Reference: Tithes
Fausets
(See DEUTERONOMY.) Tenths of produce, property, or spoils, dedicated to sacred use. So Abram (and Levi, as in Abram's loins) to Melchizedek the king priest who blessed him (Ge 14:20; Heb 7:1-10). Jacob after his Bethel vision vowed a tenth of all that God gave him, should God be with and keep him, and give him bread and raiment, and bring him again to his father's house in peace (Ge 28:20-22). The usage of consecrated tithes existed among the Greeks, Romans, Carthaginians, and Arabians. See 1Ma 11:35; Herodotus i. 89; iv. 152; v. 77; vii. 132; 9:81; Diod. Sic. v. 42; xi. 33; 20:44; Cicero, Verr. ii. 3,6-7; Xenophon, Anabasis v. 3, section 9. The "tithe" (terumot) of all produce as also of flocks and cattle belonged to Jehovah. and was paid in kind, or if redeemed one fifth of the value was added. Le 27:30-33, "whatsoever passed under the rod": the rabbis had the tradition that the animals to be tithed were enclosed in a pen, from whence they passed one by one under the counter's rod, and every tenth was touched with a rod dipped in vermilion (Jer 33:13; Eze 20:37).
The Levites received this terumot; they in turn paid a tenth of this to the high priest (Nu 18:21-28,31). In De 10:9; 12:5-18; 14:22,29; 18:1-2; 26:12-14, the general first tithe of all animal and vegetable increase for maintaining the priests and Levites is taken, for granted; what is added in this later time is the second additional tithe of the field produce alone, and for celebrating the sacred feasts each first and second year in the Shiloh or Jerusalem sanctuary, and every third year at home with a feast to the Levites, the stranger, fatherless, and widow. The six years thus marked were followed by the Jubilee year; on it the attendance was the larger because of the scant attendance on the sixth year when most stayed at home. In the Jubilee year there was no tithe, as the land enjoyed its sabbath. Tobit (Tob 1:7-8) says he gave a third tithe to the poor; Josephus (Ant. 4:8, 8, section 22) also mentions a third tithe; so Jerome too on Ezekiel 45.
Maimonides denies a third tithe (which would be an excessive burden) and represents the seceded tithe of the third and sixth years as shared between the poor and the Levites. (See Selden on Tithes, 2:13). Ewald suggests that for two years the tithe was virtually voluntary, on the third year compulsory. Thus there was a yearly tithe for the Levites, a second yearly tithe for two years for the festivals; but this second tithe on every third year was shared by the Levites with the poor. The kings, Samuel foresaw, would appropriate the three years' poor man's tithe (1Sa 8:15,17). Hezekiah rectified the abuse (2Ch 31:5,12,19); also Nehemiah after the return from Babylon (Ne 10:38-39; 13:5,12; 12:44).
The Pharisees were punctilious in paying tithe for all even the smallest herbs (Mt 23:23; Lu 18:12). Amos (Am 4:4) upbraids Israel with zeal for the letter of the tithe law while disregarding its spirit. Malachi (Mal 3:10) seconded Nehemiah's efforts. God promises to "open heaven's windows and pour out a blessing" so that there would be no "room to receive it," provided the people by bringing in all the tithes would put Him to the proof as to keeping His word. Christians, whose privileges are so much greater and to whom heaven is opened by Christ's death and ascension, should at least offer no less a proportion of all their income to the Lord's cause than did the Israelite: we should not lose but even in this world gain thereby (Pr 3:9-10). Azariah the high priest told Hezekiah: "since the people began to bring the offerings into the house of the Lord we have bad enough to eat, and have left plenty, for the Lord hath blessed His people, and that which is left is this great store" (2Ch 31:10).
The New Testament plan of giving is 1Co 16:2; 2Co 9:7-9. Moral obligation, not force, was what constrained the Israelite to give tithes. He solemnly professed he had done so every third and sixth year (of the septennial cycle), when instead of taking the second or vegetable tithe to the sanctuary he used it at home in charity and hospitality (De 26:13-14; 14:28-29). Ananias' and Sapphira's declaration corresponds, but it was a lie against the Holy Spirit (Acts 5); Joseph's fifth of Egypt's increase to the sovereign who had saved the people's lives corresponds to, and was perhaps suggested by, the double tithe or fifth paid by Israel long before.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
And blessed [be] God Most High who delivered your enemies into your hand." And he gave to him a tenth of everything.
And Jacob made a vow saying, "If God will be with me and protect me on this way that I am going, and gives me food to eat and clothing to wear, and [if] I return in peace to the house of my father, then Yahweh will become my God. read more. And this stone that I have set up [as] a pillar shall be the house of God, and [of] all that you give to me I will certainly give a tenth to you."
" 'And any tithe of the land from the land's seed [or] from the fruit of the trees [is] for Yahweh; it [is] a holy object for Yahweh. And if a man indeed redeems from his tithe, he shall add a fifth of its [value] onto it. read more. As for every tithe of cattle or of the flock, all which crosses under the rod, the tenth shall be a holy object for Yahweh. He shall not inspect between [the] good and [the] bad, and he shall not exchange it; but if he indeed exchanges it, then {it and its substitution shall be} a holy object--it shall not be redeemed.'"
"Behold, I have given to the descendants of Levi every tithe in Israel as an inheritance in return for their service, which they [are] doing, the work of the tent of assembly. The {Israelites} will not come near again to the tent of assembly, or {they will bear sin} and die. read more. The Levites will perform the service of the tent of assembly, and they will bear their guilt, an eternal decree for all your generations. But they will not receive an inheritance in the midst of the {Israelites} because the tithes of the {Israelites} that are {offered} to Yahweh as a contribution, I have given to the Levites as an inheritance; therefore I said to them, 'They will not receive an inheritance in the midst of the {Israelites}.'" Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, "You will speak to the Levites and say to them, 'When you receive the tithe from the {Israelites} that I have given to you from them for your inheritance, {you will present} a contribution from it to Yahweh, a tithe from a tithe. Your contribution will be credited to you like the grain from the threshing floor and like the produce from the press. So {you will present} your own contribution to Yahweh from all your tithes that you receive from the {Israelites}; from it you will give the contribution of Yahweh to Aaron the priest.
You may eat it anywhere, you and your household, because it [is] a wage in return for your service in the tent of assembly.
Therefore {there was not} for Levi an allotment or an inheritance [along] with his brothers; [rather] Yahweh [is] his inheritance [just] as Yahweh your God {promised} to him.
{But only} to the place that Yahweh your God will choose from all [of] your tribes to place his name there as his dwelling shall you seek, and there you shall go. And you shall bring there your burnt offerings and your sacrifices and your tithes and {your donations} and your votive gifts and your freewill offerings and the firstling of your herd and your flock. read more. And you shall eat there {before} Yahweh your God, and you shall rejoice {in all your endeavors}, you and your family [in] which Yahweh your God has blessed you. "You must not do [just] as we [are] doing here {today}, {each according to all that is right in his eyes}. For you have not come up to now to the resting place and to the inheritance that Yahweh your God [is] giving to you. But you will cross the Jordan, and you will settle in the land that Yahweh your God [is] giving you as an inheritance, and he will give rest to you from all your enemies from all around, and you will live securely, {and then} [at] the place that Yahweh your God will choose, to let his name dwell there, there you shall bring all [the things] I [am] commanding you, your burnt offerings and your sacrifices, your tithes and {your donations}, and all [of] the choice [things], your votive gifts that you vow to Yahweh. And you shall rejoice {before} Yahweh your God, you and your sons and your daughters and your slaves and your slave women and the Levite who [is] in your {towns}, because there is not for him a plot of ground and an inheritance with you. "Take care for yourself so that you do not offer your burnt offerings at [just] any place that you happen to see, {but only} at the place that Yahweh will choose among one of your tribes; there you shall offer your burnt offerings, and there you shall do all [the things] that I [am] commanding you. "But {whenever you desire} you may slaughter, and you may eat meat according to the blessing of Yahweh your God that he has given to you in all [of] your {towns}; the unclean and the clean may eat it [just] as [they would] the gazelle and as the deer. Only the blood you must not eat, [but] on the ground you must pour it like water. You are not allowed to eat in your {towns} the tithe of your grain and your wine and your olive oil and the firstborn of your herd and your flock and all [of] your votive gifts that you vowed and your freewill offering and {your donations}. But only {before} Yahweh your God you shall eat it, at the place that Yahweh your God will choose, you and your son and your daughter and your slave and your slave woman and the Levite who [is] in your {towns}, and you must rejoice {before} your God {in all your undertakings}.
"Certainly you must give a tithe [of] all the yield of your seed, {which comes forth from your field year after year}.
"At the end of three years you shall bring out all [of] the tithe of your yield for that year, and you shall store [it] in your {towns}. And [so] the Levite may come, because there is no plot of ground for him or an inheritance with you, and the alien [also may come] and the orphan and the widow that [are] in your {towns}, and {they may eat their fill}, so that Yahweh your God may bless you in all [of] the work of your hand that you undertake."
And [so] the Levite may come, because there is no plot of ground for him or an inheritance with you, and the alien [also may come] and the orphan and the widow that [are] in your {towns}, and {they may eat their fill}, so that Yahweh your God may bless you in all [of] the work of your hand that you undertake."
"And there shall not be for the Levitical priests, the whole tribe of Levi, a plot of ground and an inheritance with Israel, [rather] they may eat an offering made by fire [as] their inheritance, for Yahweh. And there shall not be for them an inheritance [of land] in the midst of his brothers; [rather] Yahweh is his inheritance, [just] as he {promised} to them.
"When you are finished {giving a tithe}, all of the tithe of your produce in the third year, the year of the tithe, then you shall give to the Levite, to the alien, to the orphan, and to the widow, so that they may eat in your towns and they may be satisfied. And you shall say {before} Yahweh your God, 'I have removed the sacred portion from the house and, moreover, I have given it to the Levite and to the alien and to the orphan and to the widow according to all your commandment that you commanded me; I have not transgressed any of your commandments, and I have not forgotten [any of them].
And you shall say {before} Yahweh your God, 'I have removed the sacred portion from the house and, moreover, I have given it to the Levite and to the alien and to the orphan and to the widow according to all your commandment that you commanded me; I have not transgressed any of your commandments, and I have not forgotten [any of them]. I have not eaten during my [time of] mourning, and I have not removed [anything] from it while [being] unclean, and I have not offered {any of it} to someone who [has] died. I have listened to the voice of Yahweh my God; I have done all that you commanded me [to do].
I have not eaten during my [time of] mourning, and I have not removed [anything] from it while [being] unclean, and I have not offered {any of it} to someone who [has] died. I have listened to the voice of Yahweh my God; I have done all that you commanded me [to do].
He will take a tenth of your seed and your vineyards and give [it] to his high officials and to his servants.
He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you [yourselves] will become his servants.
And the word spread. The Israelites gave abundantly [from] the firstfruits of grain, new wine, olive oil, honey, and all [kinds of] grains from the field. And they brought tithes of everything in abundance.
And Azariah the chief priest of the house of Zadok answered him, saying, "Since the offerings began to be brought to the house of Yahweh, [we have] eaten and been satisfied, and have much to spare, for Yahweh has blessed his people. Now [see] this abundant remainder!"
Then they brought the offerings and tithes and holy objects faithfully. And over them [as] leader [was] Conaniah the Levite. And Shimei his brother [was] second [in rank].
And for the descendants of Aaron, the priests, [who were] in the fields of the pasturelands of their cities, {in each and every one of their cities} [were] men who were designated by name to give shares to every male among the priests and to everyone enrolled among the Levites.
And the priest, the descendant of Aaron, will be with the Levites during the tithe the Levites receive. The Levites will bring up a tithe of the tithes for the house of our God to the chambers of the storehouse. For the {Israelites} and the {Levites} will bring to the storerooms the offering of grain, new wine, and olive oil. These are the objects of the sanctuary and the priests who minister and the gatekeepers and singers. We will not neglect the house of our God."
On that day men were appointed for the storehouse rooms, the offerings, the first fruits, and the tithes, in order to gather in them from the fields of the cities the requirements of the law for the priests and Levites; for the joy of Judah [was] upon the priests and Levites standing there.
prepared for [Tobiah] a large chamber where they had formerly put the grain offering, the frankincense, the [temple] objects, tithes of grain, wine, and oil commanded for the Levites, the singers, the gatekeepers, and the offerings of the priests.
So all of Judah brought the tithe of grain, new wine, and olive oil into the storehouses.
Honor Yahweh from your substance, and from the firstfruits of all that will come to you, and your barns shall be full of plenty, and your vats shall burst [with] new wine.
In the towns of the hill country, in the towns of the Shephelah, and in the towns of the Negev, and in the land of Benjamin, and in the surroundings [of] Jerusalem, and in the towns of Judah, flocks will again pass under [the] hands of [the] counter,' says Yahweh.
"And I will make you pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant.
"Come [to] Bethel and transgress; [to] Gilgal and {multiply transgression}! Bring your sacrifices in the morning and your tithes on the {third day}.
Bring the whole tithe to {the storehouse}, so that there will be food in my house, and test me please in this," says Yahweh of hosts, "if I will not open for you the windows of heaven, and pour forth for you {an overflowing blessing}.
"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees--hypocrites!--because you pay a tenth of mint and dill and cumin, and neglect the more important [matters] of the law--justice and mercy and faithfulness! It was necessary to do these [things] {while not neglecting those}.
I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all that I get.'
On the first [day] of the week, each one of you {put aside} [something], saving up {to whatever extent he has prospered}, in order that whenever I come, at that time collections do not take place.
For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham [as he] was returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, to whom also Abraham apportioned a tenth of everything--in the first place, [his name] is translated "king of righteousness," and then also "king of Salem," that is, "king of peace"; read more. without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but resembling the Son of God--he remains a priest for all time. But see how great this man [was], to whom Abraham the patriarch gave a tenth from the spoils! And indeed those of the sons of Levi who receive the priesthood have a commandment to collect a tenth from the people according to the law, that is, from their brothers, although {they are descended from Abraham}. But the one who did not trace [his] descent from them collected tithes from Abraham and blessed the one who had the promises. Now without any dispute the inferior is blessed by the more prominent. And in this case mortal men receive tithes, but in that case it is testified that he lives. And, {so to speak}, even Levi, the one who receives tithes, has paid tithes through Abraham. For he was still in the loins of his father when Melchizedek met him.
Hastings
According to both North Israelite (Ge 28:22) and Jud
See Verses Found in Dictionary
And blessed [be] God Most High who delivered your enemies into your hand." And he gave to him a tenth of everything.
And blessed [be] God Most High who delivered your enemies into your hand." And he gave to him a tenth of everything.
And Jacob made a vow saying, "If God will be with me and protect me on this way that I am going, and gives me food to eat and clothing to wear, and [if] I return in peace to the house of my father, then Yahweh will become my God. read more. And this stone that I have set up [as] a pillar shall be the house of God, and [of] all that you give to me I will certainly give a tenth to you."
And this stone that I have set up [as] a pillar shall be the house of God, and [of] all that you give to me I will certainly give a tenth to you."
" 'And any tithe of the land from the land's seed [or] from the fruit of the trees [is] for Yahweh; it [is] a holy object for Yahweh. And if a man indeed redeems from his tithe, he shall add a fifth of its [value] onto it. read more. As for every tithe of cattle or of the flock, all which crosses under the rod, the tenth shall be a holy object for Yahweh. He shall not inspect between [the] good and [the] bad, and he shall not exchange it; but if he indeed exchanges it, then {it and its substitution shall be} a holy object--it shall not be redeemed.'"
"Behold, I have given to the descendants of Levi every tithe in Israel as an inheritance in return for their service, which they [are] doing, the work of the tent of assembly. The {Israelites} will not come near again to the tent of assembly, or {they will bear sin} and die. read more. The Levites will perform the service of the tent of assembly, and they will bear their guilt, an eternal decree for all your generations. But they will not receive an inheritance in the midst of the {Israelites} because the tithes of the {Israelites} that are {offered} to Yahweh as a contribution, I have given to the Levites as an inheritance; therefore I said to them, 'They will not receive an inheritance in the midst of the {Israelites}.'"
because the tithes of the {Israelites} that are {offered} to Yahweh as a contribution, I have given to the Levites as an inheritance; therefore I said to them, 'They will not receive an inheritance in the midst of the {Israelites}.'"
"Certainly you must give a tithe [of] all the yield of your seed, {which comes forth from your field year after year}.
"Come [to] Bethel and transgress; [to] Gilgal and {multiply transgression}! Bring your sacrifices in the morning and your tithes on the {third day}.
to whom also Abraham apportioned a tenth of everything--in the first place, [his name] is translated "king of righteousness," and then also "king of Salem," that is, "king of peace";
But see how great this man [was], to whom Abraham the patriarch gave a tenth from the spoils!
Morish
The giving of a tenth to God, or to His representatives, was practised long before the law enforced it. Abraham gave tithes of the spoils to Melchizedek, and Jacob vowed that he would give to God the tenth of all that God might give to him. Ge 14:20; 28:22; Heb 7:2-9. There is evidence that heathen nations devoted tithes to sacred and fiscal uses, consecrating them to their gods or to victorious generals, or as a permanent source of income to their sovereign.
The tithes under the law were
1. Those given to the Levites: they embraced a tenth of all produce. Every tenth animal as it passed under the rod was to be given, whether it was good or bad: if changed, both had to be given: if either animal or vegetable produce were redeemed, a fifth had to be added thereto. Le 27:30-33; Nu 18:21-24; Ne 10:37-38. Again a tenth of the tithe given to the Levites was a portion for the priests. Nu 18:26-28.
2. On coming into the land a second tenth of all produce was to be taken to Jerusalem, or, if the distance was too great, it could be turned into money, and when the offerer arrived at Jerusalem he could purchase any thing that he desired, which was to be eaten there by himself, his children, his servants, and any Levites that might be there at the time. De 12:6-12,17-18; 14:22-27.
3. Every third year (called 'the year of tithing') a third tenth was given according to Josephus (Ant. iv. 8, 22: cf. Tobit 1:7, 8), or, what is more probable, a variation was made in that year respecting the second tenth: it was not to be carried to Jerusalem, but to be laid up 'within the gates,' and there shared by "the Levites . . . . and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow." De 14:28-29; Am 4:4.
At the end of 'the year of tithing,' the offerer was to make a solemn declaration before the Lord that he had fully performed the commandment of the Lord, and had withheld for his own use nothing of the tithe. And on this ground he was to pray for the divine blessing on Israel. One of the charges brought against Israel at the end of the O.T. was that they had robbed God, because they had withholden the tithes and offerings; and therefore the whole nation was "cursed with a curse." But if they would bring the tithes into God's storehouse, and prove Him, there would be a blessing beyond their capacity to receive it. Mal 3:8-12.
In New Testament times many were punctilious in paying tithes of small things, while they neglected the weightier matters of the law
See Verses Found in Dictionary
And blessed [be] God Most High who delivered your enemies into your hand." And he gave to him a tenth of everything.
And this stone that I have set up [as] a pillar shall be the house of God, and [of] all that you give to me I will certainly give a tenth to you."
" 'And any tithe of the land from the land's seed [or] from the fruit of the trees [is] for Yahweh; it [is] a holy object for Yahweh. And if a man indeed redeems from his tithe, he shall add a fifth of its [value] onto it. read more. As for every tithe of cattle or of the flock, all which crosses under the rod, the tenth shall be a holy object for Yahweh. He shall not inspect between [the] good and [the] bad, and he shall not exchange it; but if he indeed exchanges it, then {it and its substitution shall be} a holy object--it shall not be redeemed.'"
"Behold, I have given to the descendants of Levi every tithe in Israel as an inheritance in return for their service, which they [are] doing, the work of the tent of assembly. The {Israelites} will not come near again to the tent of assembly, or {they will bear sin} and die. read more. The Levites will perform the service of the tent of assembly, and they will bear their guilt, an eternal decree for all your generations. But they will not receive an inheritance in the midst of the {Israelites} because the tithes of the {Israelites} that are {offered} to Yahweh as a contribution, I have given to the Levites as an inheritance; therefore I said to them, 'They will not receive an inheritance in the midst of the {Israelites}.'"
"You will speak to the Levites and say to them, 'When you receive the tithe from the {Israelites} that I have given to you from them for your inheritance, {you will present} a contribution from it to Yahweh, a tithe from a tithe. Your contribution will be credited to you like the grain from the threshing floor and like the produce from the press. read more. So {you will present} your own contribution to Yahweh from all your tithes that you receive from the {Israelites}; from it you will give the contribution of Yahweh to Aaron the priest.
And you shall bring there your burnt offerings and your sacrifices and your tithes and {your donations} and your votive gifts and your freewill offerings and the firstling of your herd and your flock. And you shall eat there {before} Yahweh your God, and you shall rejoice {in all your endeavors}, you and your family [in] which Yahweh your God has blessed you. read more. "You must not do [just] as we [are] doing here {today}, {each according to all that is right in his eyes}. For you have not come up to now to the resting place and to the inheritance that Yahweh your God [is] giving to you. But you will cross the Jordan, and you will settle in the land that Yahweh your God [is] giving you as an inheritance, and he will give rest to you from all your enemies from all around, and you will live securely, {and then} [at] the place that Yahweh your God will choose, to let his name dwell there, there you shall bring all [the things] I [am] commanding you, your burnt offerings and your sacrifices, your tithes and {your donations}, and all [of] the choice [things], your votive gifts that you vow to Yahweh. And you shall rejoice {before} Yahweh your God, you and your sons and your daughters and your slaves and your slave women and the Levite who [is] in your {towns}, because there is not for him a plot of ground and an inheritance with you.
You are not allowed to eat in your {towns} the tithe of your grain and your wine and your olive oil and the firstborn of your herd and your flock and all [of] your votive gifts that you vowed and your freewill offering and {your donations}. But only {before} Yahweh your God you shall eat it, at the place that Yahweh your God will choose, you and your son and your daughter and your slave and your slave woman and the Levite who [is] in your {towns}, and you must rejoice {before} your God {in all your undertakings}.
"Certainly you must give a tithe [of] all the yield of your seed, {which comes forth from your field year after year}. And you shall eat {before} Yahweh your God in the place that he will choose to make to dwell his name there the tithe of your grain, your wine and your olive oil and the firstling of your herd and your flock, so that you may learn to revere Yahweh your God {always}. read more. But if {the distance is too great for you}, [so] that you are not able to transport it, because the place that Yahweh your God will choose to set his name there, it is [too] far from you, when Yahweh your God will bless you, then [in that case] {you may exchange for money}, and you shall take the money to your hand and go to the place that Yahweh your God will choose. You may spend the money for anything {that you desire}, for oxen or for sheep or for wine or for strong drink or for anything {that you desire}, and you shall eat [it] there {before} Yahweh your God, and you shall rejoice, you and your household. And [as to] the Levite who [is] in your {towns}, you shall not neglect him, because there is not a plot of ground for him and an inheritance [along] with you. "At the end of three years you shall bring out all [of] the tithe of your yield for that year, and you shall store [it] in your {towns}. And [so] the Levite may come, because there is no plot of ground for him or an inheritance with you, and the alien [also may come] and the orphan and the widow that [are] in your {towns}, and {they may eat their fill}, so that Yahweh your God may bless you in all [of] the work of your hand that you undertake."
And we bring the best of our dough, our offerings, the fruit of every tree, new wine, and olive oil to the priests, to the chambers of the house of our God; and [to bring] the tithe of our soil to the Levites, for the Levites [receive] the tithes in all of our rural towns. And the priest, the descendant of Aaron, will be with the Levites during the tithe the Levites receive. The Levites will bring up a tithe of the tithes for the house of our God to the chambers of the storehouse.
"Come [to] Bethel and transgress; [to] Gilgal and {multiply transgression}! Bring your sacrifices in the morning and your tithes on the {third day}.
Will a human [dare to] rob God? Yet you [are] robbing me! And you say, 'How have we robbed you?' In the tithes and the contributions! You [are] being cursed with curse, for you [are] robbing me, the whole nation [of you]! read more. Bring the whole tithe to {the storehouse}, so that there will be food in my house, and test me please in this," says Yahweh of hosts, "if I will not open for you the windows of heaven, and pour forth for you {an overflowing blessing}. I will rebuke the devourer for you; it will not destroy the fruit of your soil; your vine in the field will not be unfruitful," says Yahweh of hosts. "And all the nations will call you blessed, because you will be {a land in which one takes joy}," says Yahweh of hosts.
"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees--hypocrites!--because you pay a tenth of mint and dill and cumin, and neglect the more important [matters] of the law--justice and mercy and faithfulness! It was necessary to do these [things] {while not neglecting those}.
Now the one who is taught the word must share in all good [things] with the one who teaches.
to whom also Abraham apportioned a tenth of everything--in the first place, [his name] is translated "king of righteousness," and then also "king of Salem," that is, "king of peace"; without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but resembling the Son of God--he remains a priest for all time. read more. But see how great this man [was], to whom Abraham the patriarch gave a tenth from the spoils! And indeed those of the sons of Levi who receive the priesthood have a commandment to collect a tenth from the people according to the law, that is, from their brothers, although {they are descended from Abraham}. But the one who did not trace [his] descent from them collected tithes from Abraham and blessed the one who had the promises. Now without any dispute the inferior is blessed by the more prominent. And in this case mortal men receive tithes, but in that case it is testified that he lives. And, {so to speak}, even Levi, the one who receives tithes, has paid tithes through Abraham.
Watsons
TITHES. We have nothing more ancient concerning tithes, than what we find in Ge 14:20, that Abraham gave tithes to Melchisedec, king of Salem, at his return from his expedition against Chedorlaomer, and the four kings in confederacy with him. Abraham gave him tithe of all the booty he had taken from the enemy. Jacob imitated this piety of his grandfather, when he vowed to the Lord the tithe of all the substance he might acquire in Mesopotamia, Ge 28:22. Under the law, Moses ordained, "All the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord's; it is holy unto the Lord. And if a man will at all redeem aught of his tithes, he shall add thereto the fifth part thereof. And concerning the tithe of the herd, or of the flock, even of whatsoever passeth under the rod, the tenth shall be holy unto the Lord," Le 27:30-32. The Pharisees, in the time of Jesus Christ, to distinguish themselves by a more scrupulous observance of the law, did not content themselves with paying the tithe of the grain and fruits growing in the fields; but they also paid tithe of the pulse and herbs growing in their gardens, which was more than the law required of them. The tithes were taken from what remained, after the offerings and first fruits were paid. They brought the tithes to the Levites in the city of Jerusalem, as appears from Josephus and Tobit, 1:6. The Levites set apart the tenth part of their tithes for the priest; because the priest did not receive them immediately from the people, and the Levites were not to meddle with the tithes they had received, before they had given the priests such a part as the law assigned them. Of those nine parts that remained to the proprietors, after the tithe was paid to the Levites, they took still another tenth part, which was either sent to Jerusalem in kind, or, if it was too far, they sent the value in money; adding to it a fifth from the whole as the rabbins inform us. This tenth part was applied toward celebrating the festivals in the temple, which bore a near resemblance to the agapae, or love feasts of the first Christians. Thus are those words of Deuteronomy understood by the rabbins: "Thou shalt truly tithe all the increase of thy seed, that the field bringeth forth year by year. And thou shalt eat before the Lord thy God, in the place which he shall choose to place his name there, the tithe of thy corn, of thy wine, and of thy oil, and of the firstlings of thy herds and of thy flocks: that thou mayest learn to fear the Lord thy God always," De 14:22-23. Tobit, 1:6, says, that every three years he punctually paid his tithe to strangers and proselytes. This was probably because there were neither priests nor Levites in the city where he dwelt. Moses speaks of this last kind of tithe: "At the end of three years thou shalt bring forth all the tithe of thine increase the same year, and shalt lay it up within thy gates. And the Levite, (because he hath no part nor inheritance with thee,) and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, which are within thy gates, shall come, and shall eat and be satisfied; that the Lord thy God may bless thee in all the work of thine hand which thou doest," De 14:28; 26:12. It is thought that this tithe was not different from the second kind before noticed, except that in the third year it was not brought to the temple, but was used upon the spot by every one in the city of his habitation. So, properly speaking, there were only two sorts of tithes, that which was given to the Levites and priests, and that which was applied to making feasts of charity, either in the temple of Jerusalem, or in other cities. Samuel tells the children of Israel, that the king they had a mind to have over them would "take the tenth of their seed, and of their vineyards, and give to his officers, and his servants. He will take the tenth of your sheep, and ye shall be his servants," 1Sa 8:15,17. Yet it does not clearly appear from the history of the Jews, that they regularly paid any tithe to their princes. But the manner in which Samuel expresses himself, seems to insinuate that it was looked upon as a common right among the kings of the east. At this day, the Jews no longer pay any tithe; at least they do not think themselves obliged to do it, except it be those who are settled in the territory of Jerusalem, and the ancient Judea. For there are few Jews now that have any lands of their own, or any flocks. They only give something for the redemption of the first-born, to those who have any proofs of their being descended from the race of the priests or Levites. However, we are assured, that such among the Jews as would be thought to be very strict and religious give the tenth part of their whole income to the poor.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
And blessed [be] God Most High who delivered your enemies into your hand." And he gave to him a tenth of everything.
And this stone that I have set up [as] a pillar shall be the house of God, and [of] all that you give to me I will certainly give a tenth to you."
" 'And any tithe of the land from the land's seed [or] from the fruit of the trees [is] for Yahweh; it [is] a holy object for Yahweh. And if a man indeed redeems from his tithe, he shall add a fifth of its [value] onto it. read more. As for every tithe of cattle or of the flock, all which crosses under the rod, the tenth shall be a holy object for Yahweh.
"Certainly you must give a tithe [of] all the yield of your seed, {which comes forth from your field year after year}. And you shall eat {before} Yahweh your God in the place that he will choose to make to dwell his name there the tithe of your grain, your wine and your olive oil and the firstling of your herd and your flock, so that you may learn to revere Yahweh your God {always}.
"At the end of three years you shall bring out all [of] the tithe of your yield for that year, and you shall store [it] in your {towns}.
"When you are finished {giving a tithe}, all of the tithe of your produce in the third year, the year of the tithe, then you shall give to the Levite, to the alien, to the orphan, and to the widow, so that they may eat in your towns and they may be satisfied.
He will take a tenth of your seed and your vineyards and give [it] to his high officials and to his servants.
He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you [yourselves] will become his servants.