Trusting God Concerning Giving and Receiving Part 2
Estimated reading time: 16 minutes
Heart Giving
Some TV evangelists (and others) are very motivational and good at getting people excited about giving their money away. They call your financial gift your “seed” and then promise a 100-fold return on your giving. They leave out the fact that the 100-fold promise is in the context of the parable of the sower—and the “seed” is the Word of God, not money! The seed is sown in our hearts!
What about tithing?
Overview of the Old Testament meaning of tithing.
The first mention of tithing is in Genesis 14.
Genesis 14:17-20 NET:
17 After Abram returned from defeating Kedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet Abram in the Valley of Shaveh (known as the King’s Valley). 18 Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. (Now he was the priest of the Most High God.) 19 He blessed Abram, saying,
“Blessed be Abram by the Most High God, Creator of heaven and earth. 20 Worthy of praise is the Most High God, who delivered your enemies into your hand.” Abram gave Melchizedek a tenth [KJV says “tithes”] of everything.
Hebrews 7:1–2 NET:
1 Now this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, met Abraham as he was returning from defeating the kings and blessed him. 2 To him also Abraham apportioned a tithe of everything. His name first means king of righteousness, then king of Salem, that is, king of peace.
Melchizedek was both a king and a priest, and became a type of Jesus Christ.
If you read the record, you’ll see that Abraham did not keep any of the spoils of war; he gave it all away.
The tithe Abraham gave Melchizedek was not out of anything he owned!
Abraham’s tithe was an acknowledgement that God had helped him with that battle.
Abraham’s tithe was completely voluntary.
Abraham just wanted to acknowledge that God had given him the victory.
The second record is about Jacob as he fled from Esau and went to Bethel. He has nothing. And he makes a promise to God that he will give a tithe (tenth) of all his increase if God will take care of him.
Many decades later, after he’s gotten married, had twelve sons, and returned to Bethel, he remembers the promise and that he had never tithed yet. So, he makes a sacrifice. But it does not describe how he tithed, what he tithed, or any details about it.
When Jacob offers the burnt sacrifice, there is a humbling in his heart. He ends up reconciling with Esau, and the two brothers spend the last few years of Isaac’s life taking care of him.
There needs to be a humbling in our hearts, and we acknowledge that what we have received has come from God.
Now we get to the Law.
Deuteronomy 14:22–23 KJV:
22 Thou shalt truly tithe all the increase of thy seed, that the field bringeth forth year by year. 23 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.
God set up the tithes in the Old Testament so that the people would learn to trust Him.
Leviticus 27:30 KJV:
And all the tithe [tenth, 10%] 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.
The tithe is from the harvest and the flocks.
Did He say anything about money? No. The tithe is from the produce of the land.
Tithing came from farmers. God did not tell merchants or servants to tithe.
Numbers 18:21 KJV:
And, behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tenth in Israel for an inheritance, for their service which they serve, even the service of the tabernacle of the congregation.
The tithe was to take care of the Levites. The Levites were to tithe to the priest from what they received. The priests are only of the family of Aaron.
When the Levites tithed to the priest, that left them with 1/12th of the produce of the land; there were 12 tribes, so 1/12th made an equality. What they received made it the same as if they had grown their own.
2 Chronicles 31:4 KJV:
Moreover he commanded the people that dwelt in Jerusalem to give the portion of the priests and the Levites, that they might be encouraged in the law of the LORD.
God had set this up so that the Levites would teach the people the Law of the Lord, and they would encourage the people constantly. They wouldn’t have time to do that if they had to grow their own produce.
Tithing is called a “heave offering.” A heave offering was voluntary. There was no command that they had to tithe or else.
There were commandments that had consequences, blessings, and curses. But the tithe was not one of them!
There were four different tithes.
- The farmer’s tithe to the Levites.
- The Levite’s tithe to the priest.
- The people were to tithe to themselves for the festivals (Passover, Pentecost, Tabernacles) that occurred three times per year.
- Every third year, they were to take of the stored foodstuffs at the end of the year and give it to the poor.
The farmers had the tithes to the Levites, the tithes to themselves for the festivals, and every third year a tithe for the poor.
The crop was usually only once per year, so they only tithed once per year.
For those who raised animals, they had to tithe the tenth animal. So if they only had nine animals, there was no tithe.
God wanted tithing to be a voluntary contribution, just like Abraham and Jacob gave.
There were many other offerings, and you can read about them in my book, Enriched in Everything.
When we talk about tithing in the New Testament, we need to know what we are talking about.
Proverbs 3:9–10 KJV:
9 Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase: 10 So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine.
“Firstfruits” was a very small portion from the first time you harvested anything. It is not a percentage at all!
Any giving is honoring God. It’s an acknowledgement that God gave you the increase.
It was proportional. No one person had too little or too much.
If the tithes had been money, it would have wrecked their whole society.
That’s exactly what happened when the Catholic church introduced the rule about tithing to the church in the Fifth Century. The church became wealthy, and everyone else became poor. It’s historically documented that that does not work.
Malachi 3:10 KJV
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.
We need to understand the background to this record.
Malachi was a prophet who lived after the return from captivity in Babylon, after they had rebuilt the temple. The people (and priests) had made a mess of things.
Malachi 1:12–14 KJV:
12 But ye [the priests] have profaned it, in that ye say, The table of the LORD is polluted; and the fruit thereof, even his meat, is contemptible. 13 Ye said also, Behold, what a wearinessis it! and ye have snuffed at it, saith the LORD of hosts; and ye brought that which was torn, and the lame, and the sick; thus ye brought an offering: should I accept this of your hand? saith the LORD. 14 But cursed be the deceiver, which hath in his flock a male, and voweth, and sacrificeth unto the Lord a corrupt thing: for I am a great King, saith the LORD of hosts, and my name is dreadful among the heathen.
God was mad at the priests. The priests were taking the good offerings for themselves and substituting inferior offerings for God. The priests were doing this on a regular basis.
Malachi 2:7–8 KJV:
7 For the priest’s lips should keep knowledge, and they should seek the law at his mouth: for he is the messenger of the LORD of hosts. 8 But ye are departed out of the way; ye have caused many to stumble at the law; ye have corrupted the covenant of Levi, saith the LORD of hosts.
The priests in Jerusalem were not allowing proper distribution of the portions.
Nehemiah had been instrumental in rebuilding the wall, but he had gone back to Babylon for a while because he was the cupbearer to the king. While he was gone, this mess happened.
Nehemiah 10:32–39 ESV:
32 “We also take on ourselves the obligation to give yearly a third part of a shekel for the service of the house of our God: 33 for the showbread, the regular grain offering, the regular burnt offering, the Sabbaths, the new moons, the appointed feasts, the holy things, and the sin offerings to make atonement for Israel, and for all the work of the house of our God. 34 We, the priests, the Levites, and the people, have likewise cast lots for the wood offering, to bring it into the house of our God, according to our fathers’ houses, at times appointed, year by year, to burn on the altar of the Lord our God, as it is written in the Law. 35 We obligate ourselves to bring the firstfruits of our ground and the firstfruits of all fruit of every tree, year by year, to the house of the Lord; 36 also to bring to the house of our God, to the priests who minister in the house of our God, the firstborn of our sons and of our cattle, as it is written in the Law, and the firstborn of our herds and of our flocks; 37 and to bring the first of our dough, and our contributions, the fruit of every tree, the wine and the oil, to the priests, to the chambers of the house of our God; and to bring to the Levites the tithes from our ground, for it is the Levites who collect the tithes in all our towns where we labor. 38 And the priest, the son of Aaron, shall be with the Levites when the Levites receive the tithes. And the Levites shall bring up the tithe of the tithes to the house of our God, to the chambers of the storehouse. 39 For the people of Israel and the sons of Levi shall bring the contribution of grain, wine, and oil to the chambers, where the vessels of the sanctuary are, as well as the priests who minister, and the gatekeepers and the singers. We will not neglect the house of our God.”
Nehemiah came back.
Nehemiah 13:4 KJV:
And before this, Eliashib the priest, having the oversight of the chamber of the house of our God, was allied unto Tobiah [an Ammonite]:
Tobiah and Sanballat were constantly threatening and harassing the Israelites. Because they had an alliance with the king of Babylon, they felt that they had the right to be in Jerusalem and to give orders. Eliashib the priest gave one of his daughters to Tobiah’s son in marriage.
Nehemiah 13:5 KJV:
And he had prepared for him a great chamber, where aforetime they laid the meat offerings, the frankincense, and the vessels, and the tithes of the corn, the new wine, and the oil, which was commanded to be given to the Levites, and the singers, and the porters; and the offerings of the priests.
The priest had given all this to a non-Israelite, a Gentile. This means that Tobiah had a chamber in the temple!
Nehemiah 13:7–11 KJV:
7 And I came to Jerusalem, and understood of the evil that Eliashib did for Tobiah, in preparing him a chamber in the courts of the house of God. 8 And it grieved me sore: therefore I cast forth all the household stuff of Tobiah out of the chamber. 9 Then I commanded, and they cleansed the chambers: and thither brought I again the vessels of the house of God, with the meat offering and the frankincense.
10 And I perceived that the portions of the Levites had not been given them: for the Levites and the singers, that did the work, were fled every one to his field. 11 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.
Now that we know the background, let’s go back to Malachi.
Malachi 3:6 KJV:
For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.
It was only because of who God is that they were not consumed, despite all the evil they had been doing. But they had been experiencing famine.
Malachi 3:7–9 KJV:
7 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? 8 Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. 9 Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation.
People have taken these verses out of context to make the false case that if they don’t tithe, they will be cursed with a curse.
Giving is not some holy insurance policy!
You cannot say, “I’ve tithed, so now I’m protected.” That’s not scriptural. People can tithe and have terrible things happen. People can avoid tithing and get blessed.
The Sopherim, the people who managed the Hebrew texts, amended verse 9.
Verse 9 originally said, “You have cursed me [God] with a curse.”
The Sopherim didn’t like that, so they changed it.
There are no curses in the Old Testament about tithing!
Because the people had withheld tithes and offerings, they had cursed God. Why? Because the tithe was holy to the Lord.
God had provided the tithing so that the people could hear the Word.
Malachi 3:10–12 KJV:
10 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. 11 And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the LORD of hosts. 12 And all nations shall call you blessed: for ye shall be a delightsome land, saith the LORD of hosts.
See all those italicized (added) words in the King James? Here’s the ESV:
Malachi 3:10 ESV:
10 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.
Now you know that the “storehouse” was where the tithes were stored in the temple, but Tobiah had taken over that chamber, so there was no place for them to bring the tithes.
If the people did that (like they were supposed to in the first place), then God would open the windows of heaven, which was a Hebrew way of saying “pour out the rain.”
There are no windows in heaven where money will pour down to us.
Remember what Jesus explained in Luke Chapter 6?
Luke 6:38 KJV:
Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.
The blessing will come through people, not from money falling from some imaginary windows in heaven.
The book of Malachi shows that the motive in the people’s hearts was wrong. God was looking for their hearts. The priests were on top of the food chain, yet they were only supposed to receive the tithe from the Levites (the tithe of the tithes).
The heart of giving is not about us; it’s about others. —Bob Lindfelt
Application of the idea of tithing in our day and time.
Where is the motivation?
Remember from the previous session that Paul is encouraging the Corinthians to mimic the Macedonians.
2 Corinthians 8:7–8 APNT:
7 But according as you increase in everything, in faith and in word and in knowledge and in all diligence and in our love to you, so you should increase in this grace also.
8 I do not actually command you, but by the exhortation of your fellow [believers], I am testing [demonstrating, proving] the genuineness of your love.
Tithing was not a command in the Old Testament, and it is not one in the New Testament either.
He’s talking about it because their motive was not love. They were doing it for the wrong reasons.
The only motivation for giving that works, is love.
2 Corinthians 8:9–10 APNT:
9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, who on account of you became poor when he was rich, so that you by his poverty would be made rich.
10 Now I highly recommend to you this that is profitable to you, because a year ago, you began not only to will, but also to do.
Giving is not a command but it’s highly recommended.
2 Corinthians 8:11–12 APNT:
11 But now, complete with action what you willed, that as you have an eagerness to will, so you would fulfill [it] in action out of what you have.
12 For if there is a willingness, so he is accepted according to what he has, not according to what he does not have.
Don’t look at the amount. What matters is your motivation and where your heart is.
2 Corinthians 8:13–14 APNT:
13 For it is not that others should have relief and you [should have] pressure,
14 but [that] you should be in balance at this time, that your abundance may be for their need, so that also their abundance may be for your need, so that there will be a balance.
In Acts, it was about giving of their excess, their extra. It was not about selling all that they had and giving it away because then they would be the poor person in need.
2 Corinthians 8:15 APNT:
15 As it is written: He who received much did not have excess and he who received little did not lack.
This quotation is from Exodus, and it’s about the manna.
Exodus 16:18 ESV:
But when they measured it [the manna] with an omer, whoever gathered much had nothing left over, and whoever gathered little had no lack. Each of them gathered as much as he could eat.
The point is that everyone would have their need met. And that is the point of giving!
2 Corinthians 8:24 APNT:
From now on, in the presence of all the churches, show them a demonstration of your love and our boasting about you.
The purpose of giving is to demonstrate love.
2 Corinthians 8:21 APNT:
For we were careful [to do] the right things, not before God only, but also before men.
Provision. “Pro” means “before,” and “vision” means to see. When God provides for us, He sees before what the need is.
That corresponds to one of God’s names: Jehovah Jireh, the Lord who sees.
Scripture References
Scripture quotations marked (ESV) are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NET) are from The NET Bible® Copyright © 1996, 2019 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. www.netbible.com. All rights reserved.
See Also:
Cheerful Givers by George Müller
The audio files are also available from the Acts Now Fellowship website:
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