And at the king’s commandment they made a chest, and set it without at the gate of the house of the LORD.
The chest made by royal order and placed outside at the entrance to the house of the Lord proves that the tithe set apart exclusively for the Levites was never intended as the limit of giving for religious purposes. Both the tabernacle in the wilderness and afterward the temple itself were built entirely by freewill offerings given apart from the tithe. In the same way, necessary repairs and other costs connected with the service of the sanctuary were met by additional contributions collected for that specific purpose, of which the chest collection is the illustration.
The chest made by royal order and placed outside at the entrance to the house of the Lord proves that the tithe set apart exclusively for the Levites was never intended as the limit of giving for religious purposes. Both the tabernacle in the wilderness and afterward the temple itself were built entirely by freewill offerings given apart from the tithe. In the same way, necessary repairs and other costs connected with the service of the sanctuary were met by additional contributions collected for that specific purpose, of which the chest collection is the illustration.