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64 Bible Verses about Bad Offering
When you choose to live without God, it's easy to lose that awareness of Him and start making choices that aren't aligned with His ways. Maybe you haven't truly encountered Him yet. Our hearts can be so deceitful, always looking for ways to satisfy our own twisted desires, driven by that inner restlessness.
The only way to live a righteous life is to keep God's word close to your heart and follow His will. That's how genuine goodness grows from deep within.
God isn't pleased when offerings are misused. They should be used to grow His work and spread the Gospel to everyone, fulfilling the command He gave us. Prayer is key to making sure your offerings are used the right way and that you're following God's leading.
And you say, ‘If someone swears by the altar, he is not bound by his oath; but if he swears by the offering on the altar, he is bound.’
Blind men! Which is more important? the sacrifice? or the altar which makes the sacrifice holy?
Do not live by the regulations of the nation which I am expelling ahead of you; because they did all these things, which is why I detested them.
But to you I have said, “You will inherit their land; I will give it to you as a possession, a land flowing with milk and honey.” I am Adonai your God, who has set you apart from other peoples. (Maftir)
Therefore you are to distinguish between clean and unclean animals and between clean and unclean birds; do not make yourselves detestable with an animal, bird or reptile that I have set apart for you to regard as unclean.
“You are not to sacrifice to Adonai your God a cow or sheep that has a defect or anything wrong with it; that would be an abomination to Adonai your God.
Each should give according to what he has decided in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
Can a person rob God? Yet you rob me. But you ask, ‘How have we robbed you?’ In tenths and voluntary contributions.
So if you are offering your gift at the Temple altar and you remember there that your brother has something against you,
leave your gift where it is by the altar, and go, make peace with your brother. Then come back and offer your gift.
For they, out of their wealth, have contributed money they could easily spare; but she, out of her poverty, has given all she had to live on.”
and Hevel too brought from the firstborn of his sheep, including their fat. Adonai accepted Hevel and his offering
but did not accept Kayin and his offering. Kayin was very angry, and his face fell.
“A son honors his father and a servant his master. But if I’m a father, where is the honor due me? and if I’m a master, where is the respect due me? — says Adonai-Tzva’ot to you cohanim who despise my name. You ask, ‘How are we despising your name?’
By offering polluted food on my altar! Now you ask, ‘How are we polluting you?’ By saying that the table of Adonai doesn’t deserve respect;
so that there’s nothing wrong with offering a blind animal as a sacrifice, nothing wrong with offering an animal that’s lame or sick. Try offering such an animal to your governor, and see if he will be pleased with you! Would he even receive you?” asks Adonai-Tzva’ot.
in order for you to be accepted, you must bring a male without defect from the cattle, the sheep or the goats.
“Tell Aharon and his sons to separate themselves from the holy things of the people of Isra’el which they set apart as holy for me, so that they will not profane my holy name; I am Adonai.
You are not to bring anything with a defect, because it will not be accepted from you.
In the course of time Kayin brought an offering to Adonai from the produce of the soil;
and Hevel too brought from the firstborn of his sheep, including their fat. Adonai accepted Hevel and his offering
but did not accept Kayin and his offering. Kayin was very angry, and his face fell.
But if it has a defect, is lame or blind, or has some other kind of fault, you are not to sacrifice it to Adonai your God;
You are not to bring anything with a defect, because it will not be accepted from you.
Whoever brings a sacrifice of peace offerings to Adonai in fulfillment of a vow or as a voluntary offering, whether it come from the herd or from the flock, it must be unblemished and without defect in order to be accepted.
If it is blind, injured, mutilated, has an abnormal growth or has festering or running sores, you are not to offer it to Adonai or make such an offering by fire on the altar to Adonai.
so that there’s nothing wrong with offering a blind animal as a sacrifice, nothing wrong with offering an animal that’s lame or sick. Try offering such an animal to your governor, and see if he will be pleased with you! Would he even receive you?” asks Adonai-Tzva’ot.
By offering polluted food on my altar! Now you ask, ‘How are we polluting you?’ By saying that the table of Adonai doesn’t deserve respect;
“‘When you offer a sacrifice of peace offerings to Adonai, offer it in a way that will make you accepted.
You also say, ‘It’s all so tiresome!’ and sniff scornfully at it,” says Adonai-Tzva’ot. “Then you bring animals that were taken by violence, or they are lame or sick. This is the sort of offering you bring. Am I supposed to accept this from you?” asks Adonai.
“Moreover, cursed is the deceiver who has a male animal in his flock that is damaged, but vows and sacrifices to Adonai anyway. For I am a great king,” says Adonai-Tzva’ot, “and my name is respected among the nations.
Sh’mu’el said, “Does Adonai take as much pleasure in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying what Adonai says? Surely obeying is better than sacrifice, and heeding orders than the fat of rams.
The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination; how much more when he brings it with vile motives.
Your animal must be without defect, a male in its first year, and you may choose it from either the sheep or the goats.
You are to offer these in addition to the regular burnt offering and its grain offering (they are to be without defect for you), with their drink offerings.
“Why are all those sacrifices offered to me?” asks Adonai. “I’m fed up with burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fattened animals! I get no pleasure from the blood of bulls, lambs and goats!
Yes, you come to appear in my presence; but who asked you to do this, to trample through my courtyards?
Stop bringing worthless grain offerings! They are like disgusting incense to me! Rosh-Hodesh, Shabbat, calling convocations — I can’t stand evil together with your assemblies!
Then Yeshua looked up, and as he watched the rich placing their gifts into the Temple offering-boxes,
Then he told them, “Peoples will fight each other, nations will fight each other,
there will be great earthquakes, there will be epidemics and famines in various places, and there will be fearful sights and great signs from Heaven.
But before all this, they will arrest you and persecute you, handing you over to the synagogues and prisons; and you will be brought before kings and governors. This will all be on account of me,
but it will prove an opportunity for you to bear witness.
So make up your minds not to worry, rehearsing your defense beforehand;
for I myself will give you an eloquence and a wisdom that no adversary will be able to resist or refute.
You will be betrayed even by parents, brothers, relatives and friends; some of you they will have put to death;
and everyone will hate you because of me.
But not a hair of your head will be lost.
By standing firm you will save your lives.
he also saw a poor widow put in two small coins.
“However, when you see Yerushalayim surrounded by armies, then you are to understand that she is about to be destroyed.
Those in Y’hudah must escape to the hills, those inside the city must get out, and those in the country must not enter it.
For these are the days of vengeance, when everything that has been written in the Tanakh will come true.
What a terrible time it will be for pregnant women and nursing mothers! For there will be great distress in the Land and judgment on the people.
Some will fall by the edge of the sword, others will be carried into all the countries of the Goyim, and Yerushalayim will be trampled down by the Goyim until the age of the Goyim has run its course.
“There will appear signs in the sun, moon and stars; and on earth, nations will be in anxiety and bewilderment at the sound and surge of the sea,
as people faint with fear at the prospect of what is overtaking the world; for the powers in heaven will be shaken.
And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with tremendous power and glory.
When these things start to happen, stand up and hold your heads high; because you are about to be liberated!”
Then he told them a parable: “Look at the fig tree, Indeed, all the trees.
He said, “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put in more than all the others.
As soon as they sprout leaves, you can see for yourselves that summer is near.
In the same way, when you see these things taking place, you are to know that the Kingdom of God is near!
Yes! I tell you that this people will certainly not pass away before it has all happened.
Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will certainly not pass away.
“But keep watch on yourselves, or your hearts will become dulled by carousing, drunkenness and the worries of everyday living, and that Day will be sprung upon you suddenly like a trap!
For it will close in on everyone, no matter where they live, throughout the whole world.
Stay alert, always praying that you will have the strength to escape all the things that will happen and to stand in the presence of the Son of Man.”
Yeshua spent his days at the Temple, teaching; while at night he went out and stayed on the hill called the Mount of Olives.
All the people would rise with the dawn to come and hear him at the Temple courts.
For they, out of their wealth, have contributed money they could easily spare; but she, out of her poverty, has given all she had to live on.”
Then Adonai said: “Because these people approach me with empty words, and the honor they bestow on me is mere lip-service; while in fact they have distanced their hearts from me, and their ‘fear of me’ is just a mitzvah of human origin —
What do I care about incense from Sh’va or sweet cane from a distant land? Your burnt offerings are unacceptable, your sacrifices don’t please me.”
‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far away from me.
Their worship of me is useless, because they teach man-made rules as if they were doctrines.’”
But don’t forget doing good and sharing with others, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.
“I hate, I utterly loathe your festivals; I take no pleasure in your solemn assemblies.
If you offer me burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them; nor will I consider the peace offerings of your stall-fed cattle.
Spare me the noise of your songs! I don’t want to hear the strumming of your lutes!
Adonai detests the sacrifices of the wicked but delights in the prayers of the upright.
“With what can I come before Adonai to bow down before God on high? Should I come before him with burnt offerings? with calves in their first year?
Would Adonai take delight in thousands of rams with ten thousand rivers of olive oil? Could I give my firstborn to pay for my crimes, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?”
Human being, you have already been told what is good, what Adonai demands of you — no more than to act justly, love grace and walk in purity with your God.
“Be careful not to parade your acts of tzedakah in front of people in order to be seen by them! If you do, you have no reward from your Father in heaven.
May your Kingdom come, your will be done on earth as in heaven.
Give us the food we need today.
Forgive us what we have done wrong, as we too have forgiven those who have wronged us.
And do not lead us into hard testing, but keep us safe from the Evil One. For kingship, power and glory are yours forever. Amen.’
For if you forgive others their offenses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you;
but if you do not forgive others their offenses, your heavenly Father will not forgive yours.
“Now when you fast, don’t go around looking miserable, like the hypocrites. They make sour faces so that people will know they are fasting. Yes! I tell you, they have their reward already!
But you, when you fast, wash your face and groom yourself,
so that no one will know you are fasting — except your Father, who is with you in secret. Your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
“Do not store up for yourselves wealth here on earth, where moths and rust destroy, and burglars break in and steal.
So, when you do tzedakah, don’t announce it with trumpets to win people’s praise, like the hypocrites in the synagogues and on the streets. Yes! I tell you, they have their reward already!
Instead, store up for yourselves wealth in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and burglars do not break in or steal.
For where your wealth is, there your heart will be also.
‘The eye is the lamp of the body.’ So if you have a ‘good eye’ [that is, if you are generous] your whole body will be full of light;
but if you have an ‘evil eye’ [if you are stingy] your whole body will be full of darkness. If, then, the light in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!
No one can be slave to two masters; for he will either hate the first and love the second, or scorn the second and be loyal to the first. You can’t be a slave to both God and money.
“Therefore, I tell you, don’t worry about your life — what you will eat or drink; or about your body — what you will wear. Isn’t life more than food and the body more than clothing?
Look at the birds flying about! They neither plant nor harvest, nor do they gather food into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you worth more than they are?
Can any of you by worrying add a single hour to his life?
“And why be anxious about clothing? Think about the fields of wild irises, and how they grow. They neither work nor spin thread,
yet I tell you that not even Shlomo in all his glory was clothed as beautifully as one of these.
But you, when you do tzedakah, don’t even let your left hand know what your right hand is doing.
If this is how God clothes grass in the field — which is here today and gone tomorrow, thrown in an oven — won’t he much more clothe you? What little trust you have!
“So don’t be anxious, asking, ‘What will we eat?,’ ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘How will we be clothed?’
For it is the pagans who set their hearts on all these things. Your heavenly Father knows you need them all.
But seek first his Kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
Don’t worry about tomorrow — tomorrow will worry about itself! Today has enough tsuris already!
Then your tzedakah will be in secret; and your Father, who sees what you do in secret, will reward you.
Rescue me from the guilt of shedding blood, God, God of my salvation! Then my tongue will sing about your righteousness —
Adonai, open my lips; then my mouth will praise you.
“Woe to you hypocritical Torah-teachers and P’rushim! You pay your tithes of mint, dill and cumin; but you have neglected the weightier matters of the Torah — justice, mercy, trust. These are the things you should have attended to — without neglecting the others!
‘Take up a collection for Adonai from among yourselves — anyone whose heart makes him willing is to bring the offering for Adonai: gold, silver and bronze;
Then Yeshua sat down opposite the Temple treasury and watched the crowd as they put money into the offering-boxes. Many rich people put in large sums,
but a poor widow came and put in two small coins.
He called his talmidim to him and said to them, “Yes! I tell you, this poor widow has put more in the offering-box than all the others making donations.
For all of them, out of their wealth, have contributed money they can easily spare; but she, out of her poverty, has given everything she had to live on.”
you yourselves, as living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be cohanim set apart for God to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to him through Yeshua the Messiah.
By David: Vindicate me, Adonai, for I have lived a blameless life; unwaveringly I trust in Adonai.
In their hands are evil schemes; their right hands are full of bribes.
As for me, I will live a blameless life. Redeem me and show me favor.
My feet are planted on level ground; in the assemblies I will bless Adonai.
Examine me, Adonai, test me, search my mind and heart.
I may give away everything that I own, I may even hand over my body to be burned; but if I lack love, I gain nothing.
I exhort you, therefore, brothers, in view of God’s mercies, to offer yourselves as a sacrifice, living and set apart for God. This will please him; it is the logical “Temple worship” for you.
“Moreover, cursed is the deceiver who has a male animal in his flock that is damaged, but vows and sacrifices to Adonai anyway. For I am a great king,” says Adonai-Tzva’ot, “and my name is respected among the nations.
Don’t delude yourselves: no one makes a fool of God! A person reaps what he sows.
Those who keep sowing in the field of their old nature, in order to meet its demands, will eventually reap ruin; but those who keep sowing in the field of the Spirit will reap from the Spirit everlasting life.
Or you pray and don’t receive, because you pray with the wrong motive, that of wanting to indulge your own desires.
For the love of money is a root of all the evils; because of this craving, some people have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves to the heart with many pains.
For the old nature wants what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit wants what is contrary to the old nature. These oppose each other, so that you find yourselves unable to carry out your good intentions.
Don’t speak impulsively — don’t be in a hurry to give voice to your words before God. For God is in heaven, and you are on earth; so let your words be few.
When the quantity of goods increases, so does the number of parasites consuming them; so the only advantage to the owner is that he gets to watch them do it.
The sleep of a working man is sweet, whether he eats little or much; but the overfullness of the rich won’t let them sleep at all.
Here is a gross evil which I have seen under the sun: the owner of wealth hoards it to his own hurt.
Due to some misfortune, the wealth turns to loss; and then if he has fathered a son, he has nothing to leave him.
Just as he came from his mother’s womb, so he will go back naked as he came, and for his efforts he will take nothing that he can carry away in his hand.
This too is a gross evil, that in every respect as he came, so will he go; thus what profit does he have after toiling to earn the wind?
All his life he eats in darkness, in frustration, in sickness and in anger.
This is what I have seen to be good: that it is appropriate for a person to eat, drink and enjoy the good that results from all his work that he engages in under the sun for all the days of his life that God has given him, for this is his allotted portion.
Also, everyone to whom God has given riches and wealth, along with the power to enjoy it, so that he takes his allotted portion and finds pleasure in his work — this is a gift of God;
for he will not brood over the fact that his life is short, since God keeps him occupied with what will bring him joy.
For nightmares come from worrying too much; and a fool, when he speaks, chatters too much.
Who may go up to the mountain of Adonai? Who can stand in his holy place?
Those with clean hands and pure hearts, who don’t make vanities the purpose of their lives or swear oaths just to deceive.
if you are a counselor, use your gift to comfort and exhort; if you are someone who gives, do it simply and generously; if you are in a position of leadership, lead with diligence and zeal; if you are one who does acts of mercy, do them cheerfully.
For if the eagerness to give is there, the acceptability of the gift will be measured by what you have, not by what you don’t have.
It is not that relief for others should cause trouble for you, but that there should be a kind of reciprocity:
at present your abundance can help those in need; so that when you are in need, their abundance can help you — thus there is reciprocity.
It is as the Tanakh says, “He who gathered much had nothing extra, and he who gathered little had nothing lacking.”
But there was a man named Hananyah who, with his wife Shappirah, sold some property
Instantly she collapsed at his feet and died. The young men entered, found her there dead, carried her out and buried her beside her husband.
As a result of this, great fear came over the whole Messianic community, and indeed over everyone who heard about it.
Meanwhile, through the emissaries many signs and miracles continued to be done among the people. United in mind and purpose, the believers met in Shlomo’s Colonnade;
and no one else dared to join them. Nevertheless, the people continued to regard them highly;
and throngs of believers were added to the Lord, both men and women.
They went so far as to bring the sick into the streets and lay them on mattresses and stretchers, so that at least Kefa’s shadow might fall on them as he passed by.
Crowds also gathered from the towns around Yerushalayim, bringing the sick and those afflicted with unclean spirits; and every one of them was healed.
But the cohen hagadol and his associates, who were members of the party of the Tz’dukim, were filled with jealousy.
They arrested the emissaries and put them in the public jail.
But during the night, an angel of Adonai opened the doors of the prison, led them out and said,
and, with his wife’s knowledge, withheld some of the proceeds for himself; although he did bring the rest to the emissaries.
“Go, stand in the Temple court and keep telling the people all about this new life!”
After hearing that, they entered the Temple area about dawn and began to teach. Now the cohen hagadol and his associates came and called a meeting of the Sanhedrin (that is, of Isra’el’s whole assembly of elders) and sent to the jail to have them brought.
But the officers who went did not find them in the prison. So they returned and reported,
“We found the jail securely locked and the guards standing at the doors; but when we opened it, we found no one inside!”
When the captain of the Temple police and the head cohanim heard these things, they were puzzled and wondered what would happen next.
Then someone came and reported to them, “Listen! The men you ordered put in prison are standing in the Temple court, teaching the people!”
The captain and his officers went and brought them, but not with force; because they were afraid of being stoned by the people.
They conducted them to the Sanhedrin, where the cohen hagadol demanded of them,
“We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name! Look here! you have filled Yerushalayim with your teaching; moreover, you are determined to make us responsible for this man’s death!”
Kefa and the other emissaries answered, “We must obey God, not men.
Then Kefa said, “Why has the Adversary so filled your heart that you lie to the Ruach HaKodesh and keep back some of the money you received for the land?
The God of our fathers raised up Yeshua, whereas you men killed him by having him hanged on a stake.
God has exalted this man at his right hand as Ruler and Savior, in order to enable Isra’el to do t’shuvah and have her sins forgiven.
We are witnesses to these things; so is the Ruach HaKodesh, whom God has given to those who obey him.”
On hearing this, the members of the Sanhedrin were infuriated and wanted to put the emissaries to death.
But one of the members of the Sanhedrin rose to his feet, a Parush named Gamli’el, a teacher of the Torah highly respected by all the people. He ordered the men put outside for a little while
and then addressed the court: “Men of Isra’el, take care what you do to these people.
Some time ago, there was a rebellion under Todah, who claimed to be somebody special; and a number of men, maybe four hundred, rallied behind him. But upon his being put to death, his whole following was broken up and came to nothing.
After this, Y’hudah HaG’lili led another uprising, back at the time of the enrollment for the Roman tax; and he got some people to defect to him. But he was killed, and all his followers were scattered.
So in the present case, my advice to you is not to interfere with these people, but to leave them alone. For if this idea or this movement has a human origin, it will collapse.
But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop them; you might even find yourselves fighting God!” They heeded his advice.
Before you sold it, the property was yours; and after you sold it, the money was yours to use as you pleased. So what made you decide to do such a thing? You have lied not to human beings but to God!”
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven, only those who do what my Father in heaven wants.
Then to the people he said, “Be careful to guard against all forms of greed, because even if someone is rich, his life does not consist in what he owns.”
By trusting, Hevel offered a greater sacrifice than Kayin; because of this, he was attested as righteous, with God giving him this testimony on the ground of his gifts. Through having trusted, he still continues to speak, even though he is dead.
Every week, on Motza’ei-Shabbat, each of you should set some money aside, according to his resources, and save it up; so that when I come I won’t have to do fundraising.
For everyone who depends on legalistic observance of Torah commands lives under a curse, since it is written, “Cursed is everyone who does not keep on doing everything written in the Scroll of the Torah.”
Bend my heart toward your instructions and not toward selfish gain.
Turn my eyes away from worthless things; with your ways, give me life.
Yeshua said to him, “If you are serious about reaching the goal, go and sell your possessions, give to the poor, and you will have riches in heaven. Then come, follow me!”
As for those who do have riches in this present world, charge them not to be proud and not to let their hopes rest on the uncertainties of riches but to rest their hopes on God, who richly provides us with all things for our enjoyment.
Charge them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, to be generous and ready to share.
In this way they will treasure up for themselves a good foundation for the future, so that they may lay hold of the real life.