A. Introduction & Position Summary
Fasting is strongly advocated by some as a key spiritual discipline and means of spiritual advance. Many books promote detailed rationales and practices. Biblical references are liberally mixed with multiple anecdotes.
Yet there is a scarcity of accessible and critical (as in cautious and careful) Biblical analysis. This paper seeks to provide such exploration.
The position concluded is …
1. The Bible reports a widespread practice of fasting in Jewish contexts reflective of wider Ancient Near Eastern culture. It is notably absent from the Epistles and the ongoing regular life of the early church outside its Jewish roots. It is commanded only for the Old Testament Day of Atonement.
2. Biblical fasting was an expression of grief and often associated with humble dependence on God. It was not a means of bodily discipline for godliness, spiritual advance or more effective prayer. These mistaken rationales arose over church history particularly under ascetic influences arising from a shift from Semitic culture to Greek.
3. Fasting should not be promoted, therefore, as a means bodily discipline for godliness, spiritual advance or more effective prayer. It should not be promoted as a spiritual discipline incumbent upon or necessarily beneficial to all believers. It of course remains within gospel freedom a way a believer may express grief or humble dependence on God if they so choose.
B. Old Testament Practice.
Fasting is the practice of deliberately going without food. It is not used to refer to wider abstinence. It is sometimes referred to by the phrase “afflict the soul”. Often it was associated with tearing clothes and wearing sackcloth and ashes.
1. Set fasts.
The Day of Atonement required fasting [Lev.16:29,31; 23:27-32; Num.29:7]. This was a day of national repentance. This is the only fast commanded or even mentioned in the Law.
After the return from Exile Zechariah 8:19 mentions four other annual fasts that had been added. According to Jewish tradition each marked national disasters. In the light of the return from Exile Zechariah asserts that they are now to be times of feasting and joy. Another may be referred to in Esth.9:31.
2. Occasional national and individual fasts.
Reports of and references to fasting were reasonably widespread after the Law in the Historical books and the Prophets. There were both national and individual fasts. The following sample is representative of the full picture:
i. David fasted on the occasions of learning of the deaths of Saul, Jonathan and Abner.
ii. The Ninevites fasted in repentance.
iii. Ezra fasted along with prayer when leading the returnees back to Jerusalem and confronted by hostile opposition.
Fasting was an expression & display primarily of grief & secondarily humble dependence on the Lord.
In the Old Testament then, as within its wider Ancient Near Eastern culture, fasting was essentially an expression of grief. It was commonly associated with tearing of clothes and wearing sackcloth and ashes.
This grief could be at some earthly or spiritual crisis - a death or oppression or danger or sin-repentance. It was, therefore, naturally associated with humility before the Lord and prayer for his mercy and/or protection - but the key core idea remained grief.
It was not about…
These are distortions of the Biblical-cultural rationale and indeed reflect wider theological distortions. The first two can be traced to the influence asceticism arising from the shift of Christianity from its Semitic cultural origin to Greek culture, which readily regarded the body and physical existence as the source of evil and corruption.