Previously, we looked at the tithe in the Old Testament and how it was largely an agricultural gift, as opposed to a monetary one. Here, I want to examine the New Testament's thoughts on the tithe.
There's actually not much that is said about the tithe in the New Testament, so little, in fact, that we can cover it all here. Most of the mentions of the tithe are in the Gospels, with one reference to the tithe in the epistles, specifically in Hebrews.
Hebrews 7:1-10 really just mentions the tithe as a thing that exists. It talks about how Abraham gives a tithe of his goods to Melchizedek, king of Salem, back in Genesis 14:20b. The epistle points out that this tithe Abraham gives is similar to the tithe given to the Levites, who were priests. The tithe, in Hebrews, is really just a proof that Melchizedek is not only a king but a priest as well, just as Jesus is both priest and king. Note too that the tithe referenced here is still agricultural, not monetary.
Jesus, however, doesn't look at the tithe quite so neutrally. In Luke 18:9-14, Jesus tells the Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector. There, the tithe, given by the Pharisee, is monetary, a 10% gift of income. But it is the Tax Collector who is ultimately justified, not the Pharisee.
The Pharisee is looked down on in this parable, as the text implies, because he gives not to glorify God, but to glorify himself. In other words, he is giving for the wrong reason.
In Matthew 23, Jesus gives a long list of "woes" against the scribes and Pharisees. In Matthew 23:23-24, Jesus specially refers to tithing in his woes, saying,
"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint, dill, and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. It is these you ought to have practiced without neglecting the others."
Note two things here:
1) The tithe is agricultural here.
2) Jesus is not saying we shouldn't give, merely that our ultimate focus should be on Justice, Mercy, and Faith. In other words, our mindset should be on the Two Great Commandments: "Love God with all your heart, your soul, and your mind, and love your neighbor as yourself." This of course takes us back to what was said in the previous Faith Fact on the tithe.
Where do we do from here? We center our giving on nothing else but trying to live out the Two Great Commandments. More on that next time on Faith Facts.
Note: My research into this topic was aided by my notes from Pastoral Theology II at The School of Theology at The University of the South, Sewanee, TN.