
The first tithe () is a positive
commandment in the
Torah
The Torah ( , "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The Torah is also known as the Pentateuch () ...
requiring the giving of one tenth of agricultural produce to charity, after the giving of the standard
terumah
A ''terumah'' (), the priestly dues or heave offering, is a type of offering in Judaism. The word is generally used for offerings to God, but can also refer to gifts to a human.
The word ''terumah'' refers to various types of offerings, but mos ...
, to the
Levite (or
Kohen
Kohen (, ; , ، Arabic كاهن , Kahen) is the Hebrew word for "priest", used in reference to the Aaronic Priest#Judaism, priesthood, also called Aaronites or Aaronides. They are traditionally believed, and halakha, halakhically required, to ...
). This tithe is required to be free of both monetary and servicial compensation.
Originally, during the
First Temple period, the tithe was given to the Levite. Approximately at the beginning of the
Second Temple
The Second Temple () was the Temple in Jerusalem that replaced Solomon's Temple, which was destroyed during the Siege of Jerusalem (587 BC), Babylonian siege of Jerusalem in 587 BCE. It was constructed around 516 BCE and later enhanced by Herod ...
construction,
Ezra and his
beth din implemented its giving to the kohanim.
[The Talmud Adin Steinsaltz 1992 "Yet if a priest has first tithe in his possession, he need not give it to a Levite. Ezra penalized the Levites of his generation because they did not return to Eretz Israel with him, and he decreed that first tithe should be given to ..."] However, this rule was nullified with the
destruction of the Second Temple, and since then the tithe has been given to Levites once again.
Hebrew Bible
The tithe gift is discussed in the
Hebrew Bible
The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;["Tanach"](_blank)
. '' Numbers
A number is a mathematical object used to count, measure, and label. The most basic examples are the natural numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, and so forth. Numbers can be represented in language with number words. More universally, individual numbers can ...
) according to which a tenth of the produce was to be presented to a Levite who then gave a tenth of the first tithe to a kohen (Numbers ). Tithing was seen as performing a
mitzvah
In its primary meaning, the Hebrew language, Hebrew word (; , ''mīṣvā'' , plural ''mīṣvōt'' ; "commandment") refers to a commandment Divine law, from God to be performed as a religious duty. Jewish law () in large part consists of disc ...
done in joyful obedience to God. Giving tithe would open oneself up to receipt of divine blessing.
Regulations
The Torah instructs that the tithe should be of the "five grains" (see
Species of grain),
wine
Wine is an alcoholic drink made from Fermentation in winemaking, fermented fruit. Yeast in winemaking, Yeast consumes the sugar in the fruit and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Wine is most often made f ...
,
olive oil
Olive oil is a vegetable oil obtained by pressing whole olives (the fruit of ''Olea europaea'', a traditional Tree fruit, tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin) and extracting the oil.
It is commonly used in cooking for frying foods, as a cond ...
,
fruit
In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants (angiosperms) that is formed from the ovary after flowering.
Fruits are the means by which angiosperms disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particular have long propaga ...
, and
cattle
Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, bovid ungulates widely kept as livestock. They are prominent modern members of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus '' Bos''. Mature female cattle are calle ...
. The time for taking such tithes was at the finished stage of processing the produce. Unlike ''
terumah
A ''terumah'' (), the priestly dues or heave offering, is a type of offering in Judaism. The word is generally used for offerings to God, but can also refer to gifts to a human.
The word ''terumah'' refers to various types of offerings, but mos ...
'' given to the Kohen, the ''ma'aser rishon'' was not regarded as sacred, and as a result did not have to be
ritually pure, neither was it required to be eaten in any particular location (such as the
Temple in Jerusalem
The Temple in Jerusalem, or alternatively the Holy Temple (; , ), refers to the two religious structures that served as the central places of worship for Israelites and Jews on the modern-day Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem. Accord ...
). Once received by the Levite, it was regarded simply as ordinary property, and they could pass it on to non-Levites, or sell it, as they wished.
Traditionally tithes were calculated for the produce of each whole year, however
Chazalic Literature indicates that there was a debate between
Beit Shammai and
Beit Hillel as to when this tithing year should begin and end. Tithing years had different starts and ends depending on the particular crop in question; land crops began their tithe year on the first of
Tishrei (
Rosh Hashanah
Rosh Hashanah (, , ) is the New Year in Judaism. The Hebrew Bible, biblical name for this holiday is Yom Teruah (, , ). It is the first of the High Holy Days (, , 'Days of Awe"), as specified by Leviticus 23:23–25, that occur in the late summe ...
); according to
Eleazar ben Shammua and
Simeon bar Yohai the first of Tishri was also the start of the tithe year for cattle, but according to
Rabbi Meir
Rabbi Meir () was a Jewish sage who lived in the time of the Mishnah. He was one of the Tannaim of the fourth generation (139–163), and a disciple of Rabbi Akiva. He is the second most frequently mentioned sage in the Mishnah and is mentioned ...
it was the first of
Elul
Elul (Hebrew language, Hebrew: , Hebrew language#Modern Hebrew, Standard , Tiberian vocalization, Tiberian ) is the twelfth month of the civil year and the sixth month of the Jewish religious year, religious year in the Hebrew calendar. It is a m ...
that held this honour. The followers of
Hillel argued that the tithe year for fruit from trees began on the fifteenth of
Shevat, but the followers of
Shammai, his rival, argued that it began on the first of Shevat; the view of Hillel's followers eventually became the majority view and the ''new year for trees'' –
Tu Bishvat – is now held at the date which they considered appropriate.
Contemporary practice
Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism is a collective term for the traditionalist branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Torah, Written and Oral Torah, Oral, as literally revelation, revealed by God in Ju ...
regards the tithe as still being required for any produce grown within the historic boundaries of the ancient
Kingdoms of Israel and
of Judah, covering the modern territories of the
state of Israel
Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
,
West Bank
The West Bank is located on the western bank of the Jordan River and is the larger of the two Palestinian territories (the other being the Gaza Strip) that make up the State of Palestine. A landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...
,
Gaza Strip
The Gaza Strip, also known simply as Gaza, is a small territory located on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea; it is the smaller of the two Palestinian territories, the other being the West Bank, that make up the State of Palestine. I ...
,
Golan Heights, and portions of western
Jordan
Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...
. However, because ''ma'aser rishon'' has no inherent sanctity, consistent with Numbers (Levite tithes are wages), after ''terumat ma'aser'' has been removed, it is governed by the monetary civil laws which put the proof of a claim for monetary compensation on the person making the demand (the plaintiff). Since the lineage of the Levites is currently uncertain, there is no obligation to provide ''ma'aser rishon'' to a questionable Levi, whereas, there is no rabbinic prohibition by doing so.
Contemporary practice, after designating and setting aside ''terumah'', is to make a formal declaration that the portion set aside is ''ma'aser rishon''. Afterwards, ''terumat ma'aser'' is designated and set aside. Finally, depending on the year, ''ma'aser sheni'' or ''ma'sar ani'' are designated and tithed in the appropriate manner.
While tithes from produce may not be given to a
Kohen
Kohen (, ; , ، Arabic كاهن , Kahen) is the Hebrew word for "priest", used in reference to the Aaronic Priest#Judaism, priesthood, also called Aaronites or Aaronides. They are traditionally believed, and halakha, halakhically required, to ...
or
Levite, they may be fed to their animals.
Today, Ma'aser is also referred to the
minhag of giving 10% of ones earnings to
tzedaka.
In secular academic works
In classical rabbinical literature, according to which the entire Torah was principally written by
Moses
In Abrahamic religions, Moses was the Hebrews, Hebrew prophet who led the Israelites out of slavery in the The Exodus, Exodus from ancient Egypt, Egypt. He is considered the most important Prophets in Judaism, prophet in Judaism and Samaritani ...
, the first tithe is contrasted with the
poor tithe, and
second tithe, as entirely different tithes from each other, and for this reason gave the tithes the distinct names they possess; these latter tithes, which are mentioned by the
Deuteronomic Code, differ by not covering cattle or fruit, and rather than just going to the Levites, are in one case shared among the poor and other charitable destinations, and in the other go to the food producer themselves. According to some secular scholars, the poor tithe and the second tithe, when taken together, are a conflicting version of the same single tithe as the first tithe; the poor tithe and second tithe together being the
Deuteronomist's version and the first time being the version of the
priestly source.
Although such scholars speculate that the deuteronomist is a later author than the priestly source, scholars believe that much of the Deuteronomic Code was a reaction against the regulations introduced by the Priestly Code,
[ Richard Elliott Friedman, ''Who wrote the Bible?''] and that here it reflects the earlier situation. In the
Book of Ezekiel
The Book of Ezekiel is the third of the Nevi'im#Latter Prophets, Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) and one of the Major Prophets, major prophetic books in the Christian Bible, where it follows Book of Isaiah, Isaiah and ...
, which some scholars believe predates the Priestly Code, meaning that according to their view the Priestly Code must post-date the Babylonian Exile, there is no mention whatever of a tithe appointed for the Levites, and in the Deuteronomic Code, though Levites have a share of the ''ma'aser sheni'', their share is seemingly voluntary, and it can alternatively be given to strangers, widows, and/or paternal orphans; in the Priestly Code, however, donation of the tithe to the Levites is compulsory.
Of course, if the ''ma'aser sheni'' tithe, also mentioned in Leviticus, were originally different from ''ma'aser rishon'', there is a simpler explanation for the variation.
The clear differentiation between the
kohen
Kohen (, ; , ، Arabic كاهن , Kahen) is the Hebrew word for "priest", used in reference to the Aaronic Priest#Judaism, priesthood, also called Aaronites or Aaronides. They are traditionally believed, and halakha, halakhically required, to ...
s (the ''priests'') and the other Levites, in the regulations given by the Priestly Code for the ''ma'aser rishon'', is a distinction scholars attribute to the pro-Aaronid political bias of the ''priestly source''; according to the Biblical revisionists' worldview, all Levites can be legitimate priests, which is likely to be why the Deuteronomist does not mention a ''tithe of the tithe'' (the portion of the tithe which is given to the priests rather than other Levites), since it would be somewhat meaningless.
On the other hand, it raises a question about the distinction between ''ma'aser'' and ''terumah''. In the Priestly Code it is stated that the ''ma'aser rishon'' existed as the source of sustenance for the Levites, since they had no territory, and hence nowhere to keep
livestock
Livestock are the Domestication, domesticated animals that are raised in an Agriculture, agricultural setting to provide labour and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, Egg as food, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The t ...
or perform
agriculture
Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...
(Numbers ). but this seemingly neglects the existence of a number of scattered Levite cities; scholars believe that the tithe (i.e. the tithe of which the ''ma'sar ani'' and ''ma'aser rishon'' are conflicting versions) actually arose as a generic heave offering, given to priests at the sanctuaries for their sustenance, and only became distinct when the Aaronids began to position themselves as the only Levites that could be legitimate priests.
This view neglects the fact that cities are not agricultural centers and the tithing laws focus on agricultural produce. According to a holistic view of the Torah, the Levites had no portion in the fields. The
Book of Amos, cited by some scholars for support of their proposition, admonishes the Israelites about their rebellious offerings to idols by mentioning practices that would be acceptable to idolatry but not Torah Law.
[ Amos ] Thus,
Amos sarcastically remarks that they bring "for three days your tithes", as well as saying that they should offer their ''todah'' offerings of leaven (which was forbidden, see Lev. ). Amos . The text itself does not bear out such scholars identification between ''ma'aser rishon'' and ''ma'sar ani''. First, the text clearly does not state "three years," it states "three days". Second, the text expressly proposes deviant practices as forms of rebellion. Finally, the owner of the produce was not required to bring ''ma'sar ani'' to the Temple; but, rather to the poor, no matter where there were. Likewise, this confused story does not clearly demonstrate how ''ma'aser sheni'' developed into a system where the owner separated the tithe for himself and had nothing to do with kings or priests.
See also
*
Heave offering
*''
Terumat hamaaser''
*
Second tithe
*
Poor tithe
*
Tithes in Judaism
The tithe (; ''ma'aser'') is specifically mentioned in the Books of Book of Leviticus, Leviticus, Book of Numbers, Numbers and Book of Deuteronomy, Deuteronomy. The tithe system was organized in a seven-year cycle, the seventh-year corresponding ...
References
External links
Yeshivat Ohr Yerushalayim website on Jewish Law
{{Authority control
Jewish agrarian laws
Land of Israel laws in Judaism
Positive Mitzvoth
Tithes in Judaism
Twenty-four kohanic gifts