Malachi Chapter 3
11/22/24 9:44 AM
Solitary Man
solitaryman.substack.com
20241117
Mal 3:1 Behold, I will send my messenger (mal-awk – angel, ambassador, prophet), and he shall prepare (paw-naw – turn) the way (deh-rek – the road) before me (paw-neem – the face): and the Lord, whom ye seek (baw-kash – to search out, strive after) , shall suddenly (instantly) come to his temple, even the messenger (mal-awk) of the covenant (ber-eeth), whom ye delight in (khaw-fatges – desire, have pleasure): behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.
I believe that we have presented a compelling case that the book of Malachi has thus far been addressed to the priesthood at the time it was written, which was during Nehemiah’s and Ezra’s time, most likely in the 420’s BC. Now we shall try to discover if that fact holds true for the rest of the book.
Chapter three divides nicely into several sections. Verses 1-6 depart from the accusation-evidence paradigm that God has been using to indict his priests on various charges. It injects a prophetic promise, that we shall see is most certainly Messianic. Verses 7-12 returns to further accusations against the priests (or a totally different group), over tithing. Finally, verses 13-15 pronounce the final accusation by God to his audience (whomever that may be). Verses 16-18 complete the chapter with sort of a sneak peek behind the scenes as to a certain group of people that God takes special note of, and what sort of reward he promises them.
Note how I left the recipient of this chapter open ended in the above paragraph. That is because we will deal with that question as we examine the verses, since there is much disagreement in this area.
I must warn you that once we reach verse 7, we will begin to embark on a journey that as of this moment, I am not sure exactly where we will end up. The topic of tithing is one that has vexed my soul for many, many years. After exegesis of the relevant verses, I feel strongly led to undertake a comprehensive biblical analysis of this most controversial topic. Over the decades, no other topic has so upset and grieved my soul than the various doctrines that I have been subjected to by countless ministers and denominations concerning the subject of money, and the centrality of the tithe in their theological stances on this most sensitive area.
In fact, I consider it no coincidence that as I was listening to my current favorite preacher, whom I have been faithfully following for the last couple of years, that he too, for the first time in that time period, chose to speak about Malachi, and mostly about the tithing verses of chapter 3! I took that as another confirmation that this is the right time for me to try and deal with this issue in the most thorough fashion as possible.
While I deeply respect and am in near perfect harmony with so much of what this man teaches week after week, because he preaches the ways of God in judgment so regularly, yet in this one case my inner man had that same knot that I regularly feel whenever I hear this passage of Malachi being taught in the most remarkably identical fashion! While this man agrees with virtually no doctrines of the megachurches and the prosperity excesses of our day, yet when it comes to tithing, he is in perfect lockstep with all of these charlatans and hirelings that have overrun our houses of worship. It reminds me of so many podcasters these days who in almost every topic they broach, are on the right side of history, but when it comes to the Jews, they take the side of the mainstream media and the muslims and the Gazans, and parrot the latest Al-Jazeera propaganda! How I marvel at how man can be so full of discernment and truth, but in one, single, specific area, be so totally blind!
This is how I feel about this wonderful preacher. Opposed to all of the compromises in the modern church, notwithstanding when it comes to the tithe, he is in complete unanimity as to how to interpret this one text.
I tossed and turned over this issue last night. I do not know why my spirit was so troubled over this one thing, but it was. Logically, it is but one doctrine of many. I do admit that I have a deep personal problem in receiving this doctrine in the way it is generally taught. I have had some terrible experiences in this respect with my own local church that I attended back in the 80’s. So I do fear that as I see many who have so much wisdom in knowing what is good and what is evil, yet are inexplicably blind in this one area, I fear that I myself may be biased and prejudiced when it comes to the current consensus on the tithe.
One caveat that I wish to remind us of, is that I am an ardent proponent of not letting one’s subjective personal experience be the arbiter of which way to interpret sacred text. Far too many in the body of Christ, preacher and layman alike, spout off some off-the-wall interpretation of some verse, and justify it not by the witness of other scripture, or context, but by some anecdotal personal tale that is supposed to ‘prove’ the correctness of their interpretation! For example, I know of one who says that he regularly sees dead saints that have come down from heaven to perform such and such actions while he is ministering. They then quote Heb 12:1, that speaks of being compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, as biblical proof of his experience! In other words, he does not prove his unique interpretation of Heb 12:1 by other scriptures, or context, but by what he says he experienced. But most do not even notice what he has done. Because he spoke of his fantastical, titillating encounter, he then jumps to the text and people then more readily accept the event, because scripture was used to back it up. Yet no one is stopping to think; ‘whoa, never mind if such and such actually happened, is his interpretation of Heb 12:1 true’? If one started with the verse, then used a personal experience to try and prove their interpretation, one would then be more ready to critically analyze the interpretation, since that is the subject at hand. Because the interpretation portion is reversed in the story, we tend not to recognize that someone is pulling a fast one over us! This is just another example of the wiles and tricks of the devil. He can trip the best of us up, without us even knowing it! I am sure that many saints have fallen into this trap, without even realizing it. This is why verse by verse bible study is so crucial.
The conclusion is that just because I have personal issues with this topic, and have personal experiences that have influenced how I understand this section, I will consciously try with all my might to not let that influence me. I have fervently asked the Holy Spirit to free me from any religious spirit, and preconceived notions that I may have in this area. I am bound and determined to scrupulously practice what I have always tried to do, that is, let the text take me where it will, no matter who it offends. Even if it ends up offending me, so be it! Let us take this journey, and see where we end up.
Before we get to all that, we do have another section to deal with first.
In verse 1, who doesn’t recognize the personage whom this is referring to? Does it not echo this familiar passage?
Isa 40:3 The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
If we also would take a sneak peek ahead to Malachi 4:5, the name of Elijah is also mentioned:
Mal 4:5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD:
Matthew ties all these verse together in these passages:
Mat 3:1 In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea,
Mat 3:2 And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
Mat 3:3 For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.
Mat 17:10 And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the scribes that Elias must first come?
Mat 17:11 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things.
Mat 17:12 But I say unto you, That Elias is come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed. Likewise shall also the Son of man suffer of them.
Mat 17:13 Then the disciples understood that he spake unto them of John the Baptist.
Now whether or not Elijah will come once again during the tribulation is another question. Suffice it to say that Jesus believed that the initial fulfillment of Mal 4.5 occurred in the coming of John. Likewise, Matthew claimed that the fulfillment of Is 40:3 was also fulfilled in John. Mal 3:1 is another scripture that parallels the prophecy of Is 40:3. A second witness that there would be this preparer of the Lord’s way.
Since the name Malachi means ‘my messenger’, one could possibly make the case that this anonymous prophet himself is in some limited way the initial fulfillment of this verse. This last book of the old testament would be the final word given before the revealing of the Son of man. If this is so, then note how God then took another 450 years before fulfilling the second part of this verse! We get prophetic timelines so completely wrong, because very few grasp how God views time. A day with the Lord is as a thousand years (Ps 90:4, 2 Pet 3:8). Think of how long the time between the first part of Isaiah 61:2 and the second:
Isa 61:2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;
Jesus fulfilled the first part at his first coming. He will fulfill the latter at his second. That is why he stopped reading in the synagogue after the first part. Only that part was fulfilled at that moment. 2000 years later, we are still waiting for this second part.
Let us not be too quick to embrace one scholar’s timeline or another. Every single time someone has stepped out on a limb and declared what must happen next and when, the limb has snapped and they fell off!
If one sees Malachi as the precursor to John the Baptist, Malachi was sent to get the priesthood to repent. At least thus far in the text. Since there has been no indication at the start of chapter three that the audience has changed, one must assume that God is still primarily speaking to the priests. Only if we can see direct evidence that God is addressing a different group, should we assume that God is speaking to someone else.
So Malachi is sent to the leaders of God’s flock. His ministers, those who are supposed to be closest to him. Not only physically, as the only ones able to enter the inner court and (once a year) into the Holy of Holies, but also in knowledge and understanding. John the Baptist was sent to all Israel, to make all men ready to receive the Messiah, by the baptism of repentance, preparing their hearts to receive the Lord.
Is not Yahweh calling on his priests to repent? All these indictments are given so that they can amend their ways. God says that you say that you seek me. Well, I will suddenly appear in my temple. Another name for him is the messenger of the covenant. You say you delight in me, and in my covenant. God then reiterates that yes, he shall indeed come.
Mal 3:2 But who may abide (forbear, bear) the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth (raw-sw – shows himself)? for he is like a refiner’s (tsaw-raf – to purge, melt, purify) fire, and like fullers’ (faw-bas – to trample, to wash by stamping with the feet) soap (lye):
You cynical, backslid, disobedient priests – you think you really want to see the day of the Lord? You think you really want me to appear? Do you not remember when I would suddenly manifest in the tabernacle in the days of Moses? After some egregious crime, I would abruptly come and mete out righteous judgment on my people. Many would be chastised. Many would perish. Why do you think the next time would be any different?
Do you not recognize that one of my primary attributes is holiness? What do you think will happen when I show up, and you are in the sinful state that you are in? Do you think that I will come to bless, or to purge? I come like a fire, to melt and purify. I come and will be like lye soap on your skin. You will burn and chafe, but either you will be cleansed, or you will perish. That is why I sent my messenger before me, to prepare the way. And the way of preparation is the way of repentance.
Are we truly ready to meet the Lord, if he should suddenly come and visit our temple?
Mal 3:3 And he shall sit (dwell, remain) as a refiner (tsaw-raf) and purifier (taw-hare – cleanser, uncontaminated, unadulterated) of silver: and he shall purify (tawa-hare) the sons of Levi, and purge (zaw-kak – extract, refine) them as gold and silver, that they may offer (or that they may become) unto the LORD an offering (min-khaw) in righteousness (tsed-aw-kaw – rightness, moral virtue).
God continues with the image of purification, as of a metal worker refining gold and silver. Jesus is not coming to this people to cuddle, hug, or feel their pain. No, he is coming to smelt you! To throw you in the furnace. A furnace that is hot enough to melt metal. He wants to see if there is any gold and silver in your soul, or is it perhaps all wood, hay, and stubble?
And what is the purpose of all this? I think the alternate translation in brackets cuts closer to the meaning here. Instead of the point being that the person might offer better sacrifices, it is that they themselves might become a more perfect offering of righteousness to the Lord. Jesus refines us, burns all the dross out of us, in order that he may present us to the Father as a spotless bride, one that is clothed in white.
I believe this verse contains the key to the rest of this chapter. Here is the first, and clearest, reference of whom God is speaking to. He is still addressing the priests, and the priests alone. In other words, the message is still going forth to the same audience! This point is absolutely crucial for when we get to the next section, as I believe most of the confusion and incalculable harm that has been done to the body of Christ due to questionable interpretation will be made right, if we can accept who is being addressed. We shall come back to this most critical issue later. Right now, suffice it to say that there should be no controversy that the priests are still the audience. However, the fact that God calls them the sons of Levi is important as well. Why did he not just call them priests, like he did in 1:6, 2:1, and 2:7? Because the next section, the indictment on tithing, affects the entire tribe of Levi, and not just the one bloodline that the priests sprang up from (the line of Phinehas – Num 25:11-13).
But even if we have proven that this passage (and every passage up to now), is addressing God’s wayward priests of the temple, and even if these personages most closely parallel the pastors of our churches in our day and age, let us not lose sight of the applicability of the text to all believers, as the Holy Spirit wills in each and every one of us. In other words, if the Holy Spirit is telling you that the shoe fits, then wear it!
Mal 3:4 Then shall the offering (min-khaw) of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant (agreeable, sweet) unto the LORD, as in the days of old, and as in former (ancient) years.
As we see here, the topic of temple offerings is still the main focus, further confirming that this message is for the officers of the temple. For us, if we have allowed Jesus to take us through the furnace of affliction, or the fiery ordeal, or to be pressed beyond measure into the straight and narrow way, then we can have confidence that the product that comes out the other side will be agreeable in the eyes of our God.
Note that Judah and Jerusalem is spoken of here, representing the entire people of God at that time. When the Lord’s ministers have been purified and made clean, then the work of the Lord in his entire body will be pleasant in his sight. When shepherds are shepherding the flock righteously, in holiness and truth, then God’s people as a whole will greatly benefit. Since we have already established that the sons of Levi are still the primary audience of this word, there is no reason to think that the audience has changed by the mention of Judah and Jerusalem, as the above is simply a statement of fact, contingent on the effectual purification of the minsters of the Lord.
God wants these offerings to be as they once were, at the beginning. The ancient time, the days of old. There is a tendency amongst the young to not value the old, or the tried and the true. Let’s do some new thing, it’s a new day! Our doctrines change. So does our style of worship. Our morals and ethics follow. Soon what we have is an unrecognizable slop of a shadow of the truth, all but unidentifiable to all.
Is it so great that we have lost the doctrine of the fear of the Lord? Of true repentance? That our modern worship now is bereft of biblical meaning, and focuses on the worshipper, rather than who is to be worshipped? While some things need changing, be very careful that you do not abandon the foundations as well.
Mal 3:5 And I will come near (kaw-rab – be at hand) to you to judgment (mishpat – sentence, verdict, judicial decision); and I will be a swift (maw-har – to flow easily, thus unimpeded) witness (ayd – recorder) against the sorcerers (kaw-shal – to whisper a spell, practitioners of witchcraft, magic), and against the adulterers (maw-af – break wedlock, apostatize), and against false (sheh-key – a sham, deceit, liar) swearers (shaw-bah – to seven oneself, take an oath), and against those that oppress (aw-shak – press upon, defraud, deceive, do violence to) the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless (bereaved person), and that turn aside (bend away) the stranger (ger or gare – foreigner, guest) from his right, and fear (yaw-ray – be in dread of) not me, saith the LORD of hosts.
Are you sure you really want God to come near? God says these priests are seeking him, and supposedly delight in him (3:1). But have they not been listening to what Yahweh thinks of them? It is no surprise that he now says that he will indeed draw near to them. But he comes to do mishpat. That is, he comes to deliver the verdict on their conduct.
In response to their complaint as to where is the God of judgment (Mal 2:17), God says that he will come near, and come near very quickly, as flowing waters. Then he starts listing specific sins. And I think the first sin listed is what contributes to throwing people off from the fact that God is still speaking to his priests. Are the priests being singled out for such a heinous sin as sorcery, or is the entire nation? Our knee jerk reaction would be to think that this must be a sin by the common man. Surely God’s ministers have not stooped so low.
Have we already forgotten the crime that Yehovah has exposed in 2:11? They have married daughters of strange gods. These exotic wives would have brought all sorts of occultic practices along with them. Even as the Samaritans, via intermixing with the other races, have adopted their heathenish customs and practices, so too would these Levitical priests of this time. In case you are unconvinced, even hundreds of years later in Jesus’ time, there were Jewish ministers using occultic practices and pretending to be ministers of righteousness, as evidenced by the following verses:
Act 8:9 But there was a certain man, called Simon, which beforetime in the same city used sorcery, and bewitched the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one:
Act 8:10 To whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, This man is the great power of God.
Act 8:11 And to him they had regard, because that of long time he had bewitched them with sorceries.
Act 13:6 And when they had gone through the isle unto Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew, whose name was Barjesus:
Ignorance of God’s word allows all sorts of charlatans to establish footholds in our societies, and in our churches. If we think that witchcraft is not practised in our churches, think again. Maybe not the pointy hat, broomstick riding type of witchcraft, but many new age practices have crept into our sanctuaries, not to mention the regular techniques of manipulation in our sermons, which can be likened to the purpose and effect of witchcraft itself. Let us also not forget that in our day, is it not the elite who have been caught doing occultic rituals, and not the common man? How about the Bohemian grove, pedophile parties, spirit cooking, adrenochrome ingestion, and child sacrifice by the cabal? No one questions the satanism and the sexual sins that are taking place in the Vatican. How else did the current pope get elected? Satanism now has total control of the leadership there.
If you can now see that the first sin listed could indeed belong to the priests, the rest are easier to accept. Adultery was already spoken of in chapter 2. False swearing, or false witness, or lying, seems to be a fundamental staple of the corrupt. Then of course, the stealing from the poor is the most common sin of those who love money. We all know that Jesus exposed the Pharisees for their love of money:
Luk 16:14 And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him.
God really hates it when you cheat the poor, the oppressed, the widow. Notable is the alternate meaning of the fatherless, the bereaved person. We certainly have many bereaved people since the miracle jab was unleashed.
Finally, God states that they deprive the ger, the stranger, from his rights. Several times in the Torah does God command the Israelites to treat the stranger with the same justice as the native. In our lands today, we are witnessing what no one would have ever conceived in their darkest nightmares. Our own treacherous leaders are giving the stranger special rights, while denying justice to the native!
Judgment is always the inevitable consequence of unrepentant sin.
Mal 3:6 For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.
God finished this section with one of those statements that is both majestic and ominous. What a great truth lies in the fact that our God is unchangeable! Thank God that he is not capricious, like allah. Thank God that he is not unknowable, like allah. Thank God that he is love, unlike allah. This is important to remember for all those who think that the God of the new testament somehow operates differently than the God of the old. Preachers and laymen say this because they are too lazy to really study the old. They surface read, see all the bad stuff, see that Jesus has paid it all, and conclude God has changed. They are lazy, ignorant, and poisonous to our souls. If someone who is supposedly called of God to minister the life giving word of truth to the sheep cannot bother to take the time to really read and understand God’s entire instruction manual, then why in the world would you want to endanger your eternal soul to such a one as that? The spirit of religion and the spirit of tradition (and they are spirits) are keeping you in bondage. Free yourself, and don’t look back!
So what is God really saying here? Here he has spent all this time speaking judgment, judgment, judgment. Pretty consistent. Pretty ominous. He reminds them that he never changes. If we only had the book of Malachi as our guide, this verse would seem a contradiction.
But when we apply the entire scripture dealing with the nature of God, we see his unchangeable mercy and longsuffering on display time and time again in the course of Israel’s history. Although God chastises, disciplines, punishes, and even destroys, he never makes a complete end of his own. There is always the concept of the remnant. No matter how severe the judgment, the remnant survives. Even if he has to go down to 8 souls, as he did in the days of Noah, a remnant remained. So it is with these Levites, who are also the sons of Jacob. Though God has listed many transgressions, due to his covenants, they will never be totally wiped out.
We could wander down another path and speak of the apparent eternal covenant that God made with the Levites, through the branch of Phinehas, seemingly confirmed in books such as Ezekiel and other places, but this commentary is going to be far too long as it is, so I will forbear – this time!
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*** WARNING !!! ***
You are about to enter a restricted area. Malachi Chapter 3, verses 7 through 12 has been used as a veritable minefield of religious tradition, containing spiritual weapons of mass destruction unleashed on the body of Christ.
To the pastors, preachers, televangelists, and tent meeting revivalists, and all other men of the cloth that make their living by extracting the contents of the wallets of the unsuspecting sheep:
I throw down the gauntlet to you! I dare you to continue onward, to see if it is even possible, in that greed riddled, religiously damaged noggin of yours, that you are able to even prayerfully consider whether what I write is even remotely plausible. Should you decide to accept the challenge, are you willing to set free the cash cow, the goose that lays your golden eggs, and for the first time, really trust God to meet your financial needs?
Are you willing to face the fact that you have been projecting your sins onto your congregations all along? That you have been accusing them of robbery, while it is you yourselves that are the thieves? You, who crudely assert that all who do not obey your restricted interpretation of this text, simply do not trust God, when it is you that are guilty of this fault!
If this preamble has terrified you beyond measure, then please exit the document, and never return.
To the sheep:
For all of you who have been shaven, plucked, fleeced, flayed alive, eviscerated, condemned beyond hope of redemption, beat upon and brainwashed far deeper than the Democrat (or Liberal in Canada), I come to you with good news!
Unlike Covid, when all you heard was ‘safe and effective’, and ‘we’re all in this together’, I dare to bring a different message. One of analyzing the text word by word, verse by verse, in context and never out of context. I cross check and double check, and check again.
We will parse this particular portion of prose, parrying prosaic pronouncements by the pernicious pastors in favor of publications of precious prophetic proclamations of precise perfection.
In other words, I will first analyze the text of verses 7 through 12, as I always do, then I will take a step back and do a thorough examination of the doctrine of tithing, from a whole bible perspective, rather than from a one stop shop perspective, as is the habit of most.
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Mal 3:7 Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away (departed) from mine ordinances (khoke – enactment, statute, appointment, task), and have not kept them. Return (shoob) unto me, and I will return (shoob) unto you, saith the LORD of hosts. But ye said, Wherein (maw – what, how, why, whereof, wherefore) shall we return (sboob, ie; what are we to repent of)?
The word khoke is used 127 times, and is mostly translated as statute. It has the sense of a task, or an appointment. If we try to read these words out of context, beginning at this verse, then how are we able to determine who is being spoken to? ‘Ye’ can mean anyone. But if you have read all the commentary up until now, so far every verse is being spoken directly and specifically to the priesthood. The spiritual leaders in charge of God’s house. The equivalent of the pastors, in charge of God’s house(s) today. There is no reason to believe that magically, because God is now going to speak about the tithe, that he has switched audiences to everyone in Israel, without giving us any indication that he has done so.
The word ordinances (statutes) is certainly most closely associated with all the requirements found in the Torah regarding the proper functioning of the temple. In other words, all the various laws pertaining to the myriad sacrifices and offerings that were required of the Lord. Since we are going to be dealing with the issue of tithing, tithing was also intimately related with the temple service. Tithing cannot be separated from the functioning of the temple. It was generally not something that was done apart from the temple (although we will deal with some relatively unknown aspects of tithing when we study the topic in full at the end of verse 12). The tithe was first and foremost the ‘tax’ that was placed on the citizens for the upkeep of the temple and the services that it provided to the nation.
The first point to grasp is that Israel was a theocracy. Not a democracy. Not a constitutional republic. There was no separation of church and state. In fact, the opposite was true. Church and state were intimately intertwined. The tithe was a compulsory tax on the populace that kept the temple functioning. During certain eras of the historical Christian church, something similar was in place. There were times in medieval history in Europe when the church collected mandatory tithes, with the full cooperation of the state, for its maintenance. America was created in order to free the worshipper from the state imposed version of Christianity that the state chose.
I see no obvious change of audience as we begin this new section. Therefore, it is a very weak argument to teach that God is now speaking to the laity. Absence of evidence is not evidence, yet because the topic is tithing, we are supposed to now assume that the primary audience has silently switched from a prophecy that has solely been warning the priests of their various sins, to suddenly (and silently) now warning the laity.
You may choose to believe such a thing, but the text does not support it. I believe that the denunciation of the priests continues.
God is accusing these priests of departing from his ordinances. And not only them, but this has been an ongoing problem. God then lays out the solution. He tells them they must shoob (turn back) to God, then, and only then, will God shoob (turn back) to them.
This is an important concept. Hyper Calvinistic theology places so much emphasis on the workings of God, that in effect, they leave no room for man’s free will. They would have you believe that you play absolutely no part in your salvation. They think they are being biblically humble, in ascribing everything good that happens to you, as the sole and sovereign work of God. Whereas, in fact, they are teaching the people that you have zero responsibility for your soul. Religiously taught predestination would have you believe that no man has any say as to who gets saved and who gets damned. You may be convicted of your sin, you may want to repent with all your heart, you may want Jesus to be Lord of your life, but if God has predestined you to hell, well, sorry, off you go! I think we can all see what utter nonsense ideas such as this lead to.
Of course no one can be saved without the wooing of the Spirit. But man must respond. God does not force you to do anything. Even in this verse, the truth is that God has first sent his word by his messenger (Malachi). He then expects these priests to do the first shoobing. If they choose to shoob, and shoob towards God, then, and only then, will God shoob back. Don’t expect God to shoob when there is no shoob to be found in your soul! Otherwise, if everything is up to God, and God alone, then what is the sense of the final judgment? If we have no free will, then exactly what is God judging?
The verse ends with the sad reality of their spiritual blindness. In all honesty, they ask God: ‘In what way are we to turn back to you?’. In other words, they have no idea what God is talking about. What fault are you speaking of? Never mind that God has pointed out several transgressions. From marrying heathen, occultic wives, to abandoning their life partner, to having utter contempt for the things of God, to despising the offerings they receive, which led them to offer unacceptable sacrifices to God in return, to accusing God of injustice and loving the wicked, the list goes on and on. God is hinting at something about the ordinances. What ordinances? Well, in context, most likely something to do with their temple duties. We have already heard God condemning the inadmissible, polluted, sickly, lame offerings they were presenting. We will see that he is going to speak about something related to that. But the main point is that these backslid pastors were absolutely clueless that they were living a lifestyle of habitual sin.
Mal 3:8 Will a man (adam) rob (kaw-bah – to cover, defraud, spoil) God? Yet ye have robbed (kaw-bah) me. But ye say, Wherein (maw – what, how, why, whereof, wherefore) have we robbed (kaw-bah) thee? In tithes (mah-as-ayr – tenth) and offerings (ter-oo-mah – present, gift, oblation, heave offering).
Mal 3:9 Ye are cursed (aw-rar – execrate, bitterly curse) with a curse (meh-ay-raw – execration): for ye have robbed (kaw-bah) me, even this whole nation (goy – generally a Gentile nation, or non-Jewish people group).
So here we come to the 2 verses that out of the entirety of the Old Testament, which all Laodicean pastors of our age generally ignore, are the exception to the rule. Where one can find countless warnings by Yehovah as to the curse that befalls man for intentional sin, only for this one supposed breach of God’s law do these prosperity preachers condemn the faithful outright. God pronounces curses on his people when they worshipped idols, when they committed immorality, when they broke the Sabbath, when they defrauded and oppressed, but virtually no contemporary preacher dares to speak of such things today. But let the topic of tithing be broached, and suddenly every limp wristed, cowardly beta male pastor finds their hidden backbone and boldly thunders down curses on those miserable wretches in the pew who dare to even contemplate the possible appropriateness of not applying this one old testament law to their own lives!
The modern preacher says: You don’t want to be bound to the punishments for immorality, as the Torah specifies? No problem! You don’t believe that homosexuality is an abomination, as Leviticus clearly states, that’s ok, as we don’t talk about that either. How about the death penalty for working on the Sabbath? Goodness, gracious me, of course that’s been done away with at the cross! The Father is not like that anymore, he used up all his wrath on Jesus when he hung on the cross! We don’t really need to fear God anymore, just a little reverence will do!
But wait! There is one clear cut, no discussion allowed, exception to that rule. God indeed did away with the law at the cross, these mega church maniacs claim, except for Malachi 3:8-9! Don’t you realize that, you miserable, stingy cheapskate, who dares to take up space in my sanctuary without paying your tithe bill? What sort of horrible criminal are you? DON’T YOU REALIZE THAT YOU ARE ROBBING GOD?
Sigh.
Once more, we will be examining each and every scripture pertaining to tithing as commanded under the Mosaic law at the end of verse 12. Suffice it to say that the Levites had a commandment in the law to collect the tithe from the people. They then were to tithe that tithe to that subset of Levites who were priests. Only certain Levites were priests, based on family lineage within the tribe of Levi.
As we will see when we study the appropriate text in Nehemiah, who was a contemporary of Malachi, the priests actually went out with the Levites when they went to collect this first tithe (we will discuss the meaning of ‘first tithe’ later). Since the priests were the elite of the Levites, history records that they generally treated the non-priestly Levites with various degrees of contempt. They saw them as their personal servants, as they were placed in charge of helping deal with the mess of the sacrifices, providing food and water for the temple, etc. In short, all the menial tasks that the priests did not want to do (and probably found it beneath them to do so).
However, when it came to the money, it can be argued that they were receiving all the original tithes. Instead of just taking their portion (the tenth of the tithes), they were keeping the lion’s share for themselves. Thus, they deprived the Levites of their rightful wages, forcing them to abandon their temple duties, and go back to their farm plots in order to fend for themselves. Nehemiah had harsh words regarding this corrupt practice, and we will deal with the specific passages in detail, at the end of verse 12, where the topic of tithing will be addressed in full.
And as far as offerings went, one can assume the same corrupt dealings by this elite group of Levites, who thought that since God had chosen them for the priesthood rather than their tribal brethren, that the law didn’t really apply to them.
As it was then, so it is now. These priests were the ones robbing God, not the sheep. Classic projection. They claimed innocence and asked God, in what way have we robbed you? God asked this question as even Gentiles wouldn’t think of robbing their gods, but you priests are so insolent, so full of cynicism and contempt, so lacking in basic moral character, as evidenced by how you treated your wives and the workers you hire (see 2:11, 3:5), that you commit sins even the pagans wouldn’t dare to commit!
Where have we seen such projection before? How about these headlines: Trump is a Nazi. No, the reality is that the Demoncrats are. Trump will lock up his political opponents. No, the Demoncrats did that on January 6th. Trans kids aren’t safe. No, girls are not safe as trans creatures invade female bathrooms and female sports. Patriots are terrorists. No, traitors in the current government are the terrorists. And on and on and on. Welcome to the Alice in Wonderland Age of Unreason and Insanity!
Surprisingly, or perhaps not so surprising, since the commentaries I am referencing were written well before the prosperity gospel insanity swept the land, this interpretation of the tithing indictment being primarily for the priests and not the people, is shared by more than one commentator of old. Only in this western Laodicean age of unparalleled greed, covetousness, and doctrines of demons do we find such a twisting and perverting of the truth. We have made the pursuit of the American dream the official doctrine of the church! As a representative example of the sort of interpretation that I speak of, here is an excerpt from the Jamieson-Fausset-Brown bible commentary:
offerings—the first-fruits, not less than one-sixtieth part of the corn, wine, and oil (De 18:4; Ne 13:10, 12). The priests had this perquisite also, the tenth of the tithes which were the Levites perquisite. But they appropriated all the tithes, robbing the Levites of their due nine-tenths; as they did also, according to Josephus, before the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus. Thus doubly God was defrauded, the priests not discharging aright their sacrificial duties, and robbing God of the services of the Levites, who were driven away by destitution [Grotius].
So even after the time of Jesus, right up to the destruction of the second temple in 70 AD, these same thefts were occurring by the priesthood, robbing the Levites of their God ordained wages. When we study the text in Nehemiah later, the major rebuke is to the priests, although the people’s lack of zeal in providing for the temple is mentioned. However, the witness of Nehemiah, Malachi, and the writings of Josephus in Jesus’ day (and after), give us overwhelming evidence that the fault lay with the priests, far above anyone else. It seems to be that if you want to find corruption, look to the rich, the elite, and not to the poor or the man at the bottom.
The end of verse 9 is what is used to try and prove that this indictment is against the laity, and not the shepherds. I contend context does not allow this. So how do we interpret these words? Does it not say that you have robbed me, even this whole nation?
First, even is in italics. I believe I have conclusively shown that the robbers are the priests, and not the people. Now, you can try to claim that God is now throwing in this accusation against all the people. Suddenly. Out of nowhere. Instead, does it not make more sense to see that the nation is not the second robber, but rather the second victim? So it could read:
You are cursed with a curse: for you have robbed Yehovah, and you have robbed the entire nation.
In what way would the entire nation be robbed? If the Levites were driven away from the temple service, because the priests kept most of the tithes and offerings for themselves, then the appointed sacrificial ordinances could not be all kept, due to lack of manpower. Remember the only way to receive atonement and forgiveness of sin was to perform the specified sacrifice required. If there was no one to administer your sacrifice, then your sin remained un-atoned for and you bore your guilt. Thus the whole nation was being robbed.
One of the most fascinating things about this verse is that the word used for nation is goy. Goy is always used for the pagan – the Gentile, or the non-Jewish people of the earth. Why does God use goy to describe the Jewish nation in this verse? I believe it’s due to the fact that since there were no Levites to help maintain the sacrificial system, and that people’s sins were being left un-atoned for, then it was as if the Jewish people became as the Gentiles – without God, and without hope in this world, as Paul speaks of the Gentiles in Eph 2:12. Without the temple, how does the Jew get his sin dealt with? He has no more advantage than the Gentile, in that case. Thus, by the priests’ covetousness, not only were they robbing God of his portion by offering the lame and the blind, they were robbing all the people by making it impossible for them to have their sins dealt with, in the prescribed manner that God commanded.
So you can see that instead of the sheep being the thieves, they were the ones who were actually being robbed!
Ironic, isn’t it?
Mal 3:10 Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse (the depository in the temple), that there may be (exist) meat (food) in mine house, and prove (baw-khan – test, investigate, try) me now (I pray) herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing (ber-aw-kaw – prosperity), that there shall not be room enough to receive it (or, no destruction).
If we now can accept that it was these thieving priests who were not laying up the nine tenths of the tithe into the temple storehouses, for the use of the Levites when they were called to minister in the temple, and for their basic sustenance, then the rest of the passage flows quite logically. Remember in the first chapter how these priests felt that the offerings (the equivalent of money) was not coming in sufficient quality or quantity, so they concluded that they could not afford to give God unblemished sacrifices. Heck, if they were going to continue in their accustomed standard of living that they had come to expect, being God’s elite, and if the people were too cheap or too poor to give sufficiently to maintain their lifestyle, then of course it was perfectly logical that God should expect a lesser cut of the action! After all, it simply would not do if God’s holy representatives on earth were not decked out in the pomp and wealth that their divine office entailed, would it not? I mean, it would reflect bad on Yehovah, if his chosen ministers were garbed and fed with anything less than the best! This is how the rich, the privileged, end up thinking. They massively delude themselves due to willful covetousness. Eventually, most actually believe the nonsense that they preach! Do you not think that the Copelands and all their ilk don’t sincerely believe the heresies they spout? They think owning 5 jets and several mansions is a sign of God’s favor! It’s a sign of favor alright. He’s just got the wrong god doing the favoring!
This verse gives us another telltale sign that the common doctrine of today is being preached with ulterior motives. The reason I say this is that, this preaching against this one supposed sin of the laity is the one sin where the preacher reaps a direct benefit if the hearer obeys. For example, if I preach against adultery, and you happen to stop or not stop, either way, I as the preacher receive no direct personal benefit. If I preach that you should stop abusing your wife, or cheating on your taxes, I personally benefit nothing either way. But, if I preach to you to start tithing, and if I also use this verse to say that the storehouse can only mean the local church, then I personally benefit by your obedience! Therefore how can I honestly preach this with a clear conscience? In the business world, this is called a conflict of interest.
Let us for the sake of argument agree that tithing is also for the Christian (we have not even touched on that topic yet). I could perhaps stomach an application of this passage as pertaining to the Christian layman, IF these enthusiastic enforcers of the law did not also insist that this offering, which they say is really going to God, MUST be given to me, as pastor of your local church! Why not give it to where the Lord leads? What if your church is corrupt, and spends all its money on endless building projects? What if you have no local church, as is the reality for most Christians in muslim and communist lands? Are they all under a curse, because they have no storehouse to give to?
And another thing – these same pastors love to quote stats, such as 95% or so of all Christians do not tithe. So are you saying that 95% of all Christians are under this curse because of this one thing? Really? Do you actually believe that? Are you serious? These same pastors will never speak of the curses in other books for other sins. They are also quick to point out that Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law (Gal 3:13). All but this one curse, I guess!
This passage also says that you are cursed because you are robbing God of his rightful offerings. Okay, so, for the Christian, exactly which offerings are those? If we go back to the law, here are some of those requirements:
Lev 7:37 This is the law of the burnt offering, of the meat offering, and of the sin offering, and of the trespass offering, and of the consecrations, and of the sacrifice of the peace offerings;
Deu 18:4 The firstfruit also of thy corn, of thy wine, and of thine oil, and the first of the fleece of thy sheep, shalt thou give him.
Uh, so exactly which offerings are you going to also accuse your parishioners of robbing God with?
See how ridiculous this becomes? In order to preserve your one doctrine of covetousness, you must ignore other parts of the same verse, because they are incoherent when applied to a setting where it is nonsensical.
So what are you saying? That the Christian is not under obligation to tithe? I am saying that this passage of scripture cannot be interpreted the way it is being interpreted in the western church today. As for the applicability of tithing in general, let us leave that off until we deal with the doctrine itself at the end of verse 12.
First the stick, then the carrot. These same preachers, after threatening the poor soul with God’s curse, now tells them that contrary to God’s word (yet once again), here is the one place where you can test God! Just give me the tithe (that’s right, only to me, since I represent the storehouse), and just you watch what God will do! The very windows of heaven will open, and prosperity will pour out in such abundance that you will have to build bigger barns, in order to store it somewhere!
If this is the case, then why aren’t all the tithers throughout history independently wealthy?
This is why my stomach ties in knots when I hear some variation of a sermon consisting of these common fallacies. There are many evils that spring up from this improper application of this passage. First, the rich in your congregation can easily pay the tithe. They do so, then think the other 90% is all theirs, to do with as they please! This directly contradicts the clear teaching of scripture in that all that we have is the Lord’s, not just some arbitrary 10%. Did you give Jesus 10% of your heart, and think that’s enough, because I gave God’s portion to him? What did Jesus say to the rich young ruler? He was definitely a tither, because he said he kept all the known commandments. He suffered from this exact same thinking. He paid every tithe in the Torah (more on that later), and thought that surely, he was right with God. He assumed that anything that God had not specifically demanded in the law, was his to do with as he pleased. Jesus quickly disabused him of that notion, calling in the claim on that man’s entire soul. The man went away sad, and tragically unredeemed. He was taught wrongly, therefore he believed wrongly, therefore he would end up at the wrong eternal destination (unless he shoobed back to the correct deh-rek!).
The second evil is when the poor are manipulated by guilt, coercion, and intimidation to give that 10% of their meagre finances to support that covetous thief in the pulpit, who is in reality using witchcraft from the podium to try and empty everyone’s wallet for his own personal kingdom. So these faithful ones, whose only source of hope and comfort is their local church, go there and are robbed by the so called man of God. It is bad enough that they are barely struggling during the week, trying to keep body and soul together, but no, they come to the place where an offering should be taken up for them, but instead, they are told that if they don’t give up their grocery money for the week, that God will curse them, as if they don’t have enough grief and sorrow in their own lives at that moment. So, believing and trusting that the pastor must know God’s will better than anyone else, not for a minute believing that they may have impure motives when they say this (or are simply wrong), they go ahead and take that step in faith, and give the last of their kid’s lunch money in the offering plate. Just like the widow, who put in her last 2 coins into the temple. Remember that Jesus said that as far as God was concerned, her offering counted as more than all the other rich men’s offerings combined. He did not say that the windows of heaven were going to open and make her rich!
The third evil is telling people that they simply don’t trust God unless they tithe. In reality, it’s more projection. The truth of the matter is that the pastor does not trust God to meet his needs! He needs to engage in a form of witchcraft to try and pay his bills, or feed his greed. Witchcraft, at its heart, is an occultic form of manipulation, coercion, and pressure, to obtain a certain outcome. Misusing any verse out of context, to achieve something that you personally benefit from, is a great evil.
Of course, all (or most) of these windbags would say that they have no evil motives, they only preach this because it is the word of God and that they want to free their people from the curse of God and see them prosper! Sure. Just like the only reason they urged those lovely jabs down our throats, is only because they wanted what was best for us! Even if it meant we lost our jobs, our careers, our families, our friends, our social media accounts, our freedom, our health, and our life. Don’t you see? We have to kill you in order to save you! We have to poison you in order to make sure that you don’t get sick!
How did these kind hearted creatures accomplish such a thing? Why, by their cunning manipulation of God’s word, that’s how! Telling us that poisoning ourselves is really the highest form of loving our neighbour, as that is what will keep them alive, these wicked counsellors tried to make us believe that we were actually following in the footsteps of the Messiah, while within those covetous hearts, those hirelings in the pulpits saw the dollar signs that were being dangled in front of their eyes by the governments who were offering payments for not only shutting down churches, but encouraging and facilitating the injections. They preached on Romans chapter 13 until they were blue in the face. In effect, doing grave disservice to the holy writ, in order to meet some hidden, base and carnal desire (such as government payouts). Sound familiar?
Notice any pattern yet? Telling someone the exact opposite of reality, in order to make someone do what you want them to do. I always want to ask these pastors: If you accuse your own sheep of not having enough faith when it comes to finances, then why don’t you follow the example of someone such as George Mueller? This man built orphanage after orphanage in England in the 1800’s. He never solicited funds. No wait, that is not strictly true, he asked for funds every day, but only from God in his prayer closet! And God never failed him! Often, there would be no food for all the children at the start of a day. He made the children sit at the breakfast table, and every time, someone would be led to bring in enough food, even if it was right at the very last minute! Time fails to be able to recount the many, many miracles in this man’s life. It is well worth investigating this man’s story for yourself. Suffice it to say that this man did not go around and plead for money, nor try and twist the scripture to manipulate anyone.
Once again, let us wait until after verse 12, where we shall thoroughly deal with this matter – the Christian obligations in regards to giving.
Mal 3:11 And I will rebuke (gaw-ar – chide, reprove) the devourer (aw-kal – to eat) for your sakes, and he shall not destroy (ruin, decay, spoil) the fruits of your ground (ad-am-awh – soil); neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time (shaw-kole – miscarry, abort) in the field (saw-deh – in the land), saith the LORD of hosts.
More carrot time! In the New Testament, the believer is commanded to resist the devil, to cast out the devil, to rebuke the evil one. But (surprise, surprise), another exception to the rule is preached, in that if you tithe, this is the one time that God will rebuke the devil for you! But only in the area of your finances! All the rest of the stuff, like sickness, temptation, etc, you’re on your own!
I have given much space to this topic because I perceive this to be the gross error of our day in our western church. Specifically, the sin of covetousness. What has the American church in particular been noted for since the 70’s? Its holiness? Its charity? Its genuine fear of the Lord? Its love? No, its scandals. At least as far as those outside looking in are concerned. Who are some of the most famous names in Christendom, at least as far as the heathen know? Sure, there was Billy Graham. But how about Jimmy Swaggart? Oral Roberts? Robert Tilton? Jim and Tammy Baker? Earl Paulk? Kenneth Copeland? Shall I go on?
Not that all of those were all evil. Some were simply nutbags, like Tilton. Others, like Swaggart, had a genuine, powerful ministry, but could not finish the race. Even Oral Roberts ended up in controversy with the ‘God will kill me unless you give me 10 million dollars’ comment. The point is that they will all be remembered for their worst moments, not their best. And all of them were ruined in one way or another by the love of money. They became flat out heretics, like Copeland, brazen charlatans and thieves, like Tilton, or so consumed with kingdom building and getting into monstrous debt, like Roberts, that the continual whining for money ultimately ruined any credibility that they had, and often broke them spiritually. This is why if there is any one sin to be terrified of in our generation, it is covetousness. It has ruined so many who once were so powerful in the Lord.
Paul had his own specific issues to deal with in his day. Excessive wealth was not a big problem in the early church, with the possible exception of Corinth, so he didn’t spend an inordinate amount of time on it. What we do know is that Judaizing, and the temptation to go back to the temple sacrifices in order to appease the Jews, was a grave issue facing the early church. Galatians is devoted mainly to the topic, but the book of Hebrews is written almost exclusively to address that one issue. Note that Paul writes this book anonymously, in order that the maximum amount of people would at least read it, and not be prejudiced against it, because they heard rumors about Paul, and had formed a negative opinion about him. I feel a certain kinship to Paul, as God has led me to write anonymously, so that no one is turned off by my looks or my voice, or any other such carnal nonsense – I simply want the words to speak for themselves, and let them fall on the readers’ hearts as the Spirit wills.
I will now come back to the regularly scheduled programming, that is, to exegesis of the text at hand. In context, this verse makes sense in that these priests withheld the rightful portion from God and their fellow Levites because they perceived that what they were receiving from the people was not near enough for them and for everyone else, including God. God says to try him in this. You release that 90% of what you have absconded with, and see if I don’t rebuke every pest that devours the crops, and every pestilence that causes the vines and even all things to abort before their harvest. Perhaps the farmers were complaining of pests devouring the crops. Shaw-kole also included the concept of miscarriage, or abortion, so perhaps the animals were not bringing their young to birth. The priests’ thefts, the priests’ lack of faith, was causing the curse to fall upon the entire nation, in effect turning it into any other goy (Gentile) nation. Not the laity’s theft, not the laity’s lack of faith, but the pastor’s!
So the next time your pastor winds himself up and tries to guilt you up, in order to put your wallet on a crash diet, just smile and nod and remember all that you have read here today, and let the witness of the Holy Spirit lead you into the way that you should go.
Mal 3:12 And all nations (goy) shall call you blessed (aw-shar – straight, level, honest): for ye shall be a delightsome (khay-fets – a pleasure, a valuable thing, something desired) land (eh-rets), saith the LORD of hosts.
If you pastors (priests) do this, if you stop stealing and step out in some real faith that you preach, then the real goy (Gentile) nations will begin to see that yes, there is something different and set apart about the Jew. When you, as the spiritual leaders of God’s people, act with integrity, unlike all the other priests of all the Gentile religions, they will confess that you are blessed. I like the fact that this word means straight, level, and honest. All throughout history, we read of the corruption of the churches. Judah was chosen by God and given laws to make it unique in all the earth. The Gentiles were to be moved to jealousy over the righteousness of their God. God wanted the land of Israel to be the most desired place that any man would want to be, the one nation that every other nation would desire to emulate. But only if the priests would quit sinning. Depart from your covetous ways. Be humble, and be grateful for the exalted place that God has placed you. But always remember that high office carries grave responsibility.
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We have come to the end of verse 12 and now will embark on the promised study of tithing as taught in the entire word of God. I pray that we all may learn something of value as I attempt to try and deal with this controversial issue in a comprehensive manner.
We need to go back to the Torah, and find all references to the commands to tithe. The first thing we discover is that tithing is commanded in more than one place. Each section of scripture adds different obligations. I will begin by simply listing all the pertinent scriptures that I found. Forgive me if I happen to miss any, but I think that what I cover should be material enough to draw some insightful conclusions, that all may find useful.
Lev 27:30 And 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.
Lev 27:31 And if a man will at all redeem ought of his tithes, he shall add thereto the fifth part thereof.
Lev 27:32 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.
Lev 27:33 He shall not search whether it be good or bad, neither shall he change it: and if he change it at all, then both it and the change thereof shall be holy; it shall not be redeemed.
Lev 27:34 These are the commandments, which the LORD commanded Moses for the children of Israel in mount Sinai.
Num 18:24 But the tithes of the children of Israel, which they offer as an heave offering unto the LORD, I have given to the Levites to inherit: therefore I have said unto them, Among the children of Israel they shall have no inheritance.
Num 18:25 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
Num 18:26 Thus speak unto the Levites, and say unto them, When ye take of the children of Israel the tithes which I have given you from them for your inheritance, then ye shall offer up an heave offering of it for the LORD, even a tenth part of the tithe.
Num 18:27 And this your heave offering shall be reckoned unto you, as though it were the corn of the threshingfloor, and as the fulness of the winepress.
Num 18:28 Thus ye also shall offer an heave offering unto the LORD of all your tithes, which ye receive of the children of Israel; and ye shall give thereof the LORD’S heave offering to Aaron the priest.
Num 18:29 Out of all your gifts ye shall offer every heave offering of the LORD, of all the best thereof, even the hallowed part thereof out of it.
Num 18:30 Therefore thou shalt say unto them, When ye have heaved the best thereof from it, then it shall be counted unto the Levites as the increase of the threshingfloor, and as the increase of the winepress.
Num 18:31 And ye shall eat it in every place, ye and your households: for it is your reward for your service in the tabernacle of the congregation.
Num 18:32 And ye shall bear no sin by reason of it, when ye have heaved from it the best of it: neither shall ye pollute the holy things of the children of Israel, lest ye die.
Deu 12:17 Thou mayest not eat within thy gates the tithe of thy corn, or of thy wine, or of thy oil, or the firstlings of thy herds or of thy flock, nor any of thy vows which thou vowest, nor thy freewill offerings, or heave offering of thine hand:
Deu 12:18 But thou must eat them before the LORD thy God in the place which the LORD thy God shall choose, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy manservant, and thy maidservant, and the Levite that is within thy gates: and thou shalt rejoice before the LORD thy God in all that thou puttest thine hands unto.
Deu 12:19 Take heed to thyself that thou forsake not the Levite as long as thou livest upon the earth.
Deu 14:22 Thou shalt truly tithe all the increase of thy seed, that the field bringeth forth year by year.
Deu 14:23 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 thine oil, and the firstlings of thy herds and of thy flocks; that thou mayest learn to fear the LORD thy God always.
Deu 14:24 And if the way be too long for thee, so that thou art not able to carry it; or if the place be too far from thee, which the LORD thy God shall choose to set his name there, when the LORD thy God hath blessed thee:
Deu 14:25 Then shalt thou turn it into money, and bind up the money in thine hand, and shalt go unto the place which the LORD thy God shall choose:
Deu 14:26 And thou shalt bestow that money for whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or for strong drink, or for whatsoever thy soul desireth: and thou shalt eat there before the LORD thy God, and thou shalt rejoice, thou, and thine household,
Deu 14:27 And the Levite that is within thy gates; thou shalt not forsake him; for he hath no part nor inheritance with thee.
Deu 14:28 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:
Deu 14:29 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.
Deu 16:16 Three times in a year shall all thy males appear before the LORD thy God in the place which he shall choose; in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles: and they shall not appear before the LORD empty:
Deu 16:17 Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the LORD thy God which he hath given thee.
Deu 18:3 And this shall be the priest’s due from the people, from them that offer a sacrifice, whether it be ox or sheep; and they shall give unto the priest the shoulder, and the two cheeks, and the maw.
Deu 18:4 The firstfruit also of thy corn, of thy wine, and of thine oil, and the first of the fleece of thy sheep, shalt thou give him.
Deu 26:12 When thou hast made an end of tithing all the tithes of thine increase the third year, which is the year of tithing, and hast given it unto the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, that they may eat within thy gates, and be filled;
Deu 26:13 Then thou shalt say before the LORD thy God, I have brought away the hallowed things out of mine house, and also have given them unto the Levite, and unto the stranger, to the fatherless, and to the widow, according to all thy commandments which thou hast commanded me: I have not transgressed thy commandments, neither have I forgotten them:
Deu 26:14 I have not eaten thereof in my mourning, neither have I taken away ought thereof for any unclean use, nor given ought thereof for the dead: but I have hearkened to the voice of the LORD my God, and have done according to all that thou hast commanded me.
Deu 26:15 Look down from thy holy habitation, from heaven, and bless thy people Israel, and the land which thou hast given us, as thou swarest unto our fathers, a land that floweth with milk and honey.
Phew! Quite a bit of scripture there, is there not?
I will not be relying much on traditional commentary, except to give you the historical consensus on some areas where there is general, sincere disagreement. Please refer to the above texts, as I now will attempt to tie them all together.
Generally speaking, the portion from Leviticus contains a warning on how to handle the tithe. The portion from Numbers is the classic passage on the tithe. The book of Deuteronomy is where the confusion begins to arise. I have included small passages on things such as a key principle in giving, and one on a specific type of offering, that complements, and is sometimes confused with, the tithe. The other passages speak of practices that apparently contradict the instructions found in Numbers. Unless we, as most commentators and Jewish practice evolved to, understand them as referring to a separate 2nd, and maybe even a 3rd tithe!
So you see, right off the bat, when your pastor speaks of the tithe, is he only speaking of the first tithe? What about the 2nd and (possibly) the 3rd tithe? How come I’m not under that Malachian curse if I don’t do the 2nd and 3rd tithes? How come you’re picking and choosing what to preach on, or is he completely ignorant of what you speak? Chances are that he has probably never heard of these things, at least not since seminary days. After you do study these things and want to challenge him, don’t be surprised if he decides to cancel you, labelling you a domestic church terrorist, and puts you on a sacramental ‘watch list’!
Okay, the first passage in Leviticus is relatively straightforward. The first point made is fundamental. The land of Israel is a special land. It is God’s land the way no other land on earth is. Israel never was given the land to call it their own, they leased it from the Lord, if you wanted to try and describe this arrangement. In order that Israel was regularly reminded of this fact, and that they acknowledged it in their deeds, they were expected to scrupulously tithe all the increase of the land, whether plant or animal. We remember the Pharisees had this down to a fine art, ensuring that the smallest seeds that they harvested were also tithed. I don’t know if they actually counted each seed, but I certainly wouldn’t put it past them! We will touch on the New Testament references to tithing at the end of this study.
The main injunction in this passage was that if for any reason you had to withhold the tithe, then whenever you were able, you had to pay it back – with 20% interest! God commanded the Hebrews not to charge interest of their fellow brethren, but God certainly had no qualms about doing it to his own! The main point that he wanted to get across is not to treat the tithe lightly. If you absolutely had to delay paying it, know that there was a real financial consequence to your decision.
The passage of Numbers now deals with the purpose of the tithes. The tribe of Levi had been separated by Yahweh from the other tribes. They were not to be given a land inheritance (save some small plots next to their Levitical cities of residence). They were to be set apart to minister to the Lord in his holy tabernacle, then in his temple.
If this were the case, and they had no land to sustain themselves, then how were they to live? Well, that is where the tithe came in. Because the nation of Israel was initially set up as a theocracy (God as king), the church and the state were one. The tithe was a 10% tax on the other tribes that was paid to support the tribe of Levi.
The tribe of Levi was further broken down between the priests (descendants of Phinehas, passed down through the line of Zadok in the time of Solomon), and the rest of the tribe. For the sake of clarity, the priests will be called priests and the rest will be called Levites.
Numbers 18:26 stated that the Levites were to go and collect the tithes from the people. As we will see shortly in the book of Nehemiah, apparently in the time when Malachi was written, the priests were accompanying the Levites, and seemingly confiscating the best and the lion’s share of the tithe. According to the passage in Numbers, the proper procedure was for the Levites to go and collect the tithes, and they in turn would tithe (give a 10th of) the tithe to the priest, which counted as the Levite’s portion of giving back to the Lord, since they had no increase from their own land, since they owned none (or very little). In this way the entire tribe of Levi was taken care of financially. The Levites themselves were then allowed to partake of the tithe, they and their households, once they had tithed the tithe!
So you see, the biblical purpose of the tithe was practically speaking the way the temple structure and the sacrificial system was provided for. Without the tabernacle/temple, sins could not be atoned for. The tithe was crucial in keeping the place of God’s presence operating. Spiritually speaking, the tithe was to be a reminder that the land you are on is really God’s, and you are more of a leaseholder, rather than an owner. Jesus implied as much in some of his parables, when he spoke of the master going on a long trip, and eventually coming back to his own land and settling up accounts with his servants.
Now let us dive into Deuteronomy. The first passage in chapter 12 throws up the first red flag in what we have traditionally been taught. Numbers has just told us that the Levites are to collect the tithe for their own use at the temple, and for their own households (this also includes the priests, a subclass of the Levites). Now God is saying in Deuteronomy chapter 12 that the layperson, who pays the tithes, is to eat his own tithe, but just be sure that you eat it not where you choose, but where God chooses. In other words, eat it wherever God places his temple. Just don’t forget any individual Levite who happens to live with you, presumably because he has no land inheritance and is relying on your generosity.
So how do we reconcile these two seemingly contradictory passages? Who eats the tithe, you or the Levites and the priests who minister at the temple? If we now add the verses in Deut. chapter 14, this brings a whole new level of weird. It begins with a reminder to be sure to tithe. Then it gives some practical advice, as of what to do if the temple is too far off to bring all of this tithe all the way with you. You are allowed to convert it into money, go to the temple, and party on! Verse 26 says that you can even use this tithe to buy wine or strong drink (so much for the teetotallers out there). Verse 27 is again a reminder not to forget your local Levite! But then verse 29 and 30 speak of doing something at the end of 3 years. Now this 3rd year tithe is supposed to go not only to the Levite, but to the stranger, fatherless, and widow!
Okay, now I am confused. Does the tithe go to the Levite, or to me? And every 3 years, does it go to the Levite, to me, or to the poor? If we jump to the 26th chapter, it also speaks of these special rules in the 3rd year. It again reiterates that the poor gets this 3rd year tithe. It ends with you making a declaration of your obedience and integrity before God.
The way the Jews interpreted these passages is the way the commentators did, in that God is speaking of different tithes. Just like we all have different taxes to pay, so these passages are describing different tithes. The 2nd tithe is the one where you eat it yourself. It is mainly described as coming from the produce of the land, rather than both the plants and animals, as the first tithe. Every 3rd year, you would give this second tithe to the poor, whether your local Levite, or anyone who is down on their luck. There is genuine disagreement as to whether or not this constituted a separate 3rd tithe. A good case can be made both ways. Nowhere does it say this 3rd year tithe replaced that 2nd tithe. Some think that every 3 years, you had to pay a 3rd tithe on top of the second. Others think that you substituted your own consumption to give it to the poor.
Remember that the Israelites were supposed to live within a 7 year cycle, where the land lay fallow every 7th year. The idea was that God would supernaturally provide so much in the 6th year that you would not have to plant anything in the 7th year, as the old produce would suffice until the harvest of the 8th year, where the 7 year cycle would begin all over again. Thus, this 3rd year tithe was to be practised on the 3rd and 6th year of each 7 year cycle. At least that is how the sages interpreted it.
Now I don’t know if anyone really knows if the Jews ever practised this 7 year plan in their history. It seems that the general understanding of all these commands was that there were 2 tithes at the very least. Every 3rd year, the rules changed for this 2nd (or 3rd) tithe.
Deuteronomy chapter 16 inserts the principles that when you appear before God, do not appear empty handed. Give, but only as you are able. Don’t get yourself in trouble and give something you don’t have. I was in church services back in the 80’s where we were always encouraged to pledge some crazy amount, on faith. Most of those pledges were never fulfilled. All it did was add pressure and guilt to the believer, having believed he’s broken a vow. What was worse was when our church got behind on its mortgage payments, and people were actually coerced into taking out second mortgages on their own homes, to pay the interest on the debt to the bankers, all because our pastor had this grand vision to build some gaudy temple that was beyond our means. False doctrine is costly, in every which way that you can imagine.
Deuteronomy chapter 18 touches on the firstfruits. This was another, separate offering to the Lord, and was not to be confused with the tithe. You were to take the firstborn of every animal, and the first produce of the land, and offer it up to the Lord. This one really taught the principle that God was to be first in all aspects of your life.
Let me now insert some passages that refer to tithing at the time of Malachi:
Neh 10:34 And we cast the lots among the priests, the Levites, and the people, for the wood offering, to bring it into the house of our God, after the houses of our fathers, at times appointed year by year, to burn upon the altar of the LORD our God, as it is written in the law:
Neh 10:35 And to bring the firstfruits of our ground, and the firstfruits of all fruit of all trees, year by year, unto the house of the LORD:
Neh 10:36 Also the firstborn of our sons, and of our cattle, as it is written in the law, and the firstlings of our herds and of our flocks, to bring to the house of our God, unto the priests that minister in the house of our God:
Neh 10:37 And that we should bring the firstfruits of our dough, and our offerings, and the fruit of all manner of trees, of wine and of oil, unto the priests, to the chambers of the house of our God; and the tithes of our ground unto the Levites, that the same Levites might have the tithes in all the cities of our tillage.
Neh 10:38 And the priest the son of Aaron shall be with the Levites, when the Levites take tithes: and the Levites shall bring up the tithe of the tithes unto the house of our God, to the chambers, into the treasure house.
Neh 13:4 And before this, Eliashib the priest, having the oversight of the chamber of the house of our God, was allied unto Tobiah:
Neh 13:5 And he had prepared for him a great chamber, where aforetime they laid the meat offerings, the frankincense, and the vessels, and the tithes of the corn, the new wine, and the oil, which was commanded to be given to the Levites, and the singers, and the porters; and the offerings of the priests.
Neh 13:6 But in all this time was not I at Jerusalem: for in the two and thirtieth year of Artaxerxes king of Babylon came I unto the king, and after certain days obtained I leave of the king:
Neh 13:10 And I perceived that the portions of the Levites had not been given them: for the Levites and the singers, that did the work, were fled every one to his field.
Neh 13:11 Then contended I with the rulers, and said, Why is the house of God forsaken? And I gathered them together, and set them in their place.
Neh 13:12 Then brought all Judah the tithe of the corn and the new wine and the oil unto the treasuries.
Neh 13:13 And I made treasurers over the treasuries, Shelemiah the priest, and Zadok the scribe, and of the Levites, Pedaiah: and next to them was Hanan the son of Zaccur, the son of Mattaniah: for they were counted faithful, and their office was to distribute unto their brethren.
Neh 13:14 Remember me, O my God, concerning this, and wipe not out my good deeds that I have done for the house of my God, and for the offices thereof.
Neh 10:34-37 is a confirmation that Nehemiah had a solid grasp of all the various types of offerings that the Israelites were expected to contribute, with a particular focus on the priesthood’s obligations in this area. They were to all to be brought into the storehouse, ie, special storage rooms adjacent to the temple. Not just tithes, but other types of offerings. Neh 10:37 makes clear that they were for the Levites to use for their maintenance, and were not to be confiscated by the priests alone.
We see that Nehemiah expected the priest to go along with the Levites when they collect the tithe (Neh 10:38). Perhaps they were to act as a sort of watchdog, to ensure that what the Levites collected was true and accurate, and that the appropriate amounts were brought to the storehouse in the temple. The Levites were to bring 1% (ie, the tenth of the tenth) to the temple for the priests. From what we have gleaned from the study of the text in Malachi, I have suggested the priests pulled rank and took charge of all the tithe, and kept way too much for themselves, and cheated the Levites out of their share.
Malachi 3:3 may suggest that the Levites were also not faithful in the handling of the tithe, as God identifies the sons of Levi as his audience, rather than calling them priests, as he does in 1:6, 2:1, and 2:7. Perhaps this is why the priests were accompanying the Levites when they went out to collect the tithes. Num 18:24-26 stated that this was the job of the Levites, not the priests. Since God indicts both the sons of Levi and the priests throughout the book of Malachi, there is a strong possibility that there was corruption in both groups.
Neh 13:4-6 speaks of the corruption of a certain priest of his day, who had made some sort of political alliance with a Gentile, who was an enemy of the Jew. He was even using the sacred spaces of the temple for profane, political purposes!
Tobiah was an Ammonite (Neh 2:19). Not only was there corruption over the finances amongst the priest and the sons of Levi (the non priests), but even foreigners were being given access to the temple precincts, in direct violation of the word of God! When money is involved, you can be sure that all sorts of sin will spring up, unless strong leaders of absolute integrity, such as Nehemiah, are on the scene to apply a forceful hand of rebuke and correction.
Neh 13:10-14 speaks of the fact that the tithes were not being given to the common Levite, so they had to abandon their daily temple duties. They fled back to their homes, in order to till their own small plots of land, so that their families would not starve! Nehemiah confronted the local leaders, and rebuked them for this thing. Here it does say that all of Judah was moved to bring their tithes. Nehemiah then ensures honest men are put in charge of the storehouses, reflecting the fact that the primary sin in this area was in the corruption of the priests, not the people. Sure, the people may have slacked off in their obligations to the temple, but who could blame them when they saw how much of their goods were being stolen by the leadership? We have already established quite clearly that the entire book of Malachi is an indictment of the corruption of the priests, and secondarily, of the sons of Levi. To try and take Neh 13:12 and say that the laity were at fault is doing injury to the entirety of the text. Once Nehemiah found an honest priest (as opposed to the guy in Neh 13:4), and the people could be confident that their hard earned cash was not going into the pocket of an evil man, then they were once more willing to support the work of God according to the law.
This touches on a very important principle. The wickedness of the teaching where one is never to question leadership. I am sure most of us have heard the scripture quoted: ‘Touch not mine anointed, and do my prophets no harm (Ps 105:15). This scripture was to warn the pagan kings not to interfere with God’s people as he led them into their promised land. It has nothing to do with silencing dissent of the sheep, when their shepherds are fleecing them!
If you placed your money into a certain bank, and that bank stole most of it, would you not stop putting your money into that bank? If you use your brain and see that your offerings are being stolen for obvious, excessive, ungodly, enriching of the leadership, then why would you keep giving money to a thief? I have even heard cases where the minister was actually caught embezzling funds, and some members of their congregation still defended them! Perhaps the offerings are down because the people sense that the money is not being used in a godly manner. If the leadership sets the example, the sheep will follow. But that applies both ways. Practise righteousness, and good things follow. Practise wickedness, and don’t be surprised what grows out of that. The people of Malachi’s time had indeed slacked off in their offerings. Once they could see that godly men were back in charge, they were much more willing to do their part.
I hope that all of the above clarifies the true spiritual situation on the ground in Malachi’s time. Let us now turn back to the mechanics of the tithe itself.
Let’s assume that there were actually supposed to be 3 tithes every 3 years. Exactly how much of your income would this cover? Well, the 1st tithe would be 10%. That leaves 90%. Take 10% of that and you get 9%. That leaves you 81%. Take 10% of that and you get 8.1%. Add them all up and you get 27.1%. That is how much of your income you should tithe every 3rd year, according to the scripture.
If you as a pastor want to preach that tithing is obligatory for the New Testament believer, then you should be demanding 19% in year 1 and 2, and 27.1% in year 3. Sure, only the first 10% of each year goes to the temple (which you think is the local church in the new covenant). But if God said in Malachi that the poor sheep is cursed with a curse if he doesn’t tithe, then what about the 2nd (and possibly 3rd ) tithes? Why aren’t you banging him (or her) over the head because of those? Oh, you aren’t the recipient of those tithes so you don’t care about them? Gotcha. Now I fully understand.
The stubborn preacher, rejecting my exegesis of Malachi above, and still wanting to adhere to his interpretation, would say that the curse only applies to the tithe that is brought into the storehouse, ie, the first tithe, so that is why I don’t mention the second and third tithe. But the law is the law! Why do you pick and choose one part of the exact same law, and ignore the rest? It couldn’t be that you materially gain from the first tithe, and not from the others, could it? Naw, that would be sinful, and we know how pure and infallible our pastors are, just like our doctors (oops!).
Sarcasm aside, I think the point raised is valid. How do we judge which commands in the Old Testament are applicable to the Christian, and which are not? Theologians have wrestled with these things for many, many years. Generally speaking, I would like to share a few key principles that should help guide us in this most relevant issue.
We all know that the Torah contains the words of the law given to Moses by God at mount Sinai. Aside from the 10 commandments, there is general consensus that the Torah (the first five books of the bible) contain 613 laws. These can be classified into 3 main categories – ceremonial/sacrificial, civil, and moral.
The book of Hebrews is all about Jesus doing away with the Mosaic covenant, and the ushering in of a new and more permanent one. What the law could not do in remitting sin, Jesus did on the cross. The general consensus of the church has been that any law having to do with the sacrificial/temple system is what Jesus did away with. The laws on tithing fall under this category. Thus, it is reasonable to assume that there is no more tithing law that is binding on the new covenant believer in Christ.
The second part of the law is the civil aspect. Because Israel was a theocracy, their secular laws came from God. Thus the severe punishments for crimes (at least from our modern point of view). Christian cultures and nations patterned their law code off the civil law found in the word of God. While no Christian nation ever mirrored the civil law exactly, each nation in each time period wrestled with exactly how much of their law should mimic the Torah. Do we kill witches? We did at one time. Do we kill adulterers? I am sure that at some point somewhere in Christian Europe (and elsewhere), such laws existed. How about the death penalty for gathering firewood on the Sabbath. Surprisingly, our nations had some pretty strict laws at one time regarding Sabbath keeping, though societal pressure was used more than actual physical punishments. While even the most fundamentalist of us remnant believers may have trouble accepting all the punishments listed (how about cutting off the wife’s hand should she grab the balls of a man whom her husband is fighting?), how are we enjoying our current culture, where the criminals now rule us, and have legalized almost every crime, while criminalizing many forms of righteousness? Think we’re better off? Has our ‘compassion’ towards the wicked produced a superior culture? Why are we so obsessed with showing compassion to the lawbreaker, but don’t devote a fraction of the same compassion to their victims? That also betrays a wicked heart.
The third part of the law is the moral law. Things such as the 10 commandments. Those who think Christ abolished all the law, how do you like living in a land, especially one like Canada, where virtually all the moral law has been obliterated? Having fun yet?
No, the moral law is eternal. Thou shalt not murder was in force before the law, during the law, and after the law.
To help decide if Christ has modified any laws, or one is unsure which laws belong to which category, then we need to look to the texts of the new testament to see if there are any new instructions issued. Take Sabbath keeping, for instance. I do not know if there is any other law (with the exception of idol worship) that is more repetitiously warned against in the old testament. Not only in the Torah, but in the prophets as well. But what does Paul say about it?
Rom 14:5 One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind.
We generally agree that it is up to each believer whether or not they want to treat the Sabbath in some sort of special way or not. Thus, the old testament injunctions and punishments are not applicable any longer. So we relegate laws pertaining to the Sabbath under the ceremonial column, as they were used by God to help mark the appointed times, and serve as a symbol of deeper spiritual truths, such as creation. We have freedom in Christ to choose to honor the Sabbath, or not. Certainly there is nothing wrong in observing it, as the Lord leads. It is wrong to try and impose your personal conviction onto others, in this case.
In other areas, Jesus enhanced our understanding of the meaning and intent of the original law. Take his teaching on adultery:
Mat 5:27 Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery:
Mat 5:28 But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.
Jesus did not do away with the law concerning adultery, he clarified the meaning of adultery itself. Thus, the laws on adultery belong to the moral law – eternal and unchangeable. The punishments concerning adultery belong to the civil portion of the law, and kings and rulers will debate the appropriateness of these until our true King Jesus returns, and rules us with a rod of iron.
Somehow I think that the ole ‘I have compassion for the criminal, and I oppose capital punishment’ idea is not going to go over so well in that day!
I say all this to show that you need a thorough understanding of a concept before you can make an intelligent decision on it. So we come to tithing. Is it part of the ceremonial law, which I claim, or the moral law, which 99.9% of the western pastors claim? What does the new testament say about tithing? Let’s find out.
Mat 23:23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.
Luk 11:42 But woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass over judgment and the love of God: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.
Luk 18:12 I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.
Heb 7:5 And verily they that are of the sons of Levi, who receive the office of the priesthood, have a commandment to take tithes of the people according to the law, that is, of their brethren, though they come out of the loins of Abraham:
Heb 7:6 But he whose descent is not counted from them received tithes of Abraham, and blessed him that had the promises.
Heb 7:8 And here men that die receive tithes; but there he receiveth them, of whom it is witnessed that he liveth.
Heb 7:9 And as I may so say, Levi also, who receiveth tithes, payed tithes in Abraham.
There it is. 7 verses. The first 2 refer to the same incident. The 3rd is simply a statement. The last 4 all pertain to the same theological argument that is being made.
The first 2 instances are the strongest argument one can find on the doctrine of the obligation to tithe that preachers place on sheep. It’s funny that the one place in the New Testament that the tithing fans use, is the one place where the act of tithing was mentioned as evidence of the person’s utter hypocrisy, and of having their priorities really screwed up! Not exactly a ringing endorsement of the practice, is it?
The fact of the matter is that the point of this event is that the Pharisees had their spiritual priorities all backward. They took great pains to ensure that they gave 10%, and exactly 10%, in their offering envelope. Why, Jesus is making it sound like they were even counting the tiniest seeds from their garden, separating every 10th one, in order to be seen as the most scrupulously righteous soul in the temple! Jesus said woe. He did not compliment them on their obsession with tithing perfectly, but condemned them for completely ignoring judgment (mishpat) and loving God. Note that Matthew does not even mention that Jesus mentioned the love of God. He said they omitted law, judgment, mercy and faith. That is the point of the incident. Incidentally, as people under the Mosaic law, which the Pharisees at that moment in time certainly were, Jesus said you should tithe. But that was thrown in almost as an afterthought. It was the deadness of their religious practice, their hardness of hearts, that was the point of the whole story. Preachers almost always focus on the tithing part, and ignore the meatier part of the verse. Sort of like straining at a gnat, and swallowing a camel, wouldn’t you say?
My conclusion is this was not a confirmation that tithing is part of the new covenant. How could it be, since the new covenant did not go into effect until the cross? There were many changes that occurred, which Jesus would not address, since he was preaching to the nation of Israel under the law, attempting to get them to see that their own scripture taught of a Messiah that was to come as a suffering servant. He certainly did not leave the Christian with any absolute imperative that tithing (and only the first tithe, mind you, not the second or the third), was going to be an eternal imperative for his bride. If this verse is all you have, I think I will be able to counter that fairly easily.
The 3rd verse is simply part of the self righteous Pharisee bragging to God in his prayer closet about how great he is. Note once again that his tithing is used as a sign of his sinful self righteousness, rather than a virtue. Again, not a ringing endorsement, is it?
The last 4 verses mention tithing almost by accident. Tithing is not the issue in this story. Paul is attempting to prove the superiority of the Melchizedekean priesthood as compared to the Levitical. Tithing is simply used as the action that proves that Levi was the lessor in comparison to Melchizedek. Since Abraham paid tithes to Melchizedek, Paul makes the case that Levi, who was to be a descendant of Abraham, was then to be said to have paid tithes to this mysterious priest found in the book of Genesis. Paul then goes on to build his case that Melchizedek had no genealogy, no recorded birth or death, made like the son of God, having an eternal priesthood, and was therefore a type of Christ himself. Since Levi was a descendant of Abraham, and since Abraham paid tithes to the greater in Melchizedek, then Levi was the lessor figure in comparison to Melchizedek. Because the lessor pays tithes to the greater, then the Levitical priesthood was an inferior priesthood to the Melchizedekean. Therefore, Christ is patterned after Melchizedek, not Levi. Melchizedek’s priesthood is an eternal one, just like Christ’s, whereas the Levitical priesthood was about to pass away, since Christ rose from the dead. And it did pass away when the temple was destroyed in 70 AD.
The point of all that rigmarole is not the mention of tithing. The act of tithing was simply used to prove the superiority of one priesthood over another. It had nothing to do with any sort of command to the Christian. I think that is quite clear.
So what do we have so far? I believe that tithing has been shown to be part of the ceremonial law, as it was exclusively used to maintain the temple. At least the first tithe. One may argue the 2nd, and especially the 3rd, may be some sort of moral command, having to do with giving to the poor, but the concept of the 2nd and 3rd tithe disappears from scripture after Deuteronomy. Proponents of tithing have the one gospel story, about the wayward Pharisee, and his misplaced priorities. What we really want to understand is what are the instructions to the church in regards to giving. For that, we must turn mainly to the writings of Paul.
Paul does deal with the topic of giving, not tithing. Funny, you would think that if tithing, by all intents and purposes part of the ceremonial law that was done away with in Christ, was still somehow valid, then Paul would have explicitly reiterated that in at least one of his letters. And we know that Paul did not shy away from the topic of giving. He spoke at length of it in several of his letters. I will try to grab all the relevant portions that I can.
Co 9:1 Am I not an apostle? am I not free? have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord? are not ye my work in the Lord?
1Co 9:2 If I be not an apostle unto others, yet doubtless I am to you: for the seal of mine apostleship are ye in the Lord.
1Co 9:3 Mine answer to them that do examine me is this,
1Co 9:4 Have we not power to eat and to drink?
1Co 9:5 Have we not power to lead about a sister, a wife, as well as other apostles, and as the brethren of the Lord, and Cephas?
1Co 9:6 Or I only and Barnabas, have not we power to forbear working?
1Co 9:7 Who goeth a warfare any time at his own charges? who planteth a vineyard, and eateth not of the fruit thereof? or who feedeth a flock, and eateth not of the milk of the flock?
1Co 9:8 Say I these things as a man? or saith not the law the same also?
1Co 9:9 For it is written in the law of Moses, Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of the ox that treadeth out the corn. Doth God take care for oxen?
1Co 9:10 Or saith he it altogether for our sakes? For our sakes, no doubt, this is written: that he that ploweth should plow in hope; and that he that thresheth in hope should be partaker of his hope.
1Co 9:11 If we have sown unto you spiritual things, is it a great thing if we shall reap your carnal things?
1Co 9:12 If others be partakers of this power over you, are not we rather? Nevertheless we have not used this power; but suffer all things, lest we should hinder the gospel of Christ.
1Co 9:13 Do ye not know that they which minister about holy things live of the things of the temple? and they which wait at the altar are partakers with the altar?
1Co 9:14 Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospel.
1Co 9:15 But I have used none of these things: neither have I written these things, that it should be so done unto me: for it were better for me to die, than that any man should make my glorying void.
I had hinted previously that the church at Corinth may have had a money problem. What I meant is that they of all churches seemed to have had the hardest time in the area of appropriate generosity. Thus Paul spends more time on the topic of giving to them than in any letter to any other church.
Strangely, covetousness seems to grow in our hearts as our bank account grows. The more we have, the greater the temptation to withhold becomes. You would think the opposite would be true. That poverty would make us more fearful to give. In reality, the opposite seems to be the case. Often it is those who can least afford to give that step up and meet the need. And this does not just refer to finances. We all know that the vast majority of the service in a church is done by a small minority of people. If you want to find someone to take on a task, look for the busiest soul, not the most idle.
In the above section, Paul is addressing some sort of idea that was floating around in Corinth that thought Paul was taking too many liberties. Not only did they grudge the fact that Paul was not working at a full time job (v6), but they were challenging the fact that some in his entourage had families, and were perhaps feeding them through some of the offerings being given (v4,5)!
Paul then goes on to tell them that, as we have already studied above, the ministers of God’s temple lived off the people’s offerings (v13), so had Jesus ordained the same for the church’s ministers (v14). We do not have a record of this ordinance. Presumably this was part of the revelation that Jesus gave Paul at one time or another, possibly when he was taken up into heaven and heard things he could not share (2 Cor 12:4).
Unlike our modern day preachers, Paul clearly states that he would never demand that the congregation support him by force (v12, 15). This is the biggest takeaway that a man of God needs to grasp. Not that God’s will is for the sheep to support the pastors, but that the pastors are to be the most godly example that they can be to the flock. And that includes no hint, no trace, of greed and covetousness. Any minister that demands he be paid, and tries to use specific scriptures to extort a specific amount of money, is walking a dangerous road.
Now, some would say that since Paul is comparing the obligation of the church to support the shepherd to the Jewish people supporting the priests, then the same offerings should apply. So which ones? Why stop at tithe number one? How about the first fruits? The various freewill offerings? The thanksgiving offerings, even the 2nd and 3rd tithes, if you are going to go all old testament on us.
In effect, those who argue this position are putting the 1st tithe back under the category of the moral law. But they will never place any other of the many offerings of the temple era under that same category. Only the 1st tithe. Sounds a little inconsistent, does it not?
If this 1st tithe was still in effect, then why wouldn’t Paul have mentioned it? He is using some pretty strong language here, so it’s not a lack of courage, or being polite on his part. If there is one thing that we do know about Paul, it’s that politeness was not high up on his list of priorities! Here is a golden opportunity to remind them of the obligation that we all have as Christians as to how much we are supposed to give. Yet all that Paul does is reveal to us that Jesus told him that all genuine ministers of the Lord are to get their material living from the gospel. Exactly how, and how much, he does not say. But even knowing this fact, he wants to emphasize that the true minister of the gospel would never, ever, try to compel anyone in his congregation to cough up the funds! That in itself alone, seems to me to prove that the compulsory giving of 10% is off the table.
Let us now continue.
2Co 8:1 Moreover, brethren, we do you to wit of the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia;
2Co 8:2 How that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality.
2Co 8:3 For to their power, I bear record, yea, and beyond their power they were willing of themselves;
2Co 8:4 Praying us with much intreaty that we would receive the gift, and take upon us the fellowship of the ministering to the saints.
2Co 8:5 And this they did, not as we hoped, but first gave their own selves to the Lord, and unto us by the will of God.
2Co 8:6 Insomuch that we desired Titus, that as he had begun, so he would also finish in you the same grace also.
2Co 8:7 Therefore, as ye abound in every thing, in faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and in all diligence, and in your love to us, see that ye abound in this grace also.
2Co 8:8 I speak not by commandment, but by occasion of the forwardness of others, and to prove the sincerity of your love.
2Co 8:9 For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.
2Co 8:10 And herein I give my advice: for this is expedient for you, who have begun before, not only to do, but also to be forward a year ago.
2Co 8:11 Now therefore perform the doing of it; that as there was a readiness to will, so there may be a performance also out of that which ye have.
2Co 8:12 For if there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that a man hath, and not according to that he hath not.
2Co 8:13 For I mean not that other men be eased, and ye burdened:
2Co 8:14 But by an equality, that now at this time your abundance may be a supply for their want, that their abundance also may be a supply for your want: that there may be equality:
2Co 8:15 As it is written, He that had gathered much had nothing over; and he that had gathered little had no lack.
2Co 9:1 For as touching the ministering to the saints, it is superfluous for me to write to you:
2Co 9:2 For I know the forwardness of your mind, for which I boast of you to them of Macedonia, that Achaia was ready a year ago; and your zeal hath provoked very many.
2Co 9:3 Yet have I sent the brethren, lest our boasting of you should be in vain in this behalf; that, as I said, ye may be ready:
2Co 9:4 Lest haply if they of Macedonia come with me, and find you unprepared, we (that we say not, ye) should be ashamed in this same confident boasting.
2Co 9:5 Therefore I thought it necessary to exhort the brethren, that they would go before unto you, and make up beforehand your bounty, whereof ye had notice before, that the same might be ready, as a matter of bounty, and not as of covetousness.
The Cheerful Giver
2Co 9:6 But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.
2Co 9:7 Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.
2Co 9:8 And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:
2Co 9:9 (As it is written, He hath dispersed abroad; he hath given to the poor: his righteousness remaineth for ever.
2Co 9:10 Now he that ministereth seed to the sower both minister bread for your food, and multiply your seed sown, and increase the fruits of your righteousness;)
2Co 9:11 Being enriched in every thing to all bountifulness, which causeth through us thanksgiving to God.
2Co 9:12 For the administration of this service not only supplieth the want of the saints, but is abundant also by many thanksgivings unto God;
2Co 9:13 Whiles by the experiment of this ministration they glorify God for your professed subjection unto the gospel of Christ, and for your liberal distribution unto them, and unto all men;
2Co 9:14 And by their prayer for you, which long after you for the exceeding grace of God in you.
2Co 9:15 Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift.
These are 2 fairly long passages dealing with the topic of giving (not of tithing). One can say 2 entire chapters in this letter deal exclusively with this matter (I have left out part of chapter 8 for brevity sake). If there was an appropriate time to teach on tithing, this would be it.
I say this as it seems that many churches seem to think it appropriate to teach on tithing every time money is mentioned, and when it is not. Tithing in the morning, tithing in the evening, tithing at suppertime. Tithing, tithing, tithing. Just like MSNBC reminds us with every news story that Trump is a Nazi racist, so these worshippers of mammon cannot but help themselves in pounding away at each and everyone’s billfold, until the very last greenback has been extracted and safely deposited in their ‘storehouse’.
As I alluded to already, in the 80’s I attended a word of faith church that in hindsight, was filled with insane people. Every service, 3 times a week, and I mean EVERY service, when it came time for the offering, we were subjected to a second sermon. Every time. I do remember that sometimes that second sermon lasted up to 45 minutes long! The brainwashing was breathtaking! Joseph Goebbels would’ve been proud! I am sure that there were members of MK-Ultra in attendance, taking notes.
In hindsight, they were defying the word of God every time they opened their mouth. Paul made it clear he used none of the privileges Jesus may have given him in order to manipulate, coerce, and threaten the people, like some sort of vaccine peddler of our day. Let us look at some key points from this long teaching on biblical giving for the Christian found in 2nd Corinthians.
As in the passage in 1st Corinthians, no mention, no hint is found that speaks of tithing, or anyone’s obligation to tithe. We do not find any mention of any of the prescribed offerings of the old covenant being foisted upon adherents of the new. Not only tithing, but first fruits, or wave offerings, thanksgiving or vow offerings. All of that was done away with at the cross.
What we encounter is a higher way, a better way. Just as Jesus revealed to us a higher way in the sermon on the mount, so Paul here reveals to us a higher way when it comes to giving.
Let us go through the text. From Acts, we know that Paul was asked to take up a special collection for the saints in Jerusalem, due to a famine in the land. Paul said he was eager to do so (Ac 11:28-30, 24:17). Commentators are in general agreement that this special, much needed relief effort for the needy Jerusalem saints is what Paul is speaking of. In 8:1-5 he boasts of the Macedonians. They were noted for their extreme generosity in the face of great personal poverty. Somehow these people found it in their hearts to reach out and bless total strangers, even at the risk of denying themselves in significant ways. What impressed Paul even more was the fact that they gave of themselves completely, even before any offering was taken (v5).
When we give our lives to Jesus, the Spirit enables us to become new creatures in Christ. I have heard it taught that this is literally a creature that has never before existed. Because we have the Holy Spirit within, we are capable of thinking and acting in such a way as to utterly astound the rest of the world. If God so directs, we are able to joyfully give away whatever that he desires, without care or thought of our own welfare. At least, that is the wish and will of our Father. Even if very few achieve that sort of commitment in this life, the possibility is there for all of us to grasp.
This is why the teaching of mandatory tithing is not only burdensome, but on the other side, it is limiting. It leaves the impression that God demands 10%, but you are off the hook for the other 90%. Oh sure, the preacher may ask for more in offerings, but I am not under a curse if I don’t give more than 10%, so forget it, I’ve given enough! It will inevitably lead to a religious way of thinking about money, possessions, and your own personal commitment to the Lord. Give him this much, but no more. Paul praised the Macedonians because they understood the freedom that came from a total abandonment of everything they were and everything they owned into the hands of Jesus. Verse 2 speaks of their joy. Joy not because they could afford to give, or that they had fulfilled some requirement of the law. Joy because they could share in the life of Christ, giving of themselves totally to the will of God.
Paul knows that these Corinthians are of a different spirit. They have not yet entered into the same level of revelation that the Macedonians had. They were more hesitant to give freely, so Paul was sending Titus, to encourage them to do their part in this great church wide endeavour. He knew that they were willing, but he also knew that second thoughts would creep in. I believe it was because these were more wealthy than the average church, thus they had more to lose. The rich are like that.
Verse 12 onwards brings a mini lesson that one should give according to his ability. In other words, do not feel guilty about the size of your offering. The widow’s mite was the only offering that Jesus ever remarked positively upon, and it was a glowing report! Conversely, the Pharisees rather large sums were not thought much of, since they were essentially offering God their excess, or their leftovers (Mk 12:41-44). So the poor should not feel bad, but the rich have an obligation to give according to their ability as well. Just because you wrote a check for a million dollars, perhaps you are worth a billion, so you have given pocket change, compared to what is being given by those on welfare!
There are things that I participated in at that church I used to attend that still bother me today (I would say haunt, but I am so over their nonsense!). All the manipulation, the coercion, the guilt. Using any verse, preached any way, in order to get the offerings up. About the sickest thing I remember was when we were in desperate fundraising mode. The preacher knew someone who knew someone who knew Copeland, and got him to agree to come and hold a 3 day meeting. At that time, I think I had ordered and listened to almost every tape that Hagin and Copeland had ever produced! When it was known he was coming to our church, it was like the World Series and the Super Bowl and the Stanley Cup all flowed into one! I was euphoric. Being one of the head ushers at the time, I was assured of a prime seat to top it all off!
Well, I actually got to even shake his hand! I remember jokingly telling someone that I was never going to wash it again! That’s how sick I was! Anyway, the last meeting had Copeland preaching his usual prosperity heresy. There were some other famous preachers there as well (just like the cabal, they seem to flock together). Someone then claimed that the Lord told him that our pastor was like an apostle, since he came from far away to pastor our church some time ago. He then read the scripture where the early church laid the offerings at the apostle’s feet (Ac 4:37). So they pulled out a chair, like a throne, put it in the center of the stage, and had our pastor sit on it. While he scrunched up his eyes, and sort of held his hands out, the band struck up some mesmerizing tune, and everyone was told to come up and throw their offering at our pastor’s feet! It was amazing. And not in a good way. All sorts of bills were thrown. Money from other countries, as I’m sure people travelled from far away to hear this disciple of Balaam. Rings, jewels, even a set of car keys. I should know, as I was in charge of counting the offering after the service. Never before had I seen such an offering! At the time, we all praised God for such a miracle. Now I know better.
I remember how Copeland would stay at the nicest hotel in town, and only show up when it was time to preach, leaving very soon after he was done (I only happened to shake his hand as I was being given certain instructions by the pastor as an usher, and he happened to be there being shown the church when no one was around). He came and went using a secret door that the pastor had installed in his church office. Hmm, I wonder why our pastor needed a hidden door in his office? Nothing suspicious about that, is there?
These horrid, vile creatures from the very pit of hell used every single one of these scriptures that we have been examining in context, and in detail. Problem was that for them, ‘context’ was a dirty, swear word to these manipulators of reality, these practitioners of legerdemain and obfuscation. No one taught these passages verse by verse, comparing scripture with scripture, unless each verse could be used to sell one lie or another.
I shudder at the naivety and gullibility that I had in those years. I could go on and on, but suffice it to say that it did not end well. Nuff said!
Let us quickly glean a couple gems from chapter 9. Paul initially states that these Corinthians had zeal. But Paul also had reservations about them following up their words with actions (9:5). Then comes the famous verses, the 2nd most abused portion of scripture involving giving, which I repeat here:
2Co 9:6 But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.
2Co 9:7 Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity (constraint, because you have to): for God loveth a cheerful giver.
2Co 9:8 And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:
if you can’t beat the sheep over the head hard enough, if you can’t scare the hell out of them (by using Malachi), then offer them outrageous promises, such as any modern politician would. Tell them that the more you give, the more you get. In fact, all grace is yours, if you would just empty your bank account completely (into my hands, of course).
While I think I have said enough about the evil manipulative practices of the charlatans illegally occupying our pulpits today, there is truth to be found here. If you are stingy, not only God, but others around you will take notice. People will not be so quick to want to help you out in your time of need, if you are unwilling to help when you can.
If you do give, you decide when, who, and how much to give. You purpose in your heart, not your pastor. Not the preacher on TV. Not the travelling minister. Not your denomination, not your local church, not your grandma, nor your friends. You never give because someone has made you feel that you have to. If you cannot give with a smile on your face, then do not give at all! I have news for you – God does not need your money! He is well able to fund his kingdom projects, with or without your help. God save us from all these pleas for help! Have we not all heard the pleas, going on even today, that unless you gave right now, my ministry is going under? That I will not be able to fight for you, or shepherd you, or be there for you? Good! If your ministry is totally dependant on my wallet, then it should go under. Your ministry should rely on God, and God alone. What the heck do I have to do with it? If God wants you to survive, then he will provide a way, without you having to resort to witchcraft, whining, and wheedling to do so.
Such a large portion of these letters are devoted to giving, and not one word about tithing. And do you also know that very little of it had to do with supporting Paul, and other ministers? Yes, he did tell them that Jesus expected his full time ministers to get their living from the gospel. But quickly Paul went on to say that never would he demand that you do so in his case. I may appeal for other ministers, such as your pastors and elders, to be taken care of, but don’t worry about me, I would much rather do without and trust my Jesus than to have you boast that I was somehow taking financial advantage of you!
Somehow, I just can’t picture Paul allowing himself to be set on a throne somewhere, having money thrown at his feet! No, if he saw that happen, I am confident what he would do:
1Co 5:5 To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.
And I would not take odds on the salvation of these wicked men’s souls! That’s just my opinion, of course. Jesus saves the most unlikely of individuals, does he not? You are sitting here and reading this, and I am writing it. What more needs be said about the infinite mercies of our God?
Gal 6:6 Let him that is taught in the word communicate (share) unto him that teacheth in all good things.
Gal 6:7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
Gal 6:8 For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.
Gal 6:9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.
Gal 6:10 As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.
A quick note by Paul reminding them not to forget their teachers. He touches on the eternal principle of sowing and reaping. So hammered upon by carnal preachers concerning money. So avoided when it comes to the more important things in life, like sowing kindness, patience, and friendship in the lives of others. This is why I say that we are so screwed up in North America. Everything is about money. The New Testament is teaching us that money should be one of the last things you should be focused on. Jesus said you cannot love God and mammon (Mat 6:24, Lk 16:13). Yes, take care of your teachers. But even more importantly, keep sowing good deeds in the lives of everyone around you, whenever God gives opportunity.
Php 4:10 But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly, that now at the last your care of me hath flourished again; wherein ye were also careful, but ye lacked opportunity.
Php 4:11 Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.
Php 4:12 I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.
Php 4:13 I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.
Php 4:14 Notwithstanding ye have well done, that ye did communicate with my affliction.
Php 4:15 Now ye Philippians know also, that in the beginning of the gospel, when I departed from Macedonia, no church communicated with me as concerning giving and receiving, but ye only.
Php 4:16 For even in Thessalonica ye sent once and again unto my necessity.
Php 4:17 Not because I desire a gift: but I desire fruit that may abound to your account.
Php 4:18 But I have all, and abound: I am full, having received of Epaphroditus the things which were sent from you, an odour of a sweet smell, a sacrifice acceptable, wellpleasing to God.
Php 4:19 But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
Php 4:20 Now unto God and our Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
The main point here is that Paul is gracious enough to thank this church for their material gift. He never takes anything for granted. How many prominent preachers actually think that the tithe and the offering is theirs by divine right? Their arrogance, their presumption, their greedy hearts are a stench in God’s nostrils. God does supply all our needs. Most of us don’t realize it, because we think everything we need is material.
Why do we quote verse 19, but not verse 12? Sometimes it is the will of the Lord to do without. To even go hungry. Paul had learned the secret! What secret? How to tap into the 100 fold return? How you can’t outgive God? How if you give to the poor, you are lending to the Lord, and He will repay? No, he learned the much more vital secret of contentment in all circumstances.
I am afraid most of us would receive a poor grade on that account.
1Ti 5:17 Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honour, especially they who labour in the word and doctrine.
1Ti 5:18 For the scripture saith, Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn. And, The labourer is worthy of his reward.
In this pastoral exhortation to Timothy, Paul is not speaking to a congregation, but to his disciple. Timothy was a shy soul, and more than once Paul exhorted him to stir up his gift and fulfill his calling. I am sure he was hesitant regarding receiving any sort of offering, maybe even finding it inappropriate to take money from those he taught. Paul simply told him that those in charge of God’s flock are worthy to be taken care of, even as any wage man deserves his wages for a good day’s labor. Nothing remotely indicative of tithing, or coercion in giving. Just good, sound, Christian principles of generosity, and doing what is right.
I think that Timothy was very hesitant about taking anything for himself, as is also hinted at in this passage:
2Ti 2:4 No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.
2Ti 2:5 And if a man also strive for masteries, yet is he not crowned, except he strive lawfully.
2Ti 2:6 The husbandman that laboureth must be first partaker of the fruits.
2Ti 2:7 Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things.
Paul tells him that the labourer is worthy of his wage, reminiscent of the words he shared with him in the first letter. Timothy is like a soldier of the Lord. The army is supposed to feed the soldier. Sometimes our humility, like anything else, may be taken too far, and cause needless suffering to not only ourselves, but our families, when humility may actually be turning into pride, if you refuse all gifts that the Lord is sending your way, trying to prove that you are some sort of super saint.
I love this next verse:
Tit 1:7 For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God; not selfwilled, not soon angry, not given to wine, no striker, not given to filthy lucre;
If you are obsessed with ‘filthy lucre’, then you are disqualified for leadership.
I believe I will stop here. I am sure other verses come to mind regarding giving. We have examined most of them. Do you see any command, even any hint, that the Christian is obligated to tithe? No, you do not, because there is none. This is my conclusion. You are free to draw your own, as we are not at the demoncratic convention here, where independent thought is looked upon as akin to terrorism.
You may be saying, ‘well, he isn’t a tither, and he has just engaged in the most long winded attempt at self justification that I have ever has the misery of enduring!’. Well, you may be right about the misery part, as who knows if my scribblings edify or torment? When I was first saved, I quickly adopted tithing, obeying my local church’s teachings on it. After several years of sitting under heresy, which led to my eventual departure from all organized religion, I stopped tithing, believing it was part and parcel, the linchpin of an elaborate scam on the poor, gullible Christians of the land. Eventually, something occurred in my personal circumstances that has now caused me to take up the practise once again.
What? You tithe? After this most elaborate diatribe, are you telling me that you believe in tithing?
I did not say that. I say that currently, I tithe. I tithe, not because scripture teaches that Christians are obligated to do so, but that I believe at this time, the Holy Spirit has asked me to, for reasons known to him, and partially to me. I am under no lawful obligation to continue to do so. I am free to stop at any time, subject to the witness of the Holy Spirit in my inner man.
So what do I conclude after all this? Tithing is not prescribed for the New Testament believer. Go ahead and hate me. Go ahead and call me a heretic. Set up a website, call it, ‘Beware of the false prophet the solitary man’. I don’t care. I told you I would go where the scripture would lead me. I believe that I have treated the text(s) fairly, with as much objectivity that I could muster. What you choose to believe (or not believe), is up to you.
While tithing is not compulsory, it is a useful pattern. Just like the pattern of the firstfruit, it teaches us to put God first. It serves as a check on our hearts. Are we harboring any covetousness or greed? If so, then the Holy Spirit may lead you into the practise. Nothing cures the love of money than to give it away! And if you need to get on a systematic program of giving, such as tithing, then by all means, please obey the Lord!
Nowhere have I said that the Christian who tithes is somehow disobeying the bible. There is absolutely nothing wrong with tithing. I believe it becomes wrong when it is taught incorrectly. Because money has been such a terribly destructive issue in America (and the west) in our generation, Christians need to be on extra guard against it’s lure. God is judging us severely in this hour. A big part of his judgment is stripping us of our somewhat obscene wealth.
For too long, man has taken the word of life and put chains around it, shackling others back into bondage. Having once escaped the tyranny of sin, religion enslaves them all over again.
Paul had to deal with this problem when he addressed the Judaizing heresy of his day, those who wished to re-yoke the new believer with the burden of the entire Mosaic law. So it is today. What should be intended as wonderful patterns for us when it comes to the various offerings taught in the Torah, our leaders, influenced by a religious and covetous spirit, have turned them into heavy burdens and chains of guilt.
There is so much to glean if we make the effort to study what all the various sacrifices and offerings truly mean. From the sin offering, to the guilt offering, to the thanksgiving, wave, and vow offerings. From the tithe to the firstfruit, from the appointed times found in the feasts of the Lord, to the Sabbath and new moon observances. All of these are meant to lead us to Christ! All of them deal with some aspect of the redemptive work of the cross. To then take any one of these beautiful patterns and try to compel the new creation in Christ into some mandatory form of physical observance defeats the entire purpose.
Whether it’s Sabbath keeping or tithing, or trying to mimic the sacrifices at the Jewish altar with the sacrifice of the mass, these attempts by man to perpetuate what was truly done away with at the cross, robs the worshipper of the true spiritual meat that is being offered by the Holy Spirit. Look past the physical and see the spiritual significance of each and every one of these things. Then, and only then, will you be able to enter into the fullness and true liberty of the sons and daughters of the most high God!
I hope that everyone who has heroically read through this entire teaching has gotten something from the Holy Spirit. I now return to the rest of the chapter. Let us now put money completely out of our minds, and talk of something else.
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Mal 3:13 Your words have been stout (khaw-zak – to fasten upon, strong, obstinate, a repair that has totally hardened and cured) against me, saith the LORD. Yet ye say, What (maw – how, why, when) have we spoken so much against thee?
Thought we’d never escape verses 7 through 12, did you? Well, God has one more denunciation to proclaim.
It is a sort of summary of all his denouncements. Yahweh has already made mention of their evil speaking. He is now ending their indictments with a sort of generalized accusation. Their words are like a carpenter or a repairman who has filled a damaged article with something, and now it is hardened and permanent. So are the words of these priests. They have come from a hardened theological and moral position within their souls. The implication is that, this is something that has been fixed so well that it will be very hard to break through. The fact that once again, even as several times before, these priests are entirely clueless about their actual spiritual state. How many nominally religious relatives and friends do we have that quickly shrug off any talk of God and Jesus when we bring it up? Their holes in their spiritual hearts have been repaired to a complete hardness, seemingly never to be breached again. They are utterly baffled that apparently God sees so many serious sins in their lives.
Mal 3:14 Ye have said, It is vain (shawv – desolating, destructive, useless) to serve (aw=-bad – to be a bondman to, a slave to) God: and what profit (beh-tash – gain, with the nuance of dishonest gain, plunder, lucre) is it that we have kept his ordinance (mish-meh-reth – observance, duty, stood at our post), and that we have walked mournfully (ked-o-ran-eeth – blackish, as in sackcloth) before the LORD of hosts?
One thing I have noticed is that this Malachi is a very well educated man. Compared to Jeremiah, who was more of a country priest, this man’s Hebrew vocabulary uses a multitude of words that I have not encountered before. Here he uses ked-o-ran-eeth – the only place in the entire bible that it is found.
God lays out the charge that He has alluded to already. The priests’ world view, in regards to God, and their temple ministry, is cynical, sour, and full of ungratefulness. Instead of being grateful for the privilege in serving in his holy temple, where his presence may be found, all they saw was what was not right. The offerings sucked. Our ministry sucks. Our Levitical brethren suck. All the people suck in general. My life sucks in particular. Whine, whine, whine. Sound familiar?
This is what is crushing our cultures. CRT (critical race theory) is poisoning our children’s minds beyond hope of recovery. It is precisely communism, repackaged with different labelling. The key precept of this demonic doctrine is to always stir up strife. Point out problems. If there aren’t any, create problems out of thin air. Never work at solving them. If one does get solved, create another. Never, never, never, stop criticizing and tearing down, until all that is good is lost.
This is why we cannot hope to recover our once functioning cultures unless and until this rancid teaching is totally expunged from all aspects of our society. Not just from our schools, but from our media as well. This is why Trump will always be lied about on networks such as MSNBC. They are slaves to CRT, and need their broadcasting license pulled.
I want to touch on something that most will not agree with, I’m sure. We on the right always speak about upholding the importance of free speech. We fight against the left’s agenda of censorship. This sounds righteous, but it is not biblical. Do you think God wants to let his people live in a culture where intentional, habitual lying is protected under the guise of free speech? A nation without submission to the 10 commandments will be destroyed from within. We have allowed the mainstream media to bear false witness (lie) against every form of truth. All these evil channels need to have their licenses pulled immediately when Trump takes office, or the relentless propaganda will keep taking its toll, not only brainwashing and deluding the large minority of left wing devotees, but poisoning the atmosphere of the nation, ensuring nothing of real substance takes place, such as occurred in Trump’s first term. There are some moral laws that God created for us in the Torah that sound immoral, but that is only because we have departed so far from God’s standard. Only so many may be recovered, and for any reprieve from unrelenting wickedness, we should be deeply grateful. Only realize that we are further down the satanic rabbit hole than we think.
I like the fact that the Hebrew word that Malachi chooses to use that is translated profit has the connotation of unjust gain. I believe this word was chosen deliberately, exposing the true corruption within their hearts. In effect, like any good RINO, they were bitching because they couldn’t grab as much illicit, ill gotten gain as they thought was appropriate for their office. Does that not describe almost all our political ruling class today? They were really upset that this temple business wasn’t making them as rich as they would’ve liked! How many pastors, immersed with the spirit of Laodicea, think exactly the same way today? They even had the gall to moan about the fact that they even wore sackcloth, to ‘prove’ just how sincere they really were! I put on the official uniform that trumpeted my righteousness, so where is my immediate payback?
Mal 3:15 And now we call the proud happy (aw-shar zade – a straight shooter and blessedly prosperous we call the presumptuously arrogant); yea, they that work wickedness (rish-aw – moral wrongness) are set up (built up, made sure); yea, they that tempt (baw-khan – test, try) God are even delivered (maw-lat – escape, let go, preserved).
So, their wicked words continue unabated. Once they start digging their own hole, they cannot seem to stop. They remind me of a story that my wife told me some years ago. She used to have a job working with mentally challenged individuals. The more capable of their lot would go out into the community and take up certain simple projects, such as landscaping. One time this person was told to dig a hole, as they were going to plant a tree. One thing about these people, they may be simple, but once they understand what you want of them, they will continue to do it, and do it very well! So the supervisor got tied up with something and came back some time later. Well that person was still digging away! Problem was, the hole he had dug was now big enough that they could of planted him into it, rather than the much smaller tree, and had room enough to spare! He was told to dig, and he dug. No one had told him to stop, so he didn’t.
As in 2:17, the God whom they have so wearied reminds them once again of their stout words. They claim that the arrogant are prospering beyond measure, and that the intentionally wicked are laying up for themselves a sure foundation. Not only that, but those here that are tempting God have nothing to worry about. They are shaking their fists in God’s face with their overt rebelliousness, and nothing bad is happening to them. Note that baw-khan is used, the same word God used to dare these same priests to actually baw-khan Him, regarding being faithful with all the tithes that come through their hands. Well, these priests would not baw-khan God, when it came to money, as they certainly did not believe that God would sufficiently provide for them, but they had no problem believing that the truly wicked (in their own eyes) were baw-khan’ning God every day, and getting away with it.
Do we have this sickness in our hearts? Where everything in our life is one shade of grey or another? Where nothing makes us happy, and nothing gives us peace? In these days of judgment, special care must be taken that we do not fall into some sort of hopeless malaise. Just because Gates and Fauci are still breathing, does not mean that God does not care, or has no interest in justice. We have cried and cried for his justice to come. So he has began with his church, and it is painful to behold. Wicked men have romped all over us, seemingly without consequence. They deemed themselves to be gods, immortals, holding the power of life and death in their little vials of poison, inserting them into the arms of the population of this planet seemingly at will. They were unopposed, undefeated, and seemingly unstoppable.
Then there was God. And God said, their day is coming. It may come in the next few years, or it may not. Do you think that Fauci is sleeping well, knowing what the new administration is promising to do? Whether or not they succeed, the point is that everyone’s day of judgment is coming. It is certain. The only uncertainty is when.
Let God take care of the when. Our job is to ensure we take heed that we take to heart the lesson of these rebellious, disobedient priests, and look to them for examples as what not to do.
Mal 3:16 Then they that feared (yaw-ray – afraid, revere, be in dread of) the LORD spake often one (eesh – man) to another (ray-ah – an associate, from a root meaning shepherd): and the LORD hearkened (kaw-shab – pricked up the ears), and heard it (shama), and a book (writing, scroll) of remembrance (zik-rone – writing, memento, record, from a root meaning a mark of recognition) was written (kaw-thab – engraved) before him (paw-neem – in his face) for them that feared (yaw-ray – dread, comprehended the terribleness of) the LORD, and that thought (khaw-shab – to think so comprehensively upon, as one weaving or fabricating something) upon his name.
So, if the entire epistle up to this point is speaking to the priests and the priests alone (with the possible exception of all the sons of Levi), then it is logical to assume, based on the uninterrupted flow of the text, that the dialogue continues unabated. That is, that the audience is still these sons of Levi, priests or no priests.
However our prophecy takes a dramatic turn. Everything up until now was a censure of the priesthood during the 5th century BC. Now, we finally have our first change of topic. Something good is actually being said about (at least) some of these characters!
What makes a prophetic work? Is it simply prediction, like the book of Revelation? Is it power, like the life of Elijah and Elisha? Is it declarations of judgment, such as that which predominated the writings of Jeremiah and Ezekiel? I suppose it is all of the above. So far, Malachi has been all about judgment. Judgment upon a very specific sub group of God’s people, but judgment nonetheless. Now, we will examine a few finishing verses that speak of prophecy.
We would love to say that this verse is speaking of any and every one that fears God. And just like the entire book, the truths written have application to all of God’s people. Only let us not forget the original audience. Even in the next chapter, consisting of only 6 verses, the hearer is encouraged to remember the law of Moses (Mal 4:4), something that was of particular relevance to the priest. Almost the last verse of the old testament, and God reminds the reader to remember the law of Moses. Not a very compelling way to hint at the coming of the new covenant in Christ, is it? Perhaps one of the reasons it is written that way is so that we may seriously consider that all of Malachi, not just part of it, was written to the priesthood. God knew wicked men would mishandle his holy word, especially certain parts of this work, trying to make merchandise of the scripture. Looking to monetize the pure word of God, even as Balaam of old looked for every possible way to collect his monetary fee for divination and prophesying, while still attempting to obey God as long as it did not affect the bottom line! How did Balaam end up collecting his fee from Balak? Yahweh did not allow Balaam to curse Israel, so he counselled Balak on how to get the protection of God off Israel by enticing them to sin. Viola, Balaam thought that he obeyed God in delivering his word, but collected his fee as well, with a little bit of worldly advice. I wonder how much pleasure he has today, when he remembers what he did, burning in hell for what is now thousands of years.
I think that at times, God leaves some of his word deliberately vague, such as portions of this word, as far as one being absolutely sure as to whom each and every verse is specifically addressed to. This is his way of testing our hearts. As we have seen with dismaying regularity, many preachers have misused the tithing verses in Malachi for their own covetous motives. As we have discovered, one has to do some serious digging into the word in order to be able to rightly divide it properly. The lazy, the greedy, those that are hirelings and not true shepherds, will only see the possibility of personal profit in these verses, and be blind to the actual rebuke for the shepherds themselves!
Isn’t God’s word amazing? Paul said it is a two edged sword (Heb 4:12). Here, it is meant to correct the priest. Instead, today’s equivalent of the priest uses it to cut his sheep, instead of his own heart.
You may decide that this is the place where God now abruptly switches the audience to everyone, since it speaks of those that feared the Lord. Since there is no specific indication that the audience has changed, I will continue with the assumption that the audience has remained the same. Thus, the ‘they’ are those God fearing priests. I am sure that there were some of them, even in this time period. God always has his remnant, does he not? Let us be so thankful that even in the midst of the greatest apostasy that our nations have ever seen, God still preserves his own.
It was said that they spoke as one man to his associate, and that word comes from a root meaning a shepherd. I think this also serves as a confirmation that this was one God fearing priest speaking to another. And often they did speak. It is so vital that all of us have some sort of fellowship with those like minded believers. I know how hard that is for some of us. That is why I pray that if these writings are the only sort of fellowship that God has provided for you at this time, that it will serve as sufficient spiritual nourishment to carry you through until he provides otherwise.
God pricked up his ears when he heard that there was at least a couple faithful priests left in his temple. Sometimes it feels like that today. Sometimes it seems that there are only a couple preachers truly worth listening to. The rest are the equivalent of priestly RINO’s, or PINO’s, priests in name only. God is also said to have shama’d them. That is, to hear with the intention of acting on what he heard. So what did he do? He wrote a special book, engraved in a special way, with a special mark. Whether or not this was the book of life spoken of in Revelation is up for debate. Regardless, this was a most excellent thing! If we truly learn to fear (yaw-ray) the Lord, we too will have our names engraved in a special book of remembrance, never to be blotted out! This remnant was said to have not only discovered the secret of the fear of the Lord, but also that fear went hand in hand with thinking about God so much, in so many ways, that it was like they were weaving an intricate creation, tightly woven, and all fitted together so wonderfully, their ideas of God all blending together into one beautiful tapestry!
Mal 3:17 And they shall be mine, saith the LORD of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels (seq-oo-law – wealth closely shut up); and I will spare (khaw-mal – have pity, compassoin) them, as a man (eesh) spareth (khaw-mal) his own son that serveth him (awbad – be a bondman, servant, slave).
God has identified a small subset of priests that are of an entirely different spirit than the rest of the group. Notice that God does not say exactly how big this group is. Just as today, God has his chosen ones, his holy remnant, and no one really knows exactly how big it is, or who is a part of it.
I don’t know about you, but the more and more I study the word of God, apart from human tradition, the more I am less and less sure about exactly who is part of the body of Christ. Just because someone talks a certain way, a way we have been taught a Christian should talk, knowing all the ‘born again’ lingo and such, does not mean that they are automatically part of the kingdom. Conversely, there are those who grew up in a different tradition, who don’t use the most common lingo, yet by their attitude and actions, one can see Jesus in their lives most clearly. This is where the injunction not to judge applies. Instead, we use it as an excuse for our cowardice in not confronting obvious sin, in order to skip persecution. We praise or condemn out of hand those brothers and sisters who happen to articulate their faith in a different manner than we are accustomed to.
Are we truly God’s? Do we strive to be part of God’s wealth? For all of those prosperity preachers out there, who have used Malachi as an excuse to increase their own material comfort, know this of a certainly: God is not speaking of you when he speaks of those who will make up his true treasure.
The word for jewels also has the idea of shutting up. That is, God will not only seal us with his special mark, but will shut us up and protect us from the wickedness and corruption of this world, as a wealthy man would seal up his treasure in a secure vault.
Before we get too excited and gushy over how much God loves us, we need to look at the language very closely. So much sermonizing speaks of the love of God. We hear over and over again about how much God loves us. Just last night, I heard a wonderful testimony by a truly humble saint of God, sharing story after story about how the love of God has touched several different souls who knew nothing of him, and had their lives turned around. Just like you, I rejoiced at every testimony. And yet, in the back of my mind, I kept thinking – and where is the part about true repentance? I heard much about the unconditional love of God, which is fine, but I honestly wondered, will these people go on to a genuine understanding of repentance and a fear of the Lord? Will they learn to give themselves totally to Jesus, or will they end up like most believers in our generation, joining some megachurch where the unconditional love of God is almost all that is taught (in addition to obligatory tithing, of course!). Will they be taught the real, crucified life?
There are many miserable, suicidal souls out there who have never been loved. If you tell them that there is someone who loves them unconditionally, just as they are, that idea in and of itself is often enough to revive their spirit, and give them a reason to live. They may become happy and joyous for the first time in their life. Their lives may turn around.
But is that the true gospel? Have we not seen this movie play out before our eyes before? What sort of saint does that produce? More often than not, the Laodicean church membership swells, rather than the Smyrnan or the Philadelphian.
God says he will spare these souls, as a father spares his son. The modifier for son is the word for servant, or bondslave. Why would God choose that description to describe the relationship of the son to the earthly father? He could have said that he would spare these few righteous priests, as an earthly father spares his own son, whom he loves unconditionally. He doesn’t say that. He spares as a father spares his son, who serves him like a bondslave would.
This implies that not all sons will be spared. Sons in name only, who have no servant’s heart, will not be part of God’s precious jewels. Remember in verse 16 that we are speaking of those few priests who truly feared the Lord, and continually witnessed of that fact to each other. That is why I speak of those that come to Jesus understanding only the love of God. The gospel is much more than that. As we have seen in verse 1 of this chapter, God specifically tells us that he will send someone who will prepare the way before the Lord appears. And that someone was John the Baptist, who preached an uncompromising message of repentance, not the unconditional love of God. Was there any recorded sermon of John where he spoke about how much Yehovah loved you? Think about that.
Mal 3:18 Then shall ye return (shoob), and discern (raw-aw – see, perceive) between the righteous (tsad-deek – just, lawful) and the wicked (raw-shaw – morally wrong), between him that serveth (aw-bad) God and him that serveth (aw-bad) him not.
Bet you never thought we would get to the last verse of this chapter, did you? Neither did I! But here we are.
Then. Then what? After you have heard (with full understanding) all the rebukes of the Lord against you, oh priest, and have truly taken them to heart, and if repentance begins to work in your soul, then the grace of shoobing (returning, turning back) will be given to you. When you turn back toward God, because you have humbly accepted the chastening of the Lord, true discernment shall be given unto you.
Remember that the biggest problem these priests had was that they had no idea that they were in such a sorry spiritual state. They kept exhibiting total bewilderment that, seemingly out of nowhere, this prophetic word of judgment was falling upon them! With each and every accusation, their genuine ignorance of their faults was put on display. Continue in habitual sin, and blindness is the inevitable result.
If you take rebuke and correction to heart, then repentance (shoobing) and revelation (discernment) will be given unto you. You will be able to see what is good and what is evil. You will understand those who are servants of good, and those who are servants of evil.
This is why I had a hard time understanding why, from the very start of the pandemic, how so many believers could not see just how evil the whole narrative was. Even after several months, then years, most Christians still have no clue that this was an intentional, calculated, worldwide, mass genocide. How world famous Christian personalities praised the death jab bioweapon, and to this day, have refused to publicly repent over such blasphemy. Do they have no discernment? Can they not distinguish between those who serve darkness, and those who do not? Perhaps it is because these are the ones who choose to interpret this chapter as a license to steal from the flock, rather than the rebuke of the shepherds, who are guilty of theft themselves! One blindness leads to another.
Let us always let the pure light of the scripture illuminate our hearts, in order that true repentance and discernment be given unto us, as the works of darkness continue to try and deceive the entire planet.
Solitary Man
https://solitaryman.substack.com/
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