Zechariah 7:1-7 Meaning: Is Your Fast Really for Me?
1In the fourth year of King Darius, Yahweh’s word came to Zechariah in the fourth day of the ninth month, the month of Chislev.
2The people of Bethel sent Sharezer and Regem Melech and their men to entreat Yahweh’s favor,
3and to speak to the priests of the house of Yahweh of Armies and to the prophets, saying, “Should I weep in the fifth month, separating myself, as I have done these so many years?”
4Then the word of Yahweh of Armies came to me, saying,
5“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?
6When you eat and when you drink, don’t you eat for yourselves and drink for yourselves?
7Aren’t these the words which Yahweh proclaimed by the former prophets when Jerusalem was inhabited and in prosperity, and its cities around her, and the South and the lowland were inhabited?’”
1And it came to pass in the fourth year of king Darius, that the word of the Lord came unto Zechariah in the fourth day of the ninth month, even in Chisleu;
2When they had sent unto the house of God Sherezer and Regem–melech, and their men, to pray before the Lord,
3And to speak unto the priests which were in the house of the Lord of hosts, and to the prophets, saying, Should I weep in the fifth month, separating myself, as I have done these so many years?
4Then came the word of the Lord of hosts unto me, saying,
5Speak 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?
6And when ye did eat, and when ye did drink, did not ye eat for yourselves, and drink for yourselves?
7Should ye not hear the words which the Lord hath cried by the former prophets, when Jerusalem was inhabited and in prosperity, and the cities thereof round about her, when men inhabited the south and the plain?
1And it came to pass in the fourth year of king Darius, that the word of Jehovah came unto Zechariah in the fourth day of the ninth month, even in Chislev.
2Now they of Beth-el had sent Sharezer and Regem-melech, and their men, to entreat the favor of Jehovah,
3and to speak unto the priests of the house of Jehovah of hosts, and to the prophets, saying, Should I weep in the fifth month, separating myself, as I have done these so many years?
4Then came the word of Jehovah of hosts unto me, saying,
5Speak 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?
6And when ye eat, and when ye drink, do not ye eat for yourselves, and drink for yourselves?
7Should ye not hear the words which Jehovah cried by the former prophets, when Jerusalem was inhabited and in prosperity, and the cities thereof round about her, and the South and the lowland were inhabited?
1And it cometh to pass, in the fourth year of Darius the king hath a word of Jehovah been unto Zechariah, in the fourth of the ninth month, in Chisleu.
2And Beth-El sendeth Sherezer and Regem-Melech, and its men, to appease the face of Jehovah,
3speaking unto the priests who are at the house of Jehovah of Hosts, and unto the prophets, saying, `Do I weep in the fifth month--being separated--as I have done these so many years?'
4And there is a word of Jehovah of Hosts unto me, saying:
5`Speak unto all the people of the land, and unto the priests, saying:
6When ye fasted with mourning in the fifth and in the seventh months --even these seventy years--did ye keep the fast to Me--Me? And when ye eat, and when ye drink, is it not ye who are eating, and ye who are drinking?
7`Are not these the words that Jehovah proclaimed by the hand of the former prophets, in Jerusalem's being inhabited, and in safety, and its cities round about it, and the south and the plain--abiding?'
1And it came to pass in the fourth year of king Darius, that the word of Jehovah came unto Zechariah on the fourth [day] of the ninth month, [even] in Chislev,
2when Bethel had sent Sherezer and Regem-melech, and his men, to supplicate Jehovah,
3[and] to speak unto the priests that were in the house of Jehovah of hosts, and to the prophets, saying, Should I weep in the fifth month, separating myself, as I have done now so many years?
4And the word of Jehovah of hosts came unto me, saying,
5Speak 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?
6And when ye ate, and when ye drank, was it not you that were eating and drinking?
7Are not these the words that Jehovah cried by the former prophets, when Jerusalem was inhabited and at peace, and her cities round about her, when the south and the lowland were inhabited?
Meaning in one sentence
Why did Zechariah 7:1-7 question the motive behind fasting? God challenges religious routines done for self rather than for Him.
Context
Two years after Zechariah’s night visions, the temple in Jerusalem was rising again. A delegation arrived from Bethel, a town with a long history of worship, and of straying from it. They came with a question about the fasts the people had kept for seventy years, mourning the burned temple and the murdered governor Gedaliah. Now that the temple was being rebuilt, did they still need to weep and separate themselves? The question sounded pious. But God’s answer, given through Zechariah, cut through the surface. He asked whether those fasts had ever really been for Him, or whether they had been, like their feasts, for themselves. The passage opens with a precise date: the fourth year of Darius, the ninth month. That timing matters. It places the question just before the temple’s completion, at a moment when old habits of grief met new hope.
Key Words
Three words carry the weight of God’s challenge. The first is tsom (fast), from the verb tsum, to abstain from food. The people had fasted for seventy years, but the question was not whether they had kept the ritual. It was who the ritual was for.
The second word is the little Hebrew pronoun ani, ‘me’, repeated twice in verse 5: ‘Did you fast to me, really to me?’ In Hebrew, the repetition hammers the point home. God is not asking for information. He is exposing a misdirected heart. The fasting had become a habit that belonged to the people, not a gift offered to Him.
The third word is attem (you, yourselves) in verse 6: ‘When you eat and when you drink, don’t you eat for yourselves?’ Ordinary meals, like religious fasts, can be lived entirely within the orbit of self. The same root word appears five times in two verses. God is drawing a line between a life oriented toward Him and a life that orbits around its own desires.
How Christians Read This Verse
Christians across traditions have read this passage as a searchlight on religious motive. Matthew Henry noted that the people ‘wept more for the inconveniences of the thing than the sinfulness of it’, they missed the temple they had lost, but they did not repent of the sins that cost it. The Geneva Bible observed that God does not approve a fast that is merely external. Calvin wrote that the question the delegation brought was a good one, but God saw that their hearts were still far from Him. More recent commentators like Keil and Delitzsch emphasize that the ‘former prophets’ (Isaiah, Jeremiah) had already taught that ritual without righteousness is empty. The passage does not abolish fasting; it purifies it. Every tradition that takes Scripture seriously has had to ask: Are my religious habits a conversation with God, or just a conversation with myself?
A common misunderstanding
Some readers conclude that God is against fasting or ritual observance altogether. In fact, the passage never condemns fasting itself. The prophets themselves fasted, and Jesus assumed His followers would fast (Matthew 6:16). What God rejects is fasting performed for the wrong audience, for oneself instead of for Him. The problem is not the act; it is the direction of the heart behind the act.
Living This Out
This week, try something simple. Before any religious habit, the prayer you say at meals, the Sunday service, the Lenten discipline you have planned, pause and ask: Who am I doing this for? If the honest answer is ‘I’m doing it because it’s what I’ve always done’ or ‘I want God to notice me,’ you have found the exact spot where the passage meets your life. You do not need to stop the practice. But you might say, ‘Lord, I am giving this time to You. I want it to be Yours.’ That single shift is the difference between a fast for yourself and a fast for God.
Main takeaway: God looks past the shape of our religious practices to the direction of our hearts, is this for Me, or for you?
For Families
For ages 5, 8
Do you ever do something nice just because your mom or dad told you to? God wants us to do nice things for Him because we love Him, not just because we have to. That makes our hearts happy, and it makes God happy too.
For ages 9, 12
The people in Zechariah’s time had been fasting and mourning for seventy years. But God said, ‘Did you do it for Me?’ He saw that they were just going through the motions. Here is the question for you: when you pray or go to church or help someone, are you doing it because you want God to see you? Or are you doing it because you love Him and want to be close to Him? God knows the difference, and He loves it when your heart is in it.
Questions People Ask
What was the fast of the fifth month in Zechariah 7?
The fast of the fifth month commemorated the burning of the temple in Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar’s army (2 Kings 25:8-9). The people had kept this fast every year during the seventy years of exile, mourning the destruction of their place of worship.
What was the fast of the seventh month?
The fast of the seventh month (Tishri) was observed in memory of the murder of Gedaliah, the governor appointed by Babylon after Jerusalem fell (2 Kings 25:25). This event marked the final collapse of any remaining Jewish leadership in the land.
Does Zechariah 7:1-7 mean we should not fast today?
No. The passage does not forbid fasting. It challenges the motive behind it. Many Christians still fast as a spiritual discipline (see Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 6:16-18). The point is to ask yourself: Am I fasting to draw near to God, or am I just going through a routine that centers on me?
What does ‘entreat the favor of Yahweh’ mean in verse 2?
The Hebrew phrase is ‘to soften the face of Yahweh’, a picture of asking God to look kindly on you. The delegation came with a request, seeking God’s approval. But God’s reply shows that He was already displeased with their empty rituals.
Why does the passage mention ‘the former prophets’ in verse 7?
God points the people back to what earlier prophets like Isaiah and Jeremiah had already said: that true worship requires justice, mercy, and humility, not just fasting and weeping (Isaiah 58:3-7; Jeremiah 7:21-23). The former prophets had warned that ritual without righteousness would lead to judgment, and the people had not listened.
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