Which One Gave the Tithe?
The Claim, Straight
"And he gave him tithes of all." Preachers quote Genesis 14:20 to prove Abraham tithed. Read the verse's own pronouns closely, and it doesn't actually say who's giving.
The real proof is one book later, and centuries after.
What the Text Says
Abram rescues his nephew Lot, taken captive in a regional war, arming the men of his own household:
"And when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his trained servants, born in his own house, three hundred and eighteen, and pursued them unto Dan."GENESIS 14:14 · KJV
Returning, Melchizedek - a king who is also "the priest of the most high God" - brings out bread and wine and blesses him:
"And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God. And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth: And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all."GENESIS 14:18–20 · KJV
"He gave him" - read on its own grammar, that could mean Melchizedek giving to Abram just as easily as Abram giving to Melchizedek.
The Turn
A different book, centuries later, closes the gap Genesis 14:20 leaves open:
"To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all... Now consider how great this man was, unto whom even the patriarch Abraham gave the tenth of the spoils."HEBREWS 7:2, 7:4 · KJV
The Fine Print
CAVEATThis isn't a contradiction between the two books - Hebrews doesn't correct Genesis, it supplies the subject Genesis 14:20's own grammar leaves unnamed.
CAVEATMelchizedek's own identity - a king of Salem who is also "priest of the most high God," with no genealogy given in Genesis - is its own well-known open question in Bible study. This short doesn't take a position on it beyond what Genesis 14:18 states.
CAVEATHebrews 7:2 glosses both of his own titles by their meaning - "King of righteousness," then "King of Salem, which is, King of peace." That's Hebrews' own reading of the names, not a claim Genesis 14 makes about them.
Questions People Ask
Who actually gave the tithe to Melchizedek?
TEXTAbraham did - but Genesis 14:20 alone, read strictly by its own pronoun grammar, doesn't settle who gives to whom. Hebrews, elsewhere in the same Bible, states it plainly: "even the patriarch Abraham gave the tenth of the spoils" (Hebrews 7:4).
What does Genesis 14:20 actually say?
TEXT"And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all." Read on its own, "he" and "him" could point either way - Melchizedek giving to Abram just as easily as Abram giving to Melchizedek.
Who was Melchizedek?
TEXTGenesis 14:18 identifies him only as "Melchizedek king of Salem... the priest of the most high God" - a king and a priest who brings out bread and wine and blesses Abram after his rescue of Lot.
Sources Cited
- Genesis 14:14, King James Version: Abram's rescue of Lot, the 318 trained servants – quoted above.
- Genesis 14:18–20, King James Version: Melchizedek's blessing and the tithe verse – quoted above.
- Hebrews 7:1–2 and 7:4, King James Version: Melchizedek identified as the same king of Salem from Genesis 14, his titles glossed by meaning, and "Abraham gave the tenth of the spoils" – quoted above.