Samuel said, "Which does the LORD prefer: obedience or offerings and sacrifices? It is better to obey him than to sacrifice the best sheep to him.

"Listen, my people, and I will speak; I will testify against you, Israel. I am God, your God.

And yet I do not need bulls from your farms or goats from your flocks;

All the wild birds are mine and all living things in the fields.

Do I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood of goats?

Call to me when trouble comes; I will save you, and you will praise me."

He says, "Do you think I want all these sacrifices you keep offering to me? I have had more than enough of the sheep you burn as sacrifices and of the fat of your fine animals. I am tired of the blood of bulls and sheep and goats.

It's useless to bring your offerings. I am disgusted with the smell of the incense you burn. I cannot stand your New Moon Festivals, your Sabbaths, and your religious gatherings; they are all corrupted by your sins.

"When you lift your hands in prayer, I will not look at you. No matter how much you pray, I will not listen, for your hands are covered with blood.

The people ask, "Why should we fast if the LORD never notices? Why should we go without food if he pays no attention?" The LORD says to them, "The truth is that at the same time you fast, you pursue your own interests and oppress your workers.

When you fast, you make yourselves suffer; you bow your heads low like a blade of grass and spread out sackcloth and ashes to lie on. Is that what you call fasting? Do you think I will be pleased with that?

What do I care about the incense they bring me from Sheba, or the spices from a distant land? I will not accept their offerings or be pleased with their sacrifices.

The LORD says, "I hate your religious festivals; I cannot stand them!

Stop your noisy songs; I do not want to listen to your harps.

Food, however, will not improve our relation with God; we shall not lose anything if we do not eat, nor shall we gain anything if we do eat.

"Don't handle this," "Don't taste that," "Don't touch the other"?

Of course such rules appear to be based on wisdom in their forced worship of angels, and false humility, and severe treatment of the body; but they have no real value in controlling physical passions.

Do not let all kinds of strange teachings lead you from the right way. It is good to receive inner strength from God's grace, and not by obeying rules about foods; those who obey these rules have not been helped by them.

This is a symbol which points to the present time. It means that the offerings and animal sacrifices presented to God cannot make the worshiper's heart perfect,

since they have to do only with food, drink, and various purification ceremonies. These are all outward rules, which apply only until the time when God will establish the new order.

Well, religion does make us very rich, if we are satisfied with what we have.

(SEE 22:1)

This is a true saying. I want you to give special emphasis to these matters, so that those who believe in God may be concerned with giving their time to doing good deeds, which are good and useful for everyone.

"If you obey the LORD your God and faithfully keep all his commands that I am giving you today, he will make you greater than any other nation on earth.

"The LORD will bless your towns and your fields.

"The LORD will bless your grain crops and the food you prepare from them.

"The LORD will defeat your enemies when they attack you. They will attack from one direction, but they will run from you in all directions.

"If you obey the LORD your God and do everything he commands, he will make you his own people, as he has promised.

The LORD will give you many children, many cattle, and abundant crops in the land that he promised your ancestors to give you.

The LORD your God will make you the leader among the nations and not a follower; you will always prosper and never fail if you obey faithfully all his commands that I am giving you today.

Time after time he will save you from harm;

God will rescue you from slander; he will save you when destruction comes.

The fields you plow will be free of rocks; wild animals will never attack you.

You will have as many children as there are blades of grass in a pasture.

Trust in the LORD and do good; live in the land and be safe.

Seek your happiness in the LORD, and he will give you your heart's desire.

The little that a good person owns is worth more than the wealth of all the wicked,

The LORD takes care of those who obey him, and the land will be theirs forever.

The LORD is our protector and glorious king, blessing us with kindness and honor. He does not refuse any good thing to those who do what is right.

and so no disaster will strike you, no violence will come near your home.

They will hold you up with their hands to keep you from hurting your feet on the stones.

God says, "I will save those who love me and will protect those who acknowledge me as LORD.

I will reward them with long life; I will save them."

Praise the LORD! Happy is the person who honors the LORD, who takes pleasure in obeying his commands.

His family will be wealthy and rich, and he will be prosperous forever.

Happy are those who obey the LORD, who live by his commands.

Your wife will be like a fruitful vine in your home, and your children will be like young olive trees around your table.

May the LORD bless you from Zion! May you see Jerusalem prosper all the days of your life!

He supplies the needs of those who honor him; he hears their cries and saves them.

Wisdom offers you long life, as well as wealth and honor.

Those who become wise are happy; wisdom will give them life.

A sinner may commit a hundred crimes and still live. Oh yes, I know what they say: "If you obey God, everything will be all right,

The righteous will be happy, and things will go well for them. They will get to enjoy what they have worked for.

Because everyone will do what is right, there will be peace and security forever.

God's people will be free from worries, and their homes peaceful and safe.

Then you will be safe; you will be as secure as if in a strong fortress. You will have food to eat and water to drink.

And so I tell you that those who worship and obey me will have plenty to eat and drink, but you will be hungry and thirsty. They will be happy, but you will be disgraced.

They will sing for joy, but you will cry with a broken heart.

"Happy are those who know they are spiritually poor; the Kingdom of heaven belongs to them!

"Happy are those who are humble; they will receive what God has promised!

"Happy are those who are merciful to others; God will be merciful to them!

"Happy are those who work for peace; God will call them his children!

"Happy are you when people insult you and persecute you and tell all kinds of evil lies against you because you are my followers.

Instead, be concerned above everything else with the Kingdom of God and with what he requires of you, and he will provide you with all these other things.

And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for my sake, will receive a hundred times more and will be given eternal life.

You know the commandments: 'Do not commit murder; do not commit adultery; do not steal; do not accuse anyone falsely; do not cheat; respect your father and your mother.' "

"Teacher," the man said, "ever since I was young, I have obeyed all these commandments."

Instead, be concerned with his Kingdom, and he will provide you with these things.

"Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father is pleased to give you the Kingdom.

We know that in all things God works for good with those who love him, those whom he has called according to his purpose.

Paul, Apollos, and Peter; this world, life and death, the present and the future---all these are yours,

God's divine power has given us everything we need to live a truly religious life through our knowledge of the one who called us to share in his own glory and goodness.

In this way he has given us the very great and precious gifts he promised, so that by means of these gifts you may escape from the destructive lust that is in the world, and may come to share the divine nature.

And this is what Christ himself promised to give us---eternal life.

I will make those who are victorious pillars in the temple of my God, and they will never leave it. I will write on them the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which will come down out of heaven from my God. I will also write on them my new name.

To those who win the victory I will give the right to sit beside me on my throne, just as I have been victorious and now sit by my Father on his throne.