Exodus 23:15

None shall appear before me empty] As these festivals are all commemorative of God's goodness they are to be celebrated with thankfulness and rejoicing. And in token of their gratitude the people are to present gifts and entertain the poor: cp. Deuteronomy 16:16; Nehemiah 8:10. The same principle underlies the custom of making offerings of money as a part of Christian worship. It is expressive of the worshipper's thankfulness for all the divine mercies, temporal and spiritual, of which he is the recipient, and must never be omitted.