What is the second tithe?

Deuteronomy 14:22-23 commands setting aside a tenth of produce to eat before God in Jerusalem during the festivals. Unlike the first tithe given to Levites, the second tithe was consumed by the farmer and his family.

Why did God command a tithe to be eaten by the giver?

Deuteronomy 14:23: "that thou mayest learn to fear the LORD thy God always." The annual feast in God's presence formed the giver. Eating and celebrating before God at the festival was covenant formation.

What was the tithe confession?

Deuteronomy 26:12-15: a declaration at the end of the third year accounting for every category of giving. A positive testimony of faithfulness.

What if the farm was too far from Jerusalem?

Deuteronomy 14:24-26: the second tithe could be converted to money and spent in Jerusalem on food and drink "whatsoever thy soul desireth." The commandment was about the feast, not the specific produce.

What did the second tithe fund?

The farmer's three annual pilgrimage trips to Jerusalem. It was a mandatory savings allocation for covenant celebration — the economy of Jerusalem during festival seasons was partially funded by these tithe resources.

Commandment #71 · Positive · Agricultural Laws

Set Aside the Second Tithe — Maaser Sheni

מַעֲשֵׂר שֵׁנִי

Source: Deuteronomy 14:22 · Maimonides, Sefer HaMitzvot, Positive #71

Unlike the first tithe (given to Levites) and the poor tithe (given to the poor), the second tithe was consumed by the giver in Jerusalem during the pilgrimage festivals. It funded covenant celebration — the annual experience of feasting before God.

וְאָכַלְתָּ לִפְנֵי יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ

"And thou shalt eat before the LORD thy God, in the place which he shall choose."

Deuteronomy 14:23 — Open in Torah Reader

Eating Before God: Formation Through Feasting

Deuteronomy 14:23 gives a remarkable reason for the second tithe: 'that thou mayest learn to fear the LORD thy God always.' Eating before God — feasting at His table during the festivals — was not merely celebration. It was formation. The annual pilgrimage feast funded by the second tithe shaped the person who participated into someone who feared God throughout the year.

The second tithe funded what Deuteronomy 16:14 commanded: rejoicing at the festival with your household, the Levite, the stranger, the orphan, and the widow. The tithe funded the joy.

The Tithe Confession: Accountability for All of It

לֹא עָבַרְתִּי מִמִּצְוֹתֶיךָ

"I have not transgressed thy commandments, neither have I forgotten them."

Deuteronomy 26:13 — Open in Torah Reader

Deuteronomy 26:12-15 records the tithe confession spoken at the end of the third year: 'I have not eaten thereof in my mourning, neither have I taken away ought thereof for any unclean use...I have hearkened to the voice of the LORD my God, and have done according to all that thou hast commanded me.' The declaration was a positive accounting of where each category had gone.

The confession made the giver accountable for each category of agricultural giving — both the specific compliance and the spirit in which it was done.

The Jerusalem Economy: A Mandatory Festival Fund

If the journey was too long to carry produce, Deuteronomy 14:25-26 permitted converting it to money and buying food in Jerusalem: 'whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine...and thou shalt eat there before the LORD thy God, and thou shalt rejoice.' The second tithe was a mandatory festival allocation — God commanding His people to set aside resources specifically for spending in His presence.

The commandment was about the feast, not the specific produce. Whatever it took to feast before God in Jerusalem was the second tithe's purpose.

Key Figures

The Pilgrimage Farmer — The Festival Feaster

Every Israelite who brought his second tithe to Jerusalem and feasted there fulfilled the commandment in its full form: celebrating, in God's presence, the abundance God had given.

The Tithe Confessor — The Accountable Giver

The man who stood before God declaring all categories fulfilled — "I have not transgressed thy commandments" — was performing the rare act of specific, positive accountability for covenant faithfulness.

Study Questions

For reflection and group study

The second tithe was eaten by the giver, not given away. What does a tithe funding the giver's own celebration before God say about the relationship between giving and receiving in the covenant economy?

See Deut 14:22–23; 26:13–14; Ps 23:5

Deuteronomy 14:23 says the second tithe taught the fear of God. How does eating and celebrating in God's presence teach fear of God?

See Deut 14:23; 6:13; Ps 34:8

The tithe confession required positive accountability for each category of giving. What does specific sworn accounting for covenant faithfulness accomplish that general repentance cannot?

See Deut 26:12–15; Neh 10:38; 2 Cor 9:7

If too far to carry produce, the second tithe could be converted to money spent in Jerusalem on 'whatsoever thy soul desireth.' What does this accommodation reveal about the commandment's purpose?

See Deut 14:25–26; 16:14; Acts 2:46

The second tithe funded three annual pilgrimage festivals — effectively a mandatory vacation fund. What does God commanding His people to set aside resources for festival celebration say about what He valued?

See Deut 14:22–26; 16:16; Mal 3:10

Read this commandment in the original Hebrew.

Open Deuteronomy 14:22 in Torah Reader

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