Devotion:
These verses can certainly be jarring to read. The prophet is letting God’s people know that God hates their religious festivals and feasts. God doesn’t want their offerings. God is not going to listen to their music, no matter how good it is. Why is God so upset?
The answer comes in the following verses. The people have not been doing right by others. They have not been practicing justice. Earlier in chapter five we get some specifics of what that means. “...you hate the one who reproves in court and despise him who tells the truth. You trample the poor…” (vs. 10-11) It gets repeated in the last part of verse 12: “You oppress the righteous and take bribes and you deprive the poor of justice in the courts.” And again in verse 15: “...maintain justice in the courts.”
Prophets of Bible times and various leaders down through the ages since then have said it in different ways, but it is clear that God expects us to treat people right, both as individuals and as a society. When we do not, the world and our lives become chaotic. How we treat the least and the last among us shows how close or far away we are from what God seeks for the world to be like.
Look for opportunities and ministries that make a difference in the lives of those most in need.
Personal Worship Option:
Look for opportunities around you each day and ministries of the Church that make a difference in the lives of those most in need. Seek God’s guidance on when and where you can best be involved.
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