What Does the Bible Say About Gift Giving?

December 12, 2016

2 min read

With the holiday season for giving gifts upon us, emotions, as well as expenses, can run high. Some love shopping for the perfect gift while others give to fulfill a duty. What is the Biblical view of giving?

“The Hebrew word for ‘love’ is ahava-אַהֲבָה,” Rabbi Shmuel Veffer, owner of Galilee Green, a company producing high quality extra virgin olive oil from Israel for worldwide export, told Breaking Israel News. “The root of this word is hav-הב which means ‘give’. This teaches us that giving to someone is a means to create a loving relationship.”

The 20th century Rabbi Eliyahu Eliezer Dessler points out that giving to someone increases the amount of love we feel for them. This explains why a parent feels so much love for an infant. “When we give to others without expecting anything in return, love grows,” said Rabbi Veffer. “Biblically, giving is considered a spiritual act, as we are emulating the Creator who gives to us constantly all day long.”

Rabbi Veffer continued to explain that God created a colorful world filled with delicacies to show His love of mankind. “The world could have been created in all grey with food that all tastes like cardboard,” he explained. “The beauty and diversity in the world partly expresses God’s love for His children and His desire, so to speak, to shower us with goodness.”

To that end, Rabbi Veffer brought in his love and passion for his Galilee Green olive oil, which is grown and produced in the Holy Land’s eastern Galilee region. “Galilee Green has been developed as a means to give goodness in many forms,” said Rabbi Veffer. “As a small Israeli business, all the people involved in this project, from the farmers to the harvesters to those who run the mill to make the olive oil and package this product, are local neighbors. We are doing our utmost to support Israelis living in the north where making a living can be a particular challenge.”

Galilee Green sends both olive oil gift sets as well as monthly olive oil deliveries all over the world. “We like to think of Galilee Green olive oil as the gift that keeps on giving,” noted Rabbi Veffer to Breaking Israel News. “People really appreciate receiving something from the Holy Land. Our olive oil is delicious, packed with healthful nutrients and a practical way to show your love to someone.”

Especially during the holidays, one has a unique opportunity to use giving as a vehicle for developing a deeper connection to another. “Since most of us are giving during this season anyway, we can use this time as a special opportunity to make our gifts a little more meaningful,” concluded Rabbi Veffer. “Giving is a wonderful way to develop relationships and show our care for others. It’s not just about the gift. It’s about the love.”

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