When the Lord said He has cattle on a thousand hills, He wasn’t referring to provision, though it can be inferred when we are experiencing lack and in need of provision. It was a statement about the kind of worship that pleases the Lord.

The Lord wanted to get the attention of His people to prepare them for what He was about to say, “O my people, listen as I speak. Here are my charges against you, O Israel: I am God, your God!” (Psalm 50:7). The charges were made because the people were not living like God was the Lord of Heaven and Earth. They lost a sense of His majesty and power. 

Then the Lord defined His complaint against the people. It had to do with what motivated their worship, “I have no complaint about your sacrifices or the burnt offerings you constantly offer. I do not need the bulls from your barns or the goats from your pens. For all the animals of the forest are mine, and I own the cattle on a thousand hills” (vs. 8-10).

The kind of worship the Lord desired would come from a thankful heart. Thankfulness to God would be their protection and deliverance in times of trouble, “Make thankfulness your sacrifice to God and keep the vows you made to the Most High. Then call on me when you are in trouble, and I will rescue you, and you will give me glory” (vs. 14-15).

While the people were sacrificing animals to show their allegiance to God, it wasn’t another dead animal that pleased the Lord. He already owned cattle on a thousand hills. It was a thankful heart in their sacrifice that pleased Him. The people had forgotten that reality and needed to be reminded. Their sacrifices had become rote obedience without purpose.

A thankful heart is what pleases God because it will continue to remind us of this profound truth, “I am God, your God!” Because of our relationship with this majestic God, we can always be thankful no matter what we are asked to sacrifice or what opposition comes our way.