A tithe is a portion (10%) of your income given as an offering to your church. (Fun fact: The word tithe literally means tenth in Hebrew.) Because the custom of tithing is scriptural, many Christians and Jews practice it as part of their faith.

Leviticus 27:30 says, “And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord’s: it is wholly unto the Lord.” And Proverbs 3:5-10 says, “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones. Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase: So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine.”

Those gardening metaphors may have thrown you off, but what these verses are really saying is to give a portion (specifically a tenth) of whatever you make back to God. And firstfruits is just a biblical way of saying that you should give first —before you do anything else with your money.

The Word of God explains that tithing is an important part of faith for those who follow God and that your tithe should be money you set aside first. That’s why “giving” should be the first category of every personal home budget —because when you tithe before making a plan with the rest of your money, you’re making it a priority instead of an afterthought. You’re giving your firstfruits instead of your leftovers.

Like oranges and tangerines, are grouped together a lot because they are similar, but they’re definitely not the same thing. A tithe is a specific amount (10% of your income) that you give first, and an offering is anything extra that you give beyond that.

After you’ve tithed and paid all your bills and expenses for the month, you can use any extra money in your budget to give even more! This can look like giving a cash offering to church above and beyond your normal tithe, giving to a friend in need, or giving your time and skills by volunteering to serve those in need and yes, even volunteering the talents and abilities the Lord has blessed you with, to help build up the church.

The Scriptures tell us that tithing is a way to show that we trust God with our lives and our finances. It’s a way of acknowledging what the Lord has done for us and blessed our lives. Tithing isn’t for God’s benefit. He doesn’t need our money. Instead, tithing is meant for our benefit because sacrificing a portion of our income reminds us to rely on God to meet our needs. It’s one of the ways we remind ourselves of how indebted we really are! Plus it makes us more aware of the needs of others too.

The book of Jacob 2:18-19 says, “But before ye seek for riches, seek ye for the kingdom of God. And after ye have obtained a hope in Christ ye shall obtain riches, if ye seek them; and ye will seek them for the intent to do good ‑‑ to clothe the naked, and to feed the hungry, and to liberate the captive, and administer relief to the sick and the afflicted.”

In fact, supporting the needs of the church is one of the main purposes of tithing. Tithing helps the church actively be The Church by helping others. But it’s really a matter of the heart, not your pocketbook! Giving encourages a grateful and generous spirit and can help steer us away from being greedy or loving money too much.

While tithing 10% of your income is scriptural, it doesn’t mean you’re a bad person if you don’t tithe. And guess what? God loves us when we give and when we don’t give. If you’re only giving 2% of income today, look to increase the % as your income increases. Work from 2% to 3% and 3% to 4% and so on.

You see, tithing isn’t a way to earn God’s love—because we already have it . In Matthew 23:23, Jesus warns against focusing too much on the rules of tithing without paying attention to the more important things like justice, mercy, a pure heart and faithfulness.

3 Nephi chapter 24 records the commandment of Jesus to write the words of the prophet Malachi, quoting the entire 3rd chapter. He specifically commanded for this to be written and retained by His people quoting Malachi 3:8-10, “Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings… Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.”

Bottom line? You should be giving back to God in some way. But tithing is more of a spiritual topic than a financial one. It’s not about the money—it’s about the heart. It’s about living with the attitude that we’ve been blessed to be a blessing.

2 Corinthians 9:7 says, “Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.”

Let’s look at it from this perspective: We all have a choice to make when we think about the money we earn. An OWNER says, “How much of my money will I give to God?” or when considering a purchase, “Will I enjoy this?” and (sometimes) “Can I afford it?”, or maybe, “My finances and giving are my private business.” and tend to resent questions or challenges from others in this area as intrusive. Conversely, a STEWARD would ask, “How much of God’s money will I keep for myself?” or “How will this purchase affect my ability to advance God’s purposes?” and will say, “I will seek wise counsel so I can be faithful with God’s resources.” You see, a STEWARD, instead of viewing finances and giving as our private business, we will begin (as with all important decisions) to see what God’s Word says about it, and ask counsel from other more mature Christians.

The attitude of our heart should be more aligned with being a wise STEWARD, as we are stewards of that which God has entrusted to us and one day, each of us will be called to give an account for how we have managed what the Master has given us as Jesus references in Luke 12:42. Simply put, our spending demonstrates our relationship with God.

Well, in addition to all we read in the Bible and Book of Mormon, the October 2013 General Church Conference Minutes read:

At the conclusion of the [Church] Finance Committee Report, Apostle Paul Palmieri reminded the conference that the lack of funding can be due to the lack of information imparted to our members from us, the ministry. He reminded us to share this information and encourage our people to give to the work of the Lord. As he was stating this, a brother arose in the Gift of Tongues followed by the Word of the Lord saying:

“Thus saith the Lord; thus saith the Lord this day: I have commissioned you to take this Gospel to the dying souls of mankind! And yet you see your limitations before you today and you are bound by them! And have I not said that you must have a pure heart? For out of a pure heart you would be willing to give. You would be willing to give tithes and offerings unto Me, the Provider! For I have provided for you in your lives! And now teach, teach the sheep that they must give; they must give of themselves. I need not material things! I desire gifts of the heart! I desire the sincerity of a will and a desire that would serve Me, the God, the Provider of all! Go now forth! Go now forth! Teach the people! Teach the people, thus saith the Lord!”

You see, it’s all about having a pure heart and desire to love and serve Jesus Christ! From there, we are motivated, out of love, to give back to God.

And yes, one of the reasons this information is being provided, is because the Lord directed the ministry to teach these precepts and understand the importance of them. In the October 2023 General Church Conference, the priesthood accepted a motion to support teaching our membership, that giving Tithes and Offerings, is a scriptural principle.

We encourage you to start by praying for God’s wisdom and understanding. We also encourage you to use scripture-based programs and tools to assist you, such as RAMSEY Solutions, and aid you in your spiritual stewardship journey. ( While RAMSEY Solutions is not affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ, the values of the organization associated with the site appear to align with our values as a Church.)

Well, to be honest, it’s often very difficult to make the leap to 10%, but if you (and your spouse if married) are convicted, you simply start with asking the Lord to guide you. Review your current budget, look for expenses that could be reduced, consider the discretionary expenses through the eyes of a STEWARD. Calculate the % you’re currently giving and look for ways to increase it in small steps (i.e. 1% to 2%, 2% to 3% and so on). Likewise, intentionally plan to increase your giving when the Lord blesses your household with an increase in income. Little by little – you’ll get there, remembering when you put the Lord first (in everything you do) He’ll bless you and open the windows of heaven and pour out a blessing…

Honestly, whether you tithe from your gross pay, or your take-home pay is totally up to you. The point here is that you’re giving 10% of your income.

If we’re getting technical, giving 10% of your income to anything other than the church isn’t really a tithe—it’s just a nice gift. But even if you’re not actively attending church, giving is what the Lord asks of us.

Even if you’re in debt or walking through a rough financial season, tithing should still be a priority. Yes—you read that right. While it’s tempting to throw that money at your debt, the discipline and faith that tithing brings are so worth it. Even while you’re paying down debt, you can still have an attitude of generosity.

If you think it’ll take a miracle to get through the month with 10% less in your wallet, you might need to do a lifestyle check. Take a look at your personal home budget and find ways to cut back on spending. It might mean limiting some of your fun money, packing your lunch instead of eating out every day, brewing your own coffee, or buying generic products—but it is possible!

But you should hold off on offerings (extra cash gifts) while you’re paying off debt.

Even though tithing to church is a matter of the heart, taking a tax deduction doesn’t shrink the value of your generous gift. The scriptures tell us to be good stewards of our money, so if taking the tax deduction helps you manage the other 90% of your money better, then by all means, do it.

If you get an income tax refund, remember that’s money you’ve already tithed on during the year—although, you’re definitely welcome to devote some or all of it back to the Lord as even more thanks for His blessings! You might consider adjusting the number of tax exemptions so that you’re claiming the right number and not overpaying your taxes throughout the year.

When things are going well and you find yourself with more income, it can be easy to spend all that extra cash on yourself. But think of it as a great opportunity to increase your donations to the 10% level and even above and beyond your tithe if possible. Many regular Christian tithers often give above 10%, landing somewhere between 11–20%.

That’s why it’s so important to budget what you’ll do with the extra money—so you can make sure you’re working toward the 10% tithing level. If you’re intentional about looking for ways to be generous, you’re going to find them.