If with scant means he offered but small sacrifices he believed that
he was in no wise inferior to those who make frequent and large
sacrifices from an ampler store. It were ill surely for the very gods
themselves, could they take delight in large sacrifices rather than in
small, else oftentimes must the offerings of bad men be found
acceptable rather than of good; nor from the point of view of men
themselves would life be worth living if the offerings of a villain
rather than of a righteous man found favour in the sight of Heaven.
His belief was that the joy of the gods is greater in proportion to
the holiness of the giver, and he was ever an admirer of that line of
Hesiod which says,

According to thine ability do sacrifice to the immortal gods.[4]

[4] Hesiod, "Works and Days," 336. See "Anab." III. ii. 9.

"Yes," he would say, "in our dealings with friends and strangers
alike, and in reference to the demands of life in general, there is no
better motto for a man than that: 'let a man do according to his
ability.'"

Or to take another point. If it appeared to him that a sign from
heaven had been given him, nothing would have induced him to go
against heavenly warning: he would as soon have been persuaded to
accept the guidance of a blind man ignorant of the path to lead him on
a journey in place of one who knew the road and could see; and so he
denounced the folly of others who do things contrary to the warnings
of God in order to avoid some disrepute among men. For himself he
despised all human aids by comparison with counsel from above.