Beyond the Tithe: What Scripture Really Teaches About Giving

Matthew 22:15-21: “Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's.”

The Widow’s Mite - Gustave Dore - 1866

Is Tithing Required for Christians Today?

Many Christians have been taught that tithing—giving 10% of their income to the Church—is a non-negotiable biblical command.

This teaching is so widespread that many believers accept it without question.

But does this dictate align with what Scripture teaches about giving?

Instead of simply accepting what we’ve been told, let’s examine what the Bible says about tithing and Christian giving.

To properly understand the biblical teaching on giving, we need to examine how giving functioned throughout the three significant periods of biblical history:

1. The Patriarchal age (Adam to Moses),

2. The Law or Mosaic age (Moses to Christ) and

3. The Church age (Christ to present).

The Patriarchal Period: Giving from Adam to Moses

In the earliest biblical accounts, giving was primarily voluntary or free will and motivated by gratitude.

The First Biblical Offerings

Genesis 4:3-5 “In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the LORD. And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, but for Cain and his offering he had no regard…”

Notice several essential elements:

• God was pleased with Abel’s offering but not with Cain’s.

• Abel offered his “firstborn” or best, while Cain merely offered “some” of his crops.

• There was no command to give nor any stipulation about the amounts.

• The quality and heart behind the offering mattered more than the quantity.

After the flood, Genesis 8:20 records, “Then Noah built an altar to the LORD and took some of every clean animal and some of every clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar.” Again, this was voluntary and did not specify an amount or percentage.

The Origin of the Word “Tithe”

The first mention of a “tithe” (which means a “tenth”) appears in Genesis 14:20 when Abraham gave Melchizedek “a tenth of everything” after a military victory. This was a one-time, voluntary act of gratitude—not an ongoing obligation. Despite Abraham living another 160 years, the Bible never records him tithing again.

Similarly, in Genesis 28:22, Jacob voluntarily vowed, “of all that You give me I will give a full tenth to You.” This was part of Jacob’s promise to God, not a response to a divine command.

Only these two instances mention giving a tenth throughout the entire patriarchal period, and both were voluntary acts without any divine requirement.

This voluntary act of Abraham, however, has been tragically distorted into a mandatory 10% church tax—a baseline requirement falsely imposed on believers under the New Covenant.

As we shall see, this widespread interpretation misrepresents Scripture and fundamentally corrupts the joy of Spirit-led, grace-motivated giving that Christ intended for His Church.

Required Giving in the Patriarchal Period

However, we do find something quite different from the presumed 10% tithe regarding a required giving during the Patriarchal period.

In Genesis 41:34, Joseph advised Pharaoh to “appoint overseers over the land and take one-fifth of the produce of the land of Egypt during the seven plentiful years.” This 20% collection was effectively a tax to fund the government and prepare for the coming famine—it was neither a religious nor free-will offering.

The Law or Mosaic Age: Understanding Israel’s Tithing System

When Moses received the Law at Mount Sinai, God established a comprehensive system for the nation of Israel that included both required and voluntary giving.

To understand giving during this period, we need to recognize that during the Mosaic Age, unlike our Church Age with its separation of church and state, Israel functioned as a theocracy, whereby those of the tribe of Levi served as both religious priests and government officials.

Israelites were compelled to give three Tithes or taxes

During the Mosaic Age, there wasn’t just one tithe but three.

1. The Levitical Tithe (Annually, 10%) - Leviticus 27:30-32 “Every tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the trees, is the LORD’s; it is holy to the LORD... And every tithe of herds and flocks, every tenth animal of all that pass under the herdsman’s staff, shall be holy to the LORD.”

   1. This tithe supported the Levites, who served as Israel’s spiritual and governmental leaders since they received no land inheritance. This was effectively a tax that funded Israel’s theocratic government.

2. The Festival Tithe (Annually, 10%) - Deuteronomy 14:22-23 “You shall tithe all the yield of your seed that comes from the field year by year. And before the LORD your God, in the place that He will choose, to make His name dwell there, you shall eat the tithe of your grain, of your wine, and of your oil, and the firstborn of your herd and flock, that you may learn to fear the LORD your God always.”

   1. This tithe funded what we might call a “national potluck” where families would gather to worship and celebrate God’s provision.

3. The Poor Tithe (10% every third year, or about 3.33% annually) - Deuteronomy 14:28-29 “At the end of every three years you shall bring out all the tithe of your produce in the same year and lay it up within your towns. And the Levite, because he has no portion or inheritance with you, and the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow, who are within your towns, shall come and eat and be filled, that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hands that you do.”

   1. Finally, this every third-year tithe provides care for the vulnerable in society.

Additional Required Giving

Beyond these tithes, the Law also required indirect taxes or contributions as follows:

• Leaving field edges unharvested for the poor (Leviticus 19:9: “When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap your field right up to its edge, neither shall you gather the gleanings after your harvest.")

• Allowing fields to lie fallow every seventh year (Exodus 23:10-11 “For six years you shall sow your land and gather in its yield, but the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow, that the poor of your people may eat; and what they leave the beasts of the field may eat. You shall do likewise with your vineyard, and with your olive orchard.")

• Canceling all debts every seven years (Deuteronomy 15:1-2 “At the end of every seven years you shall grant a release. And this is the manner of the release: every creditor shall release what he has lent to his neighbor. He shall not exact it of his neighbor, his brother, because the LORD’s release has been proclaimed.")

• Releasing enslaved people every seventh year (Exodus 21:2: “When you buy a Hebrew slave, he shall serve six years, and in the seventh he shall go out free, for nothing.” The practice is also elaborated upon in Deuteronomy 15:12-15: “If your brother, a Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman, is sold to you, he shall serve you six years, and in the seventh year you shall let him go free from you. And when you let him go free from you, you shall not let him go empty-handed. You shall furnish him liberally out of your flock, out of your threshing floor, and out of your winepress. As the LORD your God has blessed you, you shall give to him...”

In addition to the three tithes discussed above, these required contributions amounted to well over 25% of an Israelite’s income and thus functioned like our modern taxation system. These requirements would be equivalent to sales taxes, property taxes, license fees, etc.

Free-Will Offerings Under the Law

In addition to these required contributions, however, God also encouraged voluntary giving throughout the Mosaic period:

• Exodus 25:2 emphasizes heart-motivated giving: “Speak to the people of Israel, that they take for me a contribution. From every man whose heart moves him, you shall receive the contribution for me.”

• Proverbs 3:9-10 encourages generous giving: “Honor the LORD with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your produce; then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will be bursting with wine.”

• 1 Chronicles 29:9 celebrates willing generosity: “Then the people rejoiced because they had given willingly, for with a whole heart they had offered freely to the LORD. David the king also rejoiced greatly.”

Importantly, these free-will offerings were in addition to the required tithes and other obligations.

The Law never designated the tithe itself as the standard for voluntary giving.

The Church Age: A New Covenant Approach to Giving

When Christ established the New Covenant, did He carry forward the Old Testament tithing laws?

Let’s examine the evidence:

Tithing in the New Testament

Tithing is only mentioned three times in the New Testament and always relative to the Mosaic period:

1. Matthew 23:23, where Jesus criticizes the Pharisees: “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the Law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.” Jesus was addressing those still under the Law, not establishing rules for the Church.

2. Luke 18:12, where Jesus tells a parable about a self-righteous Pharisee who boasted, “I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.” Again, this describes Jewish practice under the Law, not instruction for Christians.

3. Hebrews 7:1-10 retells Abraham’s historical encounter with Melchizedek to make a point about Christ’s priesthood—not to establish tithing as a Christian practice.

None of these passages instruct Christians to tithe.

When the early Church debated what Old Testament practices Gentile believers should observe (in Acts 15), tithing was never mentioned. (Acts 15:29 “that you abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols, and from blood, and from what has been strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell.")

Jesus’ position on Taxes and Giving

Jesus clearly distinguished between civic obligations and religious giving:

• In Matthew 17:24-27, Jesus paid the temple tax, acknowledging obligations to civil authorities.

• In Matthew 22:15-21, Christ instructed, “Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”

Like the Old Testament system, Jesus affirmed the obligation to pay government taxes but established a separate focus on free will giving to God.

The New Testament Teaching on Giving

The apostolic teaching on Christian giving is beautifully summarized in 2 Corinthians 9:6-7:

"The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver."

This passage establishes four key principles for Christian giving:

• Personal Decision: “Each one must give as he has decided in his heart.”

• Freedom from Compulsion: “not reluctantly or under compulsion.”

• Attitude: “God loves a cheerful giver”

• Generosity: “Whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.”

Elsewhere, Paul adds that giving should be:

• Regular: 1 Corinthians 16:2: “On the first day of every week, each of you is to put something aside and store it up, as he may prosper...”

• Proportional: 1 Corinthians 16:2 “...as he may prosper...”

• Sacrificial: 2 Corinthians 8:3 “For they gave according to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own accord...” and,

• Practical: 2 Corinthians 8:13-14 “For I do not mean that others should be eased and you burdened, but that as a matter of fairness, your abundance at present should supply their need, so that their abundance may supply your need, that there may be fairness.”

Biblical Principles for Christian Giving Today

So, what does all this mean for Christians today?

The Bible establishes three clear giving principles:

1. Pay your taxes (Romans 13:6-7 “For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.")

   1. Like the Israelites’ tithing system, our taxes fund the government that God Himself has established.

2. Give generously to the church from the heart (2 Corinthians 9:6-7). Christians should practice free will giving to the church, which should flow from gratitude, not obligation.

   1. This voluntary giving was also biblically encouraged during the Mosaic period.

3. Support other worthy causes (notice how these parallel many of the additional required giving during the Mosaic age) :

   • The Church and its ministers (Galatians 6:6: “Let the one who is taught the word share all good things with the one who teaches.” 1 Timothy 5:17-18 “Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching. For the Scripture says, ‘You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain,’ and, ‘The laborer deserves his wages.’”

   • The poor (Proverbs 19:17: “Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the LORD, and He will repay him for his deed.”

   • Widows and orphans (James 1:27: “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.”

   • Your Family (1 Timothy 5:8: “But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”

   • Fellow believers in need (Galatians 6:10: “So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.”

Conclusion: Freedom and Responsibility in Christian Giving

The evidence is clear:

Nowhere does the Old or New Testament command Christians to give 10% to the Church.

The Old Testament tithing system was Israel’s required taxation system, not a standard for free-will offerings, and effectively exceeded 23%.

Free-will giving was in addition to the three tithes taxation system during the Law age (10% Levitical, 10% Festival, and 10% every third year for the poor).

In the New Covenant, God has given us the freedom to give generously according to our means and our hearts’ purpose.

This doesn’t mean we should give less—many believers may find that generous, cheerful giving leads them to provide far more than 10%. The key difference is that such giving flows from gratitude and love, not obligation or fear.

Rather than imposing the legalistic standard of tithing, churches would do better to teach the joy of generous, grace-motivated giving and the truths of the Bible.

When believers understand God’s incredible generosity toward us, they will respond by giving freely and abundantly—not because they must, but because they want to.