Tithes and Offerings in Christian Stewardship: A Canonical Study of Giving from Abraham to the Apostolic Church

Abstract

Tithing remains one of the most contested issues in contemporary Christian stewardship. This study examines tithes and offering within Christian stewardship through a Scripture-governed research framework, tracing the practice from Abraham's tenth to Melchizedek through the Mosaic legislation, the prophetic rebuke of Malachi, Jesus' ranking of the tithe beneath justice and mercy in Matthew 23:23, and the apostolic grammar of grace-giving in 2 Corinthians 8–9. The purpose of this study is to determine, from the canonical witness of Scripture, the continuity, transformation, and theological significance of tithing and offering within the biblical theology of stewardship, and to clarify whether the New Testament establishes a universal ten-percent requirement for Christian giving. The methodology adopted in this paper is qualitative and text-based, employing Scripture-governed canonical analysis, historical-contextual exegesis, theological synthesis, and comparative analysis of relevant biblical texts. The paper reveals that tithing predates the Law and is never condemned by Jesus, yet the New Testament prescribes no universal ten-percent rule. The paper, therefore, concludes and demonstrates that Scripture-governed research provides a coherent framework for resolving theological disagreements by allowing the canonical witness of scripture to govern the formulation, interpretation, and theological conclusions of the research.

Keywords: Scripture-Governed research, tithing and offering, Christian stewardship, canonical study, giving.