The Tithe Was A Welfare Program

Thou shalt truly tithe all the increase of thy seed, that the field bringeth forth year by year. And thou shalt eat before the LORD thy God, in the place which he shall choose to place his name there, the tithe of thy corn, of thy wine, and of thine oil, and the firstlings of thy herds and of thy flocks; that thou mayest learn to fear the LORD thy God always. And if the way be too long for thee, so that thou art not able to carry it; or if the place be too far from thee, which the LORD thy God shall choose to set his name there, when the LORD thy God hath blessed thee: Then shalt thou turn it into money, and bind up the money in thine hand, and shalt go unto the place which the LORD thy God shall choose: And thou shalt bestow that money for whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or for strong drink, or for whatsoever thy soul desireth: and thou shalt eat there before the LORD thy God, and thou shalt rejoice, thou, and thine household, And the Levite that is within thy gates; thou shalt not forsake him; for he hath no part nor inheritance with thee. At the end of three years thou shalt bring forth all the tithe of thine increase the same year, and shalt lay it up within thy gates: And the Levite, (because he hath no part nor inheritance with thee,) and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, which are within thy gates, shall come, and shall eat and be satisfied; that the LORD thy God may bless thee in all the work of thine hand which thou doest.

(Deu 14:22-29)

The passage above gives us the clearest instructions for the tithe, it tells us:

1. The tithe only applied to one's increase in agricultural products.  Not to money (see 3) (see also Lev 27:30, Lev 27:32, 2Ch 31:5 Mat 23:23, Luk 11:42).
2. The increase was determined every three years - you tithed 10% of what you had more of than you had three years previously.
3. The tithe could not be paid in money - if you lived to far away from the Tabernacle/Temple, you sold your tithe for money and then used the money to buy a new tithe when you got there.
4. The tithe was a large bar-b-que which the tither himself ate, his family, and the meal was shared with the priests, immigrants, orphans and widows. In other words, the tithe was a welfare program.