Commentaries:
The third tithe is an additional tithe, entirely separate from the first tithe that supports God's work of preaching the gospel and the second tithe that enables church members to attend the feasts. Like first tithe, second tithe is paid yearly. Just as the law of canceling debts is based on a cycle of seven years, the third tithe is paid only on the increase earned during the third and sixth years of a seven-year cycle. Since Christians are not spiritual Israelites (Galatians 3:29; 6:16) until converted and baptized, they do not save this third tithe until the third year after their baptism. Most members of the church count their third-tithe years from either the Passover or the Feast of Tabernacles closer to the date of their baptism.
Martin G. Collins
Tithing: Third Tithe
The Dictionary of Biblical Imagery comments: "Lending and borrowing are terms Scripture writers use to paint portraits of blessing and cursing. The fundamental meaning of lending is the extension of provision and generosity to someone in need; that of borrowing is dependence and neediness."
God never intended Israel to borrow or even have to borrow from anyone. So what happened? How did a nation of modern-day Israel go from the greatest lender to the greatest debtor? How did America go from the richest, most powerful nation on earth to one that will be "servant to the lender"? As shown in many places in Scripture, God's promise was conditional upon Israel's obedience to His commandments (see Leviticus 26; Deuteronomy 28).
We have a hard time comprehending the kinds of blessings God desired to give Israel if the people had listened to Him. He actually expected a time "when there may be no more poor among you; for the LORD will greatly bless you" (Deuteronomy 15:4)! But as we all know, God's law was pushed aside, as it has been in America. As a nation, we will reap the curses for disobedience, one of which is having to borrow (Deuteronomy 28:44). National borrowing indicates an absence of God's favor.
Not long ago, the U.S. housing market was in such decline that millions of people were in jeopardy of losing their homes. Some wanted to blame the government, others the economy or the banks. A similar thing occurred during Nehemiah's time. The people had been borrowing money against their homes and lands, and when hard times came, they could not pay (Nehemiah 5:1-5). The lenders were coming to take possession of their houses, their vineyards, and anything else they could take to pay the people's debts—even their children!
How long before our lenders come to collect on our country's debts?
We may try to distance ourselves from the foolishness of our national debt, but Paul brings it to a personal level: "Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law" (Romans 13:8). Our society is structured around borrowing, extending credit, and raising our debt limits. God never wanted these things to be done among His people.
As The Dictionary of Biblical Imagery indicates, the borrower is "someone in need." How many people ran up two, three, or more loans tied to their mortgages to spend on things that they did not need? In our day, most people seem to go into debt to satisfy their cravings for extravagances and entertainments—desires that are far beyond their incomes.
Ronny H. Graham
No Need to Borrow
