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The Tithing System under the Old Covenant
The subject of the Old Covenant tithing is quite complex and will be
discussed under three headings.
1) The Old Covenant Tithing System (see below)
2) No 2nd or 3rd Tithe! ( «- clickable)
3) A Tithe of Animals? ( «- clickable)
THE OLD COVENANT TITHING SYSTEM
1) The tithing system, which started in Genesis, served a very useful
purpose under the Old Covenant.
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It served to support the tribe of Levi who
had not been allocated a share of the land
divided amongst the other tribes of Israel.
Instead the Levites were to receive as an
inheritance the tithes of the 12 tribes
in return for assisting the priests in
performing the work of the tabernacle of
meeting.
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Num 18:1 Then the LORD said to Aaron: ...
:6 Behold, I Myself have taken your brethren the Levites
from among the children of Israel; they are a gift to
you [Aaron], given by the LORD, to do the work of the
tabernacle of meeting.
:21 Behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tithes
in Israel as an inheritance in return for the work which
they perform, the work of the tabernacle of meeting.
Note the Priesthood also had an inheritance!
Num 18:20 Then the LORD said to Aaron: "You shall have no
inheritance in their land, nor shall you have any
portion among them; I am your portion and your
inheritance among the children of Israel.
2) The tithe of the produce of the children of Israel was to be offered
to the priesthood!
Heb 7:5 And indeed those who are of the sons of Levi,
who receive the priesthood, have a commandment
to receive tithes from the people according to
the law, that is from their brethren, ...
Num 18:8 And the LORD spoke to Aaron: "Here, I myself
have given you charge of My heave offerings,
all the holy gifts of the children of Israel;
...
NB: When reading Numbers 18:25-32 it seems to suggest tithes were
offered to the non-priesthood Levites. However, we can see
from the following text that the non-priesthood Levites could
not receive the tithes of the children of Israel unless a
Levite priest was present.
Neh 10:38 And the priest, the descendant of Aaron, shall
be with the Levites when the Levites receive
tithes; ...
3) It seems that two slightly different tithing arrangements existed.
- Tithing in the farming communities
Neh 10:37 ... and to bring the tithes of our land to
the Levites, for the Levites should receive
the tithes in all our farming communities.
:38 And the priest, the descendant of Aaron, shall
be with the Levites when the Levites receive
tithes; ...
- Tithing direct to Jerusalem
2Chr 31:4 Moreover he (Hezekiah) commanded the people
who dwelt in Jerusalem to contribute support
for the priests and Levites, ...
:5 As soon as the commandment was circulated,
the children of Israel brought in abundance
... and they brought in abundantly the tithe
of everything.
4) A tenth of the tithe provided by the children of Israel was to
be offered to the LORD.
Num 18:26 ... When you take from the children of Israel
the tithes which I have given you ... then you
then you shall offer up a heave offering of it
to the LORD, a tenth of the tithe.
If the tithe had been received in a farming
community then this 'tenth of the tithe' was
to be transported to Jerusalem.
Neh 10:38 ... and the Levites shall bring
up a tenth of the tithes to the
house of our God, to the rooms of
the storehouse.
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5) Once the 'tenth of the tithe' had been selected and offered the
remaining 9/10ths of the tithe would be available to support the
Levites. This 9/10th's would be considered as if was the produce
of the threshing floor and winepress.
Num 18:30 ... then the rest shall be accounted to the
Levites as the produce of the threshing
floor and as the produce of the winepress.
:31 You may eat it in any place, you and your
households, for it is your reward for your
work in the tabernacle of meeting.
[NB: 1) Since much of the tithe of the tribes of Israel would
have been presented outside of Jerusalem, where many
of the Levites and priests dwelt, redistribution of
the 9/10ths was minimized.
2) For the tithe offered at Jerusalem the priesthood was
responsible for ensuring the Levites serving in Jerusalem
received their due portion of the 9/10ths. Refer Neh 13:10
and 2Chr 31:17. ]
6) The tithe was not collected year round. 2Chr 31:7 records that
even around Jerusalem the tithe did not arrive outside of the
third to seventh month. These months corresponded to the period
between the 3rd month observance of the Feast of Weeks and the
7th month observance of the Feast of Ingathering.
- Around Jerusalem
2Chr 31:7 In the third month they began laying them in heaps,
and they finished in the seventh month.
NB: Outside of Jerusalem the priests who lived in outlying
areas would bring the 'tenth of the tithe' to Jerusalem
when they journeyed to the city to observe the 7th month
feast.
7) The Priesthood also tithed!
Matt 23:23 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!
For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin,
and have neglected the weightier matters of the
law: ...
The priestly tithe was later to be set aside in their cities and
be fully distributed to the poor.
Deut 14:28 ... bring out the tithe of your produce of that year
and store it up within your gates.
:29 And the Levite, because he has no portion nor
inheritance with you, and the stranger and the
fatherless and the widow who are within your gates,
may come and eat and be satisfied, ...
Since the Priesthood carried this responsibility, Christ was
justified in accusing them for the plight of widows.
Matt 23:14 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!
For you devour widows' houses, ...
8) Scripture advises the tithe was composed of;
- grain, wine, oil and honey
- plus all other produce of the land
- plus other items from the land
2Chr 31:5 As soon as the commandment was circulated,
the children of Israel brought in abundance
the firstfruits of grain and wine, oil and
honey, and of all the produce of the field;
and they brought in abundantly the tithe of
everything.
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The 'other items from the land included, milk, curd, wool and fleece.
Num 13:27 Then they told him, and said: "We went to the land
where you sent us. It truly flows with milk and honey,
and this is its fruit.
Deut 18:4 The firstfruits of your grain and your new
wine and your oil, and the first [best] of the
fleece of your sheep, you shall give him.
9) The tithe was composed of the best of the land.
Num 18:12 All the best of the oil, all the best of the new
wine and grain, their firstfruits which they offer
to the LORD, I have given them to you (Aaron).
Num 18:29 'Of all your gifts you shall offer up every heave
offering due to the LORD, from all the best of
them, the consecrated part of them.'
:30 Therefore you shall say to them: 'When you have
lifted up the best of it, ...
:32 And you shall bear no sin because of it, when
you have lifted up the best of it. ...
10) All the tithe received from the children of Israel was initially holy.
Lev 27:30 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 to the LORD.
For this reason the 'tithe of the tithe' could be called the 'tithe
of holy things'.
2Chr 31:6 And the children of Israel and Judah, who dwelt in
the cities of Judah, brought ... also the tithe of
holy things which were consecrated to the LORD their
God they laid in heaps.
Since the 'tithe of the tithe' retained its holy nature it was
important to store it separately from the other 9/10ths (which
had become as the produce of the threshing floor and winepress).
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