Zechariah 7:1-7
Was the Fast Really for Me
1In the fourth year of King Darius, the word of the LORD came to Zechariah on the fourth day of the ninth month, the month of Chislev.
2Now the people of Bethel had sent Sharezer and Regem-melech, along with their men, to plead before the LORD
3by asking the priests of the house of the LORD of Hosts, as well as the prophets, “Should I weep and fast in the fifth month, as I have done these many years?”
4Then the word of the LORD of Hosts came to me, saying,
5“Ask all the people of the land and the priests, ‘When you fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh months for these seventy years, was it really for Me that you fasted?
6And when you were eating and drinking, were you not doing so simply for yourselves?
7Are these not the words that the LORD proclaimed through the earlier prophets, when Jerusalem and its surrounding towns were populous and prosperous, and the Negev and the foothills were inhabited?’”
Berean Standard Bible
In the fourth year of King Darius, people from Bethel send messengers to plead before the LORD. They ask the priests and prophets whether they should continue weeping and fasting in the fifth month, as they have done for many years. The question sounds practical, but it also asks whether an inherited religious practice still has a purpose.
The word of the LORD answers with a question. When the people fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh months for seventy years, was it really for the LORD that they fasted? The question does not deny that they were hungry or sad. It asks whom the practice was actually serving.
The LORD asks a second question about eating and drinking. Were they not doing that for themselves? The contrast exposes the heart's direction. A person can make both abstaining and feasting serve the self. Religious actions are not automatically devoted to God just because they look serious.
The LORD points back to the words He proclaimed through earlier prophets, when Jerusalem and its towns were populous and prosperous. Before the destruction, the people already had instructions about how to live. The issue was not a lack of ceremonies. It was a refusal to hear what God had said when life was full.
The question about fasting prepares for the next message. God is not looking for a calendar separated from justice. He is asking whether the community's worship belongs to Him or merely gives the community a way to feel religious while leaving its neighbors unattended.
Questions
1 Who sent the messengers to Jerusalem?
AnswerThe people of Bethel sent Sharezer, Regem-melech, and their companions to plead before the LORD.
2 What did they ask the priests and prophets?
AnswerThey asked whether they should continue weeping and fasting in the fifth month as they had done for many years.
3 What does the LORD ask about their fasting?
AnswerHe asks whether they were really fasting for Him when they mourned during those seventy years.
4 What does He ask about their eating and drinking?
AnswerHe asks whether they were not eating and drinking for themselves. Both fasting and feasting can become self-centered.
What This Means for Us
A religious practice can continue after its purpose has been forgotten. The honest question is not only “Did we do it?” but “Whom did our doing serve?”
Review one tradition your household keeps. Ask whether it is drawing you toward God and neighbor or merely preserving a comfortable identity. Keep what bears good fruit and release what only performs seriousness.
Prayer
Lord, examine the motives beneath our religious habits. Keep our fasting, feasting, prayers, and traditions from serving appearances, and turn our worship toward You and our neighbors. Amen.