Tithing…Is it a command?

[Aquila]

Originally Posted by theoldpaths

Heb 7:8 And here men that die receive tithes; but there he receiveth them, of whom it is witnessed that he liveth.

Hebrews 7:8 (ESV)
8In the one case tithes are received by mortal men, but in the other case, by one of whom it is testified that he lives.

Dynamic equivalence of text in context...

Hebrews 7:8-9 (NLT)
6 But Melchizedek, who was not a descendant of Levi, collected a tenth from Abraham. And Melchizedek placed a blessing upon Abraham, the one who had already received the promises of God. 7 And without question, the person who has the power to give a blessing is greater than the one who is blessed.
8 The priests who collect tithes are men who die, so Melchizedek is greater than they are, because we are told that he lives on. 9 In addition, we might even say that these Levites—the ones who collect the tithe—paid a tithe to Melchizedek when their ancestor Abraham paid a tithe to him.

Remember, the tithe was commanded to be brought into the temple. The tithe was agrarian in nature and it wasn't permitted to exchange it into money without adding a fifth to it. In addition there were three tithes (Levitical tithe, Festival Tithe, and every third year's Poor Tithe). Now consider also Paul's historical context. When Paul wrote this the Temple was still standing and the Jewish priesthood of the temple were still receiving tithes. Paul was using this practice to emphasize the relationship of the priesthood to Melchizedek to emphasize Christ's greatness as our priest. Jesus Christ was the subject, not the tithe.

Various researchers have found that the early church was so mobile and advanced so quickly....they typically gave all and lived communally or gave to meet specific needs. They didn't tithe. Remember the tithe was agricultural. First, one would have to ask....where would they have stored such goods? The early church was poor and primarily gathered in small groups throughout the empire in homes (church buildings weren't built until about 250-300 years later by the Trinitarians). Most didn't own land. The Law of Moses required that only land owners who had crops or herds were to tithe "of the land". According to Jewish Law all poor, gleaners, tradesmen, fishermen, etc. were exempt from the tithe. The tithe was connected to the land...not industry. The tithe died with the Jewish Temple system it supported and wasn't seen again until the Catholic Church revived the practice centuries later.

The church functioned on free will giving. If one freely determines in their own heart to give 10% of their income to the church, praise God. However, tithing isn't a law or requirement Christians are bound to keep in this age.