Tithing

After years of faithful tithing, I revisited the question of Christian tithing. Are Christians supposed to tithe? I no longer think so, and this article gives my reasons.

The Biblical Case for Tithing

Nearly the entire known, public, organized Christian world preaches some form of Christian tithing, though the emphasis varies by degree in different faith communities.

The reasons that Christians are taught to tithe appear to be based in the Bible. There are several New Testament passages that suggest Christians should tithe and most pastors preach those passages at some regular interval in their respective churches.

I listened to those sermons and was a faithful tither for many years.

Then, a friend of mine pushed hard on the subject of tithing. I took the pro-tithing position I had always held, but my understanding of scripture was now much more complete and the old stand-by arguments were shallow and unconvincing. At several places we can find Jesus giving precise editorial on the practice of tithing, and his parables do not simply support tithing as usually taught in Church.

Eventually, it became apparent the debate was centering on the wrong question. The tithing question should be stated a little differently.

Who, under the New Covenant, is to receive another person's tithe?

This question is a simple reversal of the traditional question. It galvanizes the argument and can be answered quickly. There has been a change in law, and a change in priesthood, and under the New Covenant no one receives the tithe. Nowhere under the New Covenant is there anyone, anywhere, who receives a tithe. Curiously Jesus does not receive a tithe, neither does Paul, nor anyone that Paul instructs. There are no examples, and no instruction, because tithing is a practice that is not part of the New Covenant.

Indeed, as I will explain in detail below, those now receiving the tithe are not sons of the Father but usurpers. Therefore, the question of giving a tithe is simple: no one should be giving a tithe.

It should also be obvious that without tithing, there is no source of funds for "church" as we know it. This is in fact the second most common argument for tithing. Even if scripture does not mandate tithing for New Covenant believers, the question is often asked, how would the church function without tithing?

Of course the question is based in an assumption. If "church" is defined by the tithe-supported model we see used widely across the globe, then of course the tithe is needed to support "church." But, scripture describes "Church" differently than we normally experience. That scriptural model for "Church" does not function on a tithe. So, it looks different than most churches today.

By withdrawing the tithe, and returning to a scripture model for funding, we must also rethink church organization that depends on the tithe and return that organization to a scriptural model.

When done, these changes imply a different type of ministry, a ministry quite different than the paid priest that most pastors have become.

This is a very strong position, very much counter to many widely held beliefs across the Christian world.

After considering this position, and praying about it, a picture of how the church is perverted by the false tithing doctrine began to develop. Instead of seeing tithing as the engine that makes everything go, I came to see tithing as the key perversion that messes everything up.

My purpose here is to explain the perversion of tithing and describe what the true church looks like without this source of funding.

To begin this story we look at several passages usually quoted in support of Christian tithing.

Abraham's Tithing

Probably the most powerful argument for tithing, the argument I most respected when I was a tither, was the argument from Abraham's experience.

Abraham, long before the introduction of the Law, tithed 10 percent to Melchizedek, king of Salem. Since Christians are adopted into Abraham's family, he is a primary model that we, as his adopted sons, should follow closely. The argument goes this way... since Abraham tithed, so should we.

The key passage is out of Genesis...

1 Genesis 14:18-20 18וּמַלְכִּי־ צֶ֙דֶק֙ מֶ֣לֶךְ שָׁלֵ֔ם הוֹצִ֖יא לֶ֣חֶם וָיָ֑יִן וְה֥וּא כֹהֵ֖ן לְאֵ֥ל עֶלְיֽוֹן׃ 19וַֽיְבָרְכֵ֖הוּ וַיֹּאמַ֑ר בָּר֤וּךְ אַבְרָם֙ לְאֵ֣ל עֶלְי֔וֹן קֹנֵ֖ה שָׁמַ֥יִם וָאָֽרֶץ׃ 20וּבָרוּךְ֙ אֵ֣ל עֶלְי֔וֹן אֲשֶׁר־ מִגֵּ֥ן צָרֶ֖יךָ בְּיָדֶ֑ךָ וַיִּתֶּן־ ל֥וֹ מַעֲשֵׂ֖ר מִכֹּֽל׃ (WLC)

1 Genesis 14:18-20 18And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God. 19And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth: 20And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all. (KJV)

1 Genesis 14:18-20 18And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God. 19And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth: 20And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all. (KJV/NC)

1 Genesis 14:18-20 18And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was priest of God Most High. 19And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of God Most High, possessor of heaven and earth: 20and blessed be God Most High, who hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him a tenth of all. (ASV)

1 Genesis 14:18-20 18And Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was the priest of the Most High God. 19And he blessed him, saying, Blessed be Abram to God Most High, possessor of heaven and earth; 20And blessed be the Most High God, who has delivered your enemies into your hands. And Abram gave him tithes of everything. (LAM)

1 Genesis 14:18-20 18And Mel-chiz'edek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was priest of God Most High. 19And he blessed him and said, "Blessed be Abram by God Most High, maker of heaven and earth; 20and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand!" And Abram gave him a tenth of everything. (RSV)

1 Genesis 14:18-20 18Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. He was priest of God Most High, 19and he blessed Abram, saying, "Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth. 20And blessed be God Most High, who delivered your enemies into your hand." Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything.(NIV)

1 Genesis 14:18-20 18Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was priest of God Most High. 19He blessed him, and said, 'Blessed be Abram of God Most High, possessor of heaven and earth: 20and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand.'(WEB)

1 Genesis 14:18-20 18Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine: and he was priest of God Most High. 19He blessed him, and said, 'Blessed be Abram of God Most High, possessor of heaven and earth: 20and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand.'(WEB/HNV)

1 Genesis 14:18-20 18And Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was the priest of the Most High God. 19And he blessed him, saying, Blessed be Abram to God Most High, possessor of heaven and earth; 20And blessed be the Most High God, who has delivered your enemies into your hands. And Abram gave him tithes of everything. (BRB)

Abraham's experience is discussed in detail in various passages in the New Testament. Abraham's tithing is discussed in most detail here:

54 Hebrews 7:1-3 1ܗܢܐ ܕܝܢ ܡܠܟܝܙܕܩ ܐܝܬܘܗܝ ܡܠܟ ܫܠܝ ܟܘܡܪܐ ܕܐܠܗܐ ܡܪܝܡܐ ܘܗܘ ܐܪܥܗ ܠܐܒܪܗ ܟܕ ܗܦܟ ܡܢ ܚܪܒܐ ܕܡܠܟܐ ܘܒܪܟܗ ܀ 2ܘܠܗ ܦܪܫ ܐܒܪܗ ܡܥܤܪܐ ܡܢ ܟܠܡܕ ܕܐܝܬ ܗܘܐ ܥܡܗ ܡܬܦܫܩ ܕܝܢ ܫܡܗ ܡܠܟܐ ܕܟܐܢܘܬܐ ܘܬܘܒ ܡܠܟ ܫܠܝ ܕܐܝܬܘܗܝ ܡܠܟܐ ܕܫܠܡܐ ܀ 3ܕܠܐ ܐܒܘܗܝ ܘܠܐ ܐܡܗ ܐܬܟܬܒܘ ܒܫܪܒܬܐ ܘܠܐ ܪܝܫܝܬܐ ܕܝܘܡܘܗܝ ܘܠܐ ܫܘܠܡܐ ܕܚܝܘܗܝ ܐܠܐ ܒܕܡܘܬܐ ܕܒܪܗ ܕܐܠܗܐ ܡܩܘܝܐ ܟܘܡܪܘܬܗ ܠܥܠ ܀ (SYP)

54 Hebrews 7:1-3 1For this Melchisedec, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings, and blessed him; 2To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace; 3Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually. (KJV)

54 Hebrews 7:1-3 1For this Melchisedec, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings, and blessed him; 2To whom also Abraham gave a 1/10 part of all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace; 3Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually. (KJV/NC)

54 Hebrews 7:1-3 1For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of God Most High, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, 2to whom also Abraham divided a tenth part of all (being first, by interpretation, King of righteousness, and then also King of Salem, which is King of peace; 3without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like unto the Son of God), abideth a priest continually. (ASV)

54 Hebrews 7:1-3 1FOR this Melchisedec was king of Salem, the priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, 2And to whom Abraham also set aside a tenth part from the choice things he had with him. His name is interpreted king of righteousness, and again, king of Salem, which means king of peace. 3Neither his father nor his mother is recorded in the genealogies; and neither the beginning of his days nor the end of his life; but, like the Son of God, his priesthood abides for ever. (LAM)

54 Hebrews 7:1-3 1For this Melchiz'edek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him; 2and to him Abraham apportioned a tenth part of everything. He is first, by translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then he is also king of Salem, that is, king of peace. 3He is without father or mother or genealogy, and has neither beginning of days nor end of life, but resembling the Son of God he continues a priest for ever.(RSV)

54 Hebrews 7:1-3 1This Melchizedek was king of Salem and priest of God Most High. He met Abraham returning from the defeat of the kings and blessed him, 2and Abraham gave him a tenth of everything. First, his name means "king of righteousness"; then also, "king of Salem" means "king of peace." 3Without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life, like the Son of God he remains a priest forever.(NIV)

54 Hebrews 7:1-3 1For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of God Most High, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, 2to whom also Abraham divided a tenth part of all (being first, by interpretation, king of righteousness, and then also king of Salem, which is king of peace; 3without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God), remains a priest continually. (WEB)

54 Hebrews 7:1-3 1For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of God Most High, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, 2to whom also Abraham divided a tenth part of all (being first, by interpretation, king of righteousness, and then also king of Salem, which is king of peace; 3without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God), remains a priest continually. (WEB/HNV)

54 Hebrews 7:1-3 1FOR this Melchisedec was king of Salem, the priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, 2And to whom Abraham also set aside 1/10th part from the choice things he had with him. His name is interpreted king of righteousness, and again, king of Salem, which means king of peace. 3Neither his father nor his mother is recorded in the genealogies; and neither the beginning of his days nor the end of his life; but, like the Son of God, his priesthood stays forever. (BRB)

The logic goes this way, since Abraham tithed to Melchizedek, a type of Christ, so too, should we tithe to Christ and the way we do that now is to tithe to the local church.

The argument is so full of holes it is sickening, but before giving what I think scripture really says, consider Jesus' own words on tithing, another oft quoted reason for tithing.

Jesus on Tithing

Jesus also editorializes on Tithing. There are 2 versions of the oft quoted passage, one in Matthew and another in Luke. Here is Matthew's version:

41 Matthew 23:23 23ܘܝ ܠܟܘܢ ܤܦܪܐ ܘܦܪܝܫܐ ܢܤܒܝ ܒܐܦܐ ܕܡܥܤܪܝܢ ܐܢܬܘܢ ܢܢܥܐ ܘܫܒܬܐ ܘܟܡܘܢܐ ܘܫܒܩܬܘܢ ܝܩܝܪܬܗ ܕܢܡܘܤܐ ܕܝܢܐ ܘܚܢܢܐ ܘܗܝܡܢܘܬܐ ܗܠܝܢ ܕܝܢ ܘܠܐ ܗܘܐ ܕܬܥܒܕܘܢ ܘܗܠܝܢ ܠܐ ܬܫܒܩܘܢ ܀ (SYP)

41 Matthew 23:23 23Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, 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. (KJV)

41 Matthew 23:23 23Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, 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. (KJV/NC)

41 Matthew 23:23 23Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye tithe mint and anise and cummin, and have left undone the weightier matters of the law, justice, and mercy, and faith: but these ye ought to have done, and not to have left the other undone. (ASV)

41 Matthew 23:23 23Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you take tithes on mint, dill, and cummin, and you have overlooked the more important matters of the law, such as justice, mercy, and trustworthiness. These were necessary for you to have done, and the same by no means to have left undone. (LAM)

41 Matthew 23:23 23You blind guides, straining out a gnat and swallowing a camel!(RSV)

41 Matthew 23:23 23"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices -- mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law -- justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. (NIV)

41 Matthew 23:23 23'Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For youP tithe mint, dill, and cumin, and have left undone the weightier matters of the law: justice, mercy, and faith. But youP ought to have done these, and not to have left the other undone. (WEB)

41 Matthew 23:23 23'Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint, dill, and cumin, and have left undone the weightier matters of the Torah: justice, mercy, and faith. But you ought to have done these, and not to have left the other undone. (WEB/HNV)

41 Matthew 23:23 23Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees. Hypocrites. You take tithes on mint, dill, and cummin, and you have overlooked the more important matters of the law, such as justice, mercy, and trustworthiness. These were necessary for you to have done, and the same by no means to have left undone. (BRB)

Jesus seems to be saying that the tithe is foundational, but that there is more, so tithing is a foundation, and there is more for Christians.

This too, was compelling for me as a young Christian. I wanted to do what Jesus wanted, and if he wanted 10 percent and then some, I would do it. So, I did.

Testimony

The final, and for a long time the most definitive reason for my own tithing was a personal experience with tithing.

I lived for several years on the east coast of the United States, a very long way from my home town on the west coast. I was unhappy and did not attend church. I promised Jesus that I would attend church and tithe when I was able to move back to my home town.

One day, out of the blue, my boss walked into my office and asked if I would move back to my home town to represent our division of our company to a key supplier in my home town. The job would require lots of travel, I would end up with 26 of the following 52 weeks spent on the road.

But, it was a chance to get home. So, I agreed to his offer, and within days began what would become nearly a full year of travel on company expense 1/2 of which was in my home town. Exactly 1 calendar year later I permanently transferred back to my home town.

Within a week of my first visit back to my home town I was invited by someone who is still a friend, to attend his church and immediately started attending weekly. (When I was in town.) At the same time I started tithing 10 percent of my weekly income to the local church. Just like everyone preaches we should do.

Within a week of the date on the first tithe check I was back in my boss's office. My boss called me into his office and said that there was a problem with my pay. Seems the corporation that I worked for had sent auditors through the books while I was out of town and those auditors felt I was underpaid.

The auditors ordered my boss to increase my pay by a little over 20 percent and at the same time ordered an additional 20 percent increase 6 months later, for a 40 percent pay raise across the year. This was on top of what I thought was already a pretty good base salary.

My boss seemed much afraid that I might litigate over low previous pay and took the issue quite seriously.

I, on the other hand, saw the hand of Jesus in the affair and took it to mean that Jesus endorses tithing now. He seemed to have more than returned the 10 percent that I was now giving him. He even returned it within 1 pay period.

This pattern is commonly attested to in the tithing community and now I had my own story to tell for anyone that doubted tithing.

My personal income actually increased over 20 percent each year for the following 5 years from that first steep year. I also dropped the expense of 4 round trip, transcontinental airline flights each year back to see my family. That ramp up in income, and the increase in spendable cash, was dramatic and I readily accepted that this was the result of a decision to tithe faithfully.

Of course I continued to tithe for many more years, not seeing the great mistake in my logic. (See if you can spot it in the passage above, there is enough to figure it out. I'll share the mistake below.)

Problems with Tithing

Against the principle of Christian tithing are several other arguments that don't seem quite as compelling, but are still important.

Early in the development of the church there was a council held in Jerusalem. The council was held to deal with the issue of how much of the law Christians should care about and the result was a simple 4 point summary. The result is printed in Acts.

44 Acts 15:28-29 28ܗܘܐ ܓܝܪ ܨܒܝܢܐ ܠܪܘܚܐ ܕܩܘܕܫܐ ܘܐܦ ܠܢ ܕܠܐ ܢܬܬܤܝܡ ܥܠܝܟܘܢ ܝܘܩܪܐ ܝܬܝܪܐ ܠܒܪ ܡܢ ܗܠܝܢ ܕܐܠܨܢ ܀ 29ܕܬܬܪܚܩܘܢ ܡܢ ܕܕܒܝܚܐ ܘܡܢ ܕܡܐ ܘܡܢ ܚܢܝܩܐ ܘܡܢ ܙܢܝܘܬܐ ܕܟܕ ܬܛܪܘܢ ܢܦܫܟܘܢ ܡܢ ܗܠܝܢ ܫܦܝܪ ܬܗܘܘܢ ܗܘܘ ܫܪܝܪܝܢ ܒܡܪܢ ܀ (SYP)

44 Acts 15:28-29 28For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things; 29That ye abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication: from which if ye keep yourselves, ye shall do well. Fare ye well. (KJV)

44 Acts 15:28-29 28For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things; 29That ye abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication: from which if ye keep yourselves, ye shall do well. Fare ye well. (KJV/NC)

44 Acts 15:28-29 28For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things: 29that ye abstain from things sacrificed to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication; from which if ye keep yourselves, it shall be well with you. Fare ye well. (ASV)

44 Acts 15:28-29 28For it is the will of the Holy Spirit and of us to lay upon you no additional burden than these necessary things: 29That you abstain from sacrifices offered to idols and from blood and from animals strangled and from fornication; when you keep yourselves from these things, you will do well. Remain steadfast in our Lord. (LAM)

44 Acts 15:28-29 28For it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things: 29that you abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols and from blood and from what is strangled and from unchastity. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell."(RSV)

44 Acts 15:28-29 28It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden you with anything beyond the following requirements: 29You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality. You will do well to avoid these things. Farewell.(NIV)

44 Acts 15:28-29 28For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us, to lay no greater burden on you than these necessary things: 29that youP abstain from things sacrificed to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality, from which if youP keep yourselves, it will be well with you. FarewellP .'(WEB)

44 Acts 15:28-29 28For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us, to lay no greater burden on you than these necessary things: 29that you abstain from things sacrificed to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality, from which if you keep yourselves, it will be well with you. Farewell.'(WEB/HNV)

44 Acts 15:28-29 28For it is the will of the Holy Spirit and of us to lay on you no additional burden than these necessary things: 29That you abstain from sacrifices offered to idols and from blood and from animals strangled and from fornication; when you keep yourselves from these things, you will do well. Remain steadfast in our Lord. (BRB)

This is an important summary because it spells out in a 4 point, 1 sentence summary what Christians should care about. Those 4 points use some important Biblical symbols and it means the following 4 things:

  • Idols are nothing, but they represent demons, and the first charge is to stay away from things that give demons power to harm.

  • Blood is a keyword meaning innocently shed blood or more simply killing. Christians are not to kill. Just as idolatry gives demons footholds, so too does killing bring on blood guilt and all that entails.

  • Strangled is simply a description of things found dead, presumably rotting and defiled. In short, be careful about what you eat.

  • Sexual Immorality is well defined in the Old Testament and again it deals with protecting your own body from activities that bring on defilement, in this case both physical and demonic.

Nowhere in this quick summary is there any hint of tithing or anything dealing with money. Why would tithing, something that appears important to a healthy Christian life, be left off such an important, central, list of things?

The answer, of course, is that tithing does not belong on this list, so it was left off intentionally. As a young believer, though, this seemed like an argument from silence, so I still tithed, even though it wasn't listed as central.

Reversing My Position

Over time my position on tithing slowly but surely came into line with scripture and I eventually came to the conclusion that most tithing is wrong. Getting there, though, took several steps.

First Exposure

After several years as a regular attender in my neighborhood church I was eventually ordained as an elder and was on the board of directors for the church. From this position I had more direct exposure to the Pastor and since he was involved in promoting regional church unity, I tagged along to many of the meetings and I was given exposure to the leadership in the regional church in the area where I lived.

It became quite obvious through exposure to this group that there is no credibility given by pastors to anyone not themselves supported by the tithe.

I've since found this is a common observation and many others have made it in various ways and using various language. Often intercessors find no one will listen, in part because they are not professional, paid, staff on a church somewhere. They are not ultimately supported by a tithe.

Only occasionally might someone working in a para-church ministry find some sort of ear in the workings of regional Christian communities. Never, though, is it a volunteer who receives an ear.

This seemed very odd to me, but I could not fully explain the problem. It would eventually become clear, but not for a long time after I ran in these circles.

Second Exposure

Eventually I heard Jesus' audible voice calling me into ministry. I quit my by then well paying job and began a life of adventure, following Jesus and working on the things he had called me to.

In those early years there was quite a bit of savings, so there was never much need for money, so I did not care, particularly, where the money came from, I always figured I'd end up in a position similar to all the other vocational ministers I had met and that eventually I would be receiving the tithe of someone in order to have the ear of those whom I thought represented Jesus' church in the region.

One day, under this assumption, I was talking with someone who did not tithe. I, of course, had the testimony I shared above, and believed that tithing was an important part of a mature Christian walk, so I suggested that they tithe to me if they wanted.

The question itself was interesting, and I had never voiced it out loud, but it was something that had been in the back of my mind for years. Logically it went like this, 1) since I'm called to ministry like the vocational ministers I met when I was and elder, 2) therefore it should eventually be that someone else will tithe to me. Of course I did not know the exact form, which is why I pushed this question when I did.

But, saying it out loud for the first time, triggered a deeply spiritual response that for the first time triggered a bunch of related questions. What makes me so special that I should collect someone's tithe?

And, if there is this issue for myself, what makes anyone else so special that they should collect anyone's tithe?

This alternative question was one I had never considered and it was one I could test by reading the New Testament. Who, if anyone, in the New Testament, under the New Covenant, collected the tithe and what were those people like? For, if I was to collect the tithe, then I would become like them, whomever "them" was. It was also the case that whatever I learned about New Testament tithe collectors would also apply to all the vocational ministers in the "ministerial association" that I had met years before. Indeed it would tell me something about the very closed club that is the set of men who live off the tithe.

Studying out this question soon lead to a realization.

Giving of the tithe is perhaps encouraged in the New Testament, but receiving the tithe is clearly not.

Nobody mentioned in the New Testament receives a tithe under the New Covenant.

That means that all the people who live off the tithe are doing so based on an argument from silence.

Of all the key people, Jesus himself, Paul, Peter, and all the rest, nowhere does anyone receive a tithe. In all the various stories that we read about, in no place is there a tithe collector. This office, function, whatever we might expect it to be called, does not exist anywhere in the New Testament.

The answer to the question of what makes someone special enough to collect a tithe is this: No one is special enough under the New Covenant to collect a tithe. There is no one under the New Covenant who collects a tithe.

Whomever, or whatever, those tithe collecting members of the ministerial association are, they are not found in the New Testament, under the New Covenant. I never asked anyone again for their tithe, and lost all desire to do the "vocational thing" and get a job as a pastor, even though that seemed like a very natural fit for the call from Jesus that I had received.

Curiously, scripture actually explains who these members of the ministerial association really are. I'm now glad I did not go down that path. Though it would take some time before I could find the relevant scripture.

Third Exposure

Eventually my initial set of savings ran out. That high paying job had created quite a surplus. When I was initially called I was given use of a house to live in, rent free. I did not know how long it would take, but I had figured that eventually "ministry" would become self-funding, somehow, and I kept up the call until the money was gone.

At this point I figured I needed to go back to "secular" work, and though there have been occasional "tent making" episodes, usually helping family members with things I would have done for free. The money needed to continue with the ministry call has always been there, now more than 3 years since the end of savings.

From first hand experience I can say that someone's tithe is obviously not needed for ministry. Ministry clearly happens without a tithe.

The question, though, is how are we to understand the New Testament references to tithes, and how are we to understand those who collect the tithe?

Anti-Tithing Scripture

As my knowledge of scripture continued to grow, I eventually found there was much more significant New Testament editorial on tithing. That editorial was very harsh towards tithe collectors and it explains why no one described to us in the New Testament, under the New Covenant, is described as collecting a tithe.

The first of the anti-tithing passages is found in the book of Matthew in chapter 17. Note that the tither's would not normally apply this passage, so it is important to understand context and understand why this passage is so key to this debate.

The entire section of Matthew is a series of parables. Those parables are given in the same order as the historical narrative of Genesis. Knowing this map in the order is key, since it both provides the explanation for Jesus' at times odd behavior, but it also unlocks the parables. Jesus is adding nothing new, he's simply expounding on what was already in scripture. (In fact the match goes well beyond Genesis, but that is beyond our scope here.)

Beginning late in chapter 16, especially verse 23 and following, Jesus transitions his series of parables to start an in-order editorial from the history of Mankind itself. Understand that each parable is going to follow in order, in the order of history. The first parable is late in Matthew Chapter 16, and is an editorial about Adam, who inherited earth, but forfeited his soul in the process.

The first parable of Matthew chapter 17 is about The Transfiguration. In this parable a storm cloud envelopes a few disciples who are on a mountain. After the event, they come down from the mountain and are afraid and told not to tell.

This parable is a parable of Noah's flood. The cloud at the Transfiguration is the clouds that in Noah's day brought the rains. The mountain a map to the mountain where Noah's ark came to rest. The warning not to tell is editorial on the entire pre-flood world. We know little of those 6 millennia of human history, and will not know much more until after the resurrection, as the parable so teaches.

Matthew Chapter 17 continues its in-order parables and turns to a boy who is troubled by mute demon. When Jesus is done with the boy he can speak and is in his right mind. This is the same demon that the entire race was caught by before multiple languages were given at the tower of Babel. In the case of the Tower of Babel there was only 1 human language. In effect the human race could not speak. This is the equivalent to the boy's grunts.

Jesus is explaining by this parable how the same demon that had the entire race can still today have individual people. He's also giving simple editorial on what He had done at Babel, which was to cast out this deaf-mute spirit from the race as a whole.

The next parable is the one that concerns us here, the parable of the Temple Tax. Note that this parable must match some story after the Tower of Babel that also deals with tax. To get an accurate fix on this parable we can look at the next parable, which is a little easier to map to Genesis.

The parable in Matthew chapter 17 that follows the Temple Tax is an argument over which of the 12 disciples is greatest. That argument in history was the argument between Jacob's 12 sons that lead to Joseph being imprisoned and sold as a slave to Egypt. Though Joseph seemed the least at that time, he became the greatest when he rose to the job of Prime Minister of Egypt. The least had become the greatest.

So, the Temple Tax parable must apply to what Genesis story?

The answer, of course, is Abraham's tax paid to Melchizedek. This tax payment historical story sits between the Tower of Babel and the argument between the patriarchs.

Knowing that this parable maps this way is important since it is adding to a story used by tithe-supporters who use the Melchizedek passages in Hebrews to endorse tithing. Here, though, is another parable dealing with Melchizedek himself. The following is the text:

41 Matthew 17:24-27 24ܘܟܕ ܐܬܘ ܠܟܦܪܢܚܘܡ ܩܪܒܘ ܗܢܘܢ ܕܢܤܒܝܢ ܬܪܝܢ ܬܪܝܢ ܙܘܙܝܢ ܕܟܤܦ ܪܫܐ ܠܘܬ ܟܐܦܐ ܘܐܡܪܘ ܠܗ ܪܒܟܘܢ ܠܐ ܝܗܒ ܬܪܝܢ ܙܘܙܘܗܝ ܀ 25ܐܡܪ ܠܗܘܢ ܐܝܢ ܘܟܕ ܥܠ ܟܐܦܐ ܠܒܝܬܐ ܩܕܡܗ ܝܫܘܥ ܘܐܡܪ ܠܗ ܡܢܐ ܡܬܚܙܐ ܠܟ ܫܡܥܘܢ ܡܠܟܝܗ ܕܐܪܥܐ ܡܢ ܡܢ ܢܤܒܝܢ ܡܟܤܐ ܘܟܤܦ ܪܫܐ ܡܢ ܒܢܝܗܘܢ ܐܘ ܡܢ ܢܘܟܪܝܐ ܀ 26ܐܡܪ ܠܗ ܫܡܥܘܢ ܡܢ ܢܘܟܪܝܐ ܐܡܪ ܠܗ ܝܫܘܥ ܡܕܝܢ ܒܢܝ ܚܐܪܐ ܐܢܘܢ ܒܢܝܐ ܀ 27ܕܠܐ ܕܝܢ ܢܟܫܠ ܐܢܘܢ ܙܠ ܠܝܡܐ ܘܐܪܡܐ ܒܠܘܥܐ ܘܢܘܢܐ ܩܕܡܝܐ ܕܤܠܩ ܦܬܚ ܦܘܡܗ ܘܬܫܟܚ ܐܤܬܪܐ ܗܝ ܤܒ ܘܗܒ ܚܠܦܝ ܘܚܠܦܝܟ ܀

41 Matthew 17:24-27 24And when they were come to Capernaum, they that received tribute money came to Peter, and said, Doth not your master pay tribute? 25He saith, Yes. And when he was come into the house, Jesus prevented him, saying, What thinkest thou, Simon? of whom do the kings of the earth take custom or tribute? of their own children, or of strangers? 26Peter saith unto him, Of strangers. Jesus saith unto him, Then are the children free. 27Notwithstanding, lest we should offend them, go thou to the sea, and cast an hook, and take up the fish that first cometh up; and when thou hast opened his mouth, thou shalt find a piece of money: that take, and give unto them for me and thee.

41 Matthew 17:24-27 24And when they were come to Capernaum, they that received tribute money came to Peter, and said, Doth not your master pay tribute? 25He saith, Yes. And when he was come into the house, Jesus prevented him, saying, What thinkest thou, Simon? of whom do the kings of the earth take custom or tribute? of their own children, or of strangers? 26Peter saith unto him, Of strangers. Jesus saith unto him, Then are the children free. 27Notwithstanding, lest we should offend them, go thou to the sea, and cast an hook, and take up the fish that first cometh up; and when thou hast opened his mouth, thou shalt find a piece of money: that take, and give unto them for me and thee.

41 Matthew 17:24-27 24And when they were come to Capernaum, they that received the half-shekel came to Peter, and said, Doth not your teacher pay the half-shekel? 25He saith, Yea. And when he came into the house, Jesus spake first to him, saying, What thinkest thou, Simon? the kings of the earth, from whom do they receive toll or tribute? from their sons, or from strangers? 26And when he said, From strangers, Jesus said unto him, Therefore the sons are free. 27But, lest we cause them to stumble, go thou to the sea, and cast a hook, and take up the fish that first cometh up; and when thou hast opened his mouth, thou shalt find a shekel: that take, and give unto them for me and thee.

41 Matthew 17:24-27 24¶ And when they came to Capernaum, those who collect two coins of silver as headtax came to Peter and said to him, Would not your master give his two coins? 25He said to them, Yes. And when Peter entered the house, Jesus anticipated and said to him, What do you think, Simon? from whom do the kings of the earth collect custom duties and head- tax? from their sons, or from strangers? 26Simon said to him, From strangers. Jesus said to him, Then the sons are free. 27But so as not to offend them, go to the sea, and throw out a hook, and the first fish which comes up, open its mouth and you will find a coin; take it and give it for me and for you.

41 Matthew 17:24-27 24He said, "Yes." And when he came home, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, "What do you think, Simon? From whom do kings of the earth take toll or tribute? From their sons or from others?" 25And when he said, "From others," Jesus said to him, "Then the sons are free. 26However, not to give offense to them, go to the sea and cast a hook, and take the first fish that comes up, and when you open its mouth you will find a shekel; take that and give it to them for me and for yourself."

27

41 Matthew 17:24-27 24After Jesus and his disciples arrived in Capernaum, the collectors of the two-drachma tax came to Peter and asked, "Doesn't your teacher pay the temple tax?"

25"Yes, he does," he replied. When Peter came into the house, Jesus was the first to speak. "What do you think, Simon?" he asked. "From whom do the kings of the earth collect duty and taxes -- from their own sons or from others?"

26"From others," Peter answered. "Then the sons are exempt," Jesus said to him. 27"But so that we may not offend them, go to the lake and throw out your line. Take the first fish you catch; open its mouth and you will find a four-drachma coin. Take it and give it to them for my tax and yours."

41 Matthew 17:24-27 24When they had come to Capernaum, those who collected the didrachma coins came to Peter, and said, 'Doesn't your teacher pay the didrachma?' 25He said, 'Yes.'

When he came into the house, Jesus anticipated him, saying, 'What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth receive toll or tribute? From their children, or from strangers?'

26Peter said to him, 'From strangers.'

Jesus said to him, 'Therefore the children are exempt. 27But, lest we cause them to stumble, go to the sea, and cast a hook, and take up the first fish that comes up. When you have opened its mouth, you will find a stater coin. Take that, and give it to them for me and you.'

41 Matthew 17:24-27 24When they had come to Capernaum, those who collected the didrachma coins came to Peter, and said, 'Doesn't your rabbi pay the didrachma?' 25He said, 'Yes.'

When he came into the house, Yeshua anticipated him, saying, 'What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth receive toll or tribute? From their children, or from strangers?'

26Peter said to him, 'From strangers.'

Yeshua said to him, 'Therefore the children are exempt. 27But, lest we cause them to stumble, go to the sea, cast a hook, and take up the first fish that comes up. When you have opened its mouth, you will find a stater coin. Take that, and give it to them for me and you.'

41 Matthew 17:24-27 24And when they came to Capernaum, those who collect 2 coins of silver as headtax came to Peter and said to him, Would your master not give his 2 coins? 25He said to them, Yes. And when Peter entered the house, Jesus anticipated this and said to him, What do you think, Simon, from whom do the kings of the earth collect custom duties and headtax, from their own sons, or from strangers? 26Simon said to him, From strangers. Jesus said to him, Then the sons are free. 27But so as not to offend them, go to the sea, and throw out a hook, and the first fish which comes up, open its mouth and you will find a coin; take it and give it for me and for you.

The key sentence in the parable is Jesus' question of Peter. From whom do Kings of the earth collect tribute, a synonym for tax or tithe?

Of course the heirs of kings, their sons, will receive what remains of the tribute they so collect, so they have no reason to collect from their own sons, but from others. Kings of the earth collect from people who are not in their family.

Notice how Jesus interrupted the conversation. He is taking authority, as any king does in their own conversations. Jesus is demonstrating his right as king to command the conversation. By doing this Jesus is demonstrating that he is the king.

Peter answers with the obvious point that kings collect from those outside of their families, from their subjects.

So understand the meaning of the parable. Jesus is your King. Jesus created you, as per John chapter 1. You are his son, (or daughter, of course) and his heir. Jesus has no reason to collect tax (called tithe) from you, you are a member of his own family.

Tax collecting, really tithe collecting crosses family lines. Those who are sons of the real king, the king in heaven, have no tithing debt to the king. They are the ones who inherit the king's very wealth.

This parable explains well the behavior I've seen many times in local "ministerial association members." They are a tight club of people who live off the tithe's of others. Now, apply Jesus' standard. Do tithe receivers collect from their own family or from others?

Of course Peter's answer here is the same as ours. Regular Church members are not of the same family as paid pastors. Tithe receivers are collecting from outside of their spiritual family.

This is why so many intercessors have such frustration with paid church staff. Intercessors hear the voice of Jesus in prayer, but paid pastors rarely want to listen, since they often don't know what it means to hear Jesus' voice at all. When individual pastors do know Jesus' voice they often chalk up to manipulation the words of otherwise seasoned intercessors.

So, the question is which side of this gulf are really sons of the King in Heaven? Paid Pastors, or Christians at large? The answer are non-tithe supported Christians at large. Sons of the Father have no tithing debt to the Father, since the sons are heirs.

Understand the strange twist. That pastors and other church leaders are needing the tithe to support their operations means they are not receiving the inheritance due a son of the King in Heaven. Their need to receive a tithe actually demonstrates they are outside the true Kingdom of Heaven.

The parable concludes with directions to Peter to go catch a fish, use the coin found in the fish to pay the tax so as not to offend the receivers of the tax. Note that "fish and loaves" are a type of communion and the fish always represents the blood. This is also what was happening with Abraham in the original story. Abraham had gone to war, in effect to blood, and it was a tenth of those war spoils that were given to Melchizedek.

In Abraham's case his army is marching back across the land from battle and stays at Jerusalem. Jesus is explaining the reason Abraham gave this tenth, this tax, was not to offend Melchizedek, who presumably himself could go to war with Abraham if he so choose. Tribute to the resident king for transit rights is a common pattern, seen even in the wilderness before crossing the Jordan.

This scenario is exactly the same for modern Christians who may have to "transit" an organized church for some reason. You put money in the offering plate so as not to offend the resident king in that place. But, this is not your territory. Do not stay, return to your own land where no tax is due, and pay the tax with money Jesus has provided for the purpose.

This part of the parable has profound additional application. Catching fish is the call given to Peter. Instead of catching fish in the sea, as he was doing before Jesus called him, Peter would go on to catch men instead, a type of fish.

So, Peter does what he's told, catches fish, but parable for unsaved people, and in the mouth of the fish is the money for the tax (really tithe.)

It is important that Peter himself does not receive any money for his own needs from the mouth of the fish. If this was teaching people like Peter to tithe, then Peter would have found a 40 drachma coin and given 4 drachma, 10 percent of it to the scribes.

Instead the story suggests the entire tithe related funding cycle stays out of the pockets of people like Peter who are close to Jesus. Why? Because this is a type of "blood money" and does not belong in Peter's pocket.

I've actually seen this pattern in my own life and ministry. When I know I'm off to visit a traditional church for some ministry related reason, I'm often given the money I need for an offering. Why? So as not to offend the hosts of the place I'm visiting.

Revisiting Melchizedek in Hebrews

The famous passage in Hebrews used to defend tithing suddenly takes on new meaning. Remember, this is written to the Hebrews, those who are under law. The stories in the Book of Hebrews are written to people under law.

54 Hebrews 7:1-10 1ܗܢܐ ܕܝܢ ܡܠܟܝܙܕܩ ܐܝܬܘܗܝ ܡܠܟ ܫܠܝ ܟܘܡܪܐ ܕܐܠܗܐ ܡܪܝܡܐ ܘܗܘ ܐܪܥܗ ܠܐܒܪܗ ܟܕ ܗܦܟ ܡܢ ܚܪܒܐ ܕܡܠܟܐ ܘܒܪܟܗ ܀ 2ܘܠܗ ܦܪܫ ܐܒܪܗ ܡܥܤܪܐ ܡܢ ܟܠܡܕ ܕܐܝܬ ܗܘܐ ܥܡܗ ܡܬܦܫܩ ܕܝܢ ܫܡܗ ܡܠܟܐ ܕܟܐܢܘܬܐ ܘܬܘܒ ܡܠܟ ܫܠܝ ܕܐܝܬܘܗܝ ܡܠܟܐ ܕܫܠܡܐ ܀ 3ܕܠܐ ܐܒܘܗܝ ܘܠܐ ܐܡܗ ܐܬܟܬܒܘ ܒܫܪܒܬܐ ܘܠܐ ܪܝܫܝܬܐ ܕܝܘܡܘܗܝ ܘܠܐ ܫܘܠܡܐ ܕܚܝܘܗܝ ܐܠܐ ܒܕܡܘܬܐ ܕܒܪܗ ܕܐܠܗܐ ܡܩܘܝܐ ܟܘܡܪܘܬܗ ܠܥܠ ܀ 4ܚܙܘ ܕܝܢ ܟܡܐ ܪܒ ܗܢܐ ܕܐܒܪܗ ܪܝܫ ܐܒܗܬܐ ܠܗ ܝܗܒ ܡܥܤܪܐ ܕܪܫܝܬܐ ܀ 5ܐܝܠܝܢ ܓܝܪ ܡܢ ܒܢܝ ܠܘܝ ܕܡܩܒܠܝܢ ܗܘܘ ܟܘܡܪܘܬܐ ܦܘܩܕܢܐ ܐܝܬ ܗܘܐ ܠܗܘܢ ܕܢܡܘܤܐ ܕܢܤܒܘܢ ܡܥܤܪܐ ܡܢ ܥܡܐ ܗܢܘܢ ܡܢ ܐܚܝܗܘܢ ܟܕ ܐܦ ܗܢܘܢ ܡܢ ܚܨܗ ܕܐܒܪܗ ܢܦܩܘ ܀ 6ܗܢܐ ܕܝܢ ܕܠܐ ܟܬܝܒ ܒܫܪܒܬܗܘܢ ܡܥܤܪܐ ܫܩܠ ܡܢ ܐܒܪܗ ܘܒܪܟܗ ܠܗܘ ܕܩܒܠ ܡܘܠܟܢܐ ܀ 7ܕܠܐ ܚܪܝܢܐ ܕܝܢ ܗܘ ܕܒܨܝܪ ܡܬܒܪܟ ܡܢ ܗܘ ܕܡܝܬܪ ܡܢܗ ܀ 8ܘܗܪܟܐ ܒܢܝܢܫܐ ܕܡܝܬܝܢ ܢܤܒܝܢ ܡܥܤܪܐ ܠܗܠ ܕܝܢ ܗܘ ܕܐܤܗܕ ܥܠܘܗܝ ܟܬܒܐ ܕܚܝ ܗܘ ܀ 9ܘܐܝܟ ܐܢܫ ܢܐܡܪ ܒܝܕ ܐܒܪܗ ܐܦ ܠܘܝ ܗܘ ܕܡܥܤܪܐ ܢܤܒ ܗܘܐ ܐܦ ܗܘ ܐܬܥܤܪ ܀ 10ܥܕܟܝܠ ܓܝܪ ܒܚܨܗ ܗܘܐ ܕܐܒܘܗܝ ܟܕ ܐܪܥܗ ܠܡܠܟܝܙܕܩ ܀ (SYP)

54 Hebrews 7:1-10 1For this Melchisedec, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings, and blessed him; 2To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace; 3Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually. 4Now consider how great this man was, unto whom even the patriarch Abraham gave the tenth of the spoils. 5And verily they that are of the sons of Levi, who receive the office of the priesthood, have a commandment to take tithes of the people according to the law, that is, of their brethren, though they come out of the loins of Abraham: 6But he whose descent is not counted from them received tithes of Abraham, and blessed him that had the promises. 7And without all contradiction the less is blessed of the better. 8And here men that die receive tithes; but there he receiveth them, of whom it is witnessed that he liveth. 9And as I may so say, Levi also, who receiveth tithes, payed tithes in Abraham. 10For he was yet in the loins of his father, when Melchisedec met him. (KJV)

54 Hebrews 7:1-10 1For this Melchisedec, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings, and blessed him; 2To whom also Abraham gave a 1/10 part of all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace; 3Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually. 4Now consider how great this man was, unto whom even the patriarch Abraham gave the 1/10 of the spoils. 5And verily they that are of the sons of Levi, who receive the office of the priesthood, have a commandment to take tithes of the people according to the law, that is, of their brethren, though they come out of the loins of Abraham: 6But he whose descent is not counted from them received tithes of Abraham, and blessed him that had the promises. 7And without all contradiction the less is blessed of the better. 8And here men that die receive tithes; but there he receiveth them, of whom it is witnessed that he liveth. 9And as I may so say, Levi also, who receiveth tithes, payed tithes in Abraham. 10For he was yet in the loins of his father, when Melchisedec met him. (KJV/NC)

54 Hebrews 7:1-10 1For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of God Most High, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, 2to whom also Abraham divided a tenth part of all (being first, by interpretation, King of righteousness, and then also King of Salem, which is King of peace; 3without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like unto the Son of God), abideth a priest continually. 4Now consider how great this man was, unto whom Abraham, the patriarch, gave a tenth out of the chief spoils. 5And they indeed of the sons of Levi that receive the priest's office have commandment to take tithes of the people according to the law, that is, of their brethren, though these have come out of the loins of Abraham: 6but he whose genealogy is not counted from them hath taken tithes of Abraham, and hath blessed him that hath the promises. 7But without any dispute the less is blessed of the better. 8And here men that die receive tithes; but there one, of whom it is witnessed that he liveth. 9And, so to say, through Abraham even Levi, who receiveth tithes, hath paid tithes; 10for he was yet in the loins of his father, when Melchizedek met him. (ASV)

54 Hebrews 7:1-10 1FOR this Melchisedec was king of Salem, the priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, 2And to whom Abraham also set aside a tenth part from the choice things he had with him. His name is interpreted king of righteousness, and again, king of Salem, which means king of peace. 3Neither his father nor his mother is recorded in the genealogies; and neither the beginning of his days nor the end of his life; but, like the Son of God, his priesthood abides for ever. 4Now consider how great this man was, to whom even the patriarch Abraham gave tithes and paid head tax. 5For those sons of Levi who received the office of the priesthood were authorized by law to take tithes from the people, even from their own brethren who also had come out of the loins of Abraham. 6But this man who is not recorded in their genealogies took tithes even from Abraham and blessed him who had received the promises. 7Beyond dispute, he who was less was blessed by him who was greater than himself. 8And here mortal men receive tithes; but there he, of whom the scripture testifies that he lives, receives them. 9Speaking as a man, through Abraham, even Levi, who received tithes, also gave tithes. 10For he was yet in the loins of his forefather Abraham when Melchisedec met him. (LAM)

54 Hebrews 7:1-10 1For this Melchiz'edek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him; 2and to him Abraham apportioned a tenth part of everything. He is first, by translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then he is also king of Salem, that is, king of peace. 3He is without father or mother or genealogy, and has neither beginning of days nor end of life, but resembling the Son of God he continues a priest for ever.

4See how great he is! Abraham the patriarch gave him a tithe of the spoils. 5And those descendants of Levi who receive the priestly office have a commandment in the law to take tithes from the people, that is, from their brethren, though these also are descended from Abraham. 6But this man who has not their genealogy received tithes from Abraham and blessed him who had the promises. 7It is beyond dispute that the inferior is blessed by the superior. 8Here tithes are received by mortal men; there, by one of whom it is testified that he lives. 9One might even say that Levi himself, who receives tithes, paid tithes through Abraham, 10for he was still in the loins of his ancestor when Melchiz'edek met him.(RSV)

54 Hebrews 7:1-10 1This Melchizedek was king of Salem and priest of God Most High. He met Abraham returning from the defeat of the kings and blessed him, 2and Abraham gave him a tenth of everything. First, his name means "king of righteousness"; then also, "king of Salem" means "king of peace." 3Without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life, like the Son of God he remains a priest forever.

4Just think how great he was: Even the patriarch Abraham gave him a tenth of the plunder! 5Now the law requires the descendants of Levi who become priests to collect a tenth from the people -- that is, their brothers -- even though their brothers are descended from Abraham. 6This man, however, did not trace his descent from Levi, yet he collected a tenth from Abraham and blessed him who had the promises. 7And without doubt the lesser person is blessed by the greater. 8In the one case, the tenth is collected by men who die; but in the other case, by him who is declared to be living. 9One might even say that Levi, who collects the tenth, paid the tenth through Abraham, 10because when Melchizedek met Abraham, Levi was still in the body of his ancestor.(NIV)

54 Hebrews 7:1-10 1For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of God Most High, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, 2to whom also Abraham divided a tenth part of all (being first, by interpretation, king of righteousness, and then also king of Salem, which is king of peace; 3without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God), remains a priest continually. 4Now consider how great this man was, to whom even Abraham, the patriarch, gave a tenth out of the best spoils. 5They indeed of the sons of Levi who receive the priest's office have a commandment to take tithes of the people according to the law, that is, of their brothers, though these have come out of the body of Abraham, 6but he whose genealogy is not counted from them has taken tithes of Abraham, and has blessed him who has the promises. 7But without any dispute the less is blessed by the better. 8Here people who die receive tithes, but there one receives tithes of whom it is testified that he lives. 9So to say, through Abraham even Levi, who receives tithes, has paid tithes, 10for he was yet in the body of his father when Melchizedek met him. (WEB)

54 Hebrews 7:1-10 1For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of God Most High, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, 2to whom also Abraham divided a tenth part of all (being first, by interpretation, king of righteousness, and then also king of Salem, which is king of peace; 3without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God), remains a priest continually. 4Now consider how great this man was, to whom even Abraham, the patriarch, gave a tenth out of the best spoils. 5They indeed of the sons of Levi who receive the priest's office have a commandment to take tithes of the people according to the Torah, that is, of their brothers, though these have come out of the body of Abraham, 6but he whose genealogy is not counted from them has accepted tithes from Abraham, and has blessed him who has the promises. 7But without any dispute the lesser is blessed by the greater. 8Here people who die receive tithes, but there one receives tithes of whom it is testified that he lives. 9We can say that through Abraham even Levi, who receives tithes, has paid tithes, 10for he was yet in the body of his father when Melchizedek met him. (WEB/HNV)

54 Hebrews 7:1-10 1FOR this Melchisedec was king of Salem, the priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, 2And to whom Abraham also set aside 1/10th part from the choice things he had with him. His name is interpreted king of righteousness, and again, king of Salem, which means king of peace. 3Neither his father nor his mother is recorded in the genealogies; and neither the beginning of his days nor the end of his life; but, like the Son of God, his priesthood stays forever.

4Now consider how great this man was, to whom even the patriarch Abraham gave tithes and paid head tax. 5For those sons of Levi who received the office of the priesthood were authorized by law to take tithes from the people, even from their own brothers who had also come out of the loins of Abraham. 6But this man who is not recorded in their genealogies took tithes even from Abraham and blessed him who had received the promises. 7Beyond dispute, he who was less was blessed by him who was greater than himself. 8And here mortal men receive tithes; but there he, of whom the scripture testifies that he lives, receives them. 9Speaking as a man, through Abraham, even Levi, who received tithes, also gave tithes. 10For he was yet in the loins of his forefather Abraham when Melchisedec met him. (BRB)

This passage is making several more points on this same Melchizedek encounter with Abraham. Remember the context, though, that Hebrews is explaining how the Law was satisfied in Jesus. In regards to the tithe/tax aspects, this Hebrews passage makes 2 key points.

  1. The Law allowed a Levite to collect from his brother.

    This would normally be a perversion, like a king collecting tax from his heirs, but under the Law, it was allowed.

  2. Everyone descended from Abraham, and here equated to those under the Law, paid the tax of Abraham to Melchizedek.

Remember the principle, that tax is paid across family lines. Taken together the passage in Hebrews, when combined with the passage in Matthew means that Abraham's tithe to Melchizedek is always across family lines.

You can either view Abraham as the father of the faithful, and Abraham's tax to Melchizedek was so as not to offend, while Abraham remained free, or you can look at Abraham's Levitical, or law based children. Those children pay the tax too, either to their brother Levites, a perversion not crossing family lines, or to Melchizedek, a type of Christ, again crossing the family line between sons of the King in Heaven and unsaved sons of the Law.

Rethinking Matthew

Earlier in this report I cited Matthew 23 as a place which seemed to support tithing. The following is that text again:

41 Matthew 23:23-24 23ܘܝ ܠܟܘܢ ܤܦܪܐ ܘܦܪܝܫܐ ܢܤܒܝ ܒܐܦܐ ܕܡܥܤܪܝܢ ܐܢܬܘܢ ܢܢܥܐ ܘܫܒܬܐ ܘܟܡܘܢܐ ܘܫܒܩܬܘܢ ܝܩܝܪܬܗ ܕܢܡܘܤܐ ܕܝܢܐ ܘܚܢܢܐ ܘܗܝܡܢܘܬܐ ܗܠܝܢ ܕܝܢ ܘܠܐ ܗܘܐ ܕܬܥܒܕܘܢ ܘܗܠܝܢ ܠܐ ܬܫܒܩܘܢ ܀ 24ܢܓܘܕܐ ܤܡܝܐ ܕܡܨܠܠܝܢ ܒܩܐ ܘܒܠܥܝܢ ܓܡܠܐ ܀ (SYP)

41 Matthew 23:23-24 23Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, 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. 24Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel. (KJV)

41 Matthew 23:23-24 23Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, 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. 24Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel. (KJV/NC)

41 Matthew 23:23-24 23Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye tithe mint and anise and cummin, and have left undone the weightier matters of the law, justice, and mercy, and faith: but these ye ought to have done, and not to have left the other undone. 24Ye blind guides, that strain out the gnat, and swallow the camel!(ASV)

41 Matthew 23:23-24 23Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you take tithes on mint, dill, and cummin, and you have overlooked the more important matters of the law, such as justice, mercy, and trustworthiness. These were necessary for you to have done, and the same by no means to have left undone. 24O blind guides, who strain at gnats and swallow camels! (LAM)

41 Matthew 23:23-24 23You blind guides, straining out a gnat and swallowing a camel!

24"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you cleanse the outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside they are full of extortion and rapacity. (RSV)

41 Matthew 23:23-24 23"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices -- mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law -- justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. 24You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.(NIV)

41 Matthew 23:23-24 23'Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For youP tithe mint, dill, and cumin, and have left undone the weightier matters of the law: justice, mercy, and faith. But youP ought to have done these, and not to have left the other undone. 24YouP blind guides, who strain out a gnat, and swallow a camel!(WEB)

41 Matthew 23:23-24 23'Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint, dill, and cumin, and have left undone the weightier matters of the Torah: justice, mercy, and faith. But you ought to have done these, and not to have left the other undone. 24You blind guides, who strain out a gnat, and swallow a camel!(WEB/HNV)

41 Matthew 23:23-24 23Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees. Hypocrites. You take tithes on mint, dill, and cummin, and you have overlooked the more important matters of the law, such as justice, mercy, and trustworthiness. These were necessary for you to have done, and the same by no means to have left undone. 24Blind guides, who strain at gnats and swallow camels. (BRB)

The problem with using this passage in support of tithing is that it falls within a passage that is lambasting scribes and Pharisees as hypocrites.

Those 2 titles are key to understanding Jesus' whole message in this passage.

A scribe is someone who's full attention is on the text of the Bible itself. Scribes care about the ink and pens used to make copies of God's word. They care about word structure and format. They quote the Greek in their sermons. They are in fact focused on the mechanics of the text. Scribes are not focused on Jesus, nor his Spirit, nor do scribes have any working understanding of YHVH nor his ways. They know about Jesus but they do not know Jesus.

When you see a church sign in front of some church building and they label themselves as a "Bible" church, they are revealing for all the world to see that they are scribal in their orientation. Several mainline denominations are scribal in this sense, focused as they are on the Bible itself and not on Jesus.

The second title Jesus blasts is Pharisee. A Pharisee is someone who's full attention is on the outward appearances or more technically, the liturgy of religion. This focus on externals has 2 related aspects.

The first aspect of Pharisees is how church gatherings work. How they appear to someone watching the service. Is there music? What type? Does it come first? Is there a benediction at the end? Does the service last 55 minutes? These and similar questions draw the attention of people who operate as Pharisees.

The other aspect of Pharisees is the moral code that people follow as they live life. This too is an external care. Moral behavior is usually couched by modern Pharisees in liturgical language. Typically the 4 simple areas listed in Acts are blown much, much wider and the longer list draws the intricate attention of people in the organization.

There are many modern Christian denominations which have a liturgical focus as opposed to say a Bible focus. These denominations tend to have churches that are ornamented well and they tend to have precise orders of service and precise codes of conduct for their members.

Scribes and Pharisees are lumped together by Jesus because in both cases they are making the same fundamental mistakes. They are both practicing a form of law and they ignore 3 key concepts found in canon. Those are, Justice, Mercy and Faith.

The first concept, Justice, means that God is righteous, and he demands from anyone who would approach him a level of holiness that we can never attain. Therefore, it is foolish to try and do this ourselves, as scribes and Pharisees attempt. Jesus is the one who satisfies God's need for Justice, so we must approach Jesus if we really want Justice.

The second concept, Mercy, means that God has provided a way to satisfy righteousness, that satisfaction is through Jesus, and that action provides forgiveness from breaking the law. We cannot impose law on others if we ourselves are under mercy. Insisting someone interpret scripture as we do, perform the rituals that we do, or live an ascetic life like we do are not merciful actions. They reflect a life of someone who does not understand mercy.

The third concept, Faith, means that what YHVH cares about is relationship, an ear to the Holy Spirit, and a willingness to wait for and then do the things that Jesus has spoken into our individual lives. Those things are not simply rote. They are not simply a focus on his bible. They are not focused on appearances or moral code. They are focused on an intimate relationship that involves action on our part when Jesus calls.

Jesus equates tithing mint, dill and cumin to what the scribes and Pharisees are doing. Reading scripture, holding interesting meetings and paying attention to our moral behavior are like a tithe, they are a small, 10 percent, of what it means to be a follower of Jesus. Focusing on these three things is leaving out the important matters.

Jesus is not endorsing tithing in any sense here, but saying that the things that scribes and Pharisees do are like what a tithe is to a whole person's income. They are a small fraction of what YHVH asks of us.

Jesus closes and says that scribes and Pharisees are blind guides because they can only see 10 percent of what it means to follow Jesus. They are blind to 90 percent of what it means to know Jesus.

There is a sense in this passage, one that comes through in other passages in the New Testament, that Jesus actually wants all of our resources, not just a tithe. To the extent that this passage teaches tithing, it teaches that the amount of what Jesus wants from us is everything, not the 10 percent used by the pro-tithing camp. I believe this is indeed what happens as someone grows fully into their relationship with Jesus. There is a parable to this effect...

The Parable of the Talents

As I continued to grow in my understanding of scripture I was hit with another example. This one as part of a longer parable. The parable in question is the parable of the talents.

The punch line includes an important reference to "bankers." Bankers of course give and collect interest. The only people in scripture who both received and collected a tithe are Levites. So, Jesus' reference to bankers is a reference to Levites.

41 Matthew 25:14-29 14ܐܝܟ ܓܒܪܐ ܓܝܪ ܕܚܙܩ ܩܪܐ ܠܥܒܕܘܗܝ ܘܐܫܠܡ ܠܗܘܢ ܩܢܝܢܗ ܀ 15ܐܝܬ ܕܝܗܒ ܠܗ ܚܡܫ ܟܟܪܝܢ ܘܐܝܬ ܕܬܪܬܝܢ ܘܐܝܬ ܕܚܕܐ ܐܢܫ ܐܢܫ ܐܝܟ ܚܝܠܗ ܘܚܙܩ ܡܚܕܐ ܀ 16ܐܙܠ ܕܝܢ