Is There a Scriptural Basis For Tithing?

by Tony Pirog - Email: tonypirog@hotmail.com

Mal 3:6-12 "I the LORD do not change. So you, O descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed. Ever since the time of your forefathers you have turned away from my decrees and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you," says the LORD Almighty. "But you ask, 'How are we to return?' "Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me. "But you ask, 'How do we rob you?' "In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse - the whole nation of you - because you are robbing me. Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this," says the LORD Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it. I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not cast their fruit," says the LORD Almighty. "Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land," says the LORD Almighty."

This is the basis upon which the modern day churches claim we are required to tithe. If one fails to do so, he is accused of "robbing God." To me, this was the most intimidating scripture about tithing in the whole Bible.

What we need to understand is that as New Covenant believers God gave us a simple promise that if you give a little you will be blessed a little and if you give a lot you will be blessed a lot (2 Cor 9:6). When we look to satisfy our requirements to give by giving 10%, we limit what the amount of blessing we can receive from God. The promises for paying tithes under the law God gave to the Israelites are not as great as what we can receive from God as New Covenant believers. That is not to say that you have to give more than 10% in order to get into greater blessing. Remember that the intention of our heart is more important than the dollar amount we give (2 Cor 8:12). Also, remember what Jesus told the woman who only gave two small coins (Mark 12:41-44).

God, through his prophets, told of a time when people who were not Israelites (Gentiles, meaning the rest of us) would be given the (Gospel) good news also. We were to receive a better covenant than what he had for the Israelites. We were not to be bound by the law. Gal 3:13 tells us we have been redeemed from the law. We’ve been given freedoms that the Israelites did not have. For example, each one of us can have a relationship with God ourselves without going through a priest as the Israelites had to do under the Old Covenant. The average Israelite did not have the freedom to have a relationship with God themselves. God was only active in the lives of prophets, priests, judges, and some kings.

Just like the other scriptures that provided the law for the Israelites, the writers include a phrase or sentence indicating to whom they were speaking. The same is true about the scripture in Malachi. The command about tithing and the blessings too were not directed to New Covenant believers! Let’s go back to Malachi chapter 3 starting at verse 6 and read carefully. ".... descendants of Jacob,..... Ever since the time of your forefathers you have turned away from my decrees." That tells that God is talking to the descendants of Jacob. New Covenant Christians are descendants of Jacob in a spiritual sense but God was speaking in a literal sense meaning he was speaking to the people right there at the time not many many generations later. Verse 9 continues in the same thought "You are under a curse - the whole nation of you...." New Covenant Christians are not a nation in the same sense and are NOT "under a curse." New Covenant Christians are referred to in 1 Peter 2:9 as a "...holy nation..." which people become a part of by rebirth (by being born again) and not by natural birth.

New Covenant Christians do not have to tithe in order to please God.

In verse 10, God talks about opening the windows of heaven. In order to open the windows of heaven they first have to be closed! That is not the situation that New Covenant believers find themselves in now. Eph 1:3 says "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ." So.. the windows of heaven are not closed to New Covenant believers.

So maybe you want to continue to hold onto your belief and say that Christians are a ‘spiritual nation’ and therefore Malachi is still talking to us now. You are certainly free to believe that. But before you do let’s look at he blessings that God promised in Malachi 3:10-11. It may seem like a great blessing but it really isn’t. To understand this scripture you have to continue reading through to verse 15. The Israelites had said that there was no point in serving God. They said evil people were prospering and serving God was of no benefit. They had stopped expecting anything from God. They did not have big expectations of a great crop. In other words, their storehouses were not very big and for those that were big, the building were not in good repair. I can’t quote scripture about the condition of their buildings but if you look at these scriptures carefully you will recognize the conditions of their hearts. Their hearts were not into serving God. In their hearts, they had determined that serving God was a waste of time. So God promised only one kind of blessing to them for their obedience to the law of tithing. He was going to bless their crops if they brought their tithes into the storehouse.

We should be generous with the poor but we are not robbing God if we do not tithe. You sin if you are selfish towards those in need.

WHAT IS THE TITHE?

Lev 27:32 The entire tithe of the herd and flock - every tenth animal that passes under the shepherd's rod - will be holy to the LORD.

One tenth! We are told, based upon Malachi, that if we tithe (give the first 10% of our earnings) to the "church" (whatever church we happen to be member of), then God will consider that we have "tested" Him, as defined in Malachi 3:10 above, and He will then bless us with prosperity. "Try it!" say the pastors "The Lord told us to test Him. It works! We have always tithed and the Lord has always provided for us!"

Hmmmm. Test God? Doesn't sound quite right, does it?

Two kinds of giving are taught consistently throughout Scripture: giving to the government (always compulsory), and giving to God (always voluntary).

The issue has been greatly confused, however, by some who misunderstand the nature of the Old Testament tithes. Tithes were not primarily gifts to God, but taxes for funding the national budget in Israel.

Because Israel was a theocracy, the Levitical priests acted as the civil government. So the Levite's tithe (Leviticus 27:30-33) was a precursor to today's income tax, as was a second annual tithe required by God to fund a national festival (Deuteronomy 14:22-29). Smaller taxes were also imposed on the people by the law (Exodus 23:10-11; Leviticus 19:9-10). So the total giving required of the Israelites was not 10 percent, but well over 20 percent. All that money was used to operate the nation.

All giving apart from that required to run the government was purely voluntary (cf. Exodus 25:2; 1 Chronicles 29:9). Each person gave whatever was in his heart to give; no percentage or amount was specified.

New Testament believers are never commanded to tithe. Matthew 22:15-22 and Romans 13:1-7 tell us about the only required giving in the church age, which is the paying of taxes to the government. Interestingly enough, we in America presently pay between 20 and 30 percent of our income to the government--a figure very similar to the requirement under the theocracy of Israel.

The guideline for our giving to God and His work is found in 2 Corinthians 9:6-7: "Now this I say, he who sows sparingly shall also reap sparingly; and he who sows bountifully shall also reap bountifully. Let each one do just as he has purposed in his heart; not grudgingly or under compulsion; for God loves a cheerful giver."

OLD COVENANT GIVING

What does the Bible teach is God's best as far as giving money is concerned? Freewill offerings is what I maintain is God's best way of having his people give. Not tithing. This is demonstrated on at least two very significant occasions in the Old Testament and is the only way demonstrated for giving in the New Testament.

What is freewill offering? Freewill offering is simply giving what you are willing to give. It means that there is no certain percentage involved. Everyone is asked and you just bring what you are willing to give. The leadership does not set an individual target at all. You bring the amount that you can cheerfully give. You give the amount that you can enjoy giving. That's all there is to it.

The first example of freewill offerings I want to point out is demonstrated in Exodus 35:1-36:7 . Moses asked the people for offerings of all kinds including people using their skills to help build the tabernacle, make the decorations, weave the material, and set the precious stones that were donated. The people gave and gave and gave. They gave so much that Moses had to ask them to stop giving because the craftsmen had more than enough to finish the job! The people were giving cheerfully!

The other incident I want to mention has to do with preparations for building the temple. The temple was to be the most important building in all Israel yet God did not count on tithes to build it. King David was gathering building materials and gifts so his son Solomon could get started building the temple. First, King David contributed (1 Chronicles 29:2-5). Then he invited others to give (1 Chronicles 29:6-9) and the people gave willingly and rejoiced at the willing response of their leaders. King David and the people were not giving tithes. They gave freely and wholeheartedly. Like the first incident I mentioned, the people gave cheerfully. The fact that they gave cheerfully is important. In the New Testament (2 Corinthians 9:7), we are directed to give cheerfully too. As I study tithing and compare it to giving freely, the cheerfulness comes with giving freely. Freewill giving is the way God wants Christians to give now.

BEFORE THE LAW

Ok, so maybe you agree that Christians are not supposed to tithe because of the law God gave to the Israelites. Maybe you think Christians should still tithe because 'tithing came before the law'! Let's take a look at that reasoning. There certainly are a couple of recorded incidents in the Bible that occurred before the law was given to the Israelites. One was Genesis 14:17-20 where Abram, after rescuing his nephew Lot from Kedorlaomer and the kings allied with him, gave Melchizedek king of Salem a tenth of everything that he plundered (Hebrews 7:4). Abraham did this one time. If it is OK to use this as an example of some universal never-changing truth that Christians should be practicing today then on that premise, today's Christians should be practicing everything that occurred before the law! I really don't believe that makes sense and neither does it make sense for teachers today to just cite one thing that Abraham did before the law was given to the Israelites and attempt to make that some sort of 'God wants everyone to do it forever law.'

The other incident is recorded in Genesis 28:20-22 where Jacob made a vow promising to give God a tenth of all he has if God will be with him and watch over him on this journey. I have not heard anyone teach that Christians should give God a tithe only if various things work out right. By the way, I also believe it is right not to teach that. It is the Genesis 14:17-20 verses that many use to justify teaching that Christians should be tithing now. A variety of reasons are given including some who state that the king Melchizedek was actually Jesus. I won't get into that debate because whether it was or was not Jesus does not dictate what amount of giving God would be pleased receiving from you and I now.

Most who hold this position seem to believe tithing is the right thing to do simply because it came before the law God gave to the Israelites. It certainly did but why stop there? If we want to settle this issue on the basis of time - what came first - then I think we have to continue to go back in time. The first time an offering to God by humans is mentioned is in Genesis 4:3-7. Cain brought some of the things he had grown from the soil as an offering to the Lord while Able brought fat portions from some of his flock. We are told that God was pleased with Abel's offering and He was not pleased with Cain's offering. God said to Cain in verse 7 "...If you do what is right, will you not be accepted?" For sure both Cain and Able knew what they were supposed to do and that was to sacrifice the fat of firstborn animals to God. So I maintain that if we want to settle this issue on the basis of what came first then we're back to sacrificing animals. I just don't believe that's what God is looking for from us right now. I believe that what he wants from us now is clearly outlined in many New Covenant scriptures.

WHAT DOES THE NEW TESTAMENT SAY ABOUT THE LAW?

Gal 3:13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree."

Romans 2:12 All who sin apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law.

Romans 3:21-24 But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

Romans 3:28 For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law.

Romans 6:14 For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.

Romans 7:6 But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code.

Romans 7:24-25 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God - through Jesus Christ our Lord!

Then in the following verses, the Lord reminds us of the promise in the Old Testament that He would make a new covenant with men, that He would put this law in their hearts and minds, and He says: "And their sins and iniquitues I will remember no more. Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin." - Hebrews 10:17-18

In essence, we are not subject to Old Testament law - particularly the Gentile who has NEVER been subject to Old Testament law. And there is no longer a sin offering because Jesus has already paid that price.

ARE WE AS NEW COVENANT BELIEVERS RERQUIRED TO TO OBEY ALL THE OLD COVENANT LAWS?

If it is in order to attain salvation or achieve some kind of righteounsness in God's eyes, then absolutely not! We are NOT rquired to tithe! Fact is, we CAN'T tithe as the biblical tithe is defined. On the other hand, if you are selfish with your blessings, then that is despicable.

What about the Old Testament in general? Can we just ignore all of it? Absolutely not! Most of the laws the Israelites were instructed to follow were detailed in the first 5 books of the Old Testament. The laws were given to the Israelites for a couple of reasons. One reason was to make the Israelites totally different from every other tribe or group of people on earth. By doing this God was able to show his power and blessing when they obeyed him as well as his judgment when they did not.

All the Old Testament books contain examples of timeless wisdom on how we should live. The book of Proverbs is a good example of that. As detailed and complicated as some of the laws were, Jesus Christ clarified the most important parts of the Law in Matthew 22:36-40. In addition, there are prophecies concerning many things especially concerning the birth, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is fulfilled prophecy for one thing, that sets the bible apart from every other teaching on gods. It is beyond the scope of this instruction to explain all the wonderful teachings in the Old Testament.

It is the Old Covenant Laws that were given to the Israelites that is the issue. No Christians that I am aware of are taught today to perform animal sacrifices. I believe Bible teachers are correct in not teaching this. However, the Israelites were directed to do that under the Old Covenant. Examples can be found at Leviticus 3:1-5 and Leviticus 4:1-12.They were instructed to perform animal sacrifice for fellowship offerings, sin offerings, guilt offerings as well as other reasons. We are not taught that we should be performing animal sacrifice today, so why are we taught that we should still be tithing?

There were laws that we would call harsh today, but the Israelites were directed to follow them. Exodus 21:17 and Leviticus 20:9 teach that if anyone curses their parents, that person must be put to death. The same penalty was given for cursing God in Leviticus 24:15-16. No teacher that I know of who calls himself/herself a Christian would advocate these practices today. Once again I believe that Christian Bible teachers are correct in this. So why are Christians taught that we should still be tithing?

All the laws God gave to the Israelites were important for their survival. I have only given examples of some of the harshest ones. Deuteronomy 11:13-15 is one example of what God promised to do for the Israelites if they obeyed his laws. God promised many other blessings for their obedience as well as curses for their disobedience.

So why don't we try to follow ALL of the laws God gave to the Israelites? Is that something we should be doing? No! Some try to separate the 'nice' Old Testament laws ones from the ones that are not so nice - and just try to obey the 'nice' ones - like the laws concerning tithing. That is not correct. Here is an excellent example of the point I am making: Deuteronomy 12:4-7 instructs the Israelites to bring their tithes and their burnt offerings to the Lord. It seems that we are willing still to obey the part about giving a tithe but not the part about burnt offerings. Something is wrong with that. Either we obey all of the laws God gave to the Israelites or none. It is not a menu where we just get to pick and choose the ones we want to obey.

There are a whole host of things we would have to start doing differently if we really wanted to start obeying the laws God gave to the Israelites. Read some of them for yourself and you'll see what I mean. The biggest problem is that the birth, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ would be of no benefit since you would still be trying to obey those laws that point to Jesus Christ as the fulfilment of the law and the prophets. (Matthew 5:17).

WHAT DID JESUS SAY ABOUT THE LAW?

Matthew 22:34-40 Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."

WHAT DID PETER SAY ABOUT BUYING EARTHLY BLESSINGS?

Acts 8:20-21 Peter answered: "But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money. Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God."

He said that God wants our heart - not our money.

And Paul went on to say in 1 Timothy 6:9 - "But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition."

IN CONCLUSION

We are not living in the OT age under the strict rules of God. We are in the age of grace and the curses are removed. The OT gives us good pictures of what God is like and what does and does not please him. But we are not under the OT law any more (we arenot in bondage to law). (Were Gentiles EVER under the Torah law? See "The 7 Noachide Laws" below). Neither are we living in confined little communities where all our teaching comes from one place. We have many sources: TV, books, radio Evangelists, churches...

Galatians 6:6 (NIV) "Anyone who receives instruction in the word must share all good things with his instructor."

These verses tell us that we should share with those who teach us. The OT law shows us that God wants us to provide a portion of what we make to the ministry of teaching His word. In this age we are not to be concerned about rules so much as the heart's condition. God wants our hearts to be such that we want to, and do, give to those who teach us, but that does not limit us to the church building.

What did Paul say about this?

2 Corinthians 8:7-8 "But just as you excel in everything - in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in your love for us - see that you also excel in this grace of giving. I am not commanding you, but I want to test the sincerity of your love by comparing it with the earnestness of others."

Not to give because it is a command or requirement or law, or because you are testing God, but because you want to - because your heart condition is right before God.

I have seen examples of people who tithe and cannot get by financially, and I have seen many examples of people who do not tithe and have every financial blessing imaginable. Those who tithe and are poor cannot understand it. They are told that they will receive prosperity if they tithe and it doesn't happen. They then become confused and possibly even fall away and become backslidden.

So, should we accept that the scripture of Malachi applies to us? Not at all. It does not apply to us. When you are confronted by a preacher who claims you should be tithing to the church else you will be cursed, remember Peter's words in Acts 8:20-21 "But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money. Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God."

Give, by all means! We should give with a cheerful heart! Give as much as you can. Give 10, 20, 50% - whatever the Spirit leads! But you are not under no Malachi curse. If you try to test God and purchase His prosperity blessing by accepting the Malachi teaching - well, you figure it out.

FINALLY - WHAT IS MEANT BY BLESSING?

Is it financial? Let's look at what Jesus had to say about this.

Matthew 5:10-12 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

So, if we are persecuted because of Jesus, we are blessed. Why? Because "great is your reward in heaven." Is Jesus teaching prosperity as a blessing? Is He telling us that we will become financially affluent if we obey Old Testament law? Is He telling us to test God the Father by giving our tithe to "the church?" Look again. What do you think?

I quote from a letter written by John R. Rice to the Roman Catholic community: "The pastor who insists that tithes will not be recognized by God unless the tithes come into the church, where this pastor receives his salary and he can dominate the spending of the money, that pastor takes part of the same "popery" that puts Christ in second place, and puts human instruments ahead of the authority of the Holy Spirit and the authority of Christ."

* Addendum: The 7 Noachide Laws

The Jewish idea is that the Torah of Moses is a truth for all humanity, whether Jewish or not. The Torah (as explained in the Talmud - Sanhedrin 58b) presents seven mitzvot for non-Jews to observe. These seven laws are the pillars of human civilization, and are named the "Seven Laws of Noah," since all humans are descended from Noah. They are: