For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.
Israel kept up its sacrifices, yet God says He wants something else. That raises two hard questions: why would God refuse the sacrifices He Himself commanded, and what is the "knowledge of God" He prefers?
Whose Voice Is Speaking
The chapter opens with the prophet pleading with the people. By verse 6 the speaker has changed.
William KellyIt is the language of Jehovah, as the earlier verses were the prophet's exhortation. From there he slides, so to speak, into the language of Him who gave him his office. A prophet was the voice of Jehovah. So he begins as a prophet, then rises to speak what belongs to Jehovah Himself.
What God Loves
God is not only refusing something here. He is naming what He loves. (Where the ESV says "steadfast love," older translations read "mercy" or "loving-kindness," and the writers quoted here use those words.)
William KellyBut of mercy He speaks. "For I desired mercy" — this is what He loves, and to this end, that He may be morally vindicated in displaying it.
Careful Rituals, Corrupt Lives
The people were not neglecting worship. That was the problem.
The Christian's FriendBoth Ephraim and Judah had corrupted themselves badly. Yet they seem to have been careful about their sacrificial ceremonies, as if outward forms could win them God's favour... That is, God valued character and state more than outward observances — the character and state that come from knowing Jehovah as a God of mercy. Those observances are worthless unless they show a real spiritual condition.
Why God Sent Prophets
If sacrifices were not the point, what was? One writer says God was after the relationship, not the ceremony.
J. N. DarbyIn the heart and mind of God it was not a question of outward forms; the moral relationship with God had failed. He had raised up prophets, as a means of relationship with Himself, to bring back the hearts of the people. But, like Adam in the garden of Eden, they had broken the covenant. Their enjoyment of all the blessings God had heaped on them depended on that covenant.
Knowing God
The phrase "the knowledge of God" is not about information. Earlier in the same book, not knowing the LORD is what blocks Israel's return.
Other AuthorsThis too stood in the way of their return to God: "they know not the LORD" (Hosea 5:4). But God will work repentance in them and raise them up to live before Him. Then they will know Him, and will "press on to know the LORD" (Hosea 6:3). They will learn that this pleases God more than anything else: "the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings."
Mercy is not the only thing God ranks above sacrifice.
H. L. RossierSacrifice without obedience — a solemn truth — is no better than idol worship. The first mark of faith is obedience... Besides, there are many things God prefers to sacrifice.
Quoted by Jesus
The Pharisees prized ceremony. Jesus turned this verse against them.
F. B. HoleWhat counts before Him is moral, not ceremonial. By Hosea God said, "I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice"; and the Lord quoted this twice (Matt. 9:13; Matt. 12:7). So we see the hypocrisy that came into full display and reached its peak in the Pharisees when our Lord was on earth.
Commentators differ on what Jesus meant by the quotation. Some read it as a rebuke of empty ritual. Another writer says the point is what Christ Himself was doing.
The Bible TreasuryThe words of the prophet, as the Lord uses them here, show what He was doing in receiving tax collectors and sinners. He was carrying out the divine work of displaying mercy, and that agreed with the will of God. God did not want sacrifice from people whose hearts were far from Him, like the Pharisees. The Servant of Jehovah, the "sunrise from on high," had visited His people to forgive sins, not to judge them.
Summary
- Mercy is what God loves. The verse is not God rejecting worship. He is naming His own delight — "this is what He loves" — and He works so that He may be morally justified in showing it.
- Mercy known produces character. Knowing God as a God of mercy shapes character. God valued that character more than ceremonies, which were worthless without it.
- Mercy refused breaks relationship. Outward forms were never the question. The relationship with God had failed. Like Adam, they had broken the covenant their blessings depended on.
- Mercy sought is knowledge gained. Not knowing the LORD blocked their return. Pressing on to know Him pleases God more than burnt offerings.
- Mercy shown is Christ. Jesus quoted this verse twice. In receiving tax collectors and sinners, He was doing the divine work of showing the mercy the verse calls for.