The sole fast required by the law of Moses was that of the great
Day of Atonement (q.v.), Lev. 23:26-32. It is called "the fast"
(Acts 27:9).
The only other mention of a periodical fast in the Old
Testament is in Zech. 7:1-7; 8:19, from which it appears that
during their captivity the Jews observed four annual fasts.
(1.) The fast of the fourth month, kept on the seventeenth day
of Tammuz, the anniversary of the capture of Jerusalem by the
Chaldeans; to commemorate also the incident recorded Ex. 32:19.
(Compare Jer. 52:6, 7.)
(2.) The fast of the fifth month, kept on the ninth of Ab
(compare Num. 14:27), to commemorate the burning of the city and
temple (Jer. 52:12, 13).
(3.) The fast of the seventh month, kept on the third of Tisri
(compare 2 Kings 25), the anniversary of the murder of Gedaliah
(Jer. 41:1, 2).
(4.) The fast of the tenth month (compare Jer. 52:4; Ezek.
33:21; 2 Kings 25:1), to commemorate the beginning of the siege
of the holy city by Nebuchadnezzar.
There was in addition to these the fast appointed by Esther
(4:16).
Public national fasts on account of sin or to supplicate
divine favour were sometimes held. (1.) 1 Sam. 7:6; (2.) 2 Chr.
20:3; (3.) Jer. 36:6-10; (4.) Neh. 9:1.
There were also local fasts. (1.) Judg. 20:26; (2.) 2 Sam.
1:12; (3.) 1 Sam. 31:13; (4.) 1 Kings 21:9-12; (5.) Ezra
8:21-23: (6.) Jonah 3:5-9.
There are many instances of private occasional fasting (1 Sam.
1:7: 20:34; 2 Sam. 3:35; 12:16; 1 Kings 21:27; Ezra 10:6; Neh.
1:4; Dan. 10:2,3). Moses fasted forty days (Ex. 24:18; 34:28),
and so also did Elijah (1 Kings 19:8). Our Lord fasted forty
days in the wilderness (Matt. 4:2).
In the lapse of time the practice of fasting was lamentably
abused (Isa. 58:4; Jer. 14:12; Zech. 7:5). Our Lord rebuked the
Pharisees for their hypocritical pretences in fasting (Matt.
6:16). He himself appointed no fast. The early Christians,
however, observed the ordinary fasts according to the law of
their fathers (Acts 13:3; 14:23; 2 Cor. 6:5).
Fast
You Might Also Like:
Read More
Have you ever heard the story of Noah's Ark? It's a famous story from the Bible about a man named Noah who built a huge boat to save himself and the a...
Read More
Have you ever heard the story of the Tower of Babel? It's a story from the Bible about a group of people who wanted to build a tower that reached all ...
Read More
Have you ever heard about the Ten Plagues in the Bible? It's a fascinating story about how God showed His power to the Pharaoh of Egypt and freed the ...
Read More
Have you ever heard about the Ten Commandments in the Bible? These are ten rules that God gave to Moses on Mount Sinai to guide the Israelites and all...
Read More
Have you ever heard about the 12 Tribes of Israel in the Bible? These tribes were the descendants of the twelve sons of Jacob, who was later named Isr...
Read More
Have you ever heard about the Ministry of Jesus in the Bible? Jesus was a great teacher and healer who spent three years traveling throughout Israel, ...
Read More
Have you ever heard about the Early Church in the Bible? After Jesus' death and resurrection, his followers began to spread his teachings throughout t...
