Bible Study on Matthew 7, verses 1 to 6, judge yourselves first

 

Matthew 7:1 ¶  Judge not, that ye be not judged. 2  For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. 3  And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? 4  Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? 5  Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye. 6  Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.

 

Judgment and discernment are essential to being alive. You cannot survive without making judgments about things and people. However, the point of this passage is to be careful in your judgment as you will be judged by the same standard you use. This is not a threat of eternal damnation nor is it locking God into your mistakes if you use a false standard. It is a principle that we have used proverbially in American English that if you point your finger at someone you typically have three other fingers on your hand pointing back at you.

 

Often as not, we bear at least the beginnings of a sin in our hearts that we condemn. In fact, some of the most vicious detractors of other people are people who are guilty of the sin they are incensed about, even if only in thought or inclination. I thought the following part of a prophecy against Jerusalem was interesting speaking of Samaria and Sodom as her sisters.

 

Ezekiel 16:52  Thou also, which hast judged thy sisters, bear thine own shame for thy sins that thou hast committed more abominable than they: they are more righteous than thou: yea, be thou confounded also, and bear thy shame, in that thou hast justified thy sisters.

 

Also pay close attention to the following from Luke;

 

Luke 6:37 ¶  Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven:

 

The principle here is reinforced, that we should consider our own sins before we focus on the sins of others. This is very clear.

 

Verse 6 seems, at first, awkward in this context unless we look at the fact that Christ is talking to His people, in the context the Jews and in a greater context to Christians. This leads from the statement about judging yourself by the same standard you judge others and about dealing with your own sin before you point out the sins of others. Dogs and swine are unclean animals and some of God’s people here are likened to them. When you judge others, even if you have fulfilled the requirement of dealing with your sin first there is a certain kind of God’s people who will turn on you and attack with all the fury of an unsaved person.

 

In 2Peter 2, the great chapter on false teaches and prophets, dogs and swine, sows, are used also, so is this last verse a warning about false teachers and prophets?

 

It is true that many modern commentators refer to the swine and dogs of verse 6 as the unsaved and unclean. However, it seems to me that they are detaching that verse from the passage, which I call taking a verse out of context. We must at least try to examine a verse in the passage the Holy Spirit places it in order to understand the point that is being made. We are not moving from your brother and your brother’s eye suddenly to a standalone verse on the vicious heathen, I don’t think. But we may be in a context that warns us to judge ourselves first and to be discerning about who we reprove and try to correct as they may turn again and attack us. A vile unrepentant person may be a very frustrating person to witness to, as many of you have discovered, and as John Gill pointed out.

Bible Study on Genesis 36, verses 1 to 8, Esau is Edom

 

Genesis 36:1 ¶  Now these are the generations of Esau, who is Edom. 2  Esau took his wives of the daughters of Canaan; Adah the daughter of Elon the Hittite, and Aholibamah the daughter of Anah the daughter of Zibeon the Hivite; 3  And Bashemath Ishmael’s daughter, sister of Nebajoth. 4  And Adah bare to Esau Eliphaz; and Bashemath bare Reuel; 5  And Aholibamah bare Jeush, and Jaalam, and Korah: these are the sons of Esau, which were born unto him in the land of Canaan. 6  And Esau took his wives, and his sons, and his daughters, and all the persons of his house, and his cattle, and all his beasts, and all his substance, which he had got in the land of Canaan; and went into the country from the face of his brother Jacob. 7  For their riches were more than that they might dwell together; and the land wherein they were strangers could not bear them because of their cattle. 8  Thus dwelt Esau in mount Seir: Esau is Edom.

This passage is bracketed by two verses 1 and 8 which identify Esau with the region known as Edom and Mount Seir. The passage also names his children by these specific Canaanite women named. Judith is not mentioned here and may have died in childbirth or in some other circumstance. We can say the same probably about Bashemath, Adah’s sister. The duplication of women’s names should not cause confusion. For instance, Mormon patriarch, Joseph Smith, had multiple wives named Sarah.

Genesis 26:34 ¶  And Esau was forty years old when he took to wife Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Bashemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite: 35  Which were a grief of mind unto Isaac and to Rebekah.

Esau and Jacob are not able to live in the vicinity of each other with their wealth and possessions any more than Abram and Lot were able to live together with theirs. So, here is confirmation that Esau claimed what became Edom, something we discussed earlier. Isaac’s sons are fabulously wealthy by that culture’s standards, by what they considered as true wealth. Esau will merge his worship with Canaan’s and be marginalized in God’s plan of reconciling mankind to Himself.

Bible Study on Matthew 6, verses 25 to 34, sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof

 

Matthew 6:25 ¶  Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? 26  Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? 27  Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? 28  And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: 29  And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30  Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? 31  Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? 32  (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. 33  But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. 34  Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

 

God typically honors prudent behavior. He honors doing sensible things typically. Therefore, we cannot simply dismiss this as a condemnation of savings and retirement funds, or insurance, to leave behind some form of living for our family after our death, hard work, or attempts at self-reliance. This is not a call for Jesus’ followers to be irresponsible and to write it off as faith. As mammon was used in the last passage to personify worldly riches and compare them to treasure in heaven, in service to God, so here is a call not to anxiety or fear or undue concern over the smallest need but to faith in God.

 

Jesus’ followers are not called to sit on their hands and wait for a government handout or charity.

 

Romans 12:11  Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord;

 

1Thessalonians 4:11  And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you; 12  That ye may walk honestly toward them that are without, and that ye may have lack of nothing.

 

2Thessalonians 3:10  For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat…12  Now them that are such we command and exhort by our Lord Jesus Christ, that with quietness they work, and eat their own bread.

 

But see how David, a man of war, gave credit for his success to God. Inasmuch as David fought successfully here is one example of giving God the credit.

 

Psalm 18:17  He delivered me from my strong enemy, and from them which hated me: for they were too strong for me.

 

See how Ezra prepared his heart to know the Scriptures.

 

Ezra 7:10  For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the law of the LORD, and to do it, and to teach in Israel statutes and judgments.

 

See how you work but it is God who supplies the bounty.

 

Philippians 4:19  But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

 

Just as it is He who provides the prey for the predator even though you can watch the predator at work. Verse 26 says that God feeds the fowls of the air.

 

Job 38:39  Wilt thou hunt the prey for the lion? or fill the appetite of the young lions,…41  Who provideth for the raven his food? when his young ones cry unto God, they wander for lack of meat.

 

So, the important doctrinal point here is not that we are called to do nothing about our lives but that we are called to work for our living understanding that it is God who provides what is needed and necessary, typically, if we work hard. This is a difficult thing for Americans to consider seeing as we tend to dislocate our arm trying to pat ourselves on the back for our success in life.

 

The value of our lives should be in more than what we eat and what we wear, our needs for survival. God knows what you need and the point of this passage is summed up in seeking God’s kingdom. All that you need will be provided for you. Hard work, faith in God, and righteous behavior will take you a long way and you need not worry about tomorrow. This is the principle.

 

Again we see evil defined in a specific context. Here it is the trouble, difficulties, and challenges each day brings.

 

Here it is disobedience to God;

 

Genesis 2:9  And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil…17  But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

 

Here it is malicious intent;

 

Genesis 37:20  Come now therefore, and let us slay him, and cast him into some pit, and we will say, Some evil beast hath devoured him: and we shall see what will become of his dreams.

 

And here it is judgment, calamity from God, the opposite of peace.

 

Isaiah 45:7  I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things.

 

Regarding the message of this passage Paul will say to not be full of care;

 

Philippians 4:6  Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

 

Remember Isaiah’s promise;

 

Isaiah 26:3  Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.

 

Also keep in mind what Peter wrote;

 

1Peter 5:6  Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: 7  Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

 

So, we are commanded not to have anxiety, not to worry. I don’t know any Christian who doesn’t worry even though they might insist they don’t and call their concerns about their loved ones, about tomorrow, or about the trouble they face something other than worry. It is a common thing for one person to feel just like another but in order to feel superior and smug simply label what they feel inside as different. It is dishonest and foolish and insulting but it is in our nature.

 

Christ points out that what you have to deal with today is enough to concern yourself with. It is sound advice and a just command.

Bible Study on Genesis 35, verses 21 to 29, Isaac gave up the ghost

 

Genesis 35:21 ¶  And Israel journeyed, and spread his tent beyond the tower of Edar. 22  And it came to pass, when Israel dwelt in that land, that Reuben went and lay with Bilhah his father’s concubine: and Israel heard it. Now the sons of Jacob were twelve: 23  The sons of Leah; Reuben, Jacob’s firstborn, and Simeon, and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar, and Zebulun: 24  The sons of Rachel; Joseph, and Benjamin: 25  And the sons of Bilhah, Rachel’s handmaid; Dan, and Naphtali: 26  And the sons of Zilpah, Leah’s handmaid; Gad, and Asher: these are the sons of Jacob, which were born to him in Padanaram. 27  And Jacob came unto Isaac his father unto Mamre, unto the city of Arbah, which is Hebron, where Abraham and Isaac sojourned. 28  And the days of Isaac were an hundred and fourscore years. 29  And Isaac gave up the ghost, and died, and was gathered unto his people, being old and full of days: and his sons Esau and Jacob buried him.

Reuben was Leah and Jacob’s firstborn. He had sex with Bilhah, Rachel’s maid, given to Rachel by her father, Laban. Rachel had herself given Bilhah to Jacob to wife (Genesis 30:4) or to bear children on her mistress’s behalf. In this unseemly arrangement Bilhah was not considered a full, legitimate wife but a concubine, an inferior legal status for a woman. Women had little, if any, rights in this culture and a servant concubine would have almost no rights. We have seen Hagar, Sarah’s handmaid, used in such a way, as well, with really only God’s mercy assisting her. As all reality and events and behaviors are either part of God’s direct and perfect will as what He prefers to happen or a part of His permissive will in that He permits it for a reason often unknown to us we can examine this condition in the light of those facts. God does not create culture or civilization but He manipulates and modifies them to achieve His purposes in spite of man’s wicked condition. There is nothing particularly Godly about this setup for God already gave His direct will, what He wants, early on. A single man and a single woman unite as one flesh. There is no allowance for harems, concubines, secondary wives, girlfriends, mistresses, or any of the other sinful things man desires.

Genesis 2:24  Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

However, God will use this condition for His purpose of creating the people of Israel.

Here Reuben is said to have sinned, not against Bilhah, but against Jacob, who possesses her as a secondary wife or concubine. Under the Law given to Moses as the Hebrew’s civil and religious regulations we have the following command.

Leviticus 20:11  And the man that lieth with his father’s wife hath uncovered his father’s nakedness: both of them shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.

While under the spiritual rules given to Christians, which can have no proper civil significance as Christ’s order cannot be enforced by the civil magistrate without violating the principle of a willing heart, the offender is to be banned from the congregation until repentant to keep from polluting the attitudes and behavior of the church.

1Corinthians 5:1  It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles, that one should have his father’s wife. 2  And ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you. 3  For I verily, as absent in body, but present in spirit, have judged already, as though I were present, concerning him that hath so done this deed, 4  In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, 5  To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. 6  Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?

Here, Jacob’s sons are listed. From these men the children of Israel will issue. It is also mentioned that Esau and Jacob buried their father Isaac. Isaac is said to give up the ghost. This is a reference to his spirit. Here is a reference to Jesus’, who was fully man and fully God, human spirit or ghost, lowercase s and g. Here the human spirit belongs to and ascends to God.

Luke 23:46  And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost.

Again, not only the soul leaves the flesh at death but here we see the spirit leaves, as well. Notice Solomon’s question in Ecclesiastes that suggests mankind doesn’t know what he thinks he knows.

Ecclesiastes 3:21  Who knoweth the spirit of man that goeth upward, and the spirit of the beast that goeth downward to the earth?

God uses the spirit of man as one means to examine him from the inside-out.

Proverbs 20:27  The spirit of man is the candle of the LORD, searching all the inward parts of the belly.

The Godhead consists of a soul (God the Father), the seat of self-identity and will, a Spirit (the Holy Ghost called the Holy Spirit or Spirit of God when referencing acting on physical reality), the very mind of God, and a body, a physical presence, (Christ or the Word by which all things were created and are held together). It is important to understand that only God’s three parts can act independently although guided by one will. If either our soul or spirit leave us as humans we physically die. Jesus, being fully man and fully God, was not only the physical image of the invisible God but, as a human, possessed a lowercase spirit or ghost which He surrendered when He gave up his brief temporal existence before rising from the dead.

In these last two passages we’ve studied we have seen that the soul and the spirit or ghost both leave the body at death. Neither is said to be extinguished or ceases to exist. When a person’s body dies the unique “I,” that sense of self-identity, the thoughts, mind, and heart that make them who they are, the soul and the spirit, are not there but have departed. The physical flesh is all that is in the way of eternity, a joyous eternity if one belongs to God and a most miserable one if one rejects Christ.

Bible Study on Matthew 6, verses 19 to 24, treasures in heaven

 

Matthew 6:19 ¶  Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: 20  But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: 21  For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. 22  The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. 23  But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness! 24  No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

 

Here is a great lesson on what should be the Christian’s priorities. There are many verses and episodes in the Old and New Testament that buttress what Jesus is saying here including those who warn against depending on earthly riches.

 

Psalm 39:6  Surely every man walketh in a vain shew: surely they are disquieted in vain: he heapeth up riches, and knoweth not who shall gather them.

 

Psalm 62:10  Trust not in oppression, and become not vain in robbery: if riches increase, set not your heart upon them.

 

Proverbs 11:4 ¶  Riches profit not in the day of wrath: but righteousness delivereth from death.

 

Proverbs 16:16 ¶  How much better is it to get wisdom than gold! and to get understanding rather to be chosen than silver!

 

Luke 12:21  So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.

 

Luke 18:24  And when Jesus saw that he was very sorrowful, he said, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God!

 

1Timothy 6:8  And having food and raiment let us be therewith content. 9  But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. 10  For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows…17  Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy;

 

The word single in verse 22 is interesting. It is translated from a Greek word, according to Strong’s Dictionary, meaning whole or sound. Notice that single is contrasted with evil in this passage, indicating health and soundness on the one hand and diseased or malfunctioning on the other. A spiritually healthy person serves God and places their trust and hope in heaven while a sick and twisted person places their confidence in the riches of the world.

 

You can’t serve both God and mammon, an Aramaic word used here to personify worldly wealth in contrast to God.

Bible Study on Genesis 35, verses 16 to 20, as her soul was in departing

 

Genesis 35:16 ¶  And they journeyed from Bethel; and there was but a little way to come to Ephrath: and Rachel travailed, and she had hard labour. 17  And it came to pass, when she was in hard labour, that the midwife said unto her, Fear not; thou shalt have this son also. 18  And it came to pass, as her soul was in departing, (for she died) that she called his name Benoni: but his father called him Benjamin. 19  And Rachel died, and was buried in the way to Ephrath, which is Bethlehem. 20  And Jacob set a pillar upon her grave: that is the pillar of Rachel’s grave unto this day.

Jacob and his family now leave Bethel and we have a tragedy of great importance to Jacob. His beloved Rachel dies in hard labor, giving birth to Benjamin. Here we have a statement that is helpful in understanding what happens to the soul at death. It leaves the body. This is not the proverbial ‘rocket science’ although some commentators make it so.

What is the soul? First, it is one of the three parts of which a human being is composed.

1Thessalonians 5:23  And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

From all indications as you read the over the several hundred verses in which the word is found it is the seat of our self-identify, our will, and desires. It was created by God.

Isaiah 57:16  For I will not contend for ever, neither will I be always wroth: for the spirit should fail before me, and the souls which I have made.

It leaves the body upon death and can be deposited in Hell.

Psalm 86:13  For great is thy mercy toward me: and thou hast delivered my soul from the lowest hell.

It is God who decides when the soul and body separate, when death is to be.

Luke 12:20  But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?

One difference between that of the Old Testament and that of the Covenant of Grace after Christ’s resurrection that reveals what we call ‘eternal security’ is that until Christ’s Resurrection the soul is shown to be responsible for the sins of the flesh, the body. Sacrifice, an animal substitute for Christ, is required, the innocent dying for the guilty, in order to cleanse those sins. After the Resurrection, for the Christian, God severs the flesh, the body, from the soul so that it is free from the eternal consequences the sins of the flesh bring about.

Colossians 2:11  In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: 12  Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.

You do not become a child of God by your own power.

John 1:12  But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:13  Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

Nor, as the verse quoted from Colossians shows, do you keep your salvation by your own strength. Telling people that if they are truly delivered from Hell and eternal suffering by their faith in Christ, which is a gift from God….

Ephesians 2:8  For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9  Not of works, lest any man should boast.

…that they can, by their own will, lose their salvation is a dangerous delusion and a wicked blasphemy that renders God ineffectual in salvation. These same people usually do not believe they have an authoritative Bible because the God who cannot preserve them could not preserve His words. Beware of so-called “free will” churches. They typically are trying to control you in some way and not afraid to deceive you in the process. After all, if I can lose my salvation I would need them to keep me in the fold, right? Keep me on the straight and narrow? If the Holy Spirit is too weak to do that, what’s next, killing someone in God’s name because He is too weak to do it Himself and needs your help?

Nevertheless, Rachel’s soul left her body at the body’s death, as yours will if the Lord tarries. She gave her child a name that reflected her anguish and sorrow but Jacob gave him the name that lasts for us and gives a tribe of Israel its name.

Bible Study on Matthew 6, verses 16 to 18, fasting

 

Matthew 6:16 ¶  Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 17  But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; 18  That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.

 

Fasting is a very interesting practice mentioned here. Is it to be a calculated practice where you schedule a fast or is it, as some say, the consequence of a trial you are going through or a supplication you are making for God and there is no desire to eat food as you are too consumed by what you are facing?

 

Commentators say that under the Law there was one fast on the Day of Atonement when men were to afflict their souls which was understood by the Rabbis to mean fasting. See Leviticus 23:27 and Numbers 29:7. In times of distress there were other fasts in times of distress or penitence. See;

 

Joel 1:14 ¶  Sanctify ye a fast, call a solemn assembly, gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land into the house of the LORD your God, and cry unto the LORD, 15  Alas for the day! for the day of the LORD is at hand, and as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come.

16  Is not the meat cut off before our eyes, yea, joy and gladness from the house of our God?

 

A fast was used for a nefarious purpose;

 

1Kings 21:7  And Jezebel his wife said unto him, Dost thou now govern the kingdom of Israel? arise, and eat bread, and let thine heart be merry: I will give thee the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.8  So she wrote letters in Ahab’s name, and sealed them with his seal, and sent the letters unto the elders and to the nobles that were in his city, dwelling with Naboth. 9  And she wrote in the letters, saying, Proclaim a fast, and set Naboth on high among the people: 10  And set two men, sons of Belial, before him, to bear witness against him, saying, Thou didst blaspheme God and the king. And then carry him out, and stone him, that he may die.

 

A fast could be the expression of extreme concern and anxiety;

 

2Samuel 12:15 ¶  And Nathan departed unto his house. And the LORD struck the child that Uriah’s wife bare unto David, and it was very sick. 16  David therefore besought God for the child; and David fasted, and went in, and lay all night upon the earth.

 

 Mourning over sin;

 

Ezra 10:6 ¶  Then Ezra rose up from before the house of God, and went into the chamber of Johanan the son of Eliashib: and when he came thither, he did eat no bread, nor drink water: for he mourned because of the transgression of them that had been carried away.

 

Mourning for Jerusalem as well as the sins of the people;

 

Nehemiah 1:1 ¶  The words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah. And it came to pass in the month Chisleu, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan the palace, 2  That Hanani, one of my brethren, came, he and certain men of Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped, which were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem. 3  And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire.

4  And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned certain days, and fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven, 5 ¶  And said, I beseech thee, O LORD God of heaven, the great and terrible God, that keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love him and observe his commandments: 6  Let thine ear now be attentive, and thine eyes open, that thou mayest hear the prayer of thy servant, which I pray before thee now, day and night, for the children of Israel thy servants, and confess the sins of the children of Israel, which we have sinned against thee: both I and my father’s house have sinned.

 

But God also spoke through Isaiah with a criticism of the intentions of the fasting that so-called holy men would perform, bringing us to Jesus’ explanation here in Matthew 6.

 

Isaiah 58:3 ¶  Wherefore [why] have we fasted, say they, and thou seest not? wherefore have we afflicted our soul, and thou takest no knowledge? Behold, in the day of your fast ye find pleasure, and exact all your labours. 4  Behold, ye fast for strife and debate, and to smite with the fist of wickedness: ye shall not fast as ye do this day, to make your voice to be heard on high. 5  Is it such a fast that I have chosen? a day for a man to afflict his soul? is it to bow down his head as a bulrush, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? wilt thou call this a fast, and an acceptable day to the LORD? 6  Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke? 7  Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?

 

There are things in God’s will that are more important than others. Humans tend to enjoy worship that is self-glorifying rather than glorifying to God. In Isaiah God lays out what He is seeking that is more important than ritual.