Wilderness To Wisdom: The Tithe Was Never Money

The tithe in Scripture came from crops and livestock, not money. It provided for the Levites, who had no land, and it fed the poor, widows, foreigners, and the fatherless. Part of it was even eaten in celebration by the family who brought it.

In this episode, we look at what the tithe actually was and who received it. We examine the priesthood the tithe belonged to and why Scripture says it has changed. We also address the verses used most often to enforce tithing, and see whether they describe what has been enforced.

This is not an episode against generosity. Scripture describes believers who gave in ways that go far beyond a percentage. It is about examining an obligation that was never commanded for us.

Transcript

Welcome back to Wilderness to Wisdom. In the last episode we looked at gathering and today we'll look at tithing. Most of us have heard that 10% belongs to God, That it goes to the church, And that Malachi 3 says we're robbing God if we hold it back. So we're going to look at what the tithe was in scripture, Who received it, And what the New Testament says about giving. I want to be clear that this is not an episode against generosity. Scripture describes believers who gave in ways that go far beyond a percentage. What I'm examining is the obligation that got built on top of it. There are two accounts before the law where someone gives a tenth. Genesis 14, 18-20 says that Abram gave a tenth of everything to Melchizedek after winning a battle. Single event, And there's no indication he ever did it again. In Genesis 28, 20-22, Jacob makes a vow that if God will keep him and provide for him, He will give a tenth back. That one was voluntary and conditional. Neither of these was a command, And neither one established a practice. They're two things that happened, Generations apart, That the men did on their own. The tithe as an instruction shows up when the law is given and Leviticus 27 30-32 tells us what it was. The tithe was of the land, Seed of the land, Fruit of the trees and every tenth animal that passed under the rod. It came out of what the ground produced and what the herds produced. Numbers 18 21-24 tells us the tithe went to the Levites because they had no inheritance like the other tribes. Every other tribe received land, And land produced food. The Levites were given the service of the tabernacle instead, So the tithe provided for them. Then Deuteronomy 14 adds something to the picture. Verses 22-27 say to take the tithe to the place God chose and eat it there in His presence and not to forsake the Levite in their town because he has no portion or inheritance. The distance was too far to carry it. They could sell it and then buy whatever their heart desired when they arrived. Oxen, Sheep, Wine, Strong drink. They would eat it there and rejoice along with their household. So in this instruction, The person who brought the tithe ate it there. It was a feast before God. Then verses 28 through 29 say that at the end of every three years, The tithe stayed in the towns. It was stored there so the Levites, Foreigners, The fatherless, And widows could come and eat and be satisfied. That's the tithe as scripture describes it. It came from crops and livestock and provided for a tribe that had no land of their own. It fed the poor and the vulnerable and part of it was a celebration meal the family that grew it. Numbers 18. 23 says the tithe was a statute forever throughout the generations and that's worth addressing because it sounds like it settles the matter. But it helps to look at what the tithe was attached to. Numbers 18 gives the reason for it in the same passage. Since the Levites had no land, The tithe was their inheritance. The whole arrangement was administered through the Levitical system. Hebrews 7 deals with this directly. The writer is making a case that Jesus is a priest after the order of Melchizedek rather than the order of Levi and that this is a change in the priesthood itself. Then verse 12 says that when there is a change of the priesthood, There is of necessity a change of the law as well. The tithe was law attached to a priesthood and scripture says that priesthood changed. Thanks. In the last episode, We looked at 1 Peter 2. 9 which calls believers a chosen generation and a royal priesthood. There is no separate tribe without land that the rest of us are responsible to feed. The system it operated under is not in place anymore. In the New Testament, There is no percentage named anywhere for believers, Not 10% or any other number. In 2 Corinthians chapter 8, Paul describes believers in Macedonia who gave beyond their ability, Entirely on their own. He goes on to say in verse 8 that he isn't giving this as a command. He was pointing to how eagerly the Macedonians gave to prove that the love of the Corinthians was genuine. He explains in verses 13 through 15 that the goal is equality. It says, Need so that their abundance may supply your need that there may be fairness as it is written whoever gathered much had nothing left over and whoever gathered little had no lack that's a reference to exodus 16 18 when god provided manna in the wilderness some gathered more and some gathered less but when they measured it out the one who gathered much had nothing left over and the who gathered little had no lack. Everyone had what they needed. Paul takes that same principle and applies it to believers supplying each other. In 2 Corinthians 9-5, There's a detail that's easy to read past. Paul sent men ahead so the gift the Corinthians promised would be arranged in advance and ready as a gift given willingly and not under pressure. He set up the logistics specifically so that no one would be put on the spot when the time came. 1 Corinthians 9 says that each one should give as he has decided in his heart, Not reluctantly or under compulsion, Because God loves a cheerful giver. The amount is decided by the giver and the condition is the heart it comes from. Acts 2. 45 and Acts 4. 34-35 show the same heart. Believers sold what they had and distributed to anyone who had need, And there was no one among them who lacked. And 1 Corinthians 16 verses 1 and 2 tells believers to set something aside as they prosper. That collection was to provide relief for poor believers in Jerusalem. None of those establishes a percentage. The amount is decided by the giver and the giving is aimed at real need. Malachi 3, 8-10 is the passage used most often. It says, Will man rob God? Yet you are robbing me. But you say, How have we robbed you? In your tithes and contributions. You are cursed with a curse, For you are robbing me, The whole nation of you. Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, That there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, Says the Lord of hosts, If I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need. Two things are worth understanding about this scripture. First is who it was spoken to. This is Israel under the Old Covenant with the Temple standing and the Levitical system in operation. The second is what the storehouse was. It was a physical room at the Temple. Nehemiah 13. 5 and 13. 12 describe the chambers where the grain, Wine, And oil were kept so they could be distributed to the Levites and the poor. The instruction in Malachi was to bring food to the temple storeroom so the Levites and the vulnerable could eat. In Matthew 23-23, Jesus tells the Pharisees that they tithed mint, Dill, And cumin while neglecting justice, Mercy, And faithfulness, And that they should have practiced justice, Mercy, And faithfulness without neglecting the tithing. He's speaking to Pharisees under the law while the temple system was still operating. And what he's addressing is that they were measuring out garden spices while ignoring the things that mattered most. 2 Corinthians 9. 6 says, It in his heart, Not under compulsion. Paul puts sowing and reaping and the condition of the heart together in the same breath. There's also Luke 6. 38 which says, Give and it will be given to you. Good measure, Pressed down, Shaken together, Running over, Will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use, It will be measured back to you. That one gets used the same way, But verses 36 and 37 come right before it. About how we treat people. Mercy, Judgment, Condemnation, Forgiveness, And giving are all a part of that. And the measure we use is the measure that comes back. Spiritual laws are real and they operate for everyone. Matthew 5 45 tells us God makes the sun rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the just and the unjust. Sowing and reaping works the same way. Plant a seed and you'll get a harvest. That isn't in question. What we have to be careful about is treating it as a transaction. Give this much and God has to do that. That puts us in the position of trying to manipulate God rather than giving from the heart. I know this from my own life. I gave cheerfully most of the time, But there were times when in the back of my mind I was thinking that if I do this, God will do that. The motive is the part Paul keeps pointing at. We give as we have decided in our own hearts. There's one more passage worth looking at because it also involves giving. In Acts chapter 5, Ananias and Sapphira sold a piece of property, Kept back part of the money and said they had given all of it. What Peter says to Ananias in verses 3 and 4 is the part that matters here. It says, Filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land? While it remained unsold, Did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, Was it not at your disposal? Why is it that you have contrived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to man, But to God. The property was theirs, The money was theirs. They were under no obligation to sell it, And no obligation to give any part of what they received for it. What Peter names as the sin is the lie to the Holy Spirit. And notice where Peter says it came from. Satan filled his heart to lie. The deception had a source. So even here, In a passage about giving that ends the way it does, What scripture establishes is that the giving was theirs to decide in their hearts. So let's put the whole picture together. Deuteronomy 14, 28-29 names who the tithe was for. Levites, Foreigners, The fatherless, And widows. It was stored in the towns so they could come and eat and be satisfied. And the family who brought it ate part of it too, Rejoicing before God. It honored God through obedience to what he had put in place and it provided for the people who had the least. It was truly a beautiful thing. Now look at what happens today. There are people sitting in church every week who are suffering silently. The single mother behind on rent, The man who just lost his job, The widow living on a fixed income, And countless situations no one in the room knows anything about. They are desperate for help and they are the ones being asked to give. What they give sustains the building, The payroll, The sound equipment, And causes far away from the room they're sitting in, The very place where they should be able to get help. The people the tithe was meant to help have become the people funding the institution. None of what I'm sharing here is against giving. The New Testament describes generosity that goes far past a percentage. Believers sold property to meet needs in front of them. Groups of believers sent relief to believers in other places. One person's abundance covered another's lack, And when the situation reversed, It flowed back the other way. No one among them lacked anything. Notice what made the local giving possible. They knew each other. They knew who had needs because they were in each other's homes, Sharing meals, Living connected lives. Giving wasn't a line item in a budget. It was a response to a person. The giving between groups across distance worked for a different reason. The early believers understood themselves as one body in Christ, So a need somewhere else was still a need in the body they belonged to. This connects to the last episode. When gathering looks like what scripture describes, Giving takes care of itself. A percentage isn't necessary when the need is in front of you and you know the person it belongs to. Too. Here's what we've walked through. The tithe in scripture came from crops and livestock. It provided for the Levites who had no land. It fed the poor, The foreigners, The widows, And the fatherless, And part of it was eaten in celebration by the family who brought it. The Levitical priesthood it supported has changed, And Hebrews 7. 12 says that when the priesthood changes, The law changes with it. Scripture now calls all believers a royal priesthood. The New Testament names no percentage. What it describes is giving decided in the heart, Free of pressure and aimed at real need. Malachi was spoken to Israel under the old covenant about bringing food into a storeroom. Matthew 23 was spoken to Pharisees still under the law. Sowing and reaping is real, But it isn't a transaction. Luke 6. 38 sits inside a passage about how we treat people. And in Acts chapter 5, Peter says plainly that the property and the money belong to the people who had them. As always, Don't take my word for any of this. Read Leviticus 27, Numbers 18, Deuteronomy 14, Luke 6, 36-38, 2 Corinthians 8 and 9, And the entire book of Malachi. Then let the Holy Spirit show you what's there. Thank you for joining me for this episode of Wilderness to Wisdom.