Setting Aside Part of Our Increase for the Poor

B5

We are to set aside and give a part of our increase to the poor.

Category: Charity, Provision, & Generosity

Type: Positive

Form: Explicit

Source dataset: Old Testament

Uniqueness: Not unique

Classical commandment: Yes

New Covenant Literal Application

Applies to Person Categories: Everyone

Literal Application: mandated

More explanation about New Covenant Literal Application

The New Covenant Literal Application Code (NCLA) is an interpretive guide used by the authors to indicate which person categories a mitzvah applies to, and at what level of literal compliance.

It combines person categories such as Jewish, K'rov Yisrael, and Gentile, together with male/female distinctions and an application level such as mandated, recommended, optional, or prohibited.

This code reflects the authors' interpretive opinion and is provided for prayerful consideration. On this page, the technical code is summarized into plain language to help new readers understand it more easily.

Read the full explanation from the source

Bible references

Key NT Scriptures

1 Corinthians 16:2

Key OT Scriptures

Deuteronomy 24:20-22
Leviticus 19:9-10
Leviticus 23:22

Supportive NT Scriptures

Acts 11:27-30
2 Corinthians 9:7
James 1:27

Bible verses copyright: PUBLIC DOMAIN except in the United Kingdom, where a Crown Copyright applies to printing the KJV. See http://www.cambridge.org/about-us/who-we-are/queens-printers-patent

Commentary

Rabbi Michael Rudolph

The requirement that God's people give to the poor ( tz'dakah ) is found throughout the Bible. At the time of Moses, Israel was an agrarian society, so a major way of providing for the poor was by leaving a portion of each field and vineyard un-harvested and by not picking up grapes or grain that fell to the ground. By the time of Yeshua, Israel was still agricultural but was already moving toward using money for tz'dakah . Today, most of the world's population does not live in a farm environment, and wages paid in money has largely replaced being paid in produce and goods. Nevertheless, the principle of the Mosaic commandments to set aside a part of our increase for the poor is still God's will. The first Corinthian Scripture cited above makes mention of setting aside money for the Apostle Sha'ul to bring to God's people in Jerusalem. In addition to it being required by Torah , giving tz'dakah is a time-honored practice in Jewish homes where a tz'dakah box for spare coins is often in plain view. It is my opinion that tz'dakah should always be in addition to other giving that is required of us such as our tithes and other offerings, and it should be noted that, according to Torah , part of the tithe must also be set aside for the poor.

Classical commentators

Maimonides', Meir's, and HaChinuch's respective mitzvot are entirely from the perspective of agriculture in the Land of Israel.

Related Law of Messiah commandments

Classical sources

Maimonides

Maimonides (Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon, 12th century) organized all 613 Torah commandments into a structured list. These linked items show where this Law of Messiah commandment overlaps with that classical framework.

Meir of Rothenburg

Rabbi Meir of Rothenburg (13th century, Germany) was a leading Talmudic authority. These reference numbers link this commandment to his halachic rulings.

MP1, MP2, MP3, MP4, ML6

Source and License

Based on The Law of Messiah - Torah from a New Covenant Perspective by Michael Rudolph and Daniel C. Juster.

Volume 1 & 2 | Volume 3

License: CC BY-ND 4.0 (Attribution required, NoDerivatives). CC BY-ND 4.0

Disclaimer: the original content is authored by Rabbi Michael Rudolph and Rabbi Daniel Juster; additional notes or implementation details on this website are not part of their original work and do not represent their views.

Record source: The Law of Messiah - Torah from a New Covenant Perspective - Volume 1 & 2

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