GENUINE PIETY THAT PLEASES GOD

Isaiah 58:1-14 / Keywords 58:6-7

“Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter— when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?

 

True Fasting

58:1 “Shout it aloud, do not hold back.

    Raise your voice like a trumpet.

Declare to my people their rebellion

    and to the descendants of Jacob their sins.

2 For day after day they seek me out;

    they seem eager to know my ways,

as if they were a nation that does what is right

    and has not forsaken the commands of its God.

They ask me for just decisions

    and seem eager for God to come near them.

3 ‘Why have we fasted,’ they say,

    ‘and you have not seen it?

Why have we humbled ourselves,

    and you have not noticed?’

“Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please

    and exploit all your workers.

4 Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife,

    and in striking each other with wicked fists.

You cannot fast as you do today

    and expect your voice to be heard on high.

5 Is this the kind of fast I have chosen,

    only a day for people to humble themselves?

Is it only for bowing one’s head like a reed

    and for lying in sackcloth and ashes?

Is that what you call a fast,

    a day acceptable to the Lord?

6 “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:

to loose the chains of injustice

    and untie the cords of the yoke,

to set the oppressed free

    and break every yoke?

7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry

    and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—

when you see the naked, to clothe them,

    and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?

8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn,

    and your healing will quickly appear;

then your righteousness[a] will go before you,

    and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.

9 Then you will call, and the Lord will answer;

    you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.

“If you do away with the yoke of oppression,

    with the pointing finger and malicious talk,

10 and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry

    and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,

then your light will rise in the darkness,

    and your night will become like the noonday.

11 The Lord will guide you always;

    he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land

    and will strengthen your frame.

You will be like a well-watered garden,

    like a spring whose waters never fail.

12 Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins

    and will raise up the age-old foundations;

you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls,

    Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.

13 “If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath

    and from doing as you please on my holy day,

if you call the Sabbath a delight

    and the Lord’s holy day honorable,

and if you honor it by not going your own way

    and not doing as you please or speaking idle words,

14 then you will find your joy in the Lord,

    and I will cause you to ride in triumph on the heights of the land

    and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob.”

For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.

Footnotes

a. Isaiah 58:8 Or your righteous One

1. God publicly exposes his people’s sins. They looked very religious, sought out God daily, and desired to know his ways. They looked very pious, obedient, and delighted to be near God. In reality, they were hypocrites. While fasting, they did as they pleased, exploited their workers, and quarreled with others. Yet, they still expected God to respond to their requests. God looks at the heart, and no one can manipulate God to act in their favor. We must watch out that our spiritual disciplines can degrade into superficial religious activities that provoke God to anger.

 

2. The fast that pleases God is marked by genuine repentance. It turns away from self-indulgence, practices justice and mercy, loosens the chains of injustice, sets the oppressed free, shares food with the hungry, gives shelter to the poor wanderer, and does not accuse others with malicious talk. Then we will have light in the darkness, healing, righteousness, guidance, and clear responses from God. Even in sun-scorched lands, we will be like a well-watered garden. When we do not do as we please on the Sabbath and keep it as a time of delight by doing what pleases God, we will then find joy and feasting in the Lord.

 

Prayer Lord, help me not be self-seeking in my life and in worship but seek you and live a humble and obedient life that pleases you.

One Word Worship that pleases God, not me