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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And their father Israel said unto them, If it must be so now, do this; take of the best fruits in the land in your vessels, and carry down the man a present, a little balm, and a little honey, spices, and myrrh, nuts, and almonds:
To all of them he gave each man changes of raiment; but to Benjamin he gave three hundred pieces of silver, and five changes of raiment. And to his father he sent after this manner; ten asses laden with the good things of Egypt, and ten she asses laden with corn and bread and meat for his father by the way.
And thou shalt take no gift: for the gift blindeth the wise, and perverteth the words of the righteous.
Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the LORD thy God which he hath given thee.
Depart not hence, I pray thee, until I come unto thee, and bring forth my present, and set it before thee. And he said, I will tarry until thou come again.
But the children of Belial said, How shall this man save us? And they despised him, and brought him no presents. But he held his peace.
And he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and came, and stood before him: and he said, Behold, now I know that there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel: now therefore, I pray thee, take a blessing of thy servant.
So Hazael went to meet him, and took a present with him, even of every good thing of Damascus, forty camels' burden, and came and stood before him, and said, Thy son Benhadad king of Syria hath sent me to thee, saying, Shall I recover of this disease?
And Ahaz took the silver and gold that was found in the house of the LORD, and in the treasures of the king's house, and sent it for a present to the king of Assyria.
And Hezekiah king of Judah sent to the king of Assyria to Lachish, saying, I have offended; return from me: that which thou puttest on me will I bear. And the king of Assyria appointed unto Hezekiah king of Judah three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold.
He that putteth not out his money to usury, nor taketh reward against the innocent. He that doeth these things shall never be moved.
Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast led captivity captive: thou hast received gifts for men; yea, for the rebellious also, that the LORD God might dwell among them.
Which justify the wicked for reward, and take away the righteousness of the righteous from him!
Hearken not to Hezekiah: for thus saith the king of Assyria, Make an agreement with me by a present, and come out to me: and eat ye every one of his vine, and every one of his fig tree, and drink ye every one the waters of his own cistern;
Then the king made Daniel a great man, and gave him many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and chief of the governors over all the wise men of Babylon.
Then Daniel answered and said before the king, Let thy gifts be to thyself, and give thy rewards to another; yet I will read the writing unto the king, and make known to him the interpretation.
Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee; Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.
Until the day in which he was taken up, after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen:
And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me.
But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money.
Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.
And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
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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And thou shalt take no gift: for the gift blindeth the wise, and perverteth the words of the righteous.
But when the children of Israel cried unto the LORD, the LORD raised them up a deliverer, Ehud the son of Gera, a Benjamite, a man lefthanded: and by him the children of Israel sent a present unto Eglon the king of Moab.
Then said Saul to his servant, But, behold, if we go, what shall we bring the man? for the bread is spent in our vessels, and there is not a present to bring to the man of God: what have we?
Behold, here I am: witness against me before the LORD, and before his anointed: whose ox have I taken? or whose ass have I taken? or whom have I defrauded? whom have I oppressed? or of whose hand have I received any bribe to blind mine eyes therewith? and I will restore it you.
And he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and came, and stood before him: and he said, Behold, now I know that there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel: now therefore, I pray thee, take a blessing of thy servant.
Against him came up Shalmaneser king of Assyria; and Hoshea became his servant, and gave him presents.
Then the king made a great feast unto all his princes and his servants, even Esther's feast; and he made a release to the provinces, and gave gifts, according to the state of the king.
Because of thy temple at Jerusalem shall kings bring presents unto thee.
And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment:
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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And thou shalt take no gift: for the gift blindeth the wise, and perverteth the words of the righteous.
Thou shalt not wrest judgment; thou shalt not respect persons, neither take a gift: for a gift doth blind the eyes of the wise, and pervert the words of the righteous.
And his sons walked not in his ways, but turned aside after lucre, and took bribes, and perverted judgment.
Then said Saul to his servant, But, behold, if we go, what shall we bring the man? for the bread is spent in our vessels, and there is not a present to bring to the man of God: what have we?
But the children of Belial said, How shall this man save us? And they despised him, and brought him no presents. But he held his peace.
Behold, here I am: witness against me before the LORD, and before his anointed: whose ox have I taken? or whose ass have I taken? or whom have I defrauded? whom have I oppressed? or of whose hand have I received any bribe to blind mine eyes therewith? and I will restore it you.
And she came to Jerusalem with a very great train, with camels that bare spices, and very much gold, and precious stones: and when she was come to Solomon, she communed with him of all that was in her heart.
And all the earth sought to Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart. And they brought every man his present, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and garments, and armour, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year.
And they brought every man his present, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and raiment, harness, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year.
Therefore the LORD stablished the kingdom in his hand; and all Judah brought to Jehoshaphat presents; and he had riches and honour in abundance.
Also some of the Philistines brought Jehoshaphat presents, and tribute silver; and the Arabians brought him flocks, seven thousand and seven hundred rams, and seven thousand and seven hundred he goats.
Then the king made a great feast unto all his princes and his servants, even Esther's feast; and he made a release to the provinces, and gave gifts, according to the state of the king.
And the daughter of Tyre shall be there with a gift; even the rich among the people shall intreat thy favour.
The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall bring presents: the kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts.
And he shall live, and to him shall be given of the gold of Sheba: prayer also shall be made for him continually; and daily shall he be praised.
Surely the isles shall wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring thy sons from far, their silver and their gold with them, unto the name of the LORD thy God, and to the Holy One of Israel, because he hath glorified thee.
But if ye shew the dream, and the interpretation thereof, ye shall receive of me gifts and rewards and great honour: therefore shew me the dream, and the interpretation thereof.
Then the king made Daniel a great man, and gave him many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and chief of the governors 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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And their father Israel said unto them, If it must be so now, do this; take of the best fruits in the land in your vessels, and carry down the man a present, a little balm, and a little honey, spices, and myrrh, nuts, and almonds:
To all of them he gave each man changes of raiment; but to Benjamin he gave three hundred pieces of silver, and five changes of raiment.
To all of them he gave each man changes of raiment; but to Benjamin he gave three hundred pieces of silver, and five changes of raiment. And to his father he sent after this manner; ten asses laden with the good things of Egypt, and ten she asses laden with corn and bread and meat for his father by the way.
If the thief be not found, then the master of the house shall be brought unto the judges, to see whether he have put his hand unto his neighbour's goods.
For the LORD your God is God of gods, and Lord of lords, a great God, a mighty, and a terrible, which regardeth not persons, nor taketh reward:
Thou shalt not wrest judgment; thou shalt not respect persons, neither take a gift: for a gift doth blind the eyes of the wise, and pervert the words of the righteous.
Cursed be he that taketh reward to slay an innocent person. And all the people shall say, Amen.
And when he had made an end to offer the present, he sent away the people that bare the present.
But the children of Belial said, How shall this man save us? And they despised him, and brought him no presents. But he held his peace.
And Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was upon him, and gave it to David, and his garments, even to his sword, and to his bow, and to his girdle.
And now this blessing which thine handmaid hath brought unto my lord, let it even be given unto the young men that follow my lord.
There is a league between me and thee, and between my father and thy father: behold, I have sent unto thee a present of silver and gold; come and break thy league with Baasha king of Israel, that he may depart from me.
And he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and came, and stood before him: and he said, Behold, now I know that there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel: now therefore, I pray thee, take a blessing of thy servant.
So Hazael went to meet him, and took a present with him, even of every good thing of Damascus, forty camels' burden, and came and stood before him, and said, Thy son Benhadad king of Syria hath sent me to thee, saying, Shall I recover of this disease?
And Hilkiah, and they that the king had appointed, went to Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of Tikvath, the son of Hasrah, keeper of the wardrobe; (now she dwelt in Jerusalem in the college:) and they spake to her to that effect.
And Mordecai went out from the presence of the king in royal apparel of blue and white, and with a great crown of gold, and with a garment of fine linen and purple: and the city of Shushan rejoiced and was glad.
Then came there unto him all his brethren, and all his sisters, and all they that had been of his acquaintance before, and did eat bread with him in his house: and they bemoaned him, and comforted him over all the evil that the LORD had brought upon him: every man also gave him a piece of money, and every one an earring of gold.
He that putteth not out his money to usury, nor taketh reward against the innocent. He that doeth these things shall never be moved.
In whose hands is mischief, and their right hand is full of bribes.
A man's gift maketh room for him, and bringeth him before great men.
Thy princes are rebellious, and companions of thieves: every one loveth gifts, and followeth after rewards: they judge not the fatherless, neither doth the cause of the widow come unto them.
Which justify the wicked for reward, and take away the righteousness of the righteous from him!
He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from holding of bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil;
Hearken not to Hezekiah: for thus saith the king of Assyria, Make an agreement with me by a present, and come out to me: and eat ye every one of his vine, and every one of his fig tree, and drink ye every one the waters of his own cistern;
And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment: And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless.
He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.