Isaiah 58:4
Look, your fasting is accompanied by arguments, brawls, and fistfights. Do not fast as you do today, trying to make your voice heard in heaven.
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Referenced Verses
- Joel 2:13-14 : 13 Tear your hearts, not just your garments!” Return to the LORD your God, for he is merciful and compassionate, slow to anger and boundless in loyal love– often relenting from calamitous punishment. 14 Who knows? Perhaps he will be compassionate and grant a reprieve, and leave blessing in his wake– a meal offering and a drink offering for you to offer to the LORD your God!
- 1 Kgs 21:9-9 : 9 This is what she wrote:“Observe a time of fasting and seat Naboth in front of the people. 10 Also seat two villains opposite him and have them testify,‘You cursed God and the king.’ Then take him out and stone him to death.” 11 The men of the city, the leaders and the nobles who lived there, followed the written orders Jezebel had sent them. 12 They observed a time of fasting and put Naboth in front of the people. 13 The two villains arrived and sat opposite him. Then the villains testified against Naboth right before the people, saying,“Naboth cursed God and the king.” So they dragged him outside the city and stoned him to death.
- Prov 21:27 : 27 The wicked person’s sacrifice is an abomination; how much more when he brings it with evil intent!
- Isa 59:2 : 2 But your sinful acts have alienated you from your God; your sins have caused him to reject you and not listen to your prayers.
- Isa 59:6 : 6 Their webs cannot be used for clothing; they cannot cover themselves with what they make. Their deeds are sinful; they commit violent crimes.
- Jonah 3:7 : 7 He issued a proclamation and said,“In Nineveh, by the decree of the king and his nobles: No human or animal, cattle or sheep, is to taste anything; they must not eat and they must not drink water.
- Matt 6:16-18 : 16 Proper Fasting“When you fast, do not look sullen like the hypocrites, for they make their faces unattractive so that people will see them fasting. I tell you the truth, they have their reward! 17 When you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, 18 so that it will not be obvious to others when you are fasting, but only to your Father who is in secret. And your Father, who sees in secret, will reward you.
- Matt 23:13 : 13 “But woe to you, experts in the law and you Pharisees, hypocrites! You keep locking people out of the kingdom of heaven! For you neither enter nor permit those trying to enter to go in.
- Luke 20:47 : 47 They devour widows’ property, and as a show make long prayers. They will receive a more severe punishment.”
- John 18:28 : 28 Jesus Brought Before Pilate Then they brought Jesus from Caiaphas to the Roman governor’s residence.(Now it was very early morning.) They did not go into the governor’s residence so they would not be ceremonially defiled, but could eat the Passover meal.
- Acts 23:1-2 : 1 Paul looked directly at the council and said,“Brothers, I have lived my life with a clear conscience before God to this day.” 2 At that the high priest Ananias ordered those standing near Paul to strike him on the mouth.
- Phil 1:14-15 : 14 and most of the brothers and sisters, having confidence in the Lord because of my imprisonment, now more than ever dare to speak the word fearlessly. 15 Some, to be sure, are preaching Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from goodwill.
Similar Verses (AI)
These verses are found using AI-powered semantic similarity based on meaning and context. Results may occasionally include unexpected connections.
- Isa 58:1-33 verses86%
1 The Lord Desires Genuine Devotion“Shout loudly! Don’t be quiet! Yell as loud as a trumpet! Confront my people with their rebellious deeds; confront Jacob’s family with their sin!
2 They seek me day after day; they want to know my requirements, like a nation that does what is right and does not reject the law of their God. They ask me for just decrees; they want to be near God.
3 They lament,‘Why don’t you notice when we fast? Why don’t you pay attention when we humble ourselves?’ Look, at the same time you fast, you satisfy your selfish desires, you oppress your workers.
- Isa 58:5-73 verses82%
5 Is this really the kind of fasting I want? Do I want a day when people merely humble themselves, bowing their heads like a reed and stretching out on sackcloth and ashes? Is this really what you call a fast, a day that is pleasing to the LORD?
6 No, this is the kind of fast I want. I want you to remove the sinful chains, to tear away the ropes of the burdensome yoke, to set free the oppressed, and to break every burdensome yoke.
7 I want you to share your food with the hungry and to provide shelter for homeless, oppressed people. When you see someone naked, clothe him! Don’t turn your back on your own flesh and blood!
- Matt 6:16-183 verses73%
16 Proper Fasting“When you fast, do not look sullen like the hypocrites, for they make their faces unattractive so that people will see them fasting. I tell you the truth, they have their reward!
17 When you fast, anoint your head and wash your face,
18 so that it will not be obvious to others when you are fasting, but only to your Father who is in secret. And your Father, who sees in secret, will reward you.
- 72%
12 Even if they fast, I will not hear their cries for help. Even if they offer burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them. Instead, I will kill them through wars, famines, and plagues.”
- Ps 58:1-22 verses71%
1 For the music director; according to the al-tashcheth style; a prayer of David. Do you rulers really pronounce just decisions? Do you judge people fairly?
2 No! You plan how to do what is unjust; you deal out violence in the earth.
- Joel 1:13-153 verses70%
13 Get dressed and lament, you priests! Wail, you who minister at the altar! Come, spend the night in sackcloth, you servants of my God, because no one brings grain offerings or drink offerings to the temple of your God anymore.
14 Announce a holy fast; proclaim a sacred assembly. Gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land to the temple of the LORD your God, and cry out to the LORD.
15 How awful that day will be! For the day of the LORD is near; it will come as destruction from the Divine Destroyer.
- Zech 7:5-62 verses70%
5 “Speak to all the people and priests of the land as follows:‘When you fasted and lamented in the fifth and seventh months through all these seventy years, did you truly fast for me– for me, indeed?
6 And now when you eat and drink, are you not doing so for yourselves?’”
- Isa 1:15-162 verses70%
15 When you spread out your hands in prayer, I look the other way; when you offer your many prayers, I do not listen, because your hands are covered with blood.
16 Wash! Cleanse yourselves! Remove your sinful deeds from my sight. Stop sinning!
- Ezek 34:3-42 verses69%
3 You eat the fat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the choice animals, but you do not feed the sheep!
4 You have not strengthened the weak, healed the sick, bandaged the injured, brought back the strays, or sought the lost, but with force and harshness you have ruled over them.
- Isa 58:9-102 verses68%
9 Then you will call out, and the LORD will respond; you will cry out, and he will reply,‘Here I am.’ You must remove the burdensome yoke from among you and stop pointing fingers and speaking sinfully.
10 You must actively help the hungry and feed the oppressed. Then your light will dispel the darkness, and your darkness will be transformed into noonday.
- 68%
15 Why do you crush my people and grind the faces of the poor?” The Sovereign LORD of Heaven’s Armies has spoken.
- 68%
8 So put on sackcloth! Mourn and wail, saying,‘The fierce anger of the LORD has not turned away from us!’”
- Zech 8:18-192 verses68%
18 The message of the LORD of Heaven’s Armies came to me as follows:
19 “The LORD of Heaven’s Armies says,‘The fast of the fourth, fifth, seventh, and tenth months will become joyful and happy, pleasant feasts for the house of Judah, so love truth and peace.’
- 68%
4 Listen to this, you who trample the needy, and do away with the destitute in the land.
- 68%
4 The Lord’s Dispute against the Sinful Priesthood Do not let anyone accuse or contend against anyone else: for my case is against you priests!
- 68%
18 “The way you have lived and the things you have done will bring this on you. This is the punishment you deserve, and it will be painful indeed. The pain will be so bad it will pierce your heart.”
- 67%
17 Resistance to the Lord through Self-deceit You have wearied the LORD with your words. But you say,“How have we wearied him?” Because you say,“Everyone who does evil is good in the LORD’s opinion, and he delights in them,” or“Where is the God of justice?”
- 67%
4 At whom are you laughing? At whom are you opening your mouth and sticking out your tongue? You are the children of rebels, the offspring of liars,
- 67%
18 Isn’t this the way your ancestors acted, causing our God to bring on them and on this city all this misfortune? And now you are causing even more wrath on Israel, profaning the Sabbath like this!”
- 67%
13 You also say,‘How tiresome it is.’ You turn up your nose at it,” says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies,“and instead bring what is stolen, lame, or sick. You bring these things for an offering! Should I accept this from you?” asks the LORD.
- 67%
13 You must observe the Sabbath rather than doing anything you please on my holy day. You must look forward to the Sabbath and treat the LORD’s holy day with respect. You must treat it with respect by refraining from your normal activities, and by refraining from your selfish pursuits and from making business deals.
- 67%
11 Therefore, because you make the poor pay taxes on their crops and exact a grain tax from them, you will not live in the houses you built with chiseled stone, nor will you drink the wine from the fine vineyards you planted.
- 67%
12 An Appeal for Repentance“Yet even now,” the LORD says,“return to me with all your heart– with fasting, weeping, and mourning.
- Isa 59:2-32 verses67%
2 But your sinful acts have alienated you from your God; your sins have caused him to reject you and not listen to your prayers.
3 For your hands are stained with blood and your fingers with sin; your lips speak lies, your tongue utters malicious words.
- 67%
14 The Superiority of the New Then John’s disciples came to Jesus and asked,“Why do we and the Pharisees fast often, but your disciples don’t fast?”
- 67%
4 Someday these sinful leaders will cry to the LORD for help, but he will not answer them. He will hide his face from them at that time, because they have done such wicked deeds.”
- 67%
13 You also do this: You cover the altar of the LORD with tears as you weep and groan, because he no longer pays any attention to the offering nor accepts it favorably from you.
- 66%
17 Do you see what they are doing in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem?
- 66%
14 You will eat, but not be satisfied. Even if you have the strength to overtake some prey, you will not be able to carry it away; if you do happen to carry away something, I will deliver it over to the sword.
- 66%
5 So what will you do on the festival day, on the festival days of the LORD?
- 66%
17 But you are always thinking and looking for ways to increase your wealth by dishonest means. Your eyes and your heart are set on killing some innocent person and committing fraud and oppression.
- 66%
18 The Superiority of the New Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. So they came to Jesus and said,“Why do the disciples of John and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples don’t fast?”
- 66%
8 For when you offer blind animals as a sacrifice, is that not wrong? And when you offer the lame and sick, is that not wrong as well? Indeed, try offering them to your governor! Will he be pleased with you or show you favor?” asks the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.
- 66%
7 You gave the weary no water to drink and from the hungry you withheld food.
- 66%
3 Why do you force me to witness injustice? Why do you put up with wrongdoing? Destruction and violence confront me; conflict is present and one must endure strife.