Fast Days and Feast Days

Of the feasts instituted by God and listed most comprehensively in Leviticus 23, only one includes a fast: Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. Even then, it is not named as a fast, but it has been understood throughout the millennia that “humble yourselves” in verses 27 and 29 mean a fast. For many centuries, the Jewish people have fasted from food and water, if they are able, or eaten as little as possible, on that day. They also abstain from washing themselves and from sexual relations. This is the day that one (in the Old Testament system of worship) stands before the judgment seat of God, and like David, one has no room for anything on the mind but repentance and atonement.

However there are two other things in this chapter that can be seen as fasts. First, there is Passover and Unleavened Bread. For eight days, the people were told to eat bread without any leaven; in fact, not to have any leaven at all in their dwellings (Ex. 12:15, 19, and others). This is, then, a fast from yeast and other leavens, which are seen, in this light, as symbolizing sin, with its power to grow and spread throughout a life. Secondly, until the Wave Sheaf, or offering of the First fruits of the season, no new grain was to be eaten, whether as bread or roasted. (Verse 14.) The first of the harvest went to God, as a thank you to the Lord of the harvest.

It is an interesting and instructive experience, for Christians as well as Jews, to go through their houses removing all items containing leaven (pondering, all the while, the ongoing attempt to remove sin from the life) and then to go eight days eating no leavened bread. The one who tries it soon learns there is leaven in a lot of foods one would never have suspected. Just like sin. 

Fasting; The story of Elijah the Prophet:

The third great story of fasting in the Old Testament is different from either of two previous. We find it in 1 Kings 19:1-8. Elijah, that great prophet of God, has just had a mountaintop experience. He has proclaimed a three year drought in God’s name, to show once and for all that Baal, the supposed lord of weather, had no control at all over it. On Mount Carmel, he laid to rest all remaining doubts. Baal and all his prophets were powerless to bring fire to burn a sacrifice, let alone rain to the thirsty land. But when Elijah quietly prayed, the offering was completely consumed, including the altar! The people all professed their belief at least, if not lasting faith, many of them, in the true God. Then the rain came, again in response to Elijah’s prayer, and he outran Ahab, who was mounted, from Carmel to Jezreel, a distance of more than twenty miles.

Perhaps only those who lay themselves out in service, year after year, to God and His people, can understand why Elijah fell into depression soon after such an experience. Jezebel said he was a dead man, and he lost his nerve completely and fled. He went one day’s journey into the wilderness and sat down under a juniper tree and asked God to let him die now. Then he fell into a sleep of exhaustion.

It’s interesting that God didn’t argue with him, in the state he was in. An angel appeared and fed him bread and water. Elijah ate, slept again, and was roused once more to eat the ordinary-seeming bread of heaven. 1 Kings 19:8 says that he “went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb, the mountain of God.” This is not a fast of repentance, or a fast of asking special things of God. It is not a fast to seek guidance; in fact, it almost appears Elijah had no intention or even recognition of fasting. He wasn’t hungry, apparently. He had eaten the food of angels.

Yet God had a plan and purpose for this fast. He wanted to teach Elijah that He was present not only in the great, noisy events, like the confrontation on Mt. Carmel, but also in the quiet daily events like eating or sleeping or a soft whisper of guidance and reassurance. He wanted to assure him that he was not as alone as he felt; that there were, in fact, 7,000 who had never bowed to Baal. God also took Elijah off duty. He said, in effect, “I know you’re burned out, Elijah. You don’t have to do this alone anymore. Go anoint Elisha - and pretty soon you’ll be coming home to Me.” Elijah’s fast was followed in a fairly short time by his ascension to heaven without death!

Fasting: The story of David after he committed adultery and murder:

After committing adultery with Bathsheba and arranging for the killing of her husband so he could marry her, Nathan lets David know in no uncertain terms what God thinks of his sin. The story is told in 2 Samuel 12:1-23. In verses 14-16, Nathan tells David that as a consequence of his sin, the child Bathsheba bore as a result of it will die.

This is a difficult passage. To the Middle Eastern mind, then as now, all things are in the hand of God, and He is given credit for causing evil as well as good. This is shown frequently in the Old Testament. Yet God is not the author of evil. There never would have been death or pain if His plan had been followed from the beginning. Sin is the cause of all such sorrow, whether directly or not. In this story, the tragic consequences of sin are indeed direct and immediate. God says the child will die.

David knows, though, that sometimes God is moved to intervene between sin and its results. He is deeply and truly sorrowful, as a reading of Psalm 51, which he wrote during this time, will show:

“Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against You, You only, I have sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You are justified when You speak and blameless when You judge.” (Verses 3-4) … “Deliver me from blood guiltiness, O God, the God of my salvation.” (Verse 14) … “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise.” (Verse 17)

David here shows his clear understanding that the sacrificial system is not just a mechanical way of balancing the scales, one ritual per sin, and you’re even. He knows God is more interested in his deep repentance than in any physical sacrifice he may make. Perhaps if he is willing to humble himself before God, express his sorrow, beg forgiveness, maybe, just maybe, God will intervene this time.

David lay on the ground, refusing food or drink, praying desperately, for seven days and nights. His household servants begged him to eat, but he wouldn’t. When the baby died, they were afraid to tell him. He had been so upset already, how would he react when he learned the answer to his prayers had been No?

David heard them whispering. Haggard and pale as he must have been by then, he lifted his head and asked the dread question: “Is the child dead? ”No doubt they exchanged nervous glances. “He is dead.”

To their surprise, David got up, washed himself, and went to the temple, where he worshiped God and almost certainly did make a sacrifice. Then he went home and asked for food, and ate. When his servants found the courage to ask him why, David’s answer gives us some more clues to the practice and purpose of fasting. “He said, ‘While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept; for I said, ‘Who knows, the Lord may be gracious to me, that the child may live. But now he has died; why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him, but he will not return to me.” (2 Samuel 12: 22, 23)

David clearly believed that fasting would make it clear to God (and himself) how serious he was. He had no time for food, or for considering himself or his body at all. He was, for that week, entirely devoted to prayer and repentance. Perhaps it was this sort of faithfulness, even after a serious fall, that caused God to call David “a man after My own heart.”

There is an interesting sequel to this story. Verses 24 and 25 say that David went to comfort his wife. This time, the child they conceive is formed in true love rather than the lust that marred the beginning of this relationship, and the Bible says “the Lord loved him and sent word through Nathan the prophet, and he named him Jedidiah [the beloved of God] for the Lord’s sake.” We know this Jedidiah better by the name of Solomon, the wise high king of Israel’s golden age, a king who, like his father, sinned greatly, but returned to the God of his salvation. Could we speculate that this outcome was, in part, because David (and Bathsheba as well, we can hope) came together after being truly repentant and were now spiritually united with God?

The Spiritual Discipline of Fasting

“fasting and prayer” on special occasions. What is fasting? How does it relate to things spiritual? Most people today probably think of it primarily as a diet designed for quick weight loss. Or, perhaps a vague idea that it is something one might do to overcome guilt from indulging too much in things that are not good for us. Our purpose here is to understand from the Bible and in practical ways the spiritual discipline of fasting.

What Does the Old Testament Say About Fasting?

There are several instances in the Old Testament where a fast is “proclaimed.” That is, a spiritual leader asks that everyone fast for some particular purpose. In Ezra 8:21, Ezra and the group of people he is leading back to Jerusalem after the Babylonian captivity, fast in order “that we might humble ourselves before our God to seek from Him a safe journey for us, our little ones, and all our possessions.” This shows that one reason for fasting was to ask God for special favor or blessing. Other times, the proclaimed fast was intended to show mass repentance, such as the one Jeremiah called for in Jer. 36:11. There are three major stories that show us, in more detail, fasting as it was practiced in the Old Testament. We’ll start with the story of Esther.

The story of Esther: When Mordecai wrote asking her to stand up for her people, pointing out that if no one did anything, she would die with her people, and that perhaps God had placed her where she was just “for such a time as this,” (Esther 4:14) she replied by saying, “Go, assemble all the Jews who are found in Susa, and fast for me; do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my maidens also will fast in the same way. And thus I will go in to the king, which is not according to the law; and if I perish, I perish.”

This passage shows us what was involved in fasting—no eating or drinking at all—and we can also extrapolate some reasons or goals.

1. Fasting (as in many cultures) was often done for mourning, and Esther may have been asking for mourning in advance, in case she did indeed perish.

2. Fasting was seen as a way to intensify prayer, humbling oneself so that heaven might hear. Esther was in dire need of God’s attention.

3. Fasting can “clear the path,” so to speak, between the soul and God, clarifying thinking and putting a needy human in direct connection with the Divine. Therefore, it can strengthen spiritually and give courage where courage is needed, as it certainly was in this case. Esther well knew what the king had done to an earlier wife who displeased him.

4. A group fast can also unite people in one cause. The text does not actually mention prayer—in fact, Esther is the only book in the canon that never mentions the name of God at all—but it is clearly implied that prayer is the purpose of this fast. It is also clearly implied by Mordecai that it may have been God’s purpose in elevating the Hebrew girl Hadassah to the status of queen, so that she would be able to save her people.

They fasted three days, Esther went before the king, and the rest is history. It is a history that is celebrated by the Jews to this day, with the fast of Purim, (which means lots or a kind of dice because the date to kill the Jews was chosen by lot) in which they remember the bravery of their ancestor by both fasting and feasting in her memory.

Nehemiah’s Prayer

“When I heard these words, I sat down and wept and mourned for days; and I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven. I said, ‘I beseech You, O Lord God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who preserves the covenant and loving kindness for those who love Him and keep His commandments, let Your ear now be attentive and Your eyes open to hear the prayer of Your servant which I am praying before You now, day and night, on behalf of the sons of Israel Your servants, confessing the sins of the sons of Israel which we have sinned against You; I and my father’s house have sinned.

‘We have acted very corruptly against You and have not kept the commandments, nor the statutes, nor the ordinances which You commanded Your servant Moses. ‘Remember the word which You commanded Your servant Moses, saying, “If you are unfaithful I will scatter you among the peoples; but if you return to Me and keep My commandments and do them, though those of you who have been scattered were in the most remote part of the heavens, I will gather them from there and will bring them to the place where I have chosen to cause My name to dwell.”

‘They are Your servants and our people whom You redeemed by Your great power and by Your strong hand.’” (Nehemiah 1:4-10)

Daniel’s Prayer

“So I gave my attention to the Lord God to seek Him by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth and ashes. I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed and said, ‘Alas, O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant and loving-kindness for those who love Him and keep His commandments, we have sinned, committed iniquity, acted wickedly and rebelled, even turning aside from Your commandments and ordinances. Moreover, we have not listened to Your servants the prophets, who spoke in Your name to our kings, our princes, our fathers and all the people of the land.

‘Righteousness belongs to You, O Lord, but to us open shame, as it is this day—to the men of Judah, the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, those who are nearby and those who are far away in all the countries to which You have driven them, because of their unfaithful deeds which they have committed against You. Open shame belongs to us, O Lord, to our kings, our princes and our fathers, because we have sinned against You.

‘To the Lord our God belong compassion and forgiveness, for we have rebelled against Him; nor have we obeyed the voice of the Lord our God, to walk in His teachings which He set before us through His servants the prophets. Indeed all Israel has transgressed Your law and turned aside, not obeying Your voice; so the curse has been poured out on us, along with the oath which is written in the law of Moses the servant of God, for we have sinned against Him.

‘Thus He has confirmed His words which He had spoken against us and against our rulers who ruled us, to bring on us great calamity; for under the whole heaven there has not been done anything like what was done to Jerusalem. As it is written in the law of Moses, all this calamity has come on us; yet we have not sought the favor of the Lord our God by turning from our iniquity and giving attention to Your truth. ‘Therefore the Lord has kept the calamity in store and brought it on us; for the Lord our God is righteous with respect to all His deeds which He has done, but we have not obeyed His voice. And now, O Lord our God, who have brought Your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand and have made a name for Yourself, as it is this day—we have sinned, we have been wicked.

‘O Lord, in accordance with all Your righteous acts, let now Your anger and Your wrath turn away from Your city Jerusalem, Your holy mountain; for because of our sins and the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and Your people have become a reproach to all those around us. So now, our God, listen to the prayer of Your servant and to his supplications, and for Your sake, O Lord, let Your face shine on Your desolate sanctuary. O my God, incline Your ear and hear! Open Your eyes and see our desolations and the city which is called by Your name; for we are not presenting our supplications before You on account of any merits of our own, but on account of Your great compassion. O Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, listen and take action! For Your own sake, O my God, do not delay, because Your city and Your people are called by Your name.’” (Daniel 9:3-19)

Reconciliation

The goal of confession is complete reconciliation between two or more sinners. It’s wonderful when it happens. When two faulty Christians admit their faults to each other, uncover and stop hiding their tendencies and practices, pray together, and “make up,” the angels dance in heaven. Each is now greater than before, and the two are far more than the sum of their parts. God is a little more visible to the whole community to which they belong.

But it doesn’t always happen. Even Paul said, “If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace.” (Romans 12:18) There will not always be reconciliation. Some people were never taught how to forgive, are too angry to even consider it, or have confused forgiveness with excusing or condoning sin. And some people have been hurt so badly that even if they do forgive, they may not ever want to have anything to do with the one who hurt them. Like perfection, reconciliation is something to seek, as well as something we may have to live without. In that case, we can only cling to the forgiveness of God and go on, trying to let the Holy Spirit make real in us the new, abundant life God has promised.

Conclusion

Confession is tricky business. As we have learned, it is far more than simply listing infractions. “Today I cut in front of another car in traffic, stole paper from the office, yelled at my wife.” We couldn’t do it thoroughly, even if we tried! “I had a judgmental thought while watching the news.” Just how detailed do we want to get? We don’t even have a realistic view of what sin is. We may recognize that we have lost our temper and said hurtful things, but are we aware of all our sin? Can we trace back to the thought, and the temptation that led to the thought and the tiredness that made us pay attention to the temptation, and the childhood influences that made this a likely sore point for us? Do we know our whole brokenness? Only God knows. All we can do is open our hands and hearts and hold them up to Him. Well, there is one more thing. We can look left and right, take the broken hands of those nearby, and all hold them up together to Him. He is Faithful and Just. And He will forgive.