So … you’ve had some time to ponder the “conditional” tithe promised by Jacob. Let’s move forward to the next mention of the tithe – often called the Levitical tithe - and often the second passage used to support the concept of tithing as a requirement for us today – and this will come from the Mosaic Law, so we had better make sure we get it right! Look at Leviticus 27:30 and 32-33 where God is speaking to Moses and says:
A tithe of everything from the land, whether grain from the soil or fruit from the trees, belongs to the LORD; it is holy to the LORD … 32 Every tithe of the herd and flock—every tenth animal that passes under the shepherd’s rod—will be holy to the LORD. 33 No one may pick out the good from the bad or make any substitution. If anyone does make a substitution, both the animal and its substitute become holy and cannot be redeemed.
Now … that seems pretty clear and non-disputable, doesn’t it? Here, the “everything” and “every” really does seem to mean everything, since the Israelites were an agrarian society at this point and part of verse 32 says that it even includes every tenth animal that passes under the shepherd’s rod.
There are, however, three interesting twists to this passage. First, if you’re alert, you may have noticed that I conveniently “skipped over” verse 31—and dastardly fellow that I am, I did it on purpose. Here’s why.
The whole 27th chapter of Leviticus deals with physical things promised to the Lord, like a house or an animal or a field. Provisions were made, however, for the owner to “redeem” or keep the item and give money instead – does that make sense? For example, it says this in Lev 27:14 and 15:
If anyone dedicates their house as something holy to the Lord, the priest will judge its quality as good or bad. Whatever value the priest then sets, so it will remain. 15 If the one who dedicates their house wishes to redeem it.
But here’s the kicker: when money was to be given, the rest of verse 15 says:
… they must add a fifth to its value, and the house will again become theirs.
In other words, 20% of the item’s value had to be added to the cash amount to be given. So, I know that this is heavy math but what is 20% of say, some item worth $100? Yes, $20. So, the cash amount to be given would be 100+20 or $120. If we now go back to the tithe of the grain, etc., in verses 30 and 32-33, here’s what it says in verse 31, the one I conveniently skipped over – and twist #1:
A tithe of everything from the land, whether grain from the soil or fruit from the trees, belongs to the LORD; it is holy to the LORD. 31 WHOEVER WOULD REDEEM ANY OF THEIR TITHE MUST ADD A FIFTH OF THE VALUE TO IT. 32 Every tithe of the herd and flock—every tenth animal that passes under the shepherd’s rod—will be holy to the LORD. 33 No one may pick out the good from the bad or make any substitution. If anyone does make a substitution, both the animal and its substitute become holy and cannot be redeemed.
So … if the owner wanted to use money for their physical tithe of everything from the land, it was how much percentage-wise? Yes, 12%, not 10%. I would be willing to bet that most readers have never heard that from the pulpit!
The second twist: Although verse 33 indicates that the tithe of the herd and flock could not be redeemed like the tithe from the land, this tithe was actually not 10%! Look at the verse closely, as the rules governing this process were very specific:
“every tenth animal that passes under the shepherd’s rod.”
So …if a shepherd had nine or fewer animals, no tithe was to be paid! Or, if the shepherd had, say, nineteen animals, only one animal—the tenth one—was taken for sacrifice, making this tithe about five percent!
Finally, the third twist—and this will likely come as a shock to many: There was a large segment of Israelites who paid no tithes at all! Remember that we are dealing with very specific requirements spelled out in the Mosaic Law. As we read in this passage:
A tithe of everything FROM THE LAND, whether grain from the soil or fruit from the trees, belongs to the LORD; it is holy to the LORD. 31 Whoever would redeem any of their tithe must add a fifth of the value to it. 32 EVERY TITHE OF THE HERD AND FLOCK—every tenth animal that passes under the shepherd’s rod—will be holy to the LORD. 33 No one may pick out the good from the bad or make any substitution. If anyone does make a substitution, both the animal and its substitute become holy and cannot be redeemed.
The implication? The only individuals subject to the Levitical tithe were the landowners and shepherds who owned animals. Excluded from this requirement would be all the other types of income, such as hired hands working for the landowners or shepherds, those earning an income from weaving, or handicrafts, or fishing, or any form of manufacturing or merchandising. And, as Israel’s economy grew, there were bankers, lawyers, accountants, doctors, construction firm owners and workers and on and on. Yet, as you can see for yourself, there was no requirement in the Mosaic Law that required a tenth of one’s salary from these types of jobs; only the crops and animals of those who owned them were subject to this tithe.
Pretty enlightening, isn’t it? Not only was the Levitical tithe not really 10% if 1) cash was used for the physical tithe from the land or 2) the shepherd didn’t have an exact multiple of 10 animals, 3) it didn’t apply to much of the Hebrew population. Using this passage, then, as justification for us, in New Testament times, to tithe, to be blunt, seems pretty ridiculous, don’t you think? Taking this one step further: If a minister today wanted the members of his church to abide by this portion of the Law, those members with gardens would need to be paying a tenth of their produce—or 12% if they chose to give cash instead—those with chickens giving a tenth of their eggs, and on and on. But they couldn’t be required to give 10% from their earnings as accountants, or construction workers, or whatever they did for a living, because that’s not in the Law. So, the only “support” the church would have would be from the members’ gardens and chicken coops! This illustrates the danger of referring to the Law for guidance today: the Law requires adherence to very specific requirements—no exceptions, no modifications and no including things not mentioned in the Law. It’s kind of like sales taxes today. In most states, certain things are excluded, like milk. So, when your milk passes over the glass scanner, the store can’t tax the milk! Either an item is subject to the tax or it’s not.
But … it actually gets worse than that! After pondering this so-called “tithe,” come back in a couple of days and read about more giving required by the Israelites.