(con't)
A lot of folks look at Jacob and his promise to tithe as a sort of template or example for us to follow today. However, I think most people really have no idea what is actually going on in the text. So let's look at it:
Genesis 28:10-22 And Jacob went out from Beersheba, and went toward Haran. (11) And he lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was set; and he took of the stones of that place, and put them for his pillows, and lay down in that place to sleep. (12) And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it. (13) And, behold, the LORD stood above it, and said, I am the LORD God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; (14) And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. (15) And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of. (16) And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew it not. (17) And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven. (18) And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put for his pillows, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it. (19) And he called the name of that place Bethel: but the name of that city was called Luz at the first. (20) And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, (21) So that I come again to my father's house in peace; then shall the LORD be my God: (22) And this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God's house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee.
So what actually happened here? God first promises to Jacob to give him and his descendants the land of Canaan. He also promises to increase his descendants, and to keep him safe on his journeys, and to bring him back to the Promised Land. Most importantly, ask yourself What did God promise to give Jacob?
The land of Canaan. And then in response, Jacob vows to give the tenth to God "of all that thou givest me". In other words, Jacob promised to give a tenth back to God of all that God gives him, which as we have seen was the land of Canaan. To make this clearer,
Jacob is vowing to give a tenth of the produce of the promised land back to God.
Now, the record of Jacob's journeys and return to the land of Canaan is well known. What is not so well known is the fact there is no record of Jacob ever fulfilling his vow. In fact, there is evidence in Scripture that Jacob never did actually fulfill this vow, at least not upon his return. Remember, Jacob got rather rich working for Laban. He increased greatly in goods and cattle. Yet, there is no record of him offering tithes upon his return. After his run-in with the men of Shechem, he embarks on a pilgrimage back to Bethel (where he had made his vow), and there he sets up an altar and pours a drink offering and an oil offering. But no tithe! (see
Genesis 35)
Now, we earlier asked "Why did Moses include the anecdote about Abraham and Melchizedek?" Let us ask the same question about Jacob and his vow of tithing. Remember, Jacob vowed to give a tithe of all that the Lord would give him. And what did the Lord promise to give him? the land of Canaan. So it is obvious why he did not tithe of anything that he got in Syria, while in Laban's employ. Because that cattle and wealth was not the product of the land which God promised to give Jacob.
The vow concerned the land (and its produce) which God promised to give Jacob.
So why did Moses include this account? Along with no account whatsoever of Jacob ever paying his tithes and making good on his vow? Let's look at something Moses said about the tithe:
Leviticus 27:30 And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the LORD'S: it is holy unto the LORD.
Leviticus 27:32 And concerning the tithe of the herd, or of the flock, even of whatsoever passeth under the rod, the tenth shall be holy unto the LORD.
A lot of people think that God just sort of came up with the idea for a ten percent tax on agricultural products, as a nifty means of supplying the Levites and priests with their sustenance. But closer inspection reveals something else going on. God says the tithe is His, it is holy unto the Lord. Something that is holy to the Lord is holy because it has been dedicated to the Lord.
Which is exactly what Jacob vowed.
God promised to give the land of Canaan to Jacob. And Jacob vowed to give back a tenth of that land's produce (crops and herds grown on that land). This means that the tithe or tenth of all agricultural produce (crops and herds) was already sacred, devoted to God, it already belonged to God. why? by a vow concerning those things made by Jacob.
Now, Jacob himself never actually inherited full ownership of the Promised Land. but his descendants did. The promise made to him was fulfilled by his descendants taking possession of the land from the Canaanites several centuries later. Here we see that God counts what Jacob's descendants would do as if Jacob did it (inheriting the land of Canaan). In other words, there is that continuity again, between a man and his descendants. A promise made to Jacob, God fulfills to his kids. And a vow made by Jacob, God requires the fulfillment of it from them.
Now we see why Moses included the story about Jacob's vow. It was in order to show the legal basis for God's claim on the tithe of the produce of the land of Israel. The tithe was required because Jacob, their ancestor had made a vow, and that vow was still binding on his descendants.
And now we understand why Malachi asked "Shall a man rob God of His tithes?" The tithes belonged to God because Jacob vowed them to God.
(con't in next post)