It has been shown above that one of the principles of faith which we confess is our belief in the Divine origin of the Torah, and in the obligatory character of its precepts. When we pray to God to make us understand the Torah we are not content with the mere knowledge of the words of the Law; we also seek God’s assistance to enable us “to obey, to observe, and to perform” all that He has commanded us. Man’s nature is not the same in all individuals; one person finds special delight in the performance of this duty, another in the performance of that. Every one likes to devote his energies to that work for which he considers himself best qualified, and which promises to yield the best fruit. But this individual liking or aptitude must not mislead us into thinking that the Law is divided into important and unimportant precepts. So far as they represent the Will of the Almighty they are all alike, and equally demand our attention and our obedience. Thus the ‏קבלת עול שמים‎, [30] our unconditional submission to the Will of the Almighty as our King, is followed in our Service by ‏קבלת עול מצות‎,[30] the acknowledgment of the binding force of His precepts. There are persons who question the wisdom and usefulness of the precepts; they call it legalism, and are opposed to the tendency of subjecting every act of ours to the control of the Law. They argue that legalism tends to weaken our regard for the Law, and trains hypocrites rather than true servants of the Lord. It is a bold assertion, but one that rests on imagination and prejudice. Is it possible that such a constant reminder of God’s presence as the Divine precepts supply should not have a beneficent influence over us, by making us feel encouraged by His presence when we are engaged in a good cause, and discouraged when we are about to do wrong? If persons are found who are devout worshippers at one time and criminals at another, it only shows human weakness in the moment of trial in spite of good resolves and genuine devotion; and were it not for the effect of such devotion, the number of crimes would probably be far greater. A truly pious man will never imagine that he may freely transgress one set of the precepts, if he strictly obeys another set; that he may, e.g., wrong his neighbour, and compensate for his sins by regular attendance at the place of worship, or by a strict observance of the dietary laws, or the laws of Sabbath and Festivals; or that he may freely break the latter, if only he is honest, just, and charitable. The precepts have all the same Divine origin; the all-wise and all-kind God, who has commanded us to walk in the way of justice and righteousness, has also ordained the Sabbath, given the dietary laws, and established the sacrificial service. He who selects some of the precepts and rejects the rest substitutes his own authority for that of the Almighty, and places his own wisdom above the wisdom of Him who gave us the Law.