The truth about tithes and offerings

 

The Truth about tithes and offerings

The comparison between Melchizedek and Jesus is NOT a case for Tithing

Hebrews 7 is a new testament Scripture used to promote the requirement for Christians to tithe; however, the purpose of this chapter is not to promote tithing in the church, but to explain the change in priesthood from men who are limited by death to that of Jesus whose priesthood is FOREVER. Death, hades, and the devil could not stop him from being a priest FOREVER. It is very important we understand who Melchizedek is; let’s see what the Scriptures say about Melchizedek.  

 Melchizedek is NOT Jesus.

The first time Melchizedek is mentioned in the bible is in Genesis 14:18; prior to this verse, we are not told anything about him. The bible normally tells us who the father and, or mother of a person of interest is; in the case of Melchizedek, we are not told who the parents are. The reader is also not told who or when he was anointed/appointed priest or king, neither are we told anything about the people Melchizedek is king over! The lack of this type of records on Melchizedek has led to several theories on who he is.  There is a sense of mystery when Melchizedek is brought up on the pulpit or in conversations; some have concluded that he is a preincarnation of Jesus in the Old Testament, while others have just given up on trying to know who he is. I was one of the people who resigned myself to getting to know who Melchizedek is when I get to heaven, but a good pastor friend of mine asked me the question: who is Melchizedek? I simply answered “he is what the bible says he is”. My friend laughed at my response; because I had to attend to some matters, we ended the conversation there. However, the question never left me: who is Melchizedek? I picked up my bible and prayed for understanding on who he is; The Lord answered my prayer and showed me who he is.  I am going to share this with you. First we need to realize that Melchizedek was made like Jesus; a likeness is not the same as the object it is made like. However, the likeness bears resemblance to the object it is made like. God created man in his image, after his likeness; this does not make man God the father. Now let’s read the first verse where Melchizedek is mentioned in the bible:

 Genesis 14:18 – “Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was the priest of God Most High.” (NKJV)

 This verse clearly describes Melchizedek as a king that existed in the days of Abraham, he was the king of Salem. The amplified bible elaborates on Salem in parenthesis “ancient Jerusalem”. Joshua 10 also makes reference to Salem and the king at the time, Adoni-Zedek. Adoni-Zedek of Jerusalem (formally Salem) went to war against Joshua with 4 other kings; he and the four kings fell before Joshua. This shows us that Salem was an actual place that existed in the days of Abraham; Salem had kings and Melchizedek was one of their kings who reigned in the days of Abraham. Adoni-Zedek was also the king of the same Salem (Jerusalem), but he existed in the time of Joshua. Reference to Melchizedek as the king of Salem is not a figure of speech or some mystical expression to hide his true identity.

 The name Adoni-Zedek is actually similar in meaning to Melchizedek, it means king of righteousness or my lord is righteousness. Melchizedek means king of righteousness (Hebrews 7:2); so, both Adoni-Zedek and Melchizedek mean king of righteousness, and both were kings of Salem i.e. king of peace. And like Melchizedek, there is no record of Adoni-Zedek’s father, mother, siblings, and genealogy.  Do these comparison between Adoni-zedek and Melchizedek sound familiar? These are some of the similarities between Jesus and Melchizedek, which inevitably they share with Adoni-Zedek who is not a priest of God, nor is there any indication that he walked with, or believed in The Lord God. So if there is no indication that Adoni-Zedek walked with The Lord, I believe it is safe to say that some might be reading too much into the interpretation of the name of Melchizedek to conclude that he is Jesus. As Hebrews 7 points out, there are comparisons to make between Melchizedek and Jesus, but the purpose behind these comparisons is not a case for tithing. Before we go into Hebrews 7, let’s look into some other Scriptures about Melchizedek; I believe this will give us a clearer picture of the comparison the Word of God is making between Melchizedek and Jesus.

The change in Priesthood

After Genesis 14, the next time we see Melchizedek mentioned is in one of the Psalms of King David; this Psalm is also quoted by the writer(s) of Hebrews:

 Psalm 110:4 “The Lord has sworn And will not relent, “You are a priest forever According to the order of Melchizedek.” Hebrews 5:6 - As He also says in another place: “You are a priest forever According to the order of Melchizedek”;” (NKJV)

 The emphasis in this psalm is that the priesthood of Jesus is FOREVER, just as the priesthood of Melchizedek never ended. This psalm is quoted twice in Hebrews 5 to imply the same thing: Jesus is a priest FOREVER after the order of Melchizedek. Under the Levitical priesthood, when priests died, someone else took their place; however, there is no record of anyone taking over the priesthood of Melchizedek, neither will anyone take over the priesthood of Jesus.

Hebrews 6: 19 – 20 “This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which enters the Presence behind the veil, where the forerunner has entered for us, even Jesus, having become High Priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.” (NKJV)

These verses in Hebrews 6 further highlight the actual comparison being made between Jesus and Melchizedek. Verse 19 talks about how Jesus has gone behind the veil, which the Levitical high priest did yearly to offer sacrifices for both the priest and the people with the blood of animals. The Lord Jesus went in once and for all, having become High Priest FOREVER in the order of Melchizedek! We know that Melchizedek did not die for our sins, so there is only one comparison here between Jesus and Melchizedek, it is the unending FOREVER priesthood! Now let’s take a look at Hebrews 7.

Hebrews 7

Hebrews 7:2 “Then Abraham took a tenth of all he had captured in battle and gave it to Melchizedek. The name Melchizedek means “king of justice,” and king of Salem means “king of peace.” (NKJV)

Hebrews 7:2 reemphasizes exactly what Abraham paid a tithe of, the spoils of war; this verse does not say that he gave a tithe of his personal belongings nor that he ever gave Melchizedek a tithe at any other time. To say this was one of many times that Abraham paid a tithe to Melchizedek would be adding to the bible; the bible does not say nor imply this.

Hebrews 7:3  “without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, remains a priest continually.” (NKJV)

Verse 3 shows us again the actual comparison the writer is really trying to make here – both Melchizedek and Jesus continue to be a priest perpetually. This verse actually states that Melchizedek was made like Jesus.

Hebrews 7: 5&6 “And indeed those who are of the sons of Levi, who receive the priesthood, have a commandment to receive tithes from the people according to the law, that is, from their brethren, though they have come from the loins of Abraham; but he whose genealogy is not derived from them received tithes from Abraham and blessed him who had the promises.” (NKJV)

Under the law, the sons of Levi are commanded by God to receive tithes from their brothers, but Melchizedek whose genealogy is not in the line of Abraham received tithes from Abraham. On the other hand, Jesus is also not from the tribe of Levi, but as we saw earlier, He went behind the veil to perform priestly duties by presenting his blood for our sins. The comparison here is that both Melchizedek and Jesus performed priestly duties that were, under the law, only the responsibilities of the Levitical priests.

Hebrews 7: 8&9 “Here mortal men receive tithes, but there he receives them, of whom it is witnessed that he lives.  Even Levi, who receives tithes, paid tithes through Abraham, so to speak,”  (NKJV)

“Mortal men” in verse 8 is referring to Levites, not pastors like some have interpreted it to mean; verse 9 clearly states this: “…even Levi …”. “But there he receives them” is referring to Melchizedek, not Jesus as some have inferred. It is important to point out here that the comparison in verse 8 and 9 about receiving tithes is between Melchizedek and the Levitical priesthood, not Jesus. Jesus is never recorded in the bible, nor is his disciples, to have ever received tithes from anyone while physically on earth. With this understanding, we see that the true purpose of these verses is another comparison between Melchizedek and Jesus, HE LIVES! Unlike priests under the Levitical priesthood who die and their successors take over from them, in the case of Melchizedek it is witnessed that he lives; like Melchizedek, JESUS LIVES! He rose from the dead on the third day and he lives forever. The declaration in these verses in Hebrews 7 is that Jesus is our High Priest and HE LIVES FOREVER! Amen!

 

Abraham’s Tithe to Melchizedek

                                                                                        picture source: www.borntowin.net
The tithe of Abraham to Melchizedek is very often used as the foundational argument for tithing in the church; the view is that since he is the father of faith, if he gave tithes, we should also tithe. It is important we take a look at what Abraham did when he gave Melchizedek a tenth. First and foremost, the Scripture nowhere indicates that God asked Abraham to do this, to make this deduction, we would have to add to the Word of God. The bible also does not tell us why Abraham gave Melchizedek a tenth and I am not going to speculate on why he did.

 “And blessed be God Most High, Who has delivered your enemies into your hand.” And he gave him a tithe of all” (Genesis 14:20). If Abraham’s tithe to Melchizedek is a requirement for the church, it appears the only things we should tithe are the spoils of war. There is no Scripture that shows us that Abraham gave a tithe of any of his possessions; the only record of a tithe by Abraham is a tithe of spoils of a war. Let us compare the tithe of Abraham to the instruction God gave the children of Israel concerning the spoils of a particular war recorded in Numbers 31:25-31:

 

Numbers 31:25-31 – “Now the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: “Count up the plunder that was taken—of man and beast—you and Eleazar the priest and the chief fathers of the congregation; and divide the plunder into two parts, between those who took part in the war, who went out to battle, and all the congregation. And levy a tribute (tax) for the Lord on the men of war who went out to battle: one of every five hundred of the persons, the cattle, the donkeys, and the sheep; take it from their half, and give it to Eleazar the priest as a heave offering to the Lord. And from the children of Israel’s half you shall take one of every fifty, drawn from the persons, the cattle, the donkeys, and the sheep, from all the livestock, and give them to the Levites who keep charge of the tabernacle of the Lord.” So Moses and Eleazar the priest did as the Lord commanded Moses.”

Obviously missing from this passage is God asking for a tithe of the spoils; He actually called what He asked of the soldiers a levy (tax)! The instructions given by God about the spoils bring the levy of the soldiers to about 0.2% of what the soldiers got, and only about 2% of the rest of the congregation. The total percentage of the persons, donkeys, and the cattle that were given to The Lord adds up to about 1.1%, not 10%. Something important to note in the passage above is that God did not include gold, which they also plundered, in the levy He asked of them. Verses 50-54 of Numbers 31 talks about how the soldiers gave a freewill offering of the ornaments of gold as gratitude to The Lord for none of the soldiers dying in battle. God did not request a levy of the gold ornaments! If the action of Abraham was an everlasting ordinance from God, like some have suggested, the requirements/actions in both cases should be the same.

 Another point to keep in mind in regards to the tithe of Abraham to Melchizedek is that the bible never tells us that Abraham ever gave another tenth of anything, either spoils or not, to Melchizedek or any other person. Hebrews 7:4 even shows us that this was a singular act, not something done repeatedly by Abraham. Hebrews 7:4 – “Just think how great he was: Even the patriarch Abraham gave him a tenth of the plunder!” (NIV). This verse points to the fact that Abraham only gave a tenth of the plunder we read about in Genesis 14; he did not give a tithe of anything else, not even once does the bible indicate that he ever gave any other tithe to anyone else.

 Genesis 14: 22 – 23 – “But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have raised my hand to the Lord, God Most High, the Possessor of heaven and earth, that I will take nothing, from a thread to a sandal strap, and that I will not take anything that is yours, lest you should say, ‘I have made Abram rich’”
 

If Abraham’s actions in Genesis 14 is indeed the Christian’s guide to tithing, then we need to follow it all the way through. Abraham did not keep any part of the spoil of war, he gave his portion to the king of Sodom! He had a right to keep it since he fought the battle against the kings and won, but as we see in the above passage, he did not keep any of it for himself. He gave it all away. To teach the encounter with Melchizedek as the foundation for the church, we would need to follow the second part where he gave the remaining part (his portion) to the king of Sodom. For the church to follow Abraham’s example in Genesis 14, we need to give 10% to the church (as it is preached today), and then give the 90% back to our employers, clients, customers and coworkers. Sounds ridiculous? That is actually what Abraham did in this encounter with Melchizedek and the King of Sodom. As our salaries are our rights for working for an employer, so was the plunder to Abraham for going to war and winning. Using Abraham’s tithe to Melchizedek as the reason Christians are to tithe is not right; it was not an eternal ordinance from God to Abraham, neither is it a command of God to the church today.