This ancient principle is the same today: sharing God’s blessings will also enrich your life.
The last eight verses of Deuteronomy 14 again discuss the tithe. This seems to mean a second tithe, because a first tithe was to be given to the Levites, out of which they also gave a tenth of that tenth to the priests (Num 18:24-28). This second tithe was to be eaten before the Lord each year (Deut 14:23) except in the third year (and perhaps the sixth year) when it was given to the Levites and the poor (vv 28-29). The seventh year was a Sabbath for the land, and then all things were common (Ex 23:10-11). Is that clear? Well, this much is evident. The tithe was intended to remind the people that all of their crops belonged to the Lord, but His bounty was to be enjoyed and shared—after His portion was taken out. The second fact was God’s desire to celebrate with His people. “And you shall eat before the Lord your God, in the place where He chooses to make His name abide, the tithe of your grain and your new wine and your oil, of the firstborn of your herds and your flocks” (Deut 14:23). Third, God is both thoughtful and practical. What if “the journey is too long for you, so that you are not able to carry the tithe, or if the place where the Lord your God chooses to put His name is too far from you” (v 24)? Then they could sell the tithe, carry the money to the place of meeting and, once there, they could “spend that money for whatever your heart desires…you shall eat there before the Lord your God, and you shall rejoice, you and your household” (v 26). Oh the shame of turning this place of festal joy and fellowship with God into “a house of merchandise,” as it was in Jesus’ day (Jn 2:13-17). But oh the joy of families who walk together in simple obedience to the Lord! “Happy are the people whose God is the Lord!” (Ps 144:15).