Zechariah 7:5

Fasting Integrity

³ by 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?”

⁴ Then the word of the LORD of Hosts came to me, saying,

“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?

⁶ And when you were eating and drinking, were you not doing so simply for yourselves?

⁷ Are 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?’”

Do read the surrounding verses too, because the context often says more than a single verse.

Compare

BSB: “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?
KJV: Speak unto all the people of the land, and to the priests, saying, When ye fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh month, even those seventy years, did ye at all fast unto me, even to me?
WEB: “Speak to all the people of the land and to the priests, saying, ‘When you fasted and mourned in the fifth and in the seventh month for these seventy years, did you at all fast to me, really to me?
ASV: Speak unto all the people of the land, and to the priests, saying, When ye fasted and mourned in the fifth and in the seventh [month], even these seventy years, did ye at all fast unto me, even to me?
DARBY: Speak unto all the people of the land, and to the priests, saying, When ye fasted and mourned in the fifth and in the seventh [month], even those seventy years, did ye really fast unto me, [even] unto me?
BLB: “Speak to all the people of the land, and to the priests, saying, ‘When you⁺ fasted and mourned in the fifth and in the seventh [months], and these seventy years, were you⁺ truly fasting [for] Me?

ÅB: Si til alt folket i landet og til prestene: Når dere har fastet og klaget i den femte[^1] og i den syvende[^2] måned, og det nå i sytti år[^3], er det da for min skyld dere har fastet?
OTB: “Si til hele folket i landet og til prestene: ‘Når dere fastet og sørget i den femte og den sjuende måneden i disse sytti årene, var det virkelig for meg dere fastet?
B1930: Si til alt folket i landet og til prestene: Når I har fastet og klaget i den femte og i den syvende måned, og det nu i sytti år, er det da for min skyld I har fastet? / < da blev templet ødelagt; 2KG 25, 8 fg.> / < da blev Gedalja myrdet; 2KG 25, 25. JER 41, 2.> / < SKR 1, 12. JER 25, 11.>

Study notes (Tyndale)

Original text and word study

Cross references

Zechariah 1:12
Then the angel of the LORD said, “How long, O LORD of Hosts, will You withhold mercy from Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, with which You have been angry these seventy years?”
Read in context
Isaiah 58:4–6
You fast with contention and strife to strike viciously with your fist. You cannot fast as you do today and have your voice be heard on high.
Read in context
Matthew 5:16–18
In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
Read in context
1 Corinthians 10:31
So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all to the glory of God.
Read in context
Zechariah 7:6
And when you were eating and drinking, were you not doing so simply for yourselves?
Read in context
Isaiah 1:11–12
“What good to Me is your multitude of sacrifices?” says the LORD. “I am full from the burnt offerings of rams and the fat of well-fed cattle; I take no delight in the blood of bulls and lambs and goats.
Read in context
Colossians 3:23
Whatever you do, work at it with your whole being, for the Lord and not for men,
Read in context
Zechariah 7:3
by 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?”
Read in context