On this frequently asked questions about tithing, we are going to answer the question: who does the tithe belong to?

Across the whole Christendom in the modern era, Christians are continously brain wash to believe that tithes belong to their charismatic leaders and founders.

But in this frequently asked about tithing, I am going to reveal to you with biblical proofs those that the tithes belong to.

We are going to obtain this knowledge by comparing the origin of tithing to how the Jews were commanded to tithe in the law of Moses.

Thus, in this frequently asked questions about tithing, we are going to deal with the following sub-topics:

1. Who does the tithe belong to in Judaism?
2. The origin of tithing in the bible.
3. Why tithes were no longer paid to the priests.
4. Why tithes were paid to Levites, strangers, orphans and widows.
5. How to substitute the priests and Levites in Christendom.
6. Who does the tithe belong to in Christendom?

And without much waste of time, let’s get down to this religious discourse immediately.

Who does the tithe belong to in Judaism?

According to Numbers 18:21-24 and Deuteronomy 14:27-29, tithe in Judaism belongs to the Levites, the worshipper and his family, the strangers, orphans and the widows.

Now let’s outline those 2 scriptural passages to ease your confirmation.

Numbers 18;21-24

“Behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tithes in Israel as an inheritance in return for the work which they perform, the work of the tabernacle of meeting. Hereafter the children of Israel shall not come near the tabernacle of meeting, lest they bear sin and die. 

But the Levites shall perform the work of the tabernacle of meeting, and they shall bear their iniquity; it shall be a statute forever, throughout your generations, that among the children of Israel they shall have no inheritance. 

For the tithes of the children of Israel, which they offer up as a heave offering to the Lord, I have given to the Levites as an inheritance; therefore I have said to them, ‘Among the children of Israel they shall have no inheritance.’ ”

Deuteronomy 14:27-29.

You shall not forsake the Levite who is within your gates, for he has no part nor inheritance with you. “At the end of every third year you shall bring out the tithe of your produce of that year and store it up within your gates. 

And the Levite, because he has no portion nor inheritance with you, and the stranger and the fatherless and the widow who are within your gates, may come and eat and be satisfied, that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hand which you do.

The simple explanation of the 2 passages is that, every year the worshipper must gather his tithe and go to the temple with his family to eat it.

Then on the third year of tithing, that is after every 3 years; the worshipper must pay the to the Levites, strangers, orphans and the widows.

And I hope you can easily see those who the tithe belong to now.

But let us go and see the origin of tithing in the bible to discover if this was the original settings.

The origin of tithing in the bible.

And the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley), after his return from the defeat of Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him.

Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was the priest of God Most High. 

And he blessed him and said: “Blessed be Abram of God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth; And blessed be God Most High, Who has delivered your enemies into your hand.” And he gave him a tithe of all. .

Genesis 14:17-20

As we can see from the above scriptural text, Abram, whose name was later changed to Abraham; was the first person to pay tithe in the bible.

And as we can also see, he made this payment of tithe to Melchizedek, who was the king of Salem and a priest of the Most High God.

And with this knowledge, we can discover that tithe originally belonged to the priest.

But let’s get down to our next sub-topics to see why tithe were no longer paid to the priest; as Abram did to Melchizedek.

Why tithes were no longer paid to the priests.

According to the bible in Numbers 18:8-19, God allocated the offerings to the priest, instead of the tithes.

And as we saw earlier in Numbers 18:21-24 and Deuteronomy 14:27-29; tithes were allocated to the worshipper and his family, the Levites, strangers, orphans and the widows.

Now let’s see why this was so in our next sub-topic.

Why tithes were paid to the Levites, strangers, orphans and widows.

In Numbers 3:5-12, we discover how God commissioned the tribe of Levi, also known as Levites; to assist Aaron, who was the priest.

Also in Deuteronomy 14:29, we discover that the Levites, strangers, orphans and widows; were given the tithes because they had no inheritance in the land of Israel.

And the Levite, because he has no portion nor inheritance with you, and the stranger and the fatherless and the widow who are within your gates, may come and eat and be satisfied, that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hand which you do.

This inheritance is literally a city to live and farmland where the farm produce paid as tithes were cultivated.

We can get this understanding from Numbers 35:2-8; where God commanded the Israelites to give the Levites an inheritance from their possession; away from where other Israelites were not living.

How to substitute the Jewish priests and Levites in Christendom.

As recorded in Numbers 18:1-7, Aaron was the priest, and together with his son’s; their duty was to offer sacrifices and mediate between the Jewish worshippers and God.

And the duties of the Levites was to assist the priest.

So if we substitute this for Christendom, the founders, popularly called General Overseer; of our Christian denominations will replace the priest. While other pastor’s and ministers ordained in the particular denomination will replace the Levites.

Who does the tithe belong to in Christendom.

Now after substituting the priest in Judaism for the General overseers in Christianity; and the Levites for the pastor’s or other ministers ordained in Christian denominations; we can finally understand that the tithe in Christendom belongs to the pastor’s and ministers.

And we must not also forget to eat our own tithes with our families and also give to the strangers, orphans and widows as we saw in Deuteronomy 14:27-29.

And as we can see in Numbers 18:25-32; the pastor’s and ministers are to pay tithe from the tithes they receive to the general overseers.

Bible verse about Levites paying tithes to the priest.

Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak thus to the Levites, and say to them: ‘When you take from the children of Israel the tithes which I have given you from them as your inheritance, then you shall offer up a heave offering of it to the Lord, a tenth of the tithe. 

And your heave offering shall be reckoned to you as though it were the grain of the threshing floor and as the fullness of the winepress. 

Thus you shall also offer a heave offering to the Lord from all your tithes which you receive from the children of Israel, and you shall give the Lord’s heave offering from it to Aaron the priest.

Which means that tithes do not belong to the General Overseers or founders of our Christian denominations.

So if you are paying tithes to them, you are not tithing correctly.

You can read other frequently asked questions about tithing below.