There are laws in this reading regarding true and false prophets. Yet, how to distinguish between the two is less than obvious. You're, obviously, to listen and obey the words of the true prophet and put to death the false prophet. But how do you tell the difference? "If what a prophet proclaims in the name of the Lord does not take place or come true, that is a message the Lord has not spoken." [Deut. 18:22] Still they missed Jesus. Why? Well, not everything Jesus said came true in His lifetime on earth. Some of His words spoke about His death. He was put to death a false prophet and His death proved Him to be a true prophet.
We find that the tithe given at the end of every three years is for "the Levites (who have no allotment or inheritance of their own) and the aliens, the fatherless and the widows...." [Deut. 14:28] Then again later in this same reading the writer says, "When you have finished setting aside a tenth of all your produce in the third year, the year of the tithe, you shall give it to the Levite, the alien, the fatherless and the widow, so that they may eat in your towns and be satisfied." [Deut. 26:12]
We often hear sermons preached on the biblical principle of giving a tithe but seldom do we hear the biblical principle preached about what that tithe is collected for. It's my observation that we tend to focus more on the Levites with our tithes (and things that benefit the believers) than on the other three categories listed.
I'm fascinated, too, by the aliens this scripture mentions. God is concerned with those outside His chosen. He was and is the God of all who follow Him.
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