Reference: GIFTS
American
Have been common from the earliest times as tokens of affection, honor, or respect. The dues to a king were often rendered in this form, 1Sa 10:27; Isa 36:16; and men of high position were approached with presents, Ge 43:11; Jg 6:18; 1Sa 9:7; 1Ki 14:3. Kings made gifts of garments to those they wished to honor, Ge 45:22-23; 1Sa 18:4; and of treasures to other princes, out of esteem or of fear, 2Ki 16:8; 18:14; 2Ch 9:9,12. Conquerors scattered gifts from their triumphal cars, and special privileges in token of generous joy, Ps 68:18; Ac 1:2,4. Prophets received gifts, or declined them, as duty required, 2Ki 5:15; 8:9; Da 2:48; 5:17. The word gifts often denotes bribes, Ex 23:8; Ps 15:5; Isa 5:23. The same word is also applied to the offerings required by the law, De 16:17; Mt 5:23-24; to the blessings of the gospel and eternal life, which are preeminently gifts, Ac 8:20; to the Christian grace, for the same reason, Eph 4:8,11; and to the miraculous endowments of the apostles, 1Co 12-14. See TONGUES.
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Then their father Israel said to them, If it has to be so, then do this: take of the best fruits of the land in your vessels to give the man, perfumes and honey and spices and nuts:
To every one of them he gave three changes of clothing; but to Benjamin he gave three hundred bits of silver and five changes of clothing. And to his father he sent ten asses with good things from Egypt on their backs, and ten she-asses with grain and bread and food for his father on the journey.
Take no rewards in a cause: for rewards make blind those who have eyes to see, and make the decisions of the upright false.
Every man is to give as he is able, in the measure of the blessing which the Lord your God has given you.
Do not go away till I come with my offering and put it before you. And he said, I will not go away before you come back.
But certain good-for-nothing persons said, How is this man to be our saviour? And having no respect for him, they gave him no offering.
Then he went back to the man of God, with all his train, and, taking his place before him, said, Now I am certain that there is no God in all the earth, but only in Israel: now then, take an offering from me.
So Hazael went to see him, taking with him forty camels with offerings on their backs of every sort of good thing from Damascus; and when he came before him, he said, Your son Ben-hadad, king of Aram, has sent me to you, saying, Will I get better from this disease?
And Ahaz took the silver and gold which were in the house of the Lord and in the king's store-house, and sent them as an offering to the king of Assyria.
And Hezekiah, king of Judah, sent to Lachish, to the king of Assyria, saying, I have done wrong; give up attacking me, and whatever you put on me I will undergo. And the payment he was to make was fixed by the king of Assyria at three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold.
You have gone up on high, taking your prisoners with you; you have taken offerings from men; the Lord God has taken his place on the seat of his power.
Who for a reward give support to the cause of the sinner, and who take away the righteousness of the upright from him.
Do not give ear to Hezekiah, for this is what the king of Assyria says, Make peace with me, and come out to me; and everyone will be free to take the fruit of his vine and of his fig-tree, and the water of his spring;
Then the king made Daniel great, and gave him offerings in great number, and made him ruler over all the land of Babylon, and chief over all the wise men of Babylon.
Then Daniel made answer and said to the king, Keep your offerings for yourself, and give your rewards to another; but I, after reading the writing to the king, will give him the sense of it.
If then you are making an offering at the altar and there it comes to your mind that your brother has something against you, While your offering is still before the altar, first go and make peace with your brother, then come and make your offering.
Till the day when he was taken up to heaven after he had given his orders, through the Holy Spirit, to the Apostles of whom he had made selection:
And when they were all together, with him, he gave them orders not to go away from Jerusalem, but to keep there, waiting till the word of the Father was put into effect, of which, he said, I have given you knowledge:
But Peter said, May your money come to destruction with you, because you had the idea that what is freely given by God may be got for a price.
For this reason he says, He went up on high, taking his prisoners with him, and gave freely to men.
And he gave some as Apostles, and some, prophets; and some, preachers of the good news; and some to give care and teaching;
Fausets
So common in the East that there are 15 distinct Hebrew words for them. Minchah, from an inferior to a superior (Jg 3:15). Maseeth, vice versa (Es 2:18). Berakah, "a blessing," i.e. complimentary (2Ki 5:15). Shochad, a bribe (Ex 23:8; 2Ki 16:8). Many were not voluntary, but a compulsory exaction: tribute (2Ki 17:3). "To bring presents" is to own submission (Ps 68:29). That to a prophet was his consulting fee (1Sa 9:7), not a bribe (1Sa 12:3). To refuse a present was an insult; the wedding robe offered and slighted was the condemnation of the disrobed guest (Mt 22:11).
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Take no rewards in a cause: for rewards make blind those who have eyes to see, and make the decisions of the upright false.
Then when the children of Israel made prayer to the Lord, he gave them a saviour, Ehud, the son of Gera, the Benjamite, a left-handed man; and the children of Israel sent an offering by him to Eglon, king of Moab.
Then Saul said to his servant, But if we go, what are we to take the man? all our bread is gone, and we have no offering to take to the man of God: what are we to do?
Here I am: give witness against me before the Lord and before the man on whom he has put the holy oil: whose ox or ass have I taken? to whom have I been untrue? who has been crushed down by me? from whose hand have I taken a price for the blinding of my eyes? I will give it all back to you.
Then he went back to the man of God, with all his train, and, taking his place before him, said, Now I am certain that there is no God in all the earth, but only in Israel: now then, take an offering from me.
Against him came up Shalmaneser, king of Assyria, and Hoshea became his servant and sent him offerings.
Then the king gave a great feast for all his captains and his servants, even Esther's feast; and he gave orders through all the divisions of his kingdom for a day of rest from work, and gave wealth from his store.
But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man who had not on a guest's robe;
Morish
These have a large place in the O.T. history, and several different words are used which are often translated PRESENTS. There were
1. Gifts from a superior to an inferior in good will and kindness and as rewards. Es 2:18; Da 2:6,48.
2. From an inferior to a superior. 2Ch 9:24; 17:5,11. This also took the form of tribute, an acknowledgement of submission. 1Sa 10:27; 1Ki 4:21. When Solomon reigned supreme, 'all the earth' sought to Solomon to hear his wisdom, and brought presents, as did the queen of Sheba. 1Ki 10:2,24-25. This is a type of Christ's kingdom as established on earth, when presents, as willing tribute, will be sent from all nations to the Lord Jesus. Ps 45:12; 72:10,15; Isa 60:9.
3. Gifts to judges: these were very apt to become bribes, and were strictly prohibited. Ex 23:8; De 16:19; 2Ch 19:7. It was usual also to take presents to prophets, 1Sa 9:7; and as the prophets were sometimes judges, the gifts were liable to become bribes, as they did with the sons of Samuel, though Samuel himself could challenge the people, and they admitted the fact, that he had never taken a bribe to blind his eyes therewith. 1Sa 8:3; 12:3.
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Take no rewards in a cause: for rewards make blind those who have eyes to see, and make the decisions of the upright false.
You are not to be moved in your judging by a man's position, you are not to take rewards; for rewards make the eyes of the wise man blind, and the decisions of the upright false.
And his sons did not go in his ways, but moved by the love of money took rewards, and were not upright in judging.
Then Saul said to his servant, But if we go, what are we to take the man? all our bread is gone, and we have no offering to take to the man of God: what are we to do?
But certain good-for-nothing persons said, How is this man to be our saviour? And having no respect for him, they gave him no offering.
Here I am: give witness against me before the Lord and before the man on whom he has put the holy oil: whose ox or ass have I taken? to whom have I been untrue? who has been crushed down by me? from whose hand have I taken a price for the blinding of my eyes? I will give it all back to you.
And she came to Jerusalem with a very great train, with camels weighted down with spices, and stores of gold and jewels: and when she came to Solomon she had talk with him of everything in her mind.
And from all over the earth they came to see Solomon and to give ear to his wisdom, which God had put in his heart. And everyone took with him an offering, vessels of silver and vessels of gold, and robes, and coats of metal, and spices, and horses, and beasts of transport, regularly year by year.
And everyone took with him an offering, vessels of silver and vessels of gold, and robes, and coats of metal, and spices, and horses and beasts for transport, regularly year by year.
So the Lord made his kingdom strong; and all Judah gave offerings to Jehoshaphat, and he had great wealth and honour.
And some of the Philistines took offerings to Jehoshaphat, and made him payments of silver; and the Arabians gave him flocks, seven thousand, seven hundred sheep, and seven thousand, seven hundred he-goats.
Then the king gave a great feast for all his captains and his servants, even Esther's feast; and he gave orders through all the divisions of his kingdom for a day of rest from work, and gave wealth from his store.
And the daughters of Tyre will be there with an offering; those who have wealth among the people will be looking for your approval.
Let the kings of Tarshish and of the islands come back with offerings; let the kings of Sheba and Seba give of their stores.
May he have long life, and may gold from Sheba be given to him: may prayers be made for him at all times; may blessings be on him every day.
Vessels of the sea-lands are waiting for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, so that your sons may come from far, and their silver and gold with them, to the place of the name of the Lord your God, and to the Holy One of Israel, because he has made you beautiful.
But if you make clear the dream and the sense of it, you will have from me offerings and rewards and great honour: so make clear to me the dream and the sense of it.
Then the king made Daniel great, and gave him offerings in great number, and made him ruler over all the land of Babylon, and chief over all the wise men of Babylon.
Watsons
GIFTS. The practice of making presents is very common in oriental countries. The custom probably had its origin among those men who first sustained the office of kings or rulers, and who, from the novelty and perhaps the weakness attached to their situation, chose, rather than make the hazardous attempt of exacting taxes, to content themselves with receiving those presents which might be freely offered, 1Sa 10:27. Hence it passed into a custom, that whoever approached the king should come with a gift. This was the practice and the expectation. The custom of presenting gifts was subsequently extended to other great men; to men who were inferior to the king, but who were, nevertheless, men of influence and rank; it was also extended to those who were equals, when they were visited, Pr 18:16. Kings themselves were in the habit of making presents, probably in reference to the custom in question and the feelings connected with it, to those individuals, their inferiors in point of rank, whom they wished to honour, and also to those who, like themselves, were clothed with the royal authority. These presents, namely, such as were presented by the king as a token of the royal esteem and honour, are almost invariably denominated in the Hebrew, ??? and ????, 1Ki 15:19; 2Ki 16:8; 18:14; Isa 36:16. The more ancient prophets did not deem it discreditable to them to receive presents, nor unbecoming their sacred calling, except when, as was sometimes the case, they refused by way of expressing their dissatisfaction or indignation, 2Ki 5:15; 8:9. In later times, when false prophets, in order to obtain money, prophesied without truth and without authority, the true prophets, for the purpose of keeping the line of distinction as broad as possible, rejected every thing that looked like reward. Gifts of this kind, that have now been described, are not to be confounded with those which are called ???, and which were presented to judges, not as a mark of esteem and honour, but for purposes of bribery and corruption. The former was considered an honour to the giver, but a gift of the latter kind has been justly reprobated in every age, Ex 22:8; De 10:17; 16:19; 27:25; Ps 15:5; 26:10; Isa 1:23; 5:23; 33:15. The giver was not restricted as to the kind of present which he should make. He might present not only silver and gold, but clothes and arms, also different kinds of food, in a word any thing which could be of benefit to the recipient, Ge 43:11; 1Sa 9:7; 16:20; Job 42:11. It was the custom anciently, as it is at the present time in the east, for an individual when visiting a person of high rank, to make some presents of small value to the servants or domestics of the person visited, 1Sa 25:27. It was the usual practice among kings and princes to present to their favourite officers in the government, to ambassadors from foreign courts, to foreigners of distinction, and to men eminent for their learning, garments of greater or less value, Ge 45:22-23; Es 8:15. The royal wardrobe, in which a large number of such garments was kept, is denominated in Hebrew ?????, 2Ch 34:22. It was considered an honour of the highest kind, if a king or any person in high authority thought it proper, as a manifestation of his favour, to give away to another the garment which he had previously worn himself, 1Sa 18:4. In the east, at the present day, it is expected, that every one who has received a garment from the king will immediately clothe himself in it, and promptly present himself and render his homage to the giver; otherwise he runs the hazard of exciting the king's displeasure, Mt 22:11-12. It was sometimes the case, that the king, when he made a feast, presented vestments to all the guests who were invited, with which they clothed themselves before they sat down to 2:2Ki 10:22; Ge 45:22; Re 3:5. In oriental countries, the presents which are made to kings and princes are to this day, carried on beasts of burden, are attended with a body of men, and are escorted with much pomp. It matters not how light or how small the present may be, it must either be carried on the back of a beast of burden, or by a man, who must support it with both his hands, Jg 3:18; 2Ki 8:9.
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Then their father Israel said to them, If it has to be so, then do this: take of the best fruits of the land in your vessels to give the man, perfumes and honey and spices and nuts:
To every one of them he gave three changes of clothing; but to Benjamin he gave three hundred bits of silver and five changes of clothing.
To every one of them he gave three changes of clothing; but to Benjamin he gave three hundred bits of silver and five changes of clothing. And to his father he sent ten asses with good things from Egypt on their backs, and ten she-asses with grain and bread and food for his father on the journey.
If they do not get the thief, let the master of the house come before the judges and take an oath that he has not put his hand on his neighbour's goods.
For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, strong in power and greatly to be feared, who has no respect for any man's position and takes no rewards:
You are not to be moved in your judging by a man's position, you are not to take rewards; for rewards make the eyes of the wise man blind, and the decisions of the upright false.
Cursed is he who for a reward puts to death one who has done no wrong. And let all the people say, So be it.
And after giving the offering, he sent away the people who had come with the offering.
But certain good-for-nothing persons said, How is this man to be our saviour? And having no respect for him, they gave him no offering.
And Jonathan took off the robe he had on and gave it to David, with all his military dress, even to his sword and his bow and the band round his body.
And let this offering, which your servant gives to my lord, be given to the young men who are with my lord.
Let there be an agreement between me and you as there was between my father and your father: see, I have sent you an offering of silver and gold; go and put an end to your agreement with Baasha, king of Israel, so that he may give up attacking me.
Then he went back to the man of God, with all his train, and, taking his place before him, said, Now I am certain that there is no God in all the earth, but only in Israel: now then, take an offering from me.
So Hazael went to see him, taking with him forty camels with offerings on their backs of every sort of good thing from Damascus; and when he came before him, he said, Your son Ben-hadad, king of Aram, has sent me to you, saying, Will I get better from this disease?
So Hilkiah, and those whom the king sent, went to Huldah the woman prophet, the wife of Shallum, the son of Tokhath, the son of Hasrah, the keeper of the robes (now she was living in Jerusalem, in the second part of the town); and they had talk with her about this thing.
And Mordecai went out from before the king, dressed in king-like robes of blue and white, and with a great crown of gold and clothing of purple and the best linen: and all the town of Shushan gave loud cries of joy.
And all his brothers and sisters, and his friends of earlier days, came and took food with him in his house; and made clear their grief for him, and gave him comfort for all the evil which the Lord had sent on him; and they all gave him a bit of money and a gold ring.
In whose hands are evil designs, and whose right hands take money for judging falsely.
A man's offering makes room for him, letting him come before great men.
Your chiefs have gone against the Lord, they have become friends of thieves; every one of them is looking for profit and going after rewards; they do not give right decisions for the child who has no father, and they do not let the cause of the widow come before them.
Who for a reward give support to the cause of the sinner, and who take away the righteousness of the upright from him.
He whose ways are true, and whose words are upright; he who gives no thought to the profits of false acts, whose hands have not taken rewards, who will have no part in putting men to death, and whose eyes are shut against evil;
Do not give ear to Hezekiah, for this is what the king of Assyria says, Make peace with me, and come out to me; and everyone will be free to take the fruit of his vine and of his fig-tree, and the water of his spring;
But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man who had not on a guest's robe; And he says to him, Friend, how came you in here not having a guest's robe? And he had nothing to say.
He who overcomes will be dressed in white, and I will not take his name from the book of life, and I will give witness to his name before my Father, and before his angels.