“Everyone included among those who are numbered, from twenty years old and above, shall give an offering to the LORD” (Ex. 30:14).
Moses is here ordered to collect money from the people for the service of the tabernacle. He had to do this when he numbered the people, and he had to collect the same amount from every person twenty years old and above, both from the rich and the poor. Many of the Jewish writers since this time are of the opinion that this tax was to be an annual tribute, which began when Moses first numbered the people. This was the tribute money that Jesus paid to avoid offending His adversaries (Matt. 17:27), even though He showed good reason why He should have been excused.
The tribute to be paid was half a shekel, an amount that was rarely reduced, even in times of difficulty. The order that both the rich and poor alike pay the same tribute reflects the fact that God shows no favoritism, and that the souls of both the rich and the poor need atonement (Acts 10:34, Job 34:19). In other offerings, men were to give according to their ability, but in this, which was the “ransom of the soul,” the payment had to be the same for everyone. The rich have as much need of Jesus Christ as the poor, and the poor are as welcome to Him as the rich. Both contributed to the maintenance of the temple service because both had a common interest in it and both were benefited by it. In Christ and His ordinances, rich and poor meet together: “The rich and the poor have this in common, the Lord is the maker of them all” (Prov. 22:2).
The people paid this tribute as a ransom of the soul, that there might be no plague among them. In this they acknowledged that they received their lives from God, and that they depended on His power and patience to sustain them. And so they paid homage to God and were saved from those plagues that their sins deserved.
The money gathered was used for the service of the tabernacle, for the buying of flour, sacrifices, incense, wine, oil, fuel, the priestly garments and other things. Matthew Henry comments that those who have the benefit of God’s tabernacle among them must be willing to defray the expenses of it. In this way, we honor the Lord with our earnings. Money cannot make atonement for the soul, but it may be used for the honor of Him who has made the Atonement, and for the maintenance of the Good News through which the Atonement comes.
While we do not need to make atonement for ourselves, we do need to give to the Lord by way of financial offering. In the Old Testament the people tithed, giving the best of what they had (the first fruits). Are you happy to give to your church and any other ministries that bring the Good News of Christ? Evaluate your heart.
