Deuteronomy 14:22

My Notes

What Does Deuteronomy 14:22 Mean?

"Thou shalt truly tithe all the increase of thy seed, that the field bringeth forth year by year." The tithe command is EMPHATIC (truly tithe — asser te'asser, a doubled verb meaning 'tithing you shall tithe'), COMPREHENSIVE (ALL the increase), AGRICULTURAL (the seed's production, the field's output), and ANNUAL (year by year). The tithe is a TENTH of what the FIELD produces — given yearly, without exception, from every harvest. The doubling of the verb makes the command UNMISSABLE. The comprehensiveness makes the command UNAVOIDABLE.

The phrase "thou shalt truly tithe" (asser te'asser — tithing you shall tithe) uses EMPHATIC DOUBLING: the verb is stated TWICE for emphasis — you shall TITHE-TITHE. The doubling means: don't miss this. Don't skip this. Don't approximate this. TITHE — emphatically, certainly, without exception. The doubling is the intensity. The repetition is the urgency.

The "all the increase of thy seed, that the field bringeth forth year by year" (et kol tevu'at zar'ekha hayyotzeh hassadeh shanah shanah — all the produce of your sowing that the field brings forth year year) makes the tithe ANNUAL and COMPREHENSIVE: EVERY harvest. EVERY year. ALL the increase — not just the abundant harvests but EVERY harvest. The 'year by year' (shanah shanah — year year) makes the tithe RECURRENT — not a one-time offering but an ANNUAL discipline. The field produces yearly. The tithe is given yearly. The rhythm matches the harvest.

Reflection Questions

• 1.What emphatic, comprehensive, annual giving-discipline governs your life?
• 2.What does the DOUBLED command (tithe-tithe) teach about the intensity of the instruction?
• 3.How does tithing ALL the increase (not the surplus) describe top-line, not bottom-line, giving?
• 4.What does year-by-year tithing teach about giving being as cyclical as earning?

Devotional

TRULY tithe — the doubled command you can't miss. ALL the increase. Every harvest. YEAR BY YEAR. The tithe is emphatic (doubled verb), comprehensive (all the increase), and annual (every year). The field produces. The tithe follows. The rhythm of the harvest IS the rhythm of the giving.

The 'truly tithe' (asser te'asser — tithing you shall tithe) is the DOUBLED COMMAND: the emphatic construction means you can't pretend you didn't hear. The doubling is the emphasis that eliminates every excuse for forgetting, postponing, or approximating. TITHE — and TITHE TRULY. The command is doubled because the tendency to avoid it is strong.

The 'all the increase' makes the tithe COMPREHENSIVE: not the surplus. Not the excess after expenses. ALL the increase — the entire production of what the field brought forth. The tithe comes from the TOP, not from the remainder. The first fruits, the initial tenth — given before personal consumption, before expense-coverage, before comfort-calculation. The ALL means: before anything else.

The 'year by year' (shanah shanah — year year) makes the tithe RECURRENT: not a one-time generosity. An ANNUAL discipline — every year, every harvest, every cycle of the field's production. The 'year year' doubling (like the 'tithe tithe' doubling) emphasizes REPETITION. The tithe is as ANNUAL as the harvest. The giving is as CYCLICAL as the growing. The rhythm of the offering matches the rhythm of the producing.

What 'truly tithe' discipline — emphatic, comprehensive, annual — governs YOUR giving?

Commentary

Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.

Cross References

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