Tithe

Definition and Meaning

The tithe (Korean sipiljo, 十一租) is an offering of one-tenth of one's income given to God. In the Korean term, sipil means "one in ten," and jo (租) means the portion that is paid. In Korean churches it is counted among the principal regular offerings, along with the thanksgiving offering and the Sunday offering, and it is usually given during the offertory portion of the worship service. Whether the tithe should be calculated on income before or after taxes varies by church and by individual.

Biblical and Historical Background

In the Old Testament, the tithe appears before the Mosaic Law. Abraham gave Melchizedek a tenth of all he had gained (Genesis 14:20), and Jacob vowed at Bethel to give a tenth (Genesis 28:22). The Law designated the tithe of the produce of the land and of livestock as belonging to the Lord (Leviticus 27:30) and assigned it as the portion of the Levites who served at the tabernacle (Numbers 18:21). It further directed that the tithe collected every third year be used for the Levites, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow (Deuteronomy 14:28-29). Malachi 3:8-10 rebukes the withholding of tithes as robbing God.

In the New Testament, the passage most frequently cited is Jesus' rebuke of the Pharisees for paying tithes while neglecting judgment, mercy, and faith (Matthew 23:23). The early church is generally understood to have relied chiefly on voluntary offerings rather than making the tithe an obligation. Later, in medieval Western Europe, the tithe was institutionalized as a form of tax paid to the church.

Practice in Korean Churches

In Korean Protestantism, tithing is widely encouraged across denominational lines. Most denominations, including Presbyterian, Methodist, Holiness, and Full Gospel bodies, present the tithe as a biblical teaching. However, the degree of emphasis placed on it and the manner in which it is administered vary more from one local congregation to another than from one denomination to another. Tithes make up a large share of church finances and are used for clergy compensation, missions, relief for the needy, and church operations.

Many churches have members write their names on offering envelopes and print the names of tithing members in the church bulletin. Other churches, by contrast, do not make such information public. Some churches are reported to make faithful tithing a qualification for offices such as elder and kwonsa (deaconess) in their bylaws or internal regulations.

Opinions differ on whether believers in the New Testament era are obligated to tithe. Those who hold that they are point to the examples of Abraham and Jacob, which predate the Law, and to the words of Matthew 23:23, "these ought ye to have done." Those who hold otherwise regard the tithe as an institution of the Law fulfilled in Christ and maintain that the New Testament teaches cheerful giving, as each person purposes in his heart (2 Corinthians 9:7). For further discussion, see the tithing debate article.