation of Israelites about to enter the Promised Land. Some Pastors have been mistakenly calling the tithe of Numbers and Deuteronomy a second and third tithe respectively. This is a grave error.

The scripture is clear there was one tithe; the tithe of the field, herd and flock. This was the only tithe. Some see a second tithe in Numbers 18:1-32; however, a careful reading shows that Moses is explaining to the Levites and Aaronites how to organize the Priesthood. Verse 24-32 explains to the Levite how to take the tithe of the people but it is the same tithe of Lev. 27:30-34. That it is addressed to the Levite (Aaron and Sons were also Levites) is evident by the following paragraph:

And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, thus speak unto the Levites, and say unto them, When ye take of the children of Israel the tithes which I have given you from them for your inheritance, then ye shall offer up an heave offering of it for the LORD, even a tenth part of the tithe. And this your heave offering shall be reckoned unto you, as though it were the corn of the threshing floor, and as the fulness of the winepress. Thus ye also shall offer an heave offering unto the LORD of all your tithes, which ye receive of the children of Israel; and ye shall give thereof the LORD’S heave offering to Aaron the priest. Out of all your gifts ye shall offer every heave offering of the LORD, of all the best thereof, even the hallowed part thereof out of it. Therefore thou shalt say unto them, When ye have heaved the best thereof from it, then it shall be counted unto the Levites as the increase of the threshingfloor, and as the increase of the winepress. And ye shall eat it in every place, ye and your households: for it is your reward for your service in the tabernacle of the congregation. And ye shall bear no sin by reason of it, when ye have heaved from it the best of it: neither shall ye pollute the holy things of the children of Israel, lest ye die. Numbers 18:25-32 KJV

So the Levites were to give the tenth of their tithes as a heave offering to the Aaronites or Priests. Some see a third tithe in Deutronomy 12. But this is the second reading of the Law by Moses to the new generation of people who were to go in and inherit the land. The people seeing the second and third tithes are those who collect tithes; some see as much as six tithes, but these seers are all collectors of tithes.

It is not a third tithe, but another statement of the same tithe of Lev.27:32-34. Forty years had passed since the first reading of the law and all that generation which had come out of Egypt had died, except Caleb and Joshua. Moses was reading and explaining the same Law to this new generation who would inherit the land. Furthermore, three tithes do not equal a tenth.

To offer a tithe of money was a grave sin.

By demanding a “money tithe” of man’s labor, Church leaders have removed the tithe from God’s blessing to man’s achievement. In the modern church man has replaced God with himself.

Any wage earner was not to tithe. Jesus was a carpenter and so was not required to tithe. A wage did not involve any increase from God. Peter, James and John did not tithe, they were fishermen and the tithe was of the land of Canaan, not the waters. Other non-tithing occupations included bakers, candle makers, carpenters, clothing makers, hired farm workers, hired shepherds and herdsmen, hired household servants, jewelry makers, craftsmen, masons, metal workers, musicians, physicians, soldiers, tanners, teachers, tent makers, fishermen and many more. All these could be classified as wage earners and it is to be noted that their income involved no increase from God or increase of the overall GDP of the Theocracy, but were merely transfers of income from one person to another. This illustrates that the tithe was a tax; it was not a gift. Freewill gifts were voluntary expressions of love for God coming from the heart:

The tithe could not be used for the development of the Sanctuary

 And when ye will offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving unto the LORD, offer it at your own will. Leviticus 22:29 KJV.

In Exodus 25 we have an account of a freewill offering:

And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring me an offering: of every man that giveth it willingly with his heart ye shall take my offering. And this is the offering which ye shall take of them; gold, and silver, and brass, And blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen, and goats’ hair, And rams’ skins dyed red, and badgers’ skins, and shittim wood, Oil for the light, spices for anointing oil, and for sweet incense, Onyx stones, and stones to be set in the ephod, and in the breastplate. And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them. According to all that I shew thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make it. Exodus 25:1-9 KJV See also 35:4-29.

We notice, an offering for the development of the sanctuary was freewill, and those who gave, all gave the same amount. The giving continued until the people had to be stopped (Ex. 36:3-7). This was a type (preview) of the age we now live in; people give more than is required so Pastors are able to drive around in fancy cars and jet planes. Grace always outperforms law, greedy pastors and those who preach the law know not this. They never have enough for the work of God, but always want more for themselves.

Notice, also  the tithes could not be used for the development of the sanctuary for it was the inheritance of the Levites.

Status of Mosaic Tithe Today

For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope. Romans 15:4

Whatever is written in the Bible about ancient time, history, poetry or laws, has been written for our learning. We may educate ourselves by reading Genesis or Deuteronomy; Matthew, Mark, or Malachi or any other writer; all was written for our learning, but not all was written for our application. The Bible speaks to three different groups of people in Biblical times,

Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God: 1Cor 10:32.

The church of God is made up of Jews and Gentiles. The Old Testament is addressed to Jews that were living under the law. Jesus Christ had not yet come. The price for the atonement of our sins had not yet been paid. The Savior had not yet arrived and there was no church as yet. As Paul says,

But before faith came, we (Jews, for the Galatians were never under the law) were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster. For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. Galatians 3:23-26.

There was the time before the sacrifice and resurrection of our Lord, the period of the law. And there is the time after the sacrifice and resurrection of the Lord, the time that we live in now. There are vast differences between these two periods, because what was valid in the first period, the law, is no longer valid in the second period. And what is valid in the second period – grace and being children of God through faith in Jesus Christ – although available in the first period was not the method of salvation.

Can we learn from what was valid in the first period?

 Definitely we can. Do we apply it in our lives? Not necessarily. You can read the Psalms and the Proverbs and get guidance for your life today. It is God’s eternal wisdom that crosses time. On the other hand, you can go to law-specific passages, such as the passages concerning tithes, or the passages about the sacrificing of bulls or the celebrations they had in Israel; although you can learn about Jesus from these passages, they are not applicable to us for practicing. The same is valid for all that refers to Mosaic Law, for the simple reason that this law came to an end with Christ’s sacrifice on the cross.

For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believeth. Rom.10:4 KJV.

Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; Ephesians 2:15 KJV.

Seeing then that we have such hope, we use great plainness of speech: And not as Moses, which put a vail over his face, that the children of Israel could not stedfastly look to the end of that which is abolished: 2 Corinthians 3:12-13 KJV.

It is similar to reading the code of laws which are no longer valid in your country. You can learn from them but they are not to be applied, for they are obsolete. The reader is advised to read a book on daily life in Bible times and you will find the dozens of trades skills and varied income earning activities which were not tithed; because they had nothing to do with the Levite or the Land.

A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF THE MOSAIC TITHES.

Do Jews today tithe?

When thou hast made an end of tithing all the tithes of thine increase the third year, which is the year of tithing, and hast given it unto the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, that they may eat within thy gates, and be filled; Deuteronomy 26:12 KJV.

But unto the place which the LORD your God shall choose out of all your tribes to put his name there, even unto His habitation shall ye seek, and thither thou shalt come: And thither ye shall bring your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, and your tithes, and heave offerings of your hand, and your vows, and your freewill offerings, and the firstlings of your herds and of your flocks: .Deut.12:5-6 KJV.

Israelites are more knowledgeable about the law than Christians. The majority know that all the tenth was given by God to the Levites, because they have the Pentateuch for their Scripture and so it commands. The persons and the place where the tithes were taken and given to were named in the Law.

Now, there is no Temple in Jerusalem equipped with Levites or Priests serving; two major factors in fulfilling the laws of tithing do not exist; so Jews do not tithe.

The Bible commands the Jew to pay the tithe to Levites. It would be wrong to pay it to anyone else.  At present, there exists no official Levitical order of Priests ministering at a Temple in Jerusalem. This makes it illegal to pay any biblical tithe to anyone else at any other place. However, if a Temple is rebuilt in Jerusalem, with the Levites and the Priests in attendance, every Jew who lives in the tithing zones of the Land of Canaan will be required to tithe according to the biblical commands. To pay the biblical tithe at present, without Levites and Priests in their ordained offices serving in the Temple, amounts to breaking the commandments and both the giver and the receiver would be guilty of a grave sin.

In all this there was no law to compel the Israelite or the Levite to pay the tithe. If they refused, they were not visited by the priest to exact the tithes; they only incurred the displeasure of disobeying the orders of God and were cursed in the field. Contrary to the actions of the Popes later, they were not executed. God has His mysterious ways of motivating other people “to give over into your bosom” (Luke 6:38).

 Thus, if Jews are to obey the law, they cannot pay tithe unless they pay it to those ordained by God to receive the tithe. If you are not descended from the tribe of Levi, then you are not eligible to receive tithe. The same applied even to Jesus while he was on earth since he was of the tribe of Judah and also to the Apostles Peter and Paul. Neither Christ nor those apostles were Levites so they were all disqualified from receiving any part of the biblical tithe.

God’s special Promised Land was the land of Canaan. Israel’s holy inheritance was only the land of Canaan. Whereas the eleven tribes divided this holy land into twelve (or thirteen, Joseph was given two) sections, the inheritance of the Levite was the tithe from the land in Canaan.

The Levites were not given territorial lands like other tribes. They were allotted forty eight cities among the other tribes to dwell and could earn a living. They received a reasonable amount of acreage to cultivate when they were not serving in the tabernacle. Not all the Levites were called upon to serve at the same time but they were divided into orders and a particular Levite may be called upon to serve once or twice during a year. They also provided other services to the community.

Tithes were the inheritance of the Tribe of Levi

“And the Lord spoke unto Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho saying: Command the children of Israel, that they give unto the Levites of the inheritance of their possession cities to dwell in; and open land round about the cities shall ye give unto the Levites. And the cities shall they have to dwell in; and their open land shall be for their cattle, and for their substance, and for all their beasts.” Numbers 35:1–3

God provided the Levites the means by which to live without being totally dependent upon the tithe. The Levites that received tithe were those who attended the service of the Tabernacle. At other times they had to earn their own living within the cities and lands allotted them. The Levites were expected to work for their livelihood like any other normal citizen within the community of Israel.

This is why the Levites were provided with open lands surrounding the cities. These facts show that the Levites did not live solely off the tithe of the other tribes. In no way was this true. The Levites had to work for their living as anyone else. The tithe was to support the Levite only when he was engaged in the service of the Tabernacle (Deuteronomy 18:6–8).

Moreover, God was quite concerned that the Levitical lands remain within the tribe of Levi perpetually: “But the fields of the open land about their cities may not be sold; for that is their perpetual possession” (Leviticus 25:34).

What the Israelites received in return for the tithe.

Though the Levites were scattered throughout the land of Israel, there was only one place in the land where they could assist in the service of the Tabernacle (and later, the Temple). When Israel got the possession of the Land of Canaan, they set up the Tabernacle first at Shiloh and later in the time of Solomon it was finally moved to Jerusalem where the portable structure was abandoned for the permanent Temple. But the greater number of the Levites did not perform services in the Temple; the building was simply too small for all of them to work there. Most Levites performed duties in other employments within the nation of Israel. The occupations of the Levites were in what is called professional fields today. Moses expected this to be the case.

They were ordained to be teachers of the nation (Deuteronomy 24:8; 33:10; 2 Chronicles 35:3; Nehemiah8:7). 

They also represented many of the judges of the land, and in the time of Ezra they were the sole members of the Sanhedrin — the Supreme Court of the nation (Deuteronomy 17:8–9; 21:5; 1 Chronicles 23:4; 2 Chronicles 19:8; Ezekiel 44:15, 24).

Most medical services were in their care (Leviticus 13:2, 14:2; Luke 17:14).

They were professional singers and musicians (1 Chronicles 25:1–31; 2 Chronicles 5:12; 34:12).

Producers of books and librarians were almost exclusively Levites (2 Chronicles 34:13).

This indicates the tithe was not only for religious purposes.

And while the ordinary Israelite gave his tithe every third year to the Levites (and the destitute), look at the services he got besides the management of the Temple. Israel got teachers for their children, physicians for their ills, scribes, musicians, singers, judges, and law enforcement officers. A part of their tithe even went to support a type of social security service every third and sixth year for the destitute.  It was to support the educational, cultural, health and law enforcement agencies as our taxes do today. All Israel benefitted from their tithing system. Today, however, only the clergy benefits. The “tithe payer” gets only the sole responsibility of supporting his church’s administration and that’s it.

This law was intended for a particular people at a particular time.

The tithe laws necessitated a society based on agriculture and animal husbandry. The laws also demand a community which necessarily had to set its own laws: Capital punishment, for instance, formed part of this system; obviously we know that we can’t just lift this out of the Old Covenant and claim that the Church should be practicing it! In like manner, tithing presumed an economy with no currency with only flocks, herds and crops. So, again I ask, why just lift tithing out of this system, a system which Hebrews 8:13 plainly tells is now obsolete?

CONCLUSION

Again, tithing was part of the Old Covenant concept of a holy inheritance. It is unscriptural to separate tithing from the Holy Land from which it came. This would be analogous to applying the Laws of a foreign country to the United States of America or another country.

This tithe was not a fraction, but an ordinal number, ‘the tenth’. It was the tenth animal or bushel (one animal or bushel) and could not be exchanged for any other, the ninth, or eleventh etc.

The items to be tithed came from God’s hand, not the sweat of man’s face. Increases due to man’s labor were not required to tithe. God is the owner of the heavens and all the earth (Genesis 14:19, 22), but this is not the reason for the tithe nor is the Mosaic tithe concerned with the whole world. If Jesus, Peter and Paul did not use the Mosaic tithe to fund their Ministries, Christian ministers today, as well ought not to use the Biblical tithe. The Jewish leaders of today respect the statements of Word of God about the tithe, but Preachers and Pastors have no respect and have made their own legislation which are at variance with the Biblical.

END

The manner of tithing, as described by Moses Maimonides, was this:

“He [the owner] gathers all the lambs and all the calves into a field, and makes a little door to it, so that two cannot go out at once; and he places their dams without, and they bleat, so that the lambs hear their voice, and go out of the fold to meet them, as it is said, whatsoever passeth under the rod: for it must pass of itself, and not be brought out by his hand; and when they go out of the fold, one after another, he begins and counts them with the rod: one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, and the tenth that goes out, whether male or female, whether perfect or blemished, he marks it with a red mark, and says, ‘This is the tithe.'” (Hilchot Becorot, c. 6, sect. I; from Gill’s Exposition on Lev. 27:32.)

INTRODUCTION

“Tis ridiculous to say, the tithes are God’s part, and therefore the clergy must have them; why? so they are (God’s) if the laity has them.” (John Selden).

Defining the modern Church’s tithe is very elusive. However, as a believer, writer and former practitioner I have made the following observation: The majority of organizations practice a mandatory tithe, few practice voluntary tithing.

According to this view, tithing is to pay 10 % of your money income to the church you attend and are “spiritually fed.” Opinions vary as to whether the income is gross or after tax. It is a grave sin to withhold the tithe, that of robbing God. The scripture used to validate this is Malachi 3:8-12.

Merriam-Webster Online dictionary gives us the modern meaning of tithe: a tenth part of something paid as a voluntary contribution or as a tax, especially for the support of the clergy. This meaning has been the same since 1994.

THE PRESENT TEACHING

The modern Church system divides the congregation into “clergy” and “laity” for tithing.

The clergy is the church hierarchy of leaders who receive tithes while the laity pays.

It is the duty of the clergy to instruct the laity how to cheerfully pay the tithes.

The doctrine of monetary tithing to maintain the clergy is unquestionable.

The laity must be taught to recognize that buildings, programs and educating instructors, ‘cost money.’

There is little objection by the laity as making a contribution from their income towards the financing of the organizations spiritually feeding them is seen as good, right and proper.

However, it is not always presented this way, rather the introduction to tithing of new believers is gradual and very subtle.

They are taught that God has ordained a system of priesthood or leadership in the Church to which their submission is expected.

In addition, it is the divine right of this priesthood to be financed by tithes, first fruits, offerings and any other regular demands. The tithe, therefore, is not just a suggested amount, rather it is said to be the command of God given to Adam in Eden to pass on to all generations. Therefore, Christians are to pay tithes according to this universal law implicit in the Bible.

Many leaders in the clergy soften the legalistic form of this requirement by presenting various passages of Scripture as if the verses agreed with this teaching. They say people should be gracious in giving of their tithes.

Many Pastors use the verses from Malachi to announce that not bringing the “tithes and offerings” to the house of God, is an unpardonable sin which separates people from their “blessings”. The problem of using the above passage and other similar Old Testament passages, to support the application of tithing is these passages and the Law behind it belong to the Israelite. The Law is a part of the Holy Scriptures inspired of God, but not for that purpose.

LIMITATIONS OF THE PRESENT TEACHING

Today’s Church tithing is not the same as the Biblical.

You cannot give something you owe; you can only pay it. The supporters of tithing claim it is  a condition to entering into the Kingdom. It is not enough to be born again, but you must also pay your way.

Biblical tithing was of the “land, the flocks and the herds.” Money income was never tithed.

Tithing is not Good Works or Righteousness.

If all redemption, protection and blessing depend on the tithing of money income, then what good to us is the righteousness we have been given as a gift?

The righteousness which tithing bring to us isn’t good for anything.

If failure to tithe makes me a robber of God then all of my righteousness depends on tithing; it matters not what kind of righteousness is imputed to me by Jesus, I am still an unrighteous man and I cannot be saved.

The Blood of Jesus will do me no good, even though it washes all my other sins away. I still need to tithe so that all of my righteousness and consequently all of my salvation depends on my paying tithes.

This doctrine is nowhere to be found in the Bible; yet it is taught all over the world in churches.

Tithing causes a type of mental bias when studying the Bible.

The modern tithe payer tends to search the Word of God for “financial principles” to practice in order to gain His favor. These principles set aside the plain meaning of the Scriptures and substitute personal assumptions about money and riches.

A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF THE TITHE

And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the LORD’S: it is holy unto the LORD… And concerning the tithe of the herd, or of the flock, even of whatsoever passeth under the rod, the tenth (animal) shall be holy unto the LORD. Leviticus 27:30-32 KJV

In all of God’s Word, Leviticus 27 is the Chapter where the Biblical Tithe is defined. The Levites were the only persons who were permitted to “take a tithe” of the rest of Israel. It was their inheritance in the land.

The persons who they took the tithe from were:

1. Farmers who planted grain and certain fruits.

2. Shepherds who owned flocks and herds; animals whose blood could be sprinkled on the altar and burnt. It is notable that money wages (income) was not tithed for this did not represent an increase in goods.

It has been observed, there is no Hebrew word in the Old Testament which can be translated tithe. Yet, the Hebrew word ma’aser or ma’asar is translated tithe, an archaic English word for tenth even in modern English versions of the Bible. Note: (To avoid confusing my readers, I will continue to use the word tithe. The reader, however, should remember it means “the tenth” and not 10%.)

In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, when this word was translated tithe, the assumption was made that such a thing as tithing existed in Bible times. This is evident since the same Hebrew word, ma’aser is translated as “tenth” elsewhere in the Scripture (Num.18:21, 26; Eze.45:11, 14) where the context has nothing to do with tithes.

To add to the confusion, there is also another Hebrew word translated tithe, aw-sar (Deut.14:22; Neh.10:37, 38). Aw-sar too is translated “tenth” and “tenth part.”

The actual English equivalent of ma’aser is the tenth. It is translated as tithe in some places in the Old Testament and as tenth or tenth part. I wish to emphasize, the ma’aser is not the equivalent of ten percent, but the tenth.

Ma’aser as used in the Bible indicated an ordinal number not a mathematical percentage. It does not equate with ten percent. It means the tenth bushel, or the tenth animal and is different from the sixth or eighth bushel or lamb. In Lev. 27:33 it was forbidden to exchange any other for the tenth indicating their difference.

For example, if a sheep farmer had fifty lambs born in the year, how many animals did he give the Levite? Five is incorrect! One is correct! He gave the tenth lamb passing under the rod. He could not exchange it for the 11^th or 12^th.

The manner of tithing, as described by Moses Maimonides, was this:

“He [the owner] gathers all the lambs and all the calves into a field, and makes a little door to it, so that two cannot go out at once; and he places their dams without, and they bleat, so that the lambs hear their voice, and go out of the fold to meet them, as it is said, whatsoever passeth under the rod: for it must pass of itself, and not be brought out by his hand; and when they go out of the fold, one after another, he begins and counts them with the rod: one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, and the tenth that goes out, whether male or female, whether perfect or blemished, he marks it with a red mark, and says, ‘This is the tithe.'” (Hilchot Becorot, c. 6, sect. I; from Gill’s Exposition on Lev. 27:32.)

The origins of the modern tithe

The modern concept of tithing originated not with Abraham or Moses or the Bible, but is of England as the word itself. It was imposed on the Bible in the translation of the Scriptures into English during the 16th and 17th centuries. The English word tithe was assigned a special spiritual meaning, however this is not so in the Hebrew Old Testament.

Where Lev.27:30 said, “the tithe of the land”, should have been rendered “the tenth of the land”. This means the tithe was in relation to a specific country, the Promised Land.

The Israelites were not required to tithe in the land of Goshen or while wandering in the wilderness of Sinai because these places were not specified in the Law. Although, they had animal and grain produce, as well as money in Goshen and Sinai, they did not pay tithe.

The tithe was not imposed on persons.

It was imposed on the increase of animal, grain and fruit produce of the land; the things God gave to them. We may plant and water but it is God who gives the increase.

The Apostles’ instructions are contrary to the tithe.

1Tim.5:8 tell us to provide for our immediate family and our relatives before providing for others. If everyone followed this there would be no want in the world. You should provide for your family and relatives first before giving to the Church. Many preachers teach that you should first give to God and the way to give to God is to give to the Church.

Compare this with Matt. 25:42-45, we give to Jesus by feeding the hungry, giving to the poor, etc. Nowhere in the Bible does it say that giving to the Church is giving to Him.

This practice of extracting a percentage of someone’s income is considered unprofessional and unethical in the world of business.

It involves charging an open ended fee for a definite service. For example, if your income amounts to $100 US per week, you pay a $10 tithe. If someone else, in your church, income is $200 he will pay double the amount for the same “spiritual food”.

This is considered unethical by the unsaved businessmen but is considered a blessing by Pastors.

The modern Church tithe is debt or tax.

It is incurred by being saved; so that Jesus is saving people so they can support the clergy by paying this tax.

Tithing is LAW.

It has nothing to do with the Grace of God!

It sets aside the teachings of Jesus and institute the teachings of men using their cleverness as a way of rejecting God’s teachings to uphold the “traditions of men.” The universal law of tithing, untold to and unknown by Adam in the Garden of Eden is nothing but the traditions of men.

CONCLUSION

Money income was not tithed as in our Church today.

It is a curiosity, but God gave no currency to Israel, possibly because they were not to trade with the surrounding Canaanites. Many hundreds of years before Israel was given the Law, the concept of money was known in Canaan; money was used by Abraham to purchase a cave to bury Sarah. I believe it is an error to exalt tithing of money as the most important thing in the New Covenant.

While it is made of paramount importance in the preaching of some ministers, it was only a small part of the Mosaic Law. It is not a part of the Abrahamic Covenant nor is it a part of the New Covenant as established by Jesus Christ. It was only a part of the Mosaic financial system to provide an inheritance for the Levites. There were many other gifts, sacrifices, freewill offerings and ordinances that were included in the Mosaic system. To simply pluck tithing, and a mangled form of it, out of the system is wrong and inaccurate.

 And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew it not. And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven. And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put for his pillows, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it. And he called the name of that place Bethel: but the name of that city was called Luz at the first. And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, So that I come again to my father’s house in peace; then shall the LORD be my God: And this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God’s house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee. Genesis 28:10-22

And Jacob went out from Beersheba, and went toward Haran. And he lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was set; and he took of the stones of that place, and put them for his pillows, and lay down in that place to sleep. And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it. And, behold, the LORD stood above it, and said, I am the LORD God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.

INTRODUCTION

Have you vowed to return a tenth of all you are blessed to God? As we have seen my blog on the History of Tithes, Jacob tithes was the least amount a person could pay because of the limitations of counting in those days. A tenth was the smallest part known. Jacob was offering to God the least amount he could imagine. This was consistent with his character as the sup-planter.

The conception is also suspicious. The idea is: if you pay God a “tenth”, He will bless you; or its converse, if God has already blessed you then you should return a “tenth” to Him to be assured of future blessing. The only other mention of a tenth of something before Jacob’s tenth was Abraham’s, and as we have seen this was a one-time tenth given of the spoils of war. Further, we notice this is Jacob, the sup-planter, before he wrestled with God, had his “Jabbok experience” and name changed to Israel. This tithe appears to be a mere promise on the part of Jacob, which he had no intention of fulfilling.

PRESENT TEACHING

Although there is no scriptural record showing Jacob ever carried out his vow, preachers sometimes insist that he knew of and was following an eternal principle laid down by God in the Garden of Eden.

LIMITATIONS OF THE PRESENT TEACHING

The Bible clearly states “Jacob vowed a vow…,” (v.20) yet preachers and ministers insist Jacob made a covenant with God. A vow is voluntary. A vow is not a covenant; a covenant is initiated by God. Neither Jacob nor any other man has standing on which to initiate a covenant with God since cutting a covenant with God required the death of the testator. Even if Jacob made a covenant, its duration could only be for as long as Jacob was alive and was not binding on the rest of humanity. All of the Biblical covenants were initiated by Jehovah, while men like Jacob and Jephthah only vowed rash vows.

Careful reading of the paragraph reveals he was motivated by fear, rather than the faith of his grandfather and father, Abraham and Isaac.

There was no faith to be counted as “righteousness”, but he is driven by greed and did not take God at his word, but attached his own conditions to the promises of God. He bargained with God on the basis of his fears and unbelief.

Those who tithe as a means of getting things from God are following Jacob’s carnal mind of unbelief.

They think they are following an eternal spiritual principle while they are following the thought of their own carnal minds. There are no eternal principles of getting things from God; but we have the word of God and the grace of God. These should be sufficient.

Jacob would not acknowledge God as his God unless He proved Himself.

In this matter Jacob behaved as though Jehovah is his servant. Jacob had more evidence of his grandparents and parents of what God had done in their lives and of the promises He had made. Yet his response was one of unbelief: “If God will…then shall the LORD be my God.”

This event shows Jacob setting conditions to be fulfilled by God before he would give the tenth.

This bears no similarity of the way any Christian should behave toward God. Jehovah had unconditionally given him the promise of Abraham (28:12-15) and promised safe return from wherever he may go. On awaking, he began setting conditions he thought God should have included in the promise. God did not require these things of him or of anyone else; therefore this incident cannot be used to show tithing was an established requirement.

Jacob set the time or regularity when he would return the tenth to God.

He would give to God only after he had received. Thus, he was not responding to any universal principle or command from the LORD God to tithe to a particular person or ministry or pay for a spiritual service provided by a priest for God appeared to him, in a dream, without any intermediary.

Jacob decided the amount of a tenth.

It is clear God did not ask him to follow the example of Abraham as some has claimed. As we have seen, Abram gave a “tenth of the spoils” of war to the Priest, but Jacob proposed to give a tenth of “whatever God would bless him with.”

He showed no knowledge of the incident with Abraham and Melchizedek.

If he did, he did not associate it with his dream. There is no indication in the scriptures whether Jacob ever fulfilled his vow and if so, to whom he gave the tenth. Nevertheless, Jacob’s vow is not the modern Church tithe on gross income but on “all that God shall give me.”

A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF JACOB’S TITHE.

Jacob was a Patriarch and a grandson of Abraham.

He was fifteen years old when Abraham died. Therefore, he certainly knew whether a tithe was a requirement, or if it were an eternal principle, or if his grandfather and father practiced tithing on a regular basis. If it was an eternal principle or requirement, then, why was he setting conditions for tithing here? Jacob’s tithe is nothing more than a rash vow. It’s the sup-planter trying to scheme God out of a blessing He had already given. I believe it is similar to Jephthah’s vow (Judges 11:29-40) to give something to God, He had not requested, when God had already granted their requests.

The focus of this passage is not Jacob’s vow, but God’s renewal of His promise to Abraham.

GOD had made an unconditional covenant with Abraham and Isaac and was now passing it on to Jacob. Although, God is involved, He gave no eternal principles; it is quite clear He did not require anything from Jacob but was simply informing him of the promises he had inherited from his father. 

This “tithe” makes it evident, if there was tithing before the Mosaic Law it was voluntary and negotiable.

In the account, Jacob uses if, a conditional. If tithing was an eternal, universal, spiritual law for all peoples and for all time, as many teachers, preachers and pastors profess, this vow of Jacob does not belong to that classification; by placing the word if into his vow Jacob made it conditional.

The use of if created a situation in which God first had to perform something for Jacob and then Jacob would be obedient. His use of if meant his vow cannot be the following of a well-known, eternal, universal, spiritual law. We cannot treat known laws in this manner. It is analogous to someone saying to God: “If you will bless me and keep me in all my ways then I will not steal.” One does not slight the laws of God by making them conditional. However, it is not wrong to think this way if a voluntary thanksgiving offering were in mind. If, makes the tenth Jacob said he would return, a free will offering and his promise, conditional (Lev.22:23). As clear as it can be, both Abraham and Jacob were the ones who set the parameters, not God!

CONCLUSION

I believe Jacob’s tithe to be a rash vow made when he was overwhelmed by the presence of God. While God was present it is clear that no covenant for tithes was made.

A vow is personal; it involves only the person and GOD.

When the person making the vow dies or fulfil its terms and condition, that is the end of the vow. A vow therefore is not binding on the whole world, nor does it establish an eternal principle, but concerns only the person making it, for the specified period. There are laws established under the Mosaic system governing vows; one such law is,

If a man vow a vow unto the LORD, or swear an oath to bind his soul with a bond; he shall not break his word, he shall do according to all that proceedeth out of his mouth. Numbers 30:2 KJV

And the king of Sodom went out to meet him after his return from the slaughter of Chedorlaomer, and of the kings that were with him, at the valley of Shaveh, which is the king’s dale. And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God. And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth: And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all. And the king of Sodom said unto Abram, Give me the persons, and take the goods to thyself. And Abram said to the king of Sodom, I have lift up mine hand unto the LORD, the most high God, the possessor of heaven and earth, That I will not take from a thread even to a shoelatchet, and that I will not take any thing that is thine, lest thou shouldest say, I have made Abram rich: Save only that which the young men have eaten, and the portion of the men which went with me, Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre; let them take their portion. Genesis 14:17-24.

INTRODUCTION

In this post we will investigate whether Abram was following a universal principle known to all men.

CURRENT TEACHING ON ABRAM’S TITHE

The current teaching about Abram’s tithe focuses on the phrase tithes of all. Some claim Abram tithed of all his possessions to the priest of the most High God approximately 500 years before the Mosaic Law.

After this incident, he is alleged to have done so on a regular basis. Since Christians are Abraham’s seed, it is claimed, and Melchizedek is a type of Christ, it is reasoned, Christians should also pay tithes to their Melchizedek, Jesus Christ.

Further, it is claimed, in tithing to Melchizedek, Abram was following an eternal principle established by God with Adam in the Garden of Eden. Cain and Abel were acting in accordance with this eternal principle in bringing their tithes to sacrifice before God.

LIMITATIONS OF THIS TEACHING

There is no Scripture showing Abram to be obeying a universal eternal principle.

There are no records of Adam paying tithes to God! The text above shows other persons had an interest in the spoils; Aner, Eschol, Mamre, Lot and the King of Sodom; who were all ignorant of this eternal, universal principle.

The is no resemblance to the modern Church tithe.

The Church tithe is defined as “ten per cent of a person’s gross income.”. In fact, this tithe is on the spoils of war and not gross income for a period. There is nothing in the passage to connect this tithe with the modern Church tithe.

The scripture has been strained and inferences made which cannot be supported by the text.

Can we ignore what God said and accept the speculations and inferences of men. For example, it is inferred Abram gave a “tenth of all” means all of the spoils and all of his personal possessions.

It would have been very reckless of Abram to take all his possessions to war; these included large flocks and herds of animals. Surely these would have hindered him in the fight.

The tithe was from the spoils of war, not income.

An examination of the things tithed reveals it was not Abram’s goods; it was the spoils of the war (Heb. 7:4). The scripture is clear,  the goods did not belong to Abram and GOD did not want him to have it. The word spoils, in the Bible, means stolen goods, goods taken forcibly from a person or place; as a verb spoil means to diminish or destroy the value or quality of something or someone.

Although Abram did not steal the goods, but he recovered it, he did not claim it as his own. Several other persons had claims to it; Aner, Eschol, Mamre, Lot and the King of Sodom. In addition, part had been eaten by Abram’s servants. Abram refused it, an indication of its unsuitability for combining with his personal goods which were a blessing from God.

These goods bore no resemblance to the tithe which was “holy unto the Lord” (Lev.27:30).

It was not of the crops of land nor of the specified animals, but of the spoils of war. It was the goods of “wicked men sinners before the Lord exceedingly” (Gen. 13:13).

What was the extent of Abram’s tithe?

Did he tithe on his personal income and was it a continuous arrangement with Melchizedek? Was it a tenth part of all the spoils and so given voluntarily and on a special occasion? Or, was it a tenth of all his personal assets and therefore something paid as a due?

Hebrews 7:4 says it was of the spoils (goods of Sodom) and careful reading of Genesis 14 also shows it was the spoils. Some preachers argue that the use of the “all” means the spoils and all of Abram’s personal possession. However, this would require him to take along all of his possessions, thousands of sheep and cattle and much silver and gold with him to the war, a very ridiculous thing to do.

Arguments are made from assumptions.

It is claimed these individuals did certain things because they were following an eternal principle. The reasoning seems to be, “Abram gave tithes to Melchizedek in 1900 BC and this was something good he had done, therefore, I must pay tithes too.”

This is illogical. Why am I bound to imitate Abram’s tithing or any other action of Abram? His tithing did not make him righteous, but his faith was counted as righteousness. The clear evidence of the scriptures shows no evidence of any existing principles that could be binding on believers today.

However, Abram may have acted on the basis of the existing custom which was to give a tenth of the spoils of war to the priest. He did it because the surrounding pagans he lived among did it. He lied about his wife so that he would not be killed for her, because the pagans did this. He paid tithes to Melchizedek because the surrounding pagans did.

Consider the person who received the tithe.

Whoever Melchizedek was, he was not Abram’s priest. A priest is someone who mediates between you and God by praying for you and making your sacrifices and offerings.

Abram did all these things himself; there was no man mediating between him and God. No Priest, Pastor or Pope was present when God appeared to him (Genesis 12:7; 17:1; 18:1) and made a covenant with him.

This tithe is not connected to the Abrahamic Covenant of Genesis 15.

Some has seen it as the “Kingdom Connector”, connecting the one who paid tithes to the Priest of the Kingdom of God.

They think that it was only after Abraham tithed to Melchizedek that God made a Covenant with him. However, to see and to enter the Kingdom of God ye must be born again, not pay tithes. To get connected to the Kingdom of God you must be born again.

It is not stated in the Scriptures that payment of tithes is required for entry to the Kingdom of God. And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness. (Genesis 15:6).

God does not say “because you have honored me with your tithes and offerings I will make a covenant with you and your descendants to continue this forever,” but He counted his faith for righteousness. When GOD reaffirmed the Abrahamic covenant with Isaac (Genesis 26:3-5), again nothing is said about tithes to Melchizedek or any other priest. This would have been the place to say it, if the tithes were an eternal thing.

It was not the reason for his prosperity or the fulfilment of God’s promises to him.

He was already extremely wealthy before he met Melchizedek. God made him rich because of His promise only, not because he gave Melchizedek a tithe of the spoils.

There is no scriptural evidence suggesting Abraham tithed again in his life.

Spiritual principles cannot be invented from incidents in the Bible; spiritual principles must be stated. How then would we know whether we are serving God, following men or serving the devil?

Next, the persons tithed, it was a tenth of the goods of Sodom.

It is not certain who is paying the tithe here. The modern Church tithe is personal, that is, it is based on your personal income.

Abram swore to God, before going to the war, he would not take as much as a “shoe latchet” from the spoils, save what his servants had eaten; the spoils were not personal, but belonged to others as well, Aner, Eschol and Mamre (v24), who also participated in the war.

Next, the timing of the tithe.

It is also claimed that Abram regularly gave tithes to Melchizedek. Again there is no record of this in the sacred or secular literature. Abram’s tithe was a “one off” case. It may not have been an exact fraction. Further, modern translations disagree with the KJV here, translating the word as a tenth.

It has its roots in the pagan customs as has been shown by historians, notably Professors Maspero and Sayce. This was Sodom’s tithe to Melchizedek and it certainly could not be termed “a sacred tenth” with the men of Sodom being described as sinners exceedingly before the Lord.

A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF ABRAM’S TITHE

The main focus of the passage is not the tithe.

But the generosity of Abram, his bravery in the rescue of Lot, his recognition and blessing by the Priest of the Most High God and the conversation between Abram and the king of Sodom.

The king of Sodom suggested, “Give me the persons (including Lot), and take the goods to thyself.” Abram’s response is significant: “I have lift up mine hand unto the LORD, the most high God, the possessor of heaven and earth, That I will not take from a thread even to a shoelatchet, and that I will not take any thing that is thine, lest thou shouldest say, I have made Abram rich:”

A tithe of Sodom’s goods did not make Abram rich; the preceding chapters of Genesis shows it was God who had blessed Abram and made him rich.

Abram clearly stated that he had promised God not to take to himself any of the spoils and this promise was before he went to war.

His reason, it would not make him rich because God had before blessed him. This was recognized and confirmed by the pronouncement of a blessing by Melchizedek. Those who claim that the blessing of Melchizedek made Abraham rich have not read the scriptures carefully.

We must consider this incident in relation to the future Law of Moses on Tithing.

There is no agreement whatever with the law of tithing later revealed in the Book of Leviticus. The Law required the tithe be paid only on the increase of the land and animals (Leviticus 27:30–31). But Abram did not work to produce any of the spoil he had recovered.

Spoil does not represent an increase from farms. There was no biblical teaching which showed that Abram was required to give a tenth of the spoil to Melchizedek.

Much later in the time of Moses, the Israelites were informed how spoils such as Abraham’s should be disposed. The ratio to the Levite was not the same, a tenth, and spoils were not to be tithed.

When the Israelites spoiled the Midianites, Moses insisted that the priests receive 1/500^th of the goods from those who had gone to war—not 1/10^th as a tithe would require (Numbers 31:9, 27–29).

The Levites got more booty than the priests, 1/50^th of the congregation’s half of the spoil (verse 30). Again, the law concerning “spoils” in war had nothing to do with the later ordained tithe.

Consider the action of Abraham.

If Moses was recording in Genesis a universal law of tithing when he wrote about Abraham giving a tenth of his spoils to Melchizedek, why does he depart from that very law, with a completely different set of figures?

The Mosaic Law on Tithing also abolished all previous laws with it:

These are the statutes and judgments, which ye shall observe to do in the land, which the LORD God of thy fathers giveth thee to possess it, all the days that ye live upon the earth. Ye shall utterly destroy all the places, wherein the nations which ye shall possess served their gods, upon the high mountains, and upon the hills, and under every green tree: And ye shall overthrow their altars, and break their pillars, and burn their groves with fire; and ye shall hew down the graven images of their gods, and destroy the names of them out of that place. Ye shall not do so unto the LORD your God. …For ye are not as yet come to the rest and to the inheritance, which the LORD your God giveth you. But when ye go over Jordan, and dwell in the land which the LORD your God giveth you to inherit, and when he giveth you rest from all your enemies round about, so that ye dwell in safety; Then there shall be a place which the LORD your God shall choose to cause his name to dwell there; thither shall ye bring all that I command you; your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, your tithes, and the heave offering of your hand, and all your choice vows which ye vow unto the LORD: Deuteronomy 12:1-4; 9-11 KJV

Moses instructed the Israelites not to do the things which the pagan people and Abram did but to follow after the new laws which God gave them. No eternal principle was established.

The Law also abolished all previous tithes practiced.

The persons seeing an eternal principle expressed in these passages, did not do their own reading of the paragraph, but adopted the teaching because they were taught it, they heard it on television or they receive tithes themselves.

Consider it in relation to the Israelites spoiling the Egyptians.

Before the Israelites’ Exodus from Egypt, God told them to spoil the Egyptians (Exodus 12:35).

Spoil is the booty of war similar to that of Abram’s. The booty belonged to the Israelites and they were not to return it. There is no evidence of the Israelites giving a tenth of it to anyone.

There was at that time no priesthood among the Israelites, however, Moses was God’s representative and also a Levite, yet he did not take a tithe on God’s behalf.

This proves that Moses was unaware of any eternal principle of tithes. And if there was, these must be reckoned as spoils of war, not income or compensation.

Moses ordained a different set of laws for spoil, as previously explained. Thus, there were no laws, concerning tithes, eternal or of shorter duration, when the Israelites left Egypt.

Abram’s tithe was not initiated by the Priest Melchizedek, but by Abram who gave the tenth of the spoils. Ministers today are very bold in demanding tithes of people, especially those to whom they have not blessed, nor provided a service.

We are not even told if Melchizedek was aware of God’s promise to Abraham or not. God’s blessing of Abraham and his seed had already been promised and started long before he gave the tenth of the spoils to Melchizedek (Gen.13:2).

There is no biblical or even historical record of him continuing the practice.

In summary, Abraham was not following any law of tithing on spoil or on anything else. Abraham’s tenth was only in the nature of a voluntary (free will) offering of thanksgiving to God for the deliverance of his nephew from captivity. In determining the amount to give Melchizedek, he used the smallest fraction he knew, a tenth, the equivalent of one of his fingers.

CONCLUSION

We examined the passage to determine whether Abram gave the tenth part of the spoil in keeping with an eternal principle which requires an individual to pay ten per cent of his gross income to a priest who is His representative on earth.

Abram’s tithe does not provide a pre-law justification for tithing by the Church and this incident was not used to validate tithing after the Cross by the Apostles, yet many Pastors and Preachers continue to use this incident as a means of exacting a tithe of their congregation.

If any principle was revealed in this passage, it is a fraction of the spoils of war was given to a priest in ancient times.

You are not Abram and you’re not living before the law. “Christ is the end of the Law…” (Romans 10:4). The death and the resurrection of Jesus Christ is the point at which the entire nature of man’s relationship to God changed.

It matters little now who Milchizedek was or why Abram gave him a tithe. These things are not a part of being in Christ, in fact, they are incompatible with Grace.

There are many other things Abram practiced which do not bind us today.

Everything Abram did was done before the Law for he lived his entire life before the law. Of particular interest is tithing, circumcision, animal sacrifices, clean and unclean meats and keeping of concubines (Genesis 25:6) with whom he fathered many sons. Why choose tithing as the one thing to practice?

My conclusion is the modern church tithe bears no resemblance to Abram’s tithe. No purpose of this tithe nor its frequency given in the Scriptures. It is a one-off event and from the spoils of war.

Of the 66 references to Abraham in the New Testament, none requires us to tithe as he did. There is no evidence in the scriptures to show that Abram ever tithed before or after this event.

Therefore, I believe it is an error to use this example to claim tithing had been established before the law and therefore is brought into the New Testament Church. Since Abram gave nothing of his own, it is an error to find the concept of a tithe in this context and apply it to everyone’s personal income or property.

THE END

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A Brief History of Tithes

Sylvan James

INTRODUCTION

“It is revolting to all Christian principles enunciated in the New Testament that men should be imprisoned, or their goods seized, or, even as it happened in Ireland within this century, be shot dead because they refused to pay tithes.” H. W. Clarke

This blog presents a short and clear history of the rise and growth of the system of tithes, free from technical and language difficulties.

Evidence showing the “tithe” was not a strict “tenth” or indeed any other fraction will be presented. Although the written secular history shows that it may have been universal, this does not prove that it was instituted by God.

I will also show that the pre-law tithe was abolished by the institution of the Mosaic Law and how the Church and the secular authorities copied this tithe.

The supporters of tithing today often demand an explanation for the prevalence of the tithe among ancient nations.

It is argued, if, for religious purposes, everyone decided to give according to his inclinations, then how should so many nations have arrived at a tenth rather than any other fraction?

Does the seeming universality of this fraction point to a time when the ancestors of all nations lived together, and so derived the custom from a common source?

No historian, and no traditional account known in any country, has given the origin of the tithe, nor is the Bible explicit about it.

But, do we really have to account for the payment of a tenth by pagans to their gods in ancient times?

Are we allowed to frame a hypothesis from the Biblical facts? The answer is NO.

Again, the Biblical facts are only what God appointed. If it’s not Biblical, then God did not appoint it.

Is it reasonable to suppose that God wanted us to practice something and then omitted to mention these things? The answer is again NO.

Can we entertain the hypothesis of men that from the beginning God taught Adam to tithe? NO.

God taught Adam many things which he disobeyed, hence the fall. We should concentrate our attention on what God is saying to us today by His Holy Spirit and the written Word He has been pleased to give us rather than hypothesizing of what may have been said to Adam but was not revealed to modern Christians in the Scriptures.

PRE – MOSAIC LAW TITHES

The secular method of studying the antiquity of tithes is insufficient to determine if it is an eternal principle given by God.

By this method, instances of the use of the word “tenth,” not tithe, in connection with religious offerings or sacrifices are gathered from the ancient literature of various nations

Then it is inferred, “the universality of the practice points to a time when the ancestors of all nations lived together and so derived the knowledge from a common source.” Abraham’s and Jacob’s tithe fall under this heading.

However, my research found no exact mathematics in this stage of development in any land.

When men were hunters, fishers, and gatherers; no hunter or fisher ever thought of giving exactly “one-tenth” of any animal or his catch to a god; mathematics were unknown to them.

Instead, the best pieces: the head, the right shoulder, the thigh, the breast, kidneys and liver, or the fat, were given. These customs survived when domesticated animals replaced wild game.

Therefore, the Old Testament does not command a “tenth” of an animal killed for food, but a piece of some other animal set aside for this purpose.

In the time of the Judges, the seer or priest took “potluck”. He contented himself with any part of the sacrifice his forks fished up (I Sam. 2:13).

The use of the “tenth” by heathens cannot mean that God gave them the principle before He gave it to us. This assumes that primitive man worshipped the true and the living God, before He introduced Himself to Abraham.

But, did primitive people worship God? St. Paul does not think so and told the Corinthians as much. “The things which the gentiles sacrifice are unto devils…”

HOW PRIMITIVE PEOPLE COUNTED

There is sufficient evidence to show primitive people learnt to count only as far as their fingers allowed.

Sometimes they may have understood the idea of one finger as the smallest convenient portion (fraction), so the word “tenth” may only mean fraction or portion rather than a strict mathematical percentage.

An example from the Old Testament is available, Gen. 14:20; Heb. 7:4, Abram gave the priest a tenth of the spoils of war, but in Num.31 when the spoils of a war was divided, it is not 10% but 0.2% and 2%.

Therefore, the theory of an equal and exact percentage from all persons and all booty is incorrect.

According to our best knowledge, Moses wrote both Genesis and Numbers. Either the Israelite did not use the Abrahamic principle of giving a tithe (10%) OR the tithe was simply a “finger”; any fraction. 

This same incapacity for dealing with fractions appears in the estimate of time e.g. first watch, night watches etc.

The parable of the Laborers in the Vineyard is another example; the owner of the vineyard cannot or will not calculate a fraction of a day’s pay.

Therefore we can safely conclude that given a group of units, primitive men could set aside one out of each ten, if necessary, but they could not calculate a tenth of any number of units.

The fact of such incapacity for arithmetical computation in early Hebrew days as well as in the later Jewish times is admitted by historians.

It is also clear from the two fractions which appear so often in the ancient customs, one fifth and one tenth, arose from counting upon the fingers of one or both hands (Lev. 27:30, 31) and the toes if necessary.

In addition, some biblical idioms are expressive of the writer’s inability to count large numbers e.g. sheep without number, comparisons to the stars of heavens and the sand of the seas (Gen.13:16; 15:5).

God is able to reveal to Abraham the exact number of his descendants, but would Abraham understand? Therefore, God uses an idiom which Abram understood, the stars of the sky.

The first striking fact concerning tithing is that the Scripture has little to say about it prior to the time of Moses.

The first eleven chapters of Genesis cover some 2,000 years. While sacrifices and several other rituals are mentioned, the subject of tithing never emerged as a topic of discussion.

The first mentioned is the account of Abram’s Tithe in Genesis chapter 14.

Following the slaughter of the kings, Abraham returned with his nephew Lot, the other captives, and with a large amount of spoil recovered from the rescue (verses 16–17).

Abraham then met Melchizedek and gave him a tenth of the spoil, “he gave him tithes of all” (verse 20).

The remainder of the spoils were returned to the king of Sodom (verses 21–24). This “tithes of all” was a “one-time” gift to the High Priest. For more on this tithe read the blog on Abram’s Tithe.

There is further proof that tithing as a universal principle did not exist before the time of Moses.

The example of Joseph reveals no knowledge of such a principle. While in Egypt he was inspired to interpret Pharaoh’s dreams about seven full years of harvest and seven years of famine.

When Pharaoh saw the wisdom and the Spirit of God in him (Genesis 41:38–39), he set him ruler over all the land of Egypt. For seven years they gathered in the harvests and stored the grain.

When the famine came, the Egyptians used all their money to purchase some of the grain reserves (Genesis 47:14–15). They then gave all their cattle to Joseph in exchange for grain (verse 16). Finally, they bartered themselves and their land for food (verse 18–20).

This meant that Pharaoh, through the advice of the patriarch Joseph, came to possess all things found in Egypt.

At this point, if there was a universal tithing principle known to all nations Joseph would have used it, but Joseph didn’t, instead the Bible says:

Then Joseph said unto the people, ‘Behold, I have bought you this day and your land for Pharaoh: lo, here is seed for you, and ye shall sow the land. And it shall come to pass in the increase, that you shall give the fifth part unto Pharaoh, and four parts shall be your own, for seed of the field, and for your food, and for them of your households, and for food for your little ones. Genesis 47:23–24.

Joseph, a man in whom was wisdom and the Spirit of God, did not command a tithe instead he commanded the fifth part.

This amount was not equal to what his father Jacob had proposed (see blog on Jacob’s Tithe), nor by his great grandfather Abraham (See blog on Abram’s Tithe), who gave a tenth to the priest.

Moses stated that a tenth of the increase had to be set aside for the Levites. But Joseph said no such thing. He declared that a fifth part (two tenths) was to be Pharaoh’s for his own personal use, while all the remainder went to the people.

Joseph did not give a part of the increase to the priesthood proving that he was unaware of any universal law of tithing. Joseph knew nothing of the so-called universal tithing principle because they never existed.

He also respected and obeyed his father, Jacob, more so than his brethren, he would have known about Abraham’s tithing example and the conditional tithe of Jacob, yet in Egypt Joseph chose not to institute the tithe on the people.

This was not an act of disobedience because he was “a man in whom the Spirit of God is” (Genesis 41:38). Joseph said nothing about giving a tenth of the increase to any priesthood because there was no universal tithing law before or after Moses.

The Semite’s tradition before the Mosaic Law was to pay no tithe on land because he did not own any land. Instead he paid the god, or ancestor, who was considered the owner, a portion of the harvest or the rearing of animal; this portion was burned. To live in the land, he paid nothing.

The connection of the tithe with a primitive god or patron saint also explains why no tithe is exacted from untilled land. The propitiation of the divinity for digging up the land is found in most primitive people but the regularity of a tithe upon grain varies from area to area.

The payment of the tithe became equivalent to the actual cleansing rite. Therefore, the presence of a worshipper of strange gods in the land was tolerated if he paid the necessary “fees” for the cleansing of the land.

The rate of the ancient tithe was the same as for booty taken in war and also the modern Church tithe and this gives the possibility of where the modern Church tithe originated.

We also find that the tithe and purification was originally the familiar and universal purification from war or defilement by the dead bodies in the war. This was practiced in all parts of the world by primitive men.

The payment of a fee was the equivalent of the actual “salvation” and the presence of an unbeliever was tolerated if he paid the necessary fees (tithes) for the cleansing of the land from defilement.

Abram, Jacob and the pagan primitives giving a tenth of their possessions to a priest or god before the Mosaic Law, is not relevant today.

These persons lived before the Law and everything they did was before the law. Why do we single out the tithe as an “eternal principle”?

A tradition cannot automatically become an eternal principle because it is old, very common or even widespread. The fact that it was present in much pagan cultures as was idolatry, worship of other gods, witchcraft, voodoo and necromancy.

Look for my next post Abram’s Tithe