Part 2: But what about….?

 Now that we’ve laid a foundation, it’s time to tackle the big ‘But what about...?’ passages — the ones that tend to stir the most debate and deserve a closer, grace-filled look: 

 

What about Malachi 3:10? 

What about Abraham and Jacob giving before the Law?

 Let’s dive in together, not to argue, but to understand.

 So what about those early stories in Genesis?

Abraham giving a tenth to Melchizedek (Genesis 14:20) and Jacob vowing to give a tenth of everything he received (Genesis 28:22)?

 

Many often point to these moments as evidence that tithing predates the law and therefore remains binding. So, let’s take a look!

 

It’s absolutely true that these moments happen centuries before the Mosaic Covenant. Abraham gave a tenth of the spoils of war—once (that we know of), to the high priest Melchizedek.

 Here's the perspective we often don't hear, though: under Mosaic Law, that kind of offering wouldn’t have even been acceptable as a tithe, which makes it hard to make this out to be anything more than a gift, a gesture of honor and gratitude, not an ordinance being obeyed

 

Then there's Jacob. 

Jacob vowed to give a tenth of all that God gave him—but interestingly, we must ponder the fact that Jacob makes this promise to God—it suggests that giving 10% wasn’t something he was already doing. The text points to this gift as being a voluntary, spontaneous response to God’s presence and promise.

  

While that gives us one angle to consider, there’s another piece of the puzzle that adds even more depth to the conversation.

 

It’s worth gently considering that just because something happened before the Law doesn’t necessarily mean it was intended to carry on after the Law. That line of reasoning can feel convincing at first, but when we step back and look at the whole of Scripture, it starts to feel a bit less solid.

 

Take Job, for example—most scholars agree he lived before Moses, and yet we see him regularly offering sacrifices on behalf of his children, “just in case” they sinned (Job 1:5). But Job wasn’t alone. We see sacrifices as far back as Cain and Abel (Genesis 4), Noah offering burnt offerings after the flood (Genesis 8:20), and Abraham building multiple altars to the Lord (Genesis 12–22). These examples show that sacrificial practices existed long before the Law was given at Sinai—yet we don’t take them as evidence that personal animal sacrifices are meant to continue today. Their presence before the Law doesn’t automatically make them enduring.

 

The same can be said for the Levirate Law, which commanded a man to marry his brother’s widow if she had no children (Deuteronomy 25:5–10) and like tithing, it shows up in Scripture before the Law was fully established (Genesis 38)

 

To take this parallel even further, I'd like to point out how Jesus references the Levirate Law in Matthew 22, when the Sadducees pose a question about resurrection. He neither denounces it nor upholds it as binding—it’s simply part of the story. The same is true in Matthew 23:23, when He mentions the Pharisees tithing mint and dill. He acknowledges the practice (which by the way was over and above what the tithing law actually required -typical of Pharisees!), He neither denounces it nor upholds it as binding, but redirects it to the heart of the matter.

 

And while we’re on the topic, let’s look at the Sabbath, too. Sabbath observance was built into creation itself—God rested on the seventh day and later commanded Israel to do the same. And yet, under the New Covenant, Paul writes in Colossians 2:16–17, “Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.”

Even the Sabbath—which predates Mosaic Law and is explicitly commanded in it—is not a requirement for New Covenant believers. (although, as we'll talk about later, it may be in our best interest to observe it anyway!)

 

So if we’re no longer bound to Sabbath-keeping in the same way, despite its early and important presence in Scripture, nor the Levirate Law, nor offering sacrifices, we need to ask: why would we treat tithing differently?

 After exploring the offerings of Abraham and Jacob, we come to perhaps the most famous tithing verse in Scripture — Malachi 3:10. 

What exactly was God saying here? Let’s lean in and unpack the bigger story behind this powerful passage.

This passage is often the go-to when people believe that tithing is still a requirement for Christians. The language is strong

 “Will a man rob God?” 

 

And the promises sound compelling: 

 

“Bring the full tithe into the storehouse… and see if I won’t throw open the windows of heaven.” 

 

Let’s dive into this passage.

 

Malachi (a Prophet) is speaking to the Israelites under the Mosaic Covenant, during a time of deep spiritual neglect.

They weren’t just withholding money — they were disregarding their covenant responsibilities entirely.

The temple was falling into disrepair. The Levites, who relied on the tithe for survival, were being neglected. The problem was far bigger than finances — it was full-blown covenant unfaithfulness.

 

What we see in the context of this passage is not just a failure to tithe — it's a deep issue of disobedience.

Over and over, the people were offering God their leftovers,

the bare minimum, or worse —

The things they didn’t want anyway.

They were giving blemished sacrifices (Malachi 1:8), disregarding their covenant vows in marriage (Malachi 2:14), and questioning whether it was even worth serving the Lord (Malachi 3:14).

In every area, they were holding back — not just their dues, but their hearts.

 Money often exposes what’s going on underneath. It has a way of revealing our trust issues, our desire for control, our reluctance to surrender. 

 When God says, “Return to Me,” He wasn't just asking for a percentage of their income — He was calling for repentance.

 In a way, God could have been putting His finger on the thing they were most unwilling to give — not because He needed it, but because they needed to loosen their grip and transfer their trust back where it belonged. 

 

Their hearts seem to have grown cold — dulled by fear, choked by greed, numbed by entitlement. But God’s call to bring the tithe likely wasn’t just about their wallets; it was about their hearts. It was an invitation to return — to trust again, to obey again, to realign with the covenant they’d drifted from.

And God, ever faithful, wasn’t making a new promise when he told them he would open the widows of heaven— He was pointing back to the promise He’d already made, as if saying: “You’ve seen My word hold true in the curses… now come close and see if it doesn’t hold just as true in the blessings as well.”

 This was a direct reference to the covenant outlined in Deuteronomy 28 — a chapter where God detailed the blessings for Israel’s obedience and the curses for their rebellion. He had told them clearly what would happen if they remained faithful in the land He gave them, and what would happen if they turned away.

 

 Malachi 3 is God challenging His people to come back into that agreement — to once again walk in obedience and trust, and to receive the covenant blessings He had already set in place.

 

But let me clarify this point: as New Covenant believers, we live under a different promise. Jesus fulfilled the law and initiated a new kind of relationship — one not rooted in a land-based blessing system, but in spiritual adoption and eternal inheritance. Our covenant is not "if you obey, then I will bless you" — it’s "I have blessed you in Christ; now walk in the Spirit and live out the abundant life I have for you in Christ" (Ephesians 1:3, Galatians 3:13–14, Romans 8:1–4.)

 

We don't give to receive a material blessing — we give because we've already been richly blessed in Christ. We obey not to earn favor, but because grace has already made us favored. ( More about favor here )

 

Even today, money remains one of the last things we tend to surrender. But it’s never just about the money. It’s about whether we’ll let Jesus be Lord over all of us. Malachi reminds us that when God asks for something, it’s not because He needs it. It’s because He sees what’s keeping us from Him -from what's best for us.

 

 That invitation is still there,

 to trust, 

to obey,

 to realign our hearts 

But now it's not to secure blessings… It’s to enjoy the fullness of the blessings we've already been given through Jesus.

 

Coming up in Part 3, we’ll look at the idea of a tenth more closely—why that number shows up & what it might mean.

 

FAQ’s

  • Does Tithing Bring God’s Blessing?
    Many believers—maybe even you—have noticed that tithing often seems to coincide with experiencing God’s blessings. 
    Why is that? 

    First, I feel it’s important to point out that it’s dangerous to build our theology on experience alone—Scripture, not circumstance, is our steady and trustworthy guide. 
    Scripture never presents giving 10% to our local church as a guarantee of financial prosperity.

    There’s no magical promise tied to giving a tenth. 

    With that said we must also say that the Bible clearly points out that God does promise to reward generosity (Luke 6:38; 2 Corinthians 9:6).
    However, He never promises those rewards will be material or immediate.
    Not every generous person ends up wealthy—and that alone tells us God’s rewards aren’t always earthly.
    But we can give joyfully, knowing that our generosity is never wasted. God sees every act of faith, and we can look forward with hope to the treasures He’s storing up for us in eternity. 
    Consider the underground church around the world today—many believers give sacrificially while living in deep poverty and under persecution. Their reward isn’t a bigger house or safer life—it’s eternal treasure and the smile of their Savior. 
    A couple things to logically consider outside of what the Bible tells us: 

    • One study from Washington University in St. Louis found that people who commit to regular giving often make better financial decisions, build assets more effectively, and manage money with greater intentionality. Researchers call this “mental budgeting”—the idea that setting money aside for a specific purpose (like tithing) increases self-control and reduces impulsive spending. 

    • Under U.S. bankruptcy law (specifically Chapter 13), debtors are legally allowed to allocate up to 15% of their gross annual income for religious or charitable giving. That kind of clause doesn’t just appear by accident—it was added in 1998, twenty years after the modern bankruptcy code was written, through the Religious Liberty and Charitable Donation Protection Act. Why? Because enough people walking through financial crisis still insisted on tithing, viewing it as a matter of faith and obedience to God. Lawmakers recognized this persistent conviction and carved out legal space to protect it. 
      And that fact alone speaks volumes. If tithing always guaranteed financial blessing, why would so many faithful givers end up in bankruptcy court to begin with? Why would a law need to be written to defend their right to keep giving during financial collapse? This legal protection doesn’t undermine the value of generosity—it simply reminds us that giving isn’t a formula for earthly prosperity. 

    So, is there a “blessing” in tithing? 
    I would conclude that there’s no formula, although there are studies that show a lifestyle of consistent giving shapes our hearts, our habits, and often -our outcomes.

  • The New Testament doesn’t show Christians tithing in the same way Israel did under the Law. Instead, it emphasizes voluntary, Spirit-led giving—especially for the poor and for ministry support. In fact, the earliest church fathers (like Irenaeus and Justin Martyr) didn’t teach tithing as a mandate. 
    It wasn’t until centuries later, particularly in medieval Europe, that the institutional church adopted the tithe more formally—often as a state tax, not just a spiritual practice. In England, for instance, tithing became law under Alfred the Great and later became entangled with political power. So when we talk about “church tithing in history”… it gets VERY messy, because of how it was weaponized by politics. 
    The New Covenant model of giving is radically free: generous, cheerful, sacrificial, and full of love. And when people experience that kind of giving, it doesn’t shrink—it overflows.

  • It’s a fair question—especially if you’ve heard warnings like, “If we don’t all tithe, the lights will go off!” But let’s zoom out a bit. 
    Current data shows that only about 5% of churchgoers consistently give 10% of their income—and yet, many churches are still functioning, ministering, and even thriving. Most people that do give, give closer to 2% on average. Despite this, churches remain afloat due to: 

    • Diverse Giving Levels (some give more than 10%, some less) 

    • Alternative Revenue Streams (like event rentals or grants) 

    • Cost Management (churches adjust budgets based on actual giving) 
      Does that mean giving isn’t important? Not at all. But it does mean that God’s provision for His Church doesn’t hinge on a legalistic 10% rule. The Church is sustained by grace, generosity, and wisdom—not pressure. 
      Our call is not to “keep the lights on,” but to respond to the light we’ve been given in Christ. When we give as the Spirit leads, we become part of the Church’s mission, not just its maintenance. 

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The Tithe Unveiled: A 5-part series diving into the significance of the tenth

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Part 3: What’s So Special About a Tenth Anyways?