Most Christians tithe on money that arrives as new increase: a cash gift, a lottery prize, or the income part of a legal settlement. They usually do not tithe on money that only replaces a loss, such as a payment that covers your medical bills. A $1,000 cash gift would mean a $100 tithe for someone who tithes on all increase. Scripture names no windfalls, so this is a decision for wisdom and conscience, and the table below shows how the common positions apply to each type.
Put it into practice
Type the amount into our Tithe Calculator to see the tenth at a glance. Two related questions have their own pages: tithing on an inheritance and tithing on a bonus. The free Complete Tithe guide (PDF, no signup) covers the wider picture.
Why windfalls raise a different question
A paycheck comes on a schedule, and you can build a habit around it. A windfall arrives once. It can be a birthday check from a grandmother, a payout after a lawsuit, or a ticket that happens to win. Because it comes outside your normal pattern, people wonder if the usual rule still applies.
The biblical idea behind the tithe is the firstfruits of increase. Proverbs 3:9 says to honor the LORD with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your produce. Deuteronomy 14:22 tells Israel to tithe all the yield of the seed. Both passages talk about what comes in. That gives us a working test for any windfall: does this money add to what I had, or does it only restore something I lost?
Money that adds is increase, and the firstfruits principle applies to it. Money that restores is a return of what was already yours, and there is little to tithe. Most of the sorting below follows from that one question.
A table by type of windfall
The rows below show common positions. They are patterns among Christians, and no row is a command. If your tradition or your pastor teaches something different, follow that with a clear conscience.
| Windfall | Adds or restores? | Common practice | On $1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cash gift from family or a friend | Adds | Many tithe on larger gifts and give a small offering on small ones | $100, or an offering you choose |
| Wedding or graduation money | Adds | Tithe on it, or give a tenth of what is left after thank-you costs | $100 |
| Inheritance | Adds | Positions vary widely; see our separate page | $0 to $100 |
| Lottery or gambling winnings | Adds | Some Christians decline the money; others tithe on it and add generous giving | $100 or more, after prayer |
| Legal settlement for lost wages or pain and suffering | Partly adds | Tithe on the income and damages portion; skip reimbursed expenses | Depends on the split |
| Settlement or insurance payout that repays a bill you already paid | Restores | Usually no tithe on the repayment | $0 |
| Work bonus | Adds | Tithe like any pay; see our bonus page | $100 |
Notice that the amounts stay simple. You are comparing a single tenth against a single number, so it helps to decide the rule before you receive anything.
Gifts
A gift feels different from earned pay, because you did nothing to receive it. Some Christians conclude that unearned money carries no tithe. The Old Testament tithe, however, was attached to increase, and increase includes what God gives you through other people. A grandmother's check is a real addition to your household.
Gifts also come in sizes. Tithing on every $20 birthday bill would be a heavy load, and few people do it. A workable practice is to set a floor. Many families tithe on any single gift above a set amount and give a smaller offering on the rest, or they add up the year's gifts and tithe on the total. Whatever you choose, choose it in advance so your giving does not depend on your mood that week.
Thank the giver first. A gift is a kindness, and the giver deserves a note before the receiver starts calculating.
One more note applies when a gift comes with a purpose. If a relative gives you $1,000 for a car repair, the money is earmarked, and you may decide to tithe from your regular income and use the gift for its stated purpose. That is a reasonable path. Talk it over with your spouse.
Lottery winnings and gambling
This is the hardest row on the table, and it deserves an honest answer. Many Christians believe gambling conflicts with biblical wisdom, because it invites us to hope for easy money and to risk what should support our families. Our pages on whether gambling is a sin and whether the lottery is a sin lay out the passages and the range of views. Those pages come first if you are still deciding whether to play at all.
If money has already arrived, two responses are common. Some Christians decline it, because they do not want to gain from something they believe was wrong. Others accept it, tithe on it, and add generous giving, in the same spirit as Zacchaeus, who gave away half his goods after his life changed (Luke 19:8). A prize also carries taxes and, often, a wave of requests from friends and relatives, so a wise winner gets advice from a pastor, a tax professional and a financial advisor before spending anything.
Giving a tenth does not make a questionable source acceptable. A tithe is worship. It cannot launder a decision you are uneasy about. If your conscience troubles you about the way the money came, treat that unease as information and talk to your pastor before the check clears.
For those who keep the money, the simple approach is to tithe on the full amount and then plan the rest with unusual care. Sudden wealth tends to disappear faster than earned wealth, so build the emergency fund and pay down debt first.
Legal settlements
A settlement often mixes several kinds of money in one payment. The paperwork usually splits the total among medical costs, lost wages, and damages for pain and suffering, and sometimes attorney fees come off the top.
Use the add-or-restore question on each piece. Repayment for medical bills you paid restores a loss, so there is little to tithe. Lost wages replace pay you would have earned and tithed, so many Christians tithe on that portion. Damages for pain and suffering add to your household, and many Christians tithe on them as well, after legal fees. Ask your attorney for the breakdown in writing, and ask a tax professional how each portion is treated on your return.
A short example. A $30,000 settlement pays $9,000 for medical bills you already paid, $6,000 in legal fees, and the remaining $15,000 for lost wages and damages. Under the add-or-restore approach you would set aside the medical repayment and the fees, and tithe on the $15,000, which is $1,500. Your numbers will differ. The method stays the same.
What the Bible says about windfalls
The clearest windfall story is in Genesis 14. Abraham rescues his nephew Lot and recovers the goods that raiders had taken. Afterward he gives Melchizedek a tenth of everything (Genesis 14:20). The king of Sodom then offers him the spoils, and Abraham refuses. He tells the king he will take nothing, so that no one can say, “I have made Abram rich” (Genesis 14:23). He lets the young men who fought with him take their share (Genesis 14:24).
Abraham shows two habits together. He gives generously from the gain, and he watches where a gain comes from. Our page on the tithe to Melchizedek looks at the first, and the second belongs in every windfall decision: who is handing me this, and what does taking it say about my trust in God?
Proverbs warns that wealth gained hastily will dwindle, and that whoever gathers little by little increases it (Proverbs 13:11). Our page on Proverbs 13:11 explains the verse. A windfall is a test of patience. The tithe is the first answer, and a plan is the second.
Finally, Jesus told the story of the rich fool, whose land produced a great harvest and who thought only of bigger barns (Luke 12:16-21). Read the parable slowly before you plan for a large gift. It carries a warning about the way a sudden supply can crowd out generosity, and our page on the parable of the rich fool goes through it.
A framework for any windfall
1. Wait a few days. Sudden money pushes for quick decisions. Let it sit in a savings account while you pray and talk with your spouse.
2. Sort it. Ask of each part: does this add to what I had, or replace a loss? Use the table above.
3. Check the source. If the origin bothers your conscience, talk with your pastor before you decide what to do with the money.
4. Set the tithe. Apply the same percentage you use for your regular income to the adding portion, and give it early.
5. Fund the basics. Build the emergency fund, then pay high-interest debt. See the biblical emergency fund.
6. Give beyond the tenth if you can. Windfalls are a good time for a one-off gift to a need you know about (2 Corinthians 9:7).
7. Write down the decision. Next time a windfall comes, your own notes will settle the question in five minutes.
Internal study path
Keep going with tithing on an inheritance, tithing on a bonus, is gambling a sin, is the lottery a sin, tithing on gross or net, the meaning of firstfruits, and our tithing hub.