Deuteronomy 18:4 commands giving the firstfruits of grain, wine, oil, and first shearing of sheep to the Kohanim before any personal consumption. Numbers 18:12 specifies it must be "the best."

How did Malachi address failure to give Terumah?

Malachi 3:8-10: "Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me...in tithes and offerings." God called withholding the Terumah robbery and challenged Israel to prove Him through faithful giving.

What happened when Terumah stopped?

Nehemiah 13:10-12: the Levites abandoned Temple service to farm for themselves because their portions had not been given. Nehemiah restored the system by confronting officials and reorganizing tithe collection.

What did "first and finest" mean in practice?

Numbers 18:12: "All the best of the oil, and all the best of the wine, and of the wheat." The Terumah came from the top of the harvest, not the remainder after personal consumption.

Why was Terumah not a fixed percentage?

Unlike the tithe (a tenth), Terumah had no fixed percentage. The rabbis later established guidelines. The flexibility required the giver to exercise judgment about what "firstfruits" and "best" meant.

Commandment #68 · Positive · Agricultural Laws

Separate Terumah — The Priestly Portion from Produce

תְּרוּמַת מַעֲשֵׂר

Source: Deuteronomy 18:4 · Maimonides, Sefer HaMitzvot, Positive #68

Every Israelite farmer separated Terumah — the first and finest portion of grain, wine, and oil — for the Kohanim before eating any of the harvest. Deuteronomy 18:4 established the principle: before you eat, God's servants receive the best.

רֵאשִׁית דְּגָנְךָ תִּירֹשְׁךָ וְיִצְהָרֶךָ

"The firstfruit also of thy corn, of thy wine, and of thine oil, and the first of the fleece of thy sheep, shalt thou give him."

Deuteronomy 18:4 — Open in Torah Reader

The First and the Finest

Numbers 18:12: 'All the best of the oil, and all the best of the wine, and of the wheat, the firstfruits of them...have I given thee.' Terumah had to be the best, not the remainder. The character was fixed: first and finest. The same theology as Malachi's rebuke — bringing God's portion from the bottom of the harvest was an implicit evaluation of how much the giver valued the covenant relationship.

Malachi: Robbing God

הָבִיאוּ אֶת כָּל הַמַּעֲשֵׂר

"Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse...and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD."

Malachi 3:10

Malachi 3:8-10: 'Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me...In tithes and offerings.' God called the withholding of Terumah robbery — not merely negligence. His challenge: 'prove me now herewith, if I will not open you the windows of heaven.' The Terumah commandment was presented as a test case for divine provision.

The withholding of Terumah was called robbery because the Kohen's portion had already been designated — the farmer who ate from it before separating the Terumah was consuming what belonged to someone else.

Nehemiah's Restoration

Nehemiah 13:10-12: the Levites had not received their portions, so they abandoned Temple service to farm. Nehemiah confronted the officials, brought the Levites back, and established storerooms. The material foundation for the entire Temple service depended on Israel's agricultural giving.

Key Figures

Malachi's Challenge — "Prove Me Now"

He presented Terumah-giving as a test case: faithful giving would produce verifiable divine response. The commandment was an invitation to test God.

Nehemiah — The System Restorer

His reorganization of agricultural giving after the exile showed that Terumah had structural, not merely personal, significance.

Study Questions

For reflection and group study

Terumah required the first and finest — not leftovers. What does giving from the top of the harvest say about the theology of agricultural offerings?

See Num 18:12; Mal 1:8; Prov 3:9–10

Malachi called withholding Terumah 'robbing God.' What is the theological logic of calling non-giving robbery?

See Mal 3:8–10; Lev 27:30; Luke 11:42

Nehemiah found Levites farming because they had received nothing. What does the material dependence of Temple service on agricultural giving say about covenant faithfulness and institutional functioning?

See Neh 13:10–12; Num 18:20–24; 1 Cor 9:13

God challenged Israel to 'prove me now herewith' regarding the tithes. What does presenting a commandment as a test of divine provision say about the Torah's understanding of faith and giving?

See Mal 3:10; Deut 14:22–23; 2 Cor 9:6–8

The priestly portion came before any personal consumption. What does the structure of 'give first' say about the Torah's view of covenant obligation?

See Deut 18:4; Prov 3:9; Matt 6:33

Read this commandment in the original Hebrew.

Open Deuteronomy 18:4 in Torah Reader

← Redeem Sold Land Next: First Tithe to Levites →All Studies