Numbers 5:10

A man’s sacred objects shall be his. Since the priestly and Levite gifts are mandated, one might assume that they may confiscate them forcefully. The Torah therefore teaches that “A man’s sacred objects shall be his,” informing [us] that the executory benefits belong to the [original Israelite] owner. Many other homiletical interpretations are offered by Sifri. Midrash Aggadah [states], “A man’s sacred objects shall be his” [states]: If someone withholds his tithes, and refuses to give them, [then] “[they shall] be his” — the tithes. Ultimately, his land will yield only one tenth of its normal produce.

Whatever a man gives to the kohein [lit. A man who gives to the kohein]. The proper gifts.

Shall be his. Great riches.

The consecrated tithe, also, of any man shall be his, that his substance may not fail; whatever a man giveth unto the priest shall be his.

AND EVERY MAN’S HALLOWED THINGS SHALL BE HIS; WHATSOEVER ANY MAN GIVETH THE PRIEST, IT SHALL BE HIS. The correct interpretation of this verse is that Scripture is saying that all hallowed things of a man shall be his, meaning to say that all hallowed things about which He has not commanded that they be given to the priest, [such as the Second Tithe, fourth-year produce of trees and the tithe of the cattle] shall be the owners’ [entirely], and they may have the benefit of eating their meat, even though they are called “holy.” But whatsoever any man giveth the priest as I have commanded him, it shall be his [partially], for even in the hallowed things about which Scripture commanded that they be given to the priest, the owners have a certain right, for although they belong to the priest to whom the owner gives them, as his personal property [but the owners have the right in these hallowed things to choose to whom to give them]. Thus the Second Tithe and the fourth-year produce of trees about which Scripture stated that they be holy to the Eternal belong to the owner as his personal property, and likewise the tithe of cattle., 27:32. The tithe of cattle likewise did not have to be given to the priest, but belonged wholly to the owner, after the blood and fat of the animal were offered upon the altar (see “The Commandments,” Vol. I, pp. 90-91). But as for all other hallowed things concerning which He commanded in the section of Vayikach Korach, 18:8-32). that they should give them to the priest, they are to be given to him directly by the owners, and the priests cannot take them from them by force. From this we may deduce ourselves that the right of choosing to whom to give them [with the consequent satisfaction of so doing] is that of the owners. This is the correct interpretation in accordance with the plain meaning of the verse. It is also the opinion of Onkelos [who rendered the verse: “and every man’s hallowed ‘tithe’ shall be his,” thus in dicating that he understood the verse as referring to a tithe which is the owner’s, for instance the Second Tithe]. It is interpreted in a similar manner in the Sifre, where the Rabbis have said: 6. “All hallowed things are included in the general verse stating, And every man’s hallowed things shall be his. Scripture took away all hallowed things and gave them to the priests, leaving only the thanks-offering, the peace-offering, and the Passover-offering, because they too belong to the owners” [and they are permitted to eat them]. However, this verse is not necessary at all for these matters [i.e., to teach us that the thanks-offering, peace-offering, and Passover-offering belong to their owners, since in each of these cases Scripture clearly states that the meat is eaten by the owners, hence the verse before us must refer, as indicated above, to the Second Tithe, and fourth-year produce of trees].

איש אשר יתן לכהן, something donated voluntarily which is appropriate to become the priest’s such as charamim, personal possessions sanctified to become the property of the Temple treasury.

לו יהיה, it will become the property of the priests officiating on that date.

An aggadic Midrash (B’rachot 63) the words איש אשר יתן לכהן mean that he who meticulously gives to the priest his due, will eventually find himself becoming rich. The Talmud derives this exegesis from the apparent redundancy of the words in our verse.

ואיש את קדשיו לו יהיו, however other kinds of “holy” gifts, namely ordinary tithes and trumot, may be given by the owner to whichever Levite or priest he chooses, not necessarily the priest officiating in the Temple at the time the gift is presented.

איש אשר יתן לכהן, once the owner has given “his” holy portion to the priest it becomes secular, mundane, not encumbered with any restrictions. Rather, לו יהיה, it is exclusively “his,” neither the previous owners nor other priests can legally deprive him of it.