Expert: Marvin Howard - 11/13/2007

Question
Hi,

I used to think that there was a third tithe for the poor mentioned in Deuteronomy, which was collected every three years. I looked up the statements on tithing this weekend in Numbers and Deuteronomy and it appears from the quotes that there was no third tithe, but instead that the regular tithe which was given to the Levites was also supposed to be distributed to the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow. And that the regular tithe was only collected once every 3 years, and not on an annual basis. Here is the quote from Deuteronomy 26: 12-15, and another one from Deuteronomy 14: 27-29. (The quote from Deut. 14:27-29 is written after the tithe for festivals is described, and so it is a separate tithe, since the tithe for festivals is every year Deut. 14:22-23. And in fact it is the same as the tithe described in Deut. 26:12-15, which is the tithe to Levites, since it is every three years and goes to both Levites and the poor. It must be the same as the tithe for Levites, since why would they be getting another tithe if they already have one? Therefore the tithe to Levites was once every 3 years and the Levites and priests were expected to share it with the poor.) In Deuteronomy 26:12 it says that the third year is "the year of tithing."  

In Numbers there are passages about tithing to Levites and priests, but it doesn’t say how often that tithe is supposed to be, only in Deuteronomy does it specify that it’s once every 3 years. This tithe once every 3 years cannot be another third tithe, because it says that it is for Levites also, and if they already have one tithe for them in Numbers then why a second tithe. Deuteronomy was a retelling of the Law, and the only references to tithing for Levites in Deuteronomy are these which say that it is only once every 3 years. It makes most sense that the tithes described in Numbers were given once every three years and the Levites and priests were expected to distribute some of that to the poor, since they were the tribe sacred to God.

Deuteronomy 14:22-23 (The tithe for festivals)
22 “You shall truly tithe all the increase of your grain that the field produces year by year. 23 And you shall eat before the LORD your God, in the place where He chooses to make His name abide…

Deuteronomy 14: 27-29 (Tithe for Levites)
27 You shall not forsake the Levite who is within your gates, for he has no part nor inheritance with you. 28 “At the end of every third year you shall 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, that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hand which you do.

Deuteronomy 26: 12-15 (Tithe for Levites)
12 “When you have finished laying aside all the tithe of your increase in the third year—the year of tithing—and have given it to the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, so that they may eat within your gates and be filled, 13 then you shall say before the LORD your God: ‘I have removed the holy tithe from my house, and also have given them to the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, according to all Your commandments which You have commanded me; I have not transgressed Your commandments, nor have I forgotten them. 14 I have not eaten any of it when in mourning, nor have I removed any of it for an unclean use, nor given any of it for the dead. I have obeyed the voice of the LORD my God, and have done according to all that You have commanded me. 15 Look down from Your holy habitation, from heaven, and bless Your people Israel and the land which You have given us, just as You swore to our fathers, “a land flowing with milk and honey.”’

10% once every three years is 3.33% annually. That’s pretty much what most evangelicals give annually according to statistics.  


Do you agree with me?

-Josh


Answer
Hi!

Joshua, I believe you are correct. I believe that one account is the command to give, while the other is detailed instruction on following the command. There are many cases where one thing is retold in Scripture. One of the best examples of this is creation. Just because something is listed twice does not mean that it necessarily happened twice, or even differently. Circumstances must be examined to see if the accounts speak of different things; such being time, number, or any myriad of things. Take the feeding of the multitudes. One account says 4,000 and one says 5,000. Critics look at this and say it is contradiction, and cannot see that it speaks of 2 events.

Nevertheless, I would like to point out a few things about tithing that may have escaped attention.

First, a tithe was not just based on the amount of income. If you had something remaining (in store or stock if you will), that was also counted as gain. It was abundance. For me to tithe, I would have to figure the value of my computer, my stove, my books, my furniture, my food, my spices, my appliances, my car, my pets, a business, my antiques, my dishes... (well, you get the idea); and calculate 10 percent of all that value in addition to my income. No one tithes today: not even those that command tithing. Your figure of 3.3 percent is a gross overstatement.

Tithing was part of the Old Testament. It is found no where after the death of Christ as a command to any believer. It had to be nailed to the cross, with the rest of the Mosaical Law, in order to make room for the Law of Christ. This is the main division in the Bible. It must be made first before any other dividing can be done in compliance with 2nd Timothy 2:15.

The fact that this tithe was every three years is part of the Jewish system of numerology. Three is the number that represents completion. In other words, this tithe was a symbol of the providence of God; that man would be supplied all his needs.

Josh, it does me good to see people delving this deeply into Scripture to find truth. Maintain this attitude throughout and you will do well. I pray that even though my primary answer was an echo of something you already discovered, that I have been of some help to you.

In His Service,
Marvin Howard
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