BI

BLI
CALPRI
NCI
PLESFORACCEPTABLEOFFERI
NG
BYMUCHABWEC.MAYBOY.

I
NTRODUCTI
ON

Amongsomear east hatt hesev ent h-

dayAdv ent i
stchur chi ssuf feri
ngi st he
areaofgi vingof feri
ngs, asev idencedi nmanychur cheshav i
ngl owof f
er i
ngswhen
compar edt otit
heamount s.Thi si ssoduet osomer easonssuchas: lackofacl ear
theologi cal under standingoft hemeani ngofof fer ingi nthebi ble,andl it
tleemphasi s
byt eacher sandpast orsoni t.
Howev er,theactofgi v i
ngof fer i
ngi nthebi ble, isingr ainedi nthev eryfabr ic
oft hewor shipofGod, aswasexpr essedi ndiff
er entt ypesofof feringsint heOl d
Test ament .Amongt hese, somewer eat y peoft hewor kofChr i
stasoursav i
or ,and
medi at orbet weenGodandt hesi nner :suchaspeaceof f
er i
ng, wav esheaf ,bur nt
offering, andsi nof f
eri
ng.Howev er,someoft heof feringswer easendur ingasGod
himsel f, ast heyexpr essadi fferentnat ur eofhumani ty’sgr atituder elati
onshi pt o
God, suchast hev ows, thanksof f
er i
ng, freewi l
lof fer i
ngs, orof feringingener al
terms.
Ont hisaccount ,whenChr i
stt heant i
typecameanddi ed, allthoseof fering
wi t
habi ast oHi searthlymi ssi oncamet oanendast ypemetant itype.Howev er ,
someoft heof feringswer easendur i
ngasGodhi msel f,ast heyexpr essadi fferent
nat ureofhumani ty’
sgrat i
tuder elationshi ptoGod, suchast hev ows, thanksof feri
ng,
freewi l
l of f
er i
ngs, orofferi
ngi ngener al terms.
Thi slessonhast hreemai nobj ectives:topr ov idebi blical suppor tforthe
meani ngofof fering,pr ovingt hatbr ingingofof feringi smandat ory,andt he
principlest hatar eneededf oraccept ableof f
eringt oGod.Thi swi l
lbeachi evedby
consi der ingf ourHebr ewwor ds, thought heymayhav eot hernar rowuses, are
gener allyt ranslat edasof feri
ngi nmostoft heEngl ishv ersions.Sucht extsincl ude
Exodus35: 5,29; Lev i
ti
cus7: 13- 16; Psal m 96:7-8, andMal achi 3:7- 8.

THEBI BLICALMEANINGOFOFFERI NGS

Fi
rstl
y,forustohav
eabibli
calunderst
andi
ngofoffer
ing,t
hef ourHebr
ewwor
ds
general
lyrender
edasoff
eri
ngsare‫ָה‬‫ְח‬
‫נ‬‫מ‬mi
ִ nḥâ,‫מ‬‫ּרָה‬‫ת‬t
ְ ̱ᵉ r
ûmâ,
‫ָה‬
‫ָב‬
‫ְד‬
‫נ‬nᵉḏāḇâ, and‫ן‬ּ
ָ
‫ְב‬‫ק‬qor
‫ָר‬ ḇānasf oundinthetextsbel
ow.

Psal m 96:8Gi veuntot heLORDt hegl ydueunt

or ohisname: bri
nganof fering, and
comei ntohi scourts(KJV).
Exodus35: 5Takey ef r
om amongy ouanofferi
ngunt ot heLORD: whosoev eri sofa
wil
linghear t,lethi
m br i
ngit,
anof feri
ngoftheLORD; gold,andsil
v er,andbr ass,
(KJV) .
Mal achi3: 8Wi l
lamanr obGod?Yety ehaverobbedme.Buty esay ,Wher ei
nhav e
wer obbedt hee?Int i
thesandof f
erings(KJV).
Leviti
cus7: 13Besidest hecakes,heshalloferf
f orhi
sof feri
ngleav enedbr eadwi t
h
thesacr if
iceoft hanksgivi
ngofhi speaceof f
erings.
16Buti fthesacr i
fi
ceofhi soffer
ingbeav ow, orav oluntaryoff
ering, i
tshal lbe
eatent hesamedayt hatheof f
erethhissacri
fi
ce: andont hemor rowal sot he
remai nderofi tshallbeeaten(KJV) .

OFFERI
NGASFOUNDI NPSALM 96:8.
“
Psal
m 96:
8Gi
veunt
otheLORDthegl
orydueunt
ohi
sname: bri
nganof
fer
ing,
and

1
comei ntohi scour ts(KJV) .
”
InPsal m 96: 8-9,thewor dt r
ansl atedasof feringher eismi nḥâ whi chmeans( t
o
appor ti
on, adonat i
on,tribut e,av oluntarybl oodl esssacr i
fi
cialof f
ering,sacr i
fice,gi
ft,
i
present ,andof f
ering).Ami nḥâ wasgi v enasasi gnofl ov eandgr atitudet o
ii
God. Usingcont extinv er ses1- 3t hebr i
ngingoft hisof f
eringwasassoci atedwi th
Isr
aelites’grat i
tudet oGodast heLORDandcr eatoroft heheav ens.Minḥâ was
asacr ifi
ce( Genesi s4:3-4) ,giftorpr esentgi v ent oGodaski ngi nthecont extof
worshi ppingHi m( Psalm 96: 8-9),orgifttof ellowmanbyanot hermanasasi gnof
goodwi l
l (
Genesi s32: 13- 15; 43:11; 1Kings10: 24- 25),andbysubj ect st
ot hei rrul
ing
mast ersast ri
bute( Judges3: 15-18).Thegi ftsorpr esentscanbei nformsoff ar
m
produces, flocks, ormet al sast heabov et ext shav eshown.
Theref ore,ami nḥâ canmeananyof feri
ng, gi
ft,present,ortribut egivento
i
i
i
Godormanasasi gnofl oyal t
yorhonor .

OFFERI NGASFOUNDI NEXODUS35: 5, 29.

“ Exodus35: 5Takey ef r
om amongy ouanof fer ingunt ot heLORD: whosoev erisofa
wi ll
inghear t,lethi m br
ingi t
,anof feri
ngoft heLORD; gol d,andsi lver ,andbr ass,”
(KJV) .
Thewor dt r
anslatedasof feringi nv erse5, ist ̱ᵉ rûmâ ( apr esent( as
i
v
of feredup) ,especi all
yinsacr ifice, tri
but e, gift,andheav eof fering) .Howev er ,in
ver se29, adi fferentwor d‫ָה‬‫ָב‬‫ְד‬‫נ‬nᵉ ḏāḇâ i st ransl atedasf reewi llof feringin
thepl aceoft ̱ᵉ r
ûmâ of f ering, yetaddr essi ngt hesamer esul tsascommanded
i
nv er ses5.Ther efore,f
rom cont extṯᵉ rûmâ of fering, gift,pr esentand
nᵉ ḏāḇâ f reewil
l off
ering, abundantgi ft, areusedi nterchangeabl ybyGodi n
thischapt er,yetbr oughtatGod’ scommandbyal l
Isr aelites.
ṯᵉ rûmâ of f
eringornᵉ ḏāḇâ f reewi llofferingwasi nv aried
for msj ustl kemi
i nḥâ abov e.Somei temswer emet al s,clothes, animal ski nsor
pr oduct s, oil
s, perfumes, wood, andpr eciousst ones( Ex35: 21- 29)aseachonehad
(Ex35: 23- 24).t ̱ᵉ rûmâ i sal soappl iedt opor t
ionsofani mal sacr ifi
ces( Lev.
7:32) , alsot ot het i
thefrom all Israel i
tesgi venasanof f
er i
ngt oGod, andt hatwhi ch
theLev itesgav ebackt oGodaf terr ecei vingi t(Num. 18: 24-25) .Itincl udedt he
sanct uar yt axpai dbyall adults( Ex.30: 13- 14) .
Consequent ly,t
erumahcanr epr esentsomet hi ngawor shi percar riest o
appr oacht hef aceofGodaswor shiporhonor( Num.18: 24-25) ,forsacr ifice( Lev.
7:32) , ort obeusedf ortheser v icesofGod( Ex.25: 2, 35:5) ,Thebr ingi ngi noft he
nonesacr ifi
cialaspect soft er umahsuchast i
the, sat
i er umahanof feringt ot hank
andr ecogni zeGod’ sowner shipofev er ybl essing.Thebr i
ngi ngofnedabahf reewi l
l
of feringt ooi sat erumahof fer i
ngt hanki ngGodast hepr oviderofbl essings
(1Chr .29: 10-13) .I t
’sacommandt oev ery onej ustast henonesacr i
ficialmi nchah
of feringabov e.

OFFERI NGASFOUNDI NMALACHI3: 8

“Malachi3: 8Wi ll
amanr obGod?Yety ehav er
obbedme.Buty esay,Wherei
nhave
wer obbedt hee?I nti
thesandof feri
ngs”(KJV).
Thewor dt ranslatedasof feringhereisṯᵉ rûmâ ( off
eri
ng,gif
t,orpr
esent)as
above.Thi sofferingwhichGoddemandedf rom al
lIsr
aelasanat i
on,att
hecostof
cursingthem forr obbingit( Mal.
3:8-
9),isthesamewor dasthet ̱ᵉ r
ûmâ
offer
ing,giftandpr esentofExodus25: 2-3;35:
5,24,29.Fort
hisreason,i
t
grammat icall
yandsemant icall
ycarri
est hesameprincipl
esfoundinExodusabove.

2
 OFFERI NGASFOUNDI NLEVI TICUS7: 13- 16
“Levit
icus7: 13Besi dest hecakes, heshal lofferf orhisof feringl eav enedbr eadwi t
h
thesacr ificeoft hanksgi vi
ngofhi speaceof fer ings.
16Buti fthesacr i
f i
ceofhi sof fer ingbeav ow, orav ol
unt aryof fering, i
tshal lbe
eatent hesamedayt hatheof feret hhi ssacr i
fice: andont hemor r
owal sothe
remainderofi tshal lbeeat en”( KJV) .
TheHebr ewwor dt ranslatedasof fer i
ngi s‫ן‬ ּ
ָ
‫ְב‬
‫ָר‬‫ק‬qor ḇān( somet hingbr ought
v
neartheal tar,i.
e.asacr ifi
cial present ,offering) .Thi swor dt oocanmeana“ gif
t,
v
i
offeri
ng, sacr ifi
ce, cont r
ibution. ”I tisagener al termf orof feringof :ani mal,
vii
vegetabl e, gold,silver,etc. Qur banorqor bant her efor
e, cant akeanyf orm of
offeri
ngexcept ,it
sf ocuswasonwhatwasbr oughtnearGodoral tarforsacr ifi
ce,
yetwithoutl imiti
ngi ttosacr ifi
ces: asitmeantal sononesacr ificial offeri
ngsbr ought
toGodast hedef initionabov eshows.Hav ingl ookedatt hemeani ngsoft hewor ds
transl
at edasof f
er i
ngsandt hei rimpl i
cations, t hest udynowf ocusesonhowgi ving
ofof f
eringi sobligat orytoev erywor shiper.

MANDATORI NESSOFOFFERI NG( minchah)I NPSALM 96: 8.

Whati sworthnoti
nginPsal m 96:8wi threferencetot hisoffering,isthattwowor ds
orverbs‫ַב‬ ‫י‬y
‫ָה‬ āhaḇ ( t
ogi ve,come, bring,take),t
ranslatedas“ giv
e”and‫ָָא‬ ‫נ‬
nāśāʾ (
ari
se,bri
ngf ort
h, car
ry)translatedas“ bri
ng”ar eal lgrammat i
call
y
commands[ Qali
mper at
iveactivevoicemascul ineplural]expressingacommandor
vi
ii
orderfrom Godtoallpeople. Thisimpliest hatGodobl igedal ltheIsrael
itesto
comet oHi m wi
thanof f
eringinanyf orm, andnotempt yhanded.I nNewTest ament,
approachingGodwi t
hanonesacr i
fi
cialof f
eringbyev erywor shiperisev i
dencedin
(Lk21:1,4).

MANDATORI
NESSOFOFFERI
NG(
ter
umah)I
NEXODUS35:
5.
ix
‫ַח‬
‫ָק‬‫ל‬lāqaḥ ( tot ake, bring,carry,
fetch) transl
atedas“ take”inExodus
35:5,i
sacommand[ Qal imper ati
v eactiv
ev oicemascul i
nepl ural]expressinga
commandorchar gebyGodt oal lI
sraeli
testot aket heṯᵉ rûmâ anof feringor
x
present. I
nspi teofchangi ngt hewor dorv erbi nv erse29,tonᵉ ḏāḇâ
xi x
ii
(fr
eewill
,voluntariness, abundantgi f
t,fr
eewi l
loffering,pl
ent if
ul off
ering), the
commandaspecti sst i
llretainedbyt heuseof‫ָצ‬ ‫ו‬
ָ
‫ה‬ ṣāwāh   
(tocommand, order
,
i
nstruct,gi
vedi rection)transl at edascommandedi ntheclause“ whichtheLORDhad
xi
ii
commanded”i nv erse29, whi chisgr ammat icall
y[ pi
elperfectact ivevoice
xiv
masculinesi ngular]expressi ngt heintensivenessoft hecommandbyGod. While
thecommandwasi ntensi veont hepar tofGodt oal l
,howev er,theof f
eringbr ought
i
nv erse29i scal edanᵉ
l ḏāḇâ f r
eewillofferingorv oluntaryof f
ering.

MANDATORI
NESSOFOFFERI
NG(
ter
umah)I
NMALACHI3:
8

Themandat or
inessofterumahof feringaspect sisevidencedbyt he
10
commandt onesbyGodasMal achi 3:8,10st ates,“ Br i
ngy eal l t
hetit
hesi ntothe
storehouse,”
….Thecommandt obr i
ngf ollowst hechargeagai nstJudahbyGodf or
robbingHim ofti
thesandofferi
ngsi nv erse8.Thev erbtranslatedasbr inginv erse
10,isfrom ‫ וֹא‬bôʾ which[hiphili
mper ativ
emascul i
neplur al acti
vevoice]
x
v
expressesacommandf oracausat iveact i
ont obeper f
or med. Godbei ngt he
causeoft heinst
ruct
ionfort
hebr ingingoft heoffer
ingst oHisst orehouse.Thi s
xvi
i
mpl iesthati
twasacommanddemandi ngi mmedi ateact i
on, tobeobey edbyal l

3
Judah,similartoṯᵉ r
ûmâ obl i
gatedt oallI
srael
ites( Ex.25:
2;35:5,24).
Consequent ly,i
nal lthetwot ext
swher eterumahi sused, t
hecommand
aspectispar tofit,
hence, itisanobl i
gati
ont oallworshipers.Terumahof fer
inghere
wasnotf orbui l
dingasanct uaryaswasi nExodus, butasasi gnofhonor ing
(worshi
ping)Godandasf oodinHi shouse( Mal.1:
6,3:10)forthePr i
estsandLev i
tes
touse( Number s18: 24-30).
Havingconsi deredt heobligator
inessofof f
eri
ng, t
hest udynowt urnstothe
pri
ncipl
esneededf orof fer
ingtobeaccept abl
ebef or
eGod.

PRI
NCI
PLESFORACCEPTABLEOFFERI
NGSBEFOREGOD.

Thepr incipl est hatgov ernt hegi v

ingofaccept ableof feri
ngbef oreGodsuch
as: asonedeci desi nhi shear t,wi l
li
ngl yandcheer fully,accor dingt ot hecat egor yof
blessi ngsr ecei ved, quant i
typr opor ti
onat et ot hebl essi ngsr eceiv ed, givingt hebest
withgr at i
t ude, givi
ngi nabundanceorl iber ally, andv aluer efl
ect i
ngt hehonorofGod,
willbet hesubj ectmat ter.Whi lethepr incipl eswi l
l begl eanedf r
om bot hNewand
OldTest ament s,i
tshoul dhowev er,beunder stoodt hat ,allt
heNewTest ament sones
wer egot tenf rom t heOl dast her ewasnoNewTest amentdur ingJesusandt he
apost les’ times.
Thef irstdeduct ionf rom t hest udyofMi nchahi nPsal m 96: 7-8; Genesi s4: 3
wast hati twasanobl i
gat ionf orall t
obr ingi tbef oreGodast heycamef orwor ship.
Terumahandnedabah( Ex.35: 5, 29)t oocar riedt hesamecommandov ertonesf rom
God, howev er, t
her ewasnoper cent ageaspectat tachedt othem al l.Thef or m and
valueoft heof feringt obegi v enwast obepr ompt edbyeachone’ shear t.
Ther ef or e,thef i
r stpr i
nci plet odi scussi sasonedeci desi nhi shear t( Ex.
25:2- 3; 35: 5, 20- 21, 29, 2Cor .9: 7) .
Ont hisaccount ,weseeev er yoneact edont heobl igat ion,buteachonewas
prompt edt obr ingt heof f
er ingasmov edbyt hei rhear ts.Thisi slikelyt hepr inci ple
referr edt oi nt heNewTest amentbyPaul (2Cor .9: 7) .
Thenextpr inci plei swi l
li
ngl yandcheer f ully( Ex.25: 2; 35:29;2Cor .9: 7; 2Cor .
8:12) .
Her eweseet hati twasr efer ringt ot het er umahof feringorf reewi llofferingas
discussedear l
ier.Thei mpl icat ioni st hatwhi l
eGoddemandedal ltobr i
ngt he
offer i
ngst oHi m, Hewoul dnotacceptany t hingf rom any onewhosehear twasnot
will
ingt ogi v et oGod.
Thisbr i
ngsust ot henextpr i
nci pleofgi vingaccor di ngt othecat egor yofbl essi ngs
recei ved( Ex35: 21- 24, 29, 1Chr29: 8) .
Her ewef indt hateachandev er yonehadt ogohomeandgetwhatt heypossessed.
Paul seemst ober ef erringt ot hesamepr inci plef rom t heOl dTest ament( 2Cor .
8:12) .I nal l thecases, emphasi swasont hecat egor yoft hebl essi ngf rom t heLORD
eachonehad, tobr i
ngt oGod.Ont hisaccount , var i
ouscommodi ti
eswer ebr ought
asanof fer i
ngt oGod( Ex. 35: 5, 29).
Thenextpr i
nci plei spr opor ti
onat et ot hebl essi ngsr ecei ved( Lk6: 38; 12: 48;
2Cor .9: 6)
Her et hebi blei ndicat est hatGodhol dsusr esponsi bl ei naccor dancewi tht hel i
ght ,
xvi
i
andamountofbl essi ngsr ecei ved. Thi si swhygi vinggener ousl ywhenbl essedi s
key .
Thenextpr i
nci plet odi scussi sgi vingwi llingl yt hebestwi thgr atitudet oGod
(Number s18: 29-30, 1Chr oni cles29: 9,14, 17, 2Cor .9: 7) .
“Number s18: 29Outofal l yourgi f
tsy eshal lof ferev er yheav eof feringoft heLORD,

4
ofal lthebestt her eof , event hehal lowedpar tt her eofoutofi t.
30Ther ef or et houshal tsayunt ot hem, Wheny ehav eheav edt hebestt her eoff rom i t,
theni tshal l becount edunt ot heLev i
tesast hei ncr easeoft het hreshi ngf l
oor ,andas
thei ncr easeoft hewi nepr ess.” (KJV) .Not et hewor dt ransl atedasbesti sf rom ‫ֶב‬ ‫ֶל‬‫ח‬
xvii
i xix
ḥel eḇ ( choi cest ,bestpar t, fat ,ri
chest )
. Innumber s18: 29-30, besti sused
withr ef er encet ot heLev itesr et ur ni ngt hebestoft ithef rom t heirgi f
tst ot heLor d.I n
theot her st extsabov e, t
hi spr i
nci ple, focusedongi v i
nganof feringasasi gnof
grat i
tudet ot hemer ciesandbl essi ngsf rom God.Thi sr eferredt othegi v i
ngoft he
nedabahort erumahof feringf ort hebui l
dingoft het empl ei n1Chr onicl es29: 9,14, 17.
InCor int hians, i
twast hegi vingofgi f
tst ot heneedyatJer usal em ( 2Cor9: 1,12) .The
keywor dorv erbi nt hev ersesi n1Chr onicl es29: 9, 14,17i s‫ַב‬‫ָד‬‫נ‬nāḏaḇ ( giv e
willi
ngl y ,v olunt eer ,liber al,gener ousxx)f rom wher enedabah- freewi llof fering,
xxi xxi
i
volunt ar yof fering comesf rom.I t’s[ hitpael inf i
ni tive]expr essi ngar ef l
exi ve
attitudeoft hegi ver .Itr ev ealsasel f-
inci t
edorv ol unt eer i
ngmi ndsetwi thwhi cht he
xxi
ii
giver swi ll
ingl yof feredt hemsel v es, andt hei rof f eringst oGodasasi gnof
grat i
tudet oHi m.
Inaddi t
iont ot heirwi l
li
ngness, theygav et hebestgi ftsasev i
dencedbyt he
commandedar ticles, andt her eal iz edr esul ts( Ex. 35: 5, 1Chr .
29: 2-4).Fr om t hev er ses
abov et heof feringsgi venwher enotj ustgi v enwi l
lingl y,butal sobesti nqual ityf or
thei ntendedpur poseorper sonage, aki nt oMat thew2: 11.
Thenextpr inci plei sgi vi ngi nabundanceorl i
ber al l
y ,asr eflect edi nnedabah.
Anyt i
met hiswor di sused, t
wof act sar eatpl ay ,thesel f-wi l
lingnesst ogi ve, or
xxiv
volunt ar inessofat ti
tude, andt heabundancy oft hegi ftsbr oughtt oGod( Ex35: 29,
1Chr29: 3).
Fi nal ly,thel astpr inciplei st heval ueofof feringr eflect i
ngt hest atusor
honorofGod( Ps. 96: 8Mat thew2: 11) .
Fr om t heaccounti nMat thew2: 10- 11, itisi ndi cat ivet hatt het hreet y pesofgi fts
broughtt ot heki ng( Jesus)byt hewi semen, ref lect edt hest at usoft heper son
recei vingt hem.TheGr eekwor dr ef er redt oasgi ft, i
sδῶρον ; dōr on, “gener allyf or
qor bān, andof tenal sof ormi nḥâ a“ gift, pr esent :asanexpr essi onof
xxv
honor .” dōr oni sappl i
edt ogi ftsof fer edassacr ificesatt heal t
ar( Mk. 7:11, Mat t.
5:23; 8: 12; Heb11: 4) ,andgi ft
sbr oughtt ohonorGod( Mat t
.2:11, Lk.21: 1, 4).Thi si s
akint oPsal m 96: 8, andMal achi 3: 8wher emi nchahandt erumahwer eacommand
foral lwor shi perst obr i
ngast heyappr oacht heLORDf orwor ship.Thi si ssuggest ive
thati nt hatcul tur ebot ht heMagi andt heI srael itesshar edasi milarv iewofhowt o
xxvi
appearbef or edi gni t
ar ies( God, godsandki ngs) .

Concl usion
From theforegonest udyoft ypesofof f
eri
ngsandpr inciplesgov erningthe
acceptablewayofgi vingof f
erings,thefoll
owi ngar ethededuct ions.Fi rstl
y ,minchah
couldbebot hsacri
f i
cialandnonesacr i
fici
al off
erings, gi
fts,orpr esent st oGodand
man.Secondl y,ter
umaht oocouldbesacr i
fici
alandnonesacr i
fici
al gifts,offeri
ngs,
orpresentst oGodandman.Thi rdl
y,nedabahandt erumahar eused
i
nterchangeablyinExodus35: 5,29,andal l
meangi ft,present ,
orof fering.Howev er,
nedabahbr i
ngsanaspectoff reeimpulseorwi l
l,asonebr ingst het erumahof f
er i
ng
whichwasacommand, yetbroughtgener ouslyori nabundancet oGod.Four thly,
therei
sst i
llaconti
nuedneedt odayt ocontinuebr i
ngingt henonesacr i
ficialaspects
ofgift
s,presentsorof fer
ingsofmi nchah,terumahornedabahandqor ban:f or
purposesofwor shipingorhonor i
ngGodasweappr oachHi sf ace.Thesacr ifi
cial
aspectsofmi nchah,terumahornedabahandqor banwer eal ldoneawaywi ththe

5
deat hofChr istont hecr oss,hencenotbi ndi ngi nt heNewTest amentt imes.
Thepr i
nci pl
est hatshoul dgui dewor shipper sast heyappr oachGodf or
wor ship, mustbet r eat edwhol istical l
y,andnoti nisol at i
on.Fi rst
ly,ther ei sno
percent ageat tachedt ot hebr ingi ngoft hemi nchah, terumahornedabah, and
qorban( offer i
ng)asobser v edf rom t het ext sunderst udy .Nonet heless, alltext s
undergr ammat ical anal ysis, hav epr ov edt hatbr ingi nganof feri
ng, giftsorpr esent s
toGodi sacommandf orev erywor shiper .
Inaddi ti
on, keybi blical pr inci plessuchas: Asonedeci desinhi shear t,
will
inglyandcheer ful ly,accor di ngt ot hecat egor yofbl essingsr ecei ved, quant i
t yto
bepr opor tionat et ot hebl essi ngsr eceived, givingt hebestwi thgratitude, gi vingi n
abundanceorl iberal ly,andt hev al ueofof f eringr eflect i
ngt hestatusorhonorofGod,
necessi tatest hatt hemat t
erofof fer i
ngbedonewi t hdi vinegui danceandt he
seriousnessi tdeser v es, ifof fer ingi st obeaccept abl ebef oreGod.Whensummed
upt oget her ,i
tiscl eart hatof fer i
ngsshoul dbei nabundancy ,abov eandbey ondt he
ti
theper cent ages, whenGod’ speopl erejoi ceandappr eciateHi sbount iesandl ife.
Thiswhol isticunder standi ng, maynotset t l
ef orthel eastamount sorper cent agesi n
offerings.
Ear lyAdv entistpi oneer st oohadt hisunder st andi ngwhent heyadv ocat edf or
thesameappr oacht obepr act icedbyal lmat ure, Sev enth-dayAdv ent i
st
x
xvi
i
wor shiper s. Of f
er ingbr ingi ngi sacommandbyGod, andnotopt ional bi bli
cal l
y ,
as
i
tiswor shi pingandhonor ingGodasobser v edi nbot ht heOl dandNewTest ament s.
Howev er, i
tshoul dbeact edonpr ompt lyfr om one’ sf r eewi ll
orhear t,cheer fullyand
will
ingly: asf arast hecat egor y ,qual i
ty,propor t
ionandamountl imi tsisconcer ned,
yetal way si nabundancywhenal lpr inciplesar eatpl ay .

Note:Toallpast or
s, andteacher s,t
hisstudyisdetai
led:highl
ightingthe
obli
gatori
nessofbr ingingof fer
ing,usi
ngHebr ewandGr eekgrammar ,foryour
saketounder standitdeeply ,yetHebr ewwor dsandGr eekwor dsaref oryour
personalconsumpt ion,notmeantt obet aughtormentionedt otheaudi ence,but
theprinci
plesbehindt hem, orlogicshouldbeexplainedwi thbibl
icalclari
tythey
deservetot hecamper s.

MayGodBl
essHi
sWor
d!Andy
out
her
eader
sandhear
ers!

6
 i
JamesSt r
ong, TheNewSt r
ong’ sExpandedDi ctionar yofBi bleWor ds( Nashvil
le:Thomas
Nelson, 2001) ,615.
i
i
Ibi d.
i
ii
Fr anci sBr own, S.Dr iv
er ,andC.Br iggs, TheBr own- Driver-
Br iggsHebr ewandEngl i
shLexi con
(Peabody , Mass: Hendr icksonPubl i
shers, 1906) ,s.v .mi nḥâ
i
v
Ibid.
v
Ri ckBennet t,KeyDi ctionar yofBi blicalHebr ewandAr amai c:BasedonSt rong’sHebr ew
Dictionary[ CDROM]( Accor danceel ectroni ced. :OakTr eeSof tware: 2010) ,s.v.qor ḇān
vi
JohnR.Kohl enber ger ,andWi l
liam Mounce, ed.,Kohl enber ger/MounceConci seHebr ew-
Aramai cDi ct ionar yoft heOl dTest ament[ CDROM]( Accor danceel ect roniced. : OakTreesof t
war e,
2012)s. v.qor ḇān
vi
i
Br own, Driver, Br i
ggs, s.v.qor ḇān.
vi
i
i
Ri ckBennet t,s. v.y āhaḇ, nāśā.
i
x
War renBaker ,ed. ,TheCompl eteWor dSt udyOl dTest ament :KingJamesVer sion
(Chat t
anooga, TN: AMGPubl isher s, 1994) ,2280.
x
Ibi d.
xi
Br own, Driver ,Br iggs, TheBr own- Driver-Br i
ggsHebr ewandEngl ishLexi con,s.v.
nᵉḏāḇâ
xi
i
Bennet t,s.v.nᵉ ḏāḇâ
xi
i
i
JohnR.Kohl enber ger ,andWi l
liam Mounce, ed.,Kohl enber ger/MounceConci seHebr ew-
Aramai cDi ct ionar yoft heOl dTest ament[ CDROM]( Accor danceel ect roniced. : OakTreesof t
war e,
2012) .
xi
v
Baker ,
2280.
xv
Ibi d. ,2274.
xv
i
Ibid. ,2276.
xvi
i
Cr ai gS.Keener ,TheI VPBi bleBackgr oundComment ary:NewTest ament ,2d;Accor dance
electroniced.( Downer sGr ov e:Inter VarsityPr ess, 2014) ,
215.
xv
ii
i
Fr anci sBr own, S.Dr iver ,andC.Br iggs, s.v.ḥel eḇ
xi
x
Ri ckBennet t,s. v.ḥel eḇ
xx
St r ong, s.v.nāḏaḇ 
xxi
Fr anci sBr own, S.Dr i
ver ,andC.Br iggs, s.v.nᵉ ḏāḇâ
xxi
i
Baker ,2275.
xxi
ii
JohnR.Kohl enber ger ,andWi l
liam Mounce, ed,s.v.nāḏaḇ 
xxi
v
St rong, s.v.nᵉ ḏāḇâ
xxv
JosephH.Thay er ,Thay er’sGr eek- Engl i
shLexi conoft heNewTest ament[ CD
ROM] (Accor danceel ect roni ced. : OakTr eeSof t
war e,n.d)s. v.δῶρον .
xxvi
Cr aigS.Keener , 50.
xxvi
i
Char l
esE.Br adf or d,“St ewardshi p,”inHandbookofSev ent h-DayAdv enti
stTheologyv ol
.
12, edit
edbyRaoul Deder enetal .(Hager stown, MD: Rev i
ewandHer aldPubl ishi ng,2000),666.