What Does the Bible Say About Tithing? Should Christians Still Give 10 Percent?
One of the Most Practically Searched Bible Questions
What does the Bible say about tithing? It is a question that sits at the intersection of faith and everyday life in a very direct way. Your bank account is involved. Your giving habits are involved. And for many people, there is a mix of guilt, confusion, and genuine desire to honor God that makes this question urgent rather than merely academic.
Tithing consistently ranks among the top fifteen most searched Bible questions in English-speaking countries, and it is not hard to understand why. Churches preach about it. Financial pressure makes people wrestle with it. And the difference between the Old Testament commands on tithing and the New Testament teaching on generosity can be genuinely confusing to navigate. This guide tries to walk through all of it honestly.
What Is Tithing? The Biblical Definition
The word “tithe” simply means “tenth.” To tithe is to give one tenth of something. In the Old Testament, the tithe was a tenth of one’s agricultural produce and livestock, given to support the Levites, the tribe of Israel set apart for religious service who received no land inheritance of their own. Deuteronomy 14:22-23 gives a clear picture of this: “Be sure to set aside a tenth of all that your fields produce each year.”
There were actually multiple tithes commanded in the Old Testament law, not just one. One went to support the Levites (Numbers 18:21), another was connected to the feasts and worship calendar (Deuteronomy 14:22-26), and a third came every three years for the poor and the stranger (Deuteronomy 14:28-29). When you add these up, the total could be closer to 20-23 percent of annual produce, not simply 10 percent.
Tithing in the Old Testament: Abraham and Jacob
Tithing actually predates the Mosaic Law, which is significant. In Genesis 14:18-20, Abraham gave a tenth of everything he had captured in battle to Melchizedek, the priest of God Most High. This was a spontaneous act of worship and honor, not a legal obligation. It showed that the principle of giving a portion back to God was built into the heart of faith long before Moses ever wrote Leviticus.
Jacob made a similar voluntary vow in Genesis 28:22: “Of all that you give me I will give you a tenth.” Again, this was a response of worship and trust, not compliance with a legal requirement. These early examples suggest that generous, proportional giving to God is a natural expression of a life that recognizes everything comes from Him.
Did Jesus Teach About Tithing?
Jesus mentioned tithing only twice in the Gospels, and both times in the context of warning against a legalistic spirit that uses religious giving to avoid the weightier matters of the law. In Matthew 23:23 He said: “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices, mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law: justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.”
Notice that Jesus affirmed tithing (“without neglecting the former”) while challenging the heart behind it. He was not abolishing the practice. He was refusing to let people use it as a substitute for loving God and people genuinely. External religious compliance was never the point. The heart always was.
What the New Testament Teaches About Giving
The New Testament does not repeat the tithe as a legal command for Christians. What it does instead is raise the standard significantly. The New Testament model of giving is not a minimum percentage but a posture of radical generosity that flows from a transformed heart.
2 Corinthians 9:6-7 is the clearest New Testament teaching on Christian giving: “Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”
Three principles emerge from this passage that should shape Christian giving:
It should be decided in the heart. Not dictated by guilt or pressure from the front of a church, but settled between you and God in prayer and faith.
It should not be reluctant. If giving makes you resentful, something in your heart has not yet caught up with what grace really means. God gave His Son. What we give back is always a response to what has already been given to us.
It should be cheerful. The word Paul uses in Greek literally carries the idea of hilarity, of joyful abandon. The person who understands grace gives with that kind of freedom.
Should Christians Give 10 Percent Today?
Here is the practical answer that most people are looking for. No, there is no direct New Testament command requiring Christians to give exactly 10 percent. The tithe as a legal requirement belongs to the Mosaic covenant framework, which Christ has fulfilled.
However, many pastors and biblical scholars suggest that the tithe remains a very practical and wisdom-filled starting point for Christian giving. Here is why. If the Old Testament people of God, living under law and without the full revelation of the cross, gave 10 percent as a baseline, it seems inconsistent for New Testament believers, who have received so much more grace, to give less. The tithe does not become the ceiling of Christian giving. It can serve as a wise, workable floor from which to grow.
The early church in Acts 2 and 4 went dramatically beyond a 10 percent tithe. They sold possessions and shared everything with those in need. They gave until no one among them was in want (Acts 4:34). That was not law-keeping. It was love overflowing.
The Heart Behind the Gift
In the end, the most important thing the Bible says about tithing is not the percentage. It is the heart. Malachi 3:10, one of the most famous tithing passages, comes with a remarkable promise: “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse… Test me in this, says the Lord Almighty, and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.”
God is not running short of resources. He is inviting His people into a relationship with Him that includes their finances, because He knows that what we do with money reveals what we truly trust and what we truly treasure. Jesus said in Matthew 6:21: “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
If you are praying about how to grow in your giving, start by reading this message on persistent, faithful prayer which addresses how we bring our real needs and desires honestly before God. And for encouragement when the question of giving feels heavy and hard, this message on divine reassurance is a good companion for you.
Give because you have been given to. Give cheerfully because grace is real. Give generously because God is faithful. That is the Bible’s heart on tithing, and it is a much freer and more joyful place than mere compliance with a percentage.
