Journal: Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society
Volume: JETS 63:2 (Jun 2020)
Article: Jacob’s Tithe: Did Jacob Keep His Vow to God?
Author: Brian Neil Peterson

JETS 63:2 (June 2020) p. 255

Jacob’s Tithe: Did Jacob Keep His Vow to God?

Brian Neil Peterson

Brian Peterson is Associate Professor of OT and Hebrew at Lee University, 1120 North Ocoee Street, Cleveland, TN 37320. He can be contacted at [email protected].

Abstract: Perhaps no other topic has flown under the proverbial radar of biblical commentators handling the Jacob Narrative—especially modern commentators—more than Jacob’s apparent unfulfilled vow to tithe to God noted in Genesis 28:22. Did he, or did he not, fulfill his vow to pay a tenth of his goods to God? In this paper I argue that Jacob does in fact fulfill this vow when he gives his extravagant “gift” (minchāh) to his brother Esau. Based upon his rhetorical and linguistic presentation—coupled with the historical milieu—in chapters 32–33 the author of Genesis presents Esau not only as superior to Jacob but also in a God-like manner. In doing this, the author implicitly creates a scenario whereby Esau becomes the ideal candidate in the immediate context to receive Jacob’s tithe. This conclusion is strengthened by the canonical precedent of Abram’s tithing to Melchizedek in Genesis 14.

Key words: Jacob’s tithe, tithing, vows, Genesis 28:20–22, Melchizedek, Genesis 32 and 33, Hebrews 7:9–10

I. Introduction

During his encounter with God at Bethel in Genesis 28, Jacob makes a vow to God conditioned on a variety of requests he asks God to fulfill. Jacob declares that if God will be with him and protect him on his journey, and if God gives him food and clothing, and allows him to return to his father’s house in safety, then Jacob will make YHWH his God (28:21–22). Part of Jacob’s vow, providing God meets his “demands,” is that he would make Bethel a place of worship, literally the “house of God,” and that he would certainly (using an infinitive absolute in the Hebrew) tithe a tenth of all his goods to God (v. 22). In this case, this “tithe” (‘āśar) appears to be a one-time payment upon Jacob’s return to Canaan in safety.1

For the reader of any era, Jacob’s declaration seems li...