Daily Meditations

Hebrews 7:5 A tenth for the priesthood It’s time to have a look at exactly what the law does say about tithing. In Deuteronomy 14 we read that the Israelites were commanded to set aside a tenth of all that their fields produced, this tithe was to be taken to the cities and towns where it could be distributed to the Levites. At the end of every 3 years the tithes that were stored would be distributed amongst Levites, foreigners, the fatherless and widows. How this was all logistically arranged is not clear but there was no excuse for not taking part, your neighbours would all know how well you had done anyway! The Lord had instructed Moses,  “I give to the Levites all the tithes in Israel as their inheritance in return for the work they do while serving at the tent of meeting. ”  In other words, the tithes were the wages of the priesthood.  The point being made by the author of Hebrews is that this obligation to tithe fell on all Israelites. Whilst the members of the ...

Hebrews 7:4 All about tithing This is a simple statement but there are implications. As we have already determined, the one who receives a tithe is greater than the one who pays it! In fact, the only records of tithing in Scripture appear to be those of men making an offering in obedience to the Lord God. In these cases, and the same applies to us, we sacrifice our time, money, assets etc because we realise that the God whom we worship is the One who provides us with everything we own in the first place! In effect we are giving back to Him what is already His, that has been loaned to us!  A tithe is also an act of gratitude, we recognise that we have been given so much and we want to show appreciation and to demonstrate that we are not wholly selfish or greedy about what we have, there is One who has made all of this possible. Thank You Lord!  The practise of tithing originates in the Mosaic Law and is described in Deuteronomy 14 and Numbers 18:21. The offerings made by the pe...

Hebrews 7:3 Who is Melchizedek? This enigmatic verse explains that there is a reason why we know so little about Melchizedek. We all know how important genealogies were to the Israelites, they were a fundamental part of their culture. Originally, every man, woman and child knew their family tree, from what tribe they originated and the tract of land that belonged to them. In the Book of Genesis each character that is mentioned is accompanied at some point by their genealogy so that there might be no doubt as to where they fitted into the history of Israel. Thus, it is intriguing to meet someone whose father and mother are not named, we know nothing about the ancestors of Melchizedek, we do not know when or where he was born, whether he was married and had children or when and where he died. There is absolutely no information available about this man. However, the veracity of his existence is never in doubt, if Abraham, the father of Israel, said he met him and conversed with him, then ...

Hebrews 7:2 Abraham gave a tenth of everything So far as we are aware, Abraham was the first human being to make a tithe to someone he believed to be greater than himself. The ritual of tithing reoccurs often in Scripture, particularly in the context of our offering one tenth of our money or assets to the Lord. Leviticus 27:30 reminded the Israelites, “ A tithe of everything from the land, whether grain from the soil or fruit from the trees, belongs to the Lord; it is holy to the Lord. Whoever would redeem any of their tithe must add a fifth of the value to it.”  The instruction here goes on to set out that every tenth animal of the herd or flock will also be holy to the Lord. The rules about tithes are expanded upon throughout the Old Testament and are more complex than many might think. The point here is, that Abraham was the first, he set the pattern that his descendants would follow, and the surprise is that he tithed the spoils of his military conquests to a man he barely knew...

Hebrews 7:1 This chapter is holy ground! We previously met Melchizedek in chapter 5:6, I make no apologies for repeating the introduction given there. Melchizedek was a King Priest of God Most High at Salem in the days of Abraham. As such, this man was appointed to a higher order than even Aaron and his sons and all the other High Priests of Israel. The roles of priest and king were not given to any man apart from Melchizedek, a curious figure about whom we know very little. However, Abram (yet to be named Abraham) saw and believed enough to honour the man and make tithes to him. (See Genesis 14:18-20)  It is remarkable that when the two men met, outside the walls of ancient Jerusalem, the priest king brought out bread and wine. We read, “ He was priest of God Most High and he blessed Abram”.  We need to emphasise the extraordinary status held by this man for the offices of king and priest have been held by none other than Christ Himself. Zechariah had a vision of Christ who h...