Page 103 - Breaking the Curse of Poverty David Owusu

Breaking the Curse of Poverty  David K. Owusu

I will give you a tenth.”

In essence Jacob was saying “That’s the basis of my relationship
with God. He provides for my needs, and in return, I give Him back
a tenth of all that He provides for me.”

In Genesis 32:9-10 [nIV], the Bible records Jacob’s testimony
twenty years later.

“Then Jacob prayed, ”O God of my father Abraham, God of my
father Isaac, O Lord, who said to me,’ Go back to your country and
your relatives, and I will make you prosper’ I am unworthy of all
the kindness and faithfulness you have shown your servant. I had
only my staff when I crossed this Jordan, but now I have become
two groups.”

Jacob had tremendous wealth, a very large family and every need
had been supplied.

What was the reason? His faithfulness in tithing.

He left with a stick in his hand, and he came back with abundance
of wealth and possessions. The key was that he gave God the first
tenth of everything that God provided for him.

As we further examine tithing among God’s people in the Old
Testament, we find that under the Law of Moses, the tithe simply
belonged to God. There was no question about this fact, which is
verified in the following scriptures:-

“A tithe of everything from the land, whether grain from the soil

or fruit from trees, belongs to the Lord; it is holy to the Lord [the

102