Online Bible

Observances of Fasts

“^aCry loudly, do not hold back;Raise your voice like a trumpet,And declare to My people their ^btransgressionAnd to the house of Jacob their sins.2 “Yet they ^aseek Me day by day and delight to know My ways,As a nation that has done ^brighteousnessAnd ^chas not forsaken the ordinance of their God.They ask Me for just decisions,They delight ^din the nearness of God.3 ‘Why have we ^afasted and You do not see?Why have we humbled ourselves and You do not ¹notice?’Behold, on the ^bday of your fast you find your desire,And drive hard all your workers.4 “Behold, you fast for contention and ^astrife and to strike with a wicked fist.You do not fast like you do today to ^bmake your voice heard on high.5 “Is it a fast like this which I choose, a day for a man to humble himself?Is it for bowing ¹one’s head like a reedAnd for spreading out ^asackcloth and ashes as a bed?Will you call this a fast, even an ^bacceptable day to the LORD?6 “Is this not the fast which I choose,To ^aloosen the bonds of wickedness,To undo the bands of the yoke,And to ^blet the oppressed go freeAnd ^cbreak every yoke?7 “Is it not to ^adivide your bread ¹with the hungryAnd ^bbring the homeless poor into the house;When you see the ^cnaked, to cover him;And not to ^dhide yourself from your own flesh?8 “Then your ^alight will break out like the dawn,And your ^brecovery will speedily spring forth;And your ^crighteousness will go before you;The glory of the ^dLORD will be your rear guard.9 “Then you will ^acall, and the LORD will answer;You will cry, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’If you ^bremove the yoke from your midst,The ¹^cpointing of the finger and ^dspeaking wickedness,10 And if you ¹^agive yourself to the hungryAnd satisfy the ²desire of the afflicted,Then your ^blight will rise in darknessAnd your gloom will become like midday.11 “And the ^aLORD will continually guide you,And ^bsatisfy your ¹desire in scorched places,And ^cgive strength to your bones;And you will be like a ^dwatered garden,And like a ^espring of water whose waters do not ²fail.12 “Those from among you will ^arebuild the ancient ruins;You will ^braise up the age-old foundations;And you will be called the repairer of the ^cbreach,The restorer of the ¹streets in which to dwell.

Keeping the Sabbath

13 “If because of the sabbath, you ^aturn your footFrom doing your own pleasure on My holy day,And call the sabbath a ^bdelight, the holy day of the LORD honorable,And honor it, desisting from your ^cown ways,From seeking your own pleasureAnd ^dspeaking your own word,14 Then you will take ^adelight in the LORD,And I will make you ride ^bon the heights of the earth;And I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father,For the ^cmouth of the LORD has spoken.”

Fasting as Yahweh Chooses

“^aCall out from your throat, do not hold back;Raise your voice like a trumpet,And declare to My people their ^btransgressionAnd to the house of Jacob their sins.2 “Yet they ^aseek Me day by day and find pleasure in knowing My ways,As a nation that has done ^brighteousnessAnd ^chas not forsaken the judgment of their God.They ask Me for righteous judgments;They find pleasure in ^dthe nearness of God.3 ‘Why have we ^afasted and You do not see?Why have we afflicted our souls and You do not know?’Behold, on the ^bday of your fast you find your desire,And oppress all your workers.4 “Behold, you fast for contention and ^aquarreling and to strike with a wicked fist.You do not fast like you do today to ^bmake your voice heard on high.5 “Is it a fast like this which I choose, a day for a man to afflict himself?Is it for bowing ¹one’s head like a reedAnd for spreading out ^asackcloth and ashes as a bed?Will you call this a fast, even an ^bacceptable day to Yahweh?6 “Is this not the fast which I choose,To ^aloosen the bonds of wickedness,To release the bands of ¹the yoke,And to ^blet the oppressed go freeAnd ^cbreak every ²yoke?7 “Is it not to ^adivide your bread ¹with the hungryAnd ^bbring the afflicted homeless into the house;When you see the ^cnaked, you cover him;And not to ^dhide yourself from your own flesh?8 “Then your ^alight will break out like the dawn,And your ^brecovery will speedily spring forth;And your ^crighteousness will go before you;The glory of ^dYahweh will be your rear guard.9 “Then you will ^acall, and Yahweh will answer;You will cry, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’If you ^bremove the ¹yoke from your midst,The ²^cpointing of the finger and ^dspeaking wickedness,10 And if you ¹^aoffer your soul to the hungryAnd satisfy the soul of the afflicted,Then your ^blight will rise in darknessAnd your thick darkness will become like midday.11 “And ^aYahweh will continually guide you,And ^bsatisfy your soul in scorched places,And ^cfortify your bones;And you will be like a ^dwatered garden,And like a ^espring of water whose waters do not ¹fail.12 “Those from among you will ^arebuild the ancient waste places;You will ^braise up the foundations of past generation upon generation;And you will be called the repairer of the ^cbreach,The restorer of the paths for one to inhabit.

Keeping the Sabbath

13 “If because of the sabbath, you ^aturn your footFrom doing your own desire on My holy day,And call the sabbath a ^bdelight, the holy day of Yahweh honorable,And honor it, by not doing your ^cown ways,By not finding your own desireAnd ^dspeaking your own word,14 Then you will take ^adelight in Yahweh,And I will make you ride ^bon the heights of the earth;And I will feed you with the inheritance of Jacob your father,For the ^cmouth of Yahweh has spoken.”