The Highest Level Of Eating; That Which Is Their Gift To Yahweh (Deuteronomy 14:22-27).
In total contrast with what has gone before, the tithe is holy food. It has been set aside for Yahweh and is for the priests (a tenth of it), the Levites (a good proportion of it) and Yahweh's ‘pensioners', the widows, the orphans and the resident aliens, with some being made available at the religious feasts held at the Sanctuary, the place which Yahweh chooses.
So having listed those thing which may or may not be eaten, he goes on to deal with eating in its highest form, eating before Yahweh of that which is His. This is the purest form of eating. They can do this because they are ‘clean'. He ignores the tithing of the increase among animals, a practise which was now common among them and did not therefore need to be referred to, and proceeds to deal with what will be a relatively new phenomenon in the future, the tithing of crops and vegetation. The abundance of this which will be produced when they enter the land will result in an additional purpose for the tithe.
Tithing was common in many nations from ancient times. In the case of Israel the tithing law may originally simply have been refining an ancient practise customary in Israel, but he was now looking at it as it would apply once they were in the land and there were abundance of tithes from abundant harvests, far too much than was needed just by the Levites.
Analysis in the words of Moses:
a You shall surely tithe all the increase of your seed, that which comes forth from the field year by year (Deuteronomy 14:22).
b And you shall eat before Yahweh your God, in the place which He shall choose, to cause His name to dwell there, the tithe of your grain, of your new wine, and of your oil, and the firstlings of your herd and of your flock, that you may learn to fear Yahweh your God always (Deuteronomy 14:23).
c And if the way be too long for you, so that you are not able to carry it, because the place is too far from you which Yahweh your God shall choose, to set His name there, when Yahweh your God shall bless you (Deuteronomy 14:24).
c Then shall you turn it into money, and bind up the money in your hand, and shall go to the place which Yahweh your God shall choose (Deuteronomy 14:25).
b And you shall bestow the money for whatever your soul desires, for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or for strong drink, or for whatever your soul asks of you and you shall eat there before Yahweh your God, and you shall rejoice, you and your household (Deuteronomy 14:26).
a And the Levite who is within your gates, you shall not forsake him, for he has no portion nor inheritance with you (Deuteronomy 14:27).
Note in ‘a' that they are to tithe their increase and in the parallel they are to see to the needs of the Levites who dwell among them for he does not have an inheritance among them. This setting in the analysis confirms that, as in Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers, the tithe is primarily for the Levites. In ‘b' they are to eat their tithe and firstlings before Yahweh their God in the place which He chooses, and in the parallel those who live too far away may use their cash obtained as in Deuteronomy 14:25 and eat them before Yahweh their God. In ‘c' if the way be too long from the place which Yahweh chooses, so that they would find it difficult to bear their tithes to the Sanctuary, they may in the parallel turn their tithes into cash and go to the place which Yahweh their God chooses.
‘ You (thou) shall surely tithe all the increase of your seed, that which comes forth from the field year by year.'
(This whole section is ‘thou').
This setting aside of a tenth has already been mentioned briefly in Deuteronomy 12:6; Deuteronomy 12:17, and was well established by the Law (Leviticus 27:30-33; Numbers 18:21-24). Now it is repeated. It will be required of them that they tithe all the increase of their seed which will come from their fields year by year. They have already got into the pattern of tithing the increase of their flocks and herds, but tithing seed has not been too common an experience for them. Wandering in the wilderness was not the best place for such activity, although they probably did at times remain in some places long enough to sow seed and see it grow. Thus when they possess the land and receive abundance they must ensure that they yield a proportion of its increase to Yahweh in accordance with the tithing (giving of a tenth) principle.
It will be noted that the chiasmus directly connects this with provision for the Levites (Deuteronomy 14:27) confirming what we have seen in exodus to Numbers.
‘ And you shall eat before Yahweh your God, in the place which he shall choose, to cause his name to dwell there, the tithe of your grain, of your new wine, and of your oil, and the firstlings of your herd and of your flock, that you may learn to fear Yahweh your God always.'
And when the tithe was gathered some of it was to be eaten before Yahweh their God in the place which He has chosen to be, and where His name dwells in the Tabernacle so that they know that He is there. Within the holy area around that Tabernacle (‘the place') they are permitted to partake of the tithe of grain and new wine and oil, of what belongs to Him. And there too they may partake of the firstlings of their herds and flocks, all of which are made holy to Yahweh.
It is quite clear from a consideration of the vast amount that would be involved that not all the tithes could be brought to the Tabernacle area once they were in the land. But that was not the intention, and the tithe of cattle and sheep is not even mentioned, unless it is seen as included in the reference to the firstlings (such tithing would certainly be required. Even from a practical point of view it is impossible to conceive that the grain farmers had to pay their tithes while the sheep farmers did not, or that anyone should suggest otherwise - see Leviticus 27:32 which confirms this). The intention here was that out of the tithed increase set apart for Yahweh, sufficient be brought for their feasting, which could be apportioned from their tithe, along with the firstlings. The remainder of the tithe would go to the Levites who were permitted to eat it anywhere (Numbers 18:31). The firstborn (bechor - masculine) were given to the priests and were at their disposal, but here it is made clear that some of the firstlings (bechorah - feminine, but probably covering all firstlings which were not seen as male ‘firstborn') must be made available to those gathered at the feast. The priests and Levites in fact received an abundance of meat in one way or another, and this had probably already become the custom.
This was an expansion on the original purpose of the tithe arising as a result of the huge quantities that in future would be involved. It was now not only to be a means of maintaining the Levites, but was also to become a means of worship and eating in special thanksgiving.
‘ And if the way be too long for you, so that you are not able to carry it, because the place is too far from you which Yahweh your God shall choose, to set his name there, when Yahweh your God shall bless you, then shall you turn it into money, and bind up the money in your hand, and shall go to the place which Yahweh your God shall choose, and you shall bestow the money for whatever your soul desires, for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or for strong drink, or for whatever your soul asks of you, and you shall eat there before Yahweh your God, and you shall rejoice, you and your household.'
Provision was, however, made for those who would have to bring such tithes a long way. To carry with them all the food for the feast would be a terrible burden. Thus they would be permitted to sell a portion of the tithe and take the money along to the feast where they would then be able to purchase sufficient for the feast. Then the whole household, and all the households present, would be able to feast to their heart's desire with food obtained from the ample silver available from selling the tithe. This provision ties in with Leviticus 27:30-33 where the tithe could be redeemed for silver, although in that case it was being redeemed for general purposes and one fifth more than its value had to be paid, the whole then being passed to the Levites. Thus the fact that the tithe was Yahweh's in both cases did not prevent it being dealt with in these ways. The silver became Yahweh's instead.
Note the emphasis on the feast as being fully satisfying. The land is being portrayed as providing fullness of bliss. With Yahweh dwelling among them as He has chosen to do, how could it be otherwise? It is implanting the hope of a blessed future. It was in embryo pointing forward to the everlasting kingdom. Here more than anywhere else Israel was in its ‘proper sphere'. It was ‘clean'.
‘ And the Levite who is within your gates, you shall not forsake him, for he has no portion nor inheritance with you.'
But it was important that they must not forget the Levites. Permission to use some of the tithe at the feast did not relieve them of their responsibility to the Levites. The Levites must receive of their tithes as usual. They must not be forsaken. For this was their inheritance from Yahweh (Numbers 18:21), and they had no other portion or inheritance in the land. The assumption underlying this is the standard practise of giving tithes to the Levites. But in a speech such as this the details do not have to be spelled out, all would know their significance (another evidence that these are the direct words of Moses).