Sometimes the topic of tithing appears in unexpected places in the Bible. One such place is the story of Jacob’s dream in Genesis. After seeing a breathtaking vision of stairs that reach to the heavens, Jacob responded to God with a promise: he pledged to give a “tenth” (עַשֵּׂר; aser) of everything that Hashem would give to him (Gen 28:22). Since Scripture typically frames tithing as an ordinance connected to priests and Temple (cf. Lev 27:30-32; Num 18:21; Deut 12:17; Neh 10:38; Mal 3:8-10), a question arises for the reader of Genesis: How would Jacob fulfill his pledge before the Temple existed?  

Note that Jacob promised to give God a “tenth” with specific conditions: God was to protect him, keep him safe, provide food and clothing, and allow him to return to Canaan. Only then, says Jacob, will “the LORD will be my God (וְהָיָה יהוה לִי לֵאלֹהִים; vehaya YHWH li le-Elohim)” (Gen 28:20-21). Jacob would give God a tenth of everything because the Almighty would prove himself to be generous, caring, faithful, and trustworthy. Tithing (giving a tenth) is an act of worship – a token of allegiance and recognition of who truly provides all the goods that the worshipper enjoys.

Since, in the days of the patriarchs, Jacob’s God did not yet have a Temple or appoint a priesthood, Jacob planned to give this tenth in the form of a burnt offering. After returning to Canaan, Jacob bought land near the city of Shechem (Gen 33:18) and he immediately erected an altar there and called it “God, the God of Israel” (אֵל אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל; El-Elohei-Israel). Then Jacob moved to Bethel, the very spot where he saw his vision of the heavenly staircase. Jacob built an altar there as well and called it “The God of Bethel” (אֵל בֵּית־אֵל; El-Beit-El). Jacob gave God the tenth that he pledged and it all went up in smoke as an act of devotion to the LORD.

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  1. Why did Jacob call two altars he built “god”? Did he believe there was a god of Bethel and a god of Israel as well? Is this just the way Prof. Shri writes? Or is there a deeper meaning? Could you please clarify this for me?
    John. M.

    • John, Jacob merely identified where he encountered God. He is not conceiving of multiple gods per se, just expressing it in a way modern-day people are not used to. In the ancient world, deities were very much tied to physical locations and that plays into his thinking.

  2. So what God gave to the children of Israel as an ordinance to wash away their sin is a form tithing; what of the tenth they gave to the priests, was it not a tenth of what they produced and had in livestock? Why were Israelite male supposed to appear

    • I do not know what you mean by “ordinance to wash away their sin is a form tithing” to answer your question. Be specific, give a reference. Otherwise too vague…

  3. Thanks for very helpful thought on tithe there are times that we often question old testament characters on tithe for example Priest Melchizedek who is he, is he God still remains mystery right?

    • There are many Melchizedek traditions out there. Don’t really want to get into it, because that is not the topic of the article, a relatively minor issue and highly subjective unless a particular text is in view.

  4. Tithe is simply an adjective that describes as tenth part. Tithing is a verb that describes the act of giving a tenth part of something or anything. God wants the whole of us, to use all that we got for His glory, lives totally surrendered to God, Creator of all.

  5. Sorry, but it seems like a waste of resources.

    At least with the temple sacrifices, those sacrifices were used to feed the priests.

    But just to burn 10% of one’s goods seems to me like “burning money”. I can’t see any reason for this waste of resources.


    • I totally get it. But this is where most of us modern people cannot understand the way the ancients worshipped. And it is our loss. Refusal to understand the way the patriarchs thought and worshiped will lead to our inability to understand the revelation they received from their Maker. That is why the Torah remains a sealed book for some many people.

  6. Dear Prof. Am I correct in stating that God never requested the tithe, but that it is indeed a suggestion made by the fathers of Israel? If so, did God express His acceptance of the suggestion somewhere or did it simply became customary practice. Shalom to all.

    • In the age of the patriarchs, they simply followed the custom of showing honor to a local ruler. This was not a normal way for everyone in the near east to pay homage and show allegiance. You can say they treated God in a way they would have treated a local King. At least in a similar way. And it seems that God did not object, but deemed it a meaningful and acceptable way to be worshipped. So perhaps this is how it started. But we should not exclude a possibility of special revelation too. Just because we do not have the information does not mean it did not happen.

  7. In Gen. 14: 17 – 20 is found one of the earliest recorded applications of the tithe on a “public” scale with the Melchizedek, king of Salem, involved. Is Melchizedek an historically verified figure (as some see him as a precursor to Jesus i.e. simultaneously King and High Priest). Blessings!

  8. I’ve been a born again Christian for more than 30 years but there still so much that I need to learn. I’ve got this burning need to understand the word, to please God but somehow I feel like I always fall short. Can you help?

    • Sylvia, you are not alone here. I have been studying these things most of my life and I too have so much to learn. My service to help people understand the Scriptures to the degree that I have understood them. My proposal is let’s learn together and continue growing in Hashem together. Iron sharpens iron. Join us and lets study together!

  9. Shalom Prof. Shir; Was where “Jacob built an altar and called it “The God of Bethel”” was this the same place where Abram built the altar after God’s appearance? A second question did this place then become Bethlehem?
    Thank you ProffessorShir for your insights. 🙂

    • Second question – no. First question – Which instance? God appeared to Abraham many times… If you pull up particular text, the contexts will usually tell you where that happened. A good Atlas of the Bible or Biblical dictionary will give you an answer where that location was exactly. What I am saying, Rodney, – a little research and you can answer your own question! Wouldn’t that be ideal?

  10. The bible does not make it clear that Jacob gave tithing. The fact that he erected two altars and offered sacrifices there is no proof, only that he was worshiping God on those specific occasions. But as for tithing, it means nothing.

    • You are absolutely correct. No explicit evidence of tenth in those texts. All we know Jacob made a promise to give God his tenth. My suggestion is that this is how he did it. This is an educated guess. Otherwise, we have no record of Jacobe ever fulfilling his promise to God.


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