Malachi 3:8-10 Meaning: Understanding Tithing in the New Covenant
The Common Misunderstanding of Malachi 3:8-10
One of the Scripture passages that has caused a lot of confusion for a long time is found in Malachi 3:8-10.
"Will a mere mortal rob God? Yet you rob me. "But you ask, 'How are we robbing you?' "In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse—your whole nation—because you are robbing me. Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this," says the Lord Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it."
(Malachi 3:8-10)
Many people today use these verses to say we're required to give 10% of our income to the church. They claim if we don't tithe, things won't go well—especially financially. Cars will break down, houses will need repairs, the IRS will audit you.
Why? Because you're "robbing God" of what's rightfully His, so He will curse you. But if you do tithe, God will not only remove the curse but will bless you abundantly!
The True Meaning of Malachi 3:8-10: Context Matters
That is not what these verses mean. I can show you in three words why this verse doesn't apply to us today:
"You are under a curse—your whole nation—because you are robbing me."
(Malachi 3:9)
This was written to Israel.
Malachi is in the Old Testament and was written to Israel, who was under the Mosaic Covenant. God gave them the Law, and they were expected to keep it. If they obeyed, they would be blessed. If they disobeyed, they would be cursed.
Understanding the Three Tithes in the Old Testament
There were 613 Levitical laws the Israelites were expected to obey, including tithing. But it wasn't just one tithe—it was actually three tithes:
To Support the Priests (Numbers 18:21,23-24) The Levites couldn't own land or produce income. They were priests who offered sacrifices for Israel. God commanded the people to tithe to provide for them.
To Support the Festivals/Feasts (Deut. 14:22-23) The Israelites were commanded to set aside 10% of their produce for feasts and festivals.
To Support Widows, Orphans, and the Poor (Deut. 14:28-29) Every three years, they were to bring another 10% to support the vulnerable.
When we consider all these tithes, the Israelites were actually expected to give about 23.3% of their produce and livestock, not just 10%!
Malachi 3:8-10 Meaning
In Malachi 3:8-10, God is addressing Israel's disobedience to these tithing laws. He's saying: You haven't been obedient to my commands to tithe, so you're under a curse. But if you start to obey, you'll be blessed.
This was simply how things worked under the Old Covenant with Israel. Deuteronomy 28 spells out the terms of the covenant in this way.
If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. 2 All these blessings will come on you and accompany you if you obey the Lord your God…15 However, if you do not obey the Lord your God and do not carefully follow all his commands and decrees I am giving you today, all these curses will come on you and overtake you…
(Deuteronomy 28:1-2, 15)
This was the Old Covenant between God and the nation of Israel. It was a covenant where the Lord would bless them if they obeyed, and they would be cursed if they didn’t.
In Malachi 3:8-10, God is addressing Isael’s disobedience to the three tithing laws.
We Are Not Under the Old Covenant
Here's the key: you and I are not Israel, and we are not under the Old Covenant!
Paul tells us in Galatians 3:13-14:
"Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us...He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit."
(Galatians 3:13-14)
The author of Hebrews states in 8:13:
"By calling this covenant 'new,' he has made the first one obsolete."
(Hebrews 8:13)
We must understand that Malachi was written to Israel under a different covenant. We don't live under the Old Covenant.
Therefore, the blessings and curses referenced in Malachi regarding tithing don't apply to us today.
Is Tithing Required in the New Covenant?
Does the command to tithe appear as a requirement under the New Covenant?
The answer is NO!
You can search through everything Jesus taught, and you won't find Him teaching tithing for New Covenant believers. Yes, He mentioned tithing when speaking to the religious leaders of His day, but those people were still under the Old Covenant since Jesus hadn't yet gone to the cross.
Neither Jesus nor any other New Testament writer commanded tithing for New Covenant believers.
So Malachi 3 doesn't apply to us today. Tithing doesn't apply to us today! We don't live under the Old Covenant and aren't commanded to tithe under the New Covenant.
The New Covenant: Grace-Giving
Instead, the New Covenant teaches us about grace-giving:
"But since you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in the love we have kindled in you—see that you also excel in this grace of giving."
(2 Corinthians 8:7)
Giving is a work of God's grace operating in us that motivates us to give. When we put our faith in Jesus, the Spirit dwells in us, unites us to Christ, and gives us a new heart that wants to give.
Giving Is a Privilege
"They urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the Lord's people."
(2 Corinthians 8:4)
Paul described how the Macedonian church understood giving as a privilege. Jesus had changed them, and their new hearts saw giving not as an obligation but as a privilege. The same is true for anyone with a new heart in Christ.
Give According to Your Means
Paul taught the Corinthians about giving according to what they had:
"Now finish the work, so that your eager willingness to do it may be matched by your completion of it, according to your means. For if the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what one does not have..."
(2 Corinthians 8:11-12)
It's not about the portion we give, but the proportion. Someone making $60,000 who gives $6,000 (10%) has $54,000 left to live on. Someone making $600,000 who gives the same proportion (10%) gives $60,000 but still has $540,000 left. The latter person has the means to give well beyond 10%.
Give from Your Heart
"Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver."
(2 Corinthians 9:7)
New Covenant giving is not done out of guilt, shame, or condemnation. As we seek the Lord, He will guide us in how much to give, and He'll cause us to be excited about participating in His Kingdom work.
Conclusion: Freedom in Giving Under Grace
New Covenant believers are motivated by Christ to give out of our means, not according to a fixed percentage. For some, that might be 10%, but for others, it might be less or much more if the Lord has blessed them abundantly.
Don't fall for guilt, condemnation, and shame-based teaching about tithing. That's religion, not grace!
Malachi 3:8-10 was written to Israel under the Old Covenant. If you've put your faith in Jesus, you live under the New Covenant, and He has given you a new heart that desires to give. He'll lead you in how much to give and enable you experience the blessing of giving rather than receiving.
