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Isaiah 58:3-10
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Isaiah 58:3-10
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
3 “Why do we fast, but you do not see it?
afflict ourselves, but you take no note?”
See, on your fast day you carry out your own pursuits,
and drive all your laborers.(A)
4 See, you fast only to quarrel and fight
and to strike with a wicked fist!
Do not fast as you do today
to make your voice heard on high!
5 Is this the manner of fasting I would choose,
a day to afflict oneself?
To bow one’s head like a reed,
and lie upon sackcloth and ashes?
Is this what you call a fast,
a day acceptable to the Lord?(B)
Authentic Fasting That Leads to Blessing[a]
6 Is this not, rather, the fast that I choose:
releasing those bound unjustly,
untying the thongs of the yoke;
Setting free the oppressed,
breaking off every yoke?(C)
7 Is it not sharing your bread with the hungry,
bringing the afflicted and the homeless into your house;
Clothing the naked when you see them,
and not turning your back on your own flesh?(D)
8 Then your light shall break forth like the dawn,
and your wound shall quickly be healed;
Your vindication shall go before you,
and the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.
9 Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer,
you shall cry for help, and he will say: “Here I am!”
If you remove the yoke from among you,
the accusing finger, and malicious speech;(E)
10 If you lavish your food on the hungry
and satisfy the afflicted;
Then your light shall rise in the darkness,
and your gloom shall become like midday;
Footnotes
- 58:6–12 Fasting is not genuine without reforming one’s way of life. A true social morality will ensure prosperity.
Isaiah 58:3-10
New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition
Isaiah 58:3-10
New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition
3 “Why do we fast, but you do not see?
Why humble ourselves, but you do not notice?”
Look, you serve your own interest on your fast day,
and oppress all your workers.
4 Look, you fast only to quarrel and to fight
and to strike with a wicked fist.
Such fasting as you do today
will not make your voice heard on high.
5 Is such the fast that I choose,
a day to humble oneself?
Is it to bow down the head like a bulrush,
and to lie in sackcloth and ashes?
Will you call this a fast,
a day acceptable to the Lord?
6 Is not this the fast that I choose:
to loose the bonds of injustice,
to undo the thongs of the yoke,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to break every yoke?
7 Is it not to share your bread with the hungry,
and bring the homeless poor into your house;
when you see the naked, to cover them,
and not to hide yourself from your own kin?
8 Then your light shall break forth like the dawn,
and your healing shall spring up quickly;
your vindicator[a] shall go before you,
the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.
9 Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer;
you shall cry for help, and he will say, Here I am.
If you remove the yoke from among you,
the pointing of the finger, the speaking of evil,
10 if you offer your food to the hungry
and satisfy the needs of the afflicted,
then your light shall rise in the darkness
and your gloom be like the noonday.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 58:8 Or vindication
Isaiah 58:3-10
Common English Bible
Isaiah 58:3-10
Common English Bible
3 “Why do we fast and you don’t see;
why afflict ourselves and you don’t notice?”
Yet on your fast day you do whatever you want,
and oppress all your workers.
4 You quarrel and brawl, and then you fast;
you hit each other violently with your fists.
You shouldn’t fast as you are doing today
if you want to make your voice heard on high.
5 Is this the kind of fast I choose,
a day of self-affliction,
of bending one’s head like a reed
and of lying down in mourning clothing and ashes?
Is this what you call a fast,
a day acceptable to the Lord?
6 Isn’t this the fast I choose:
releasing wicked restraints, untying the ropes of a yoke,
setting free the mistreated,
and breaking every yoke?
7 Isn’t it sharing your bread with the hungry
and bringing the homeless poor into your house,
covering the naked when you see them,
and not hiding from your own family?
8 Then your light will break out like the dawn,
and you will be healed quickly.
Your own righteousness will walk before you,
and the Lord’s glory will be your rear guard.
9 Then you will call, and the Lord will answer;
you will cry for help, and God will say, “I’m here.”
If you remove the yoke from among you,
the finger-pointing, the wicked speech;
10 if you open your heart to the hungry,
and provide abundantly for those who are afflicted,
your light will shine in the darkness,
and your gloom will be like the noon.
Isaiah 58:3-10
New American Standard Bible
Isaiah 58:3-10
New American Standard Bible
3 ‘Why have we (A)fasted and You do not see?
Why have we humbled ourselves and You do not [a]notice?’
Behold, on the (B)day of your fast you find your desire,
And oppress all your workers.
4 Behold, you fast for contention and (C)strife, and to strike with a wicked fist.
You do not fast like you have done today to (D)make your voice heard on high!
5 Is it a fast like this that I choose, a day for a person to humble himself?
Is it for bowing [b]one’s head like a reed
And for spreading out (E)sackcloth and ashes as a bed?
Will you call this a fast, even an (F)acceptable day to the Lord?
6 Is this not the fast that I choose:
To (G)release the bonds of wickedness,
To undo the ropes of the yoke,
And to (H)let the oppressed go free,
And (I)break every yoke?
7 Is it not to (J)break your bread [c]with the hungry
And (K)bring the homeless poor into the house;
When you see the (L)naked, to cover him;
And not to (M)hide yourself from your own flesh?
8 Then your (N)light will break out like the dawn,
And your (O)recovery will spring up quickly;
And your (P)righteousness will go before you;
The glory of the (Q)Lord will be your rear guard.
9 Then you will (R)call, and the Lord will answer;
You will cry for help, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’
If you (S)remove the yoke from your midst,
The [d](T)pointing of the finger and (U)speaking wickedness,
10 And if you (V)offer yourself to the hungry
And satisfy the [e]need of the afflicted,
Then your (W)light will rise in darkness,
And your gloom will become like midday.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 58:3 Lit know
- Isaiah 58:5 Lit his
- Isaiah 58:7 Lit for
- Isaiah 58:9 I.e., an abusive gesture
- Isaiah 58:10 Or soul
Isaiah 58:3-10
New International Version
Isaiah 58:3-10
New International Version
3 ‘Why have we fasted,’(A) they say,
‘and you have not seen it?
Why have we humbled(B) ourselves,
and you have not noticed?’(C)
“Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please(D)
and exploit all your workers.
4 Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife,(E)
and in striking each other with wicked fists.
You cannot fast as you do today
and expect your voice to be heard(F) on high.
5 Is this the kind of fast(G) I have chosen,
only a day for people to humble(H) themselves?
Is it only for bowing one’s head like a reed(I)
and for lying in sackcloth and ashes?(J)
Is that what you call a fast,
a day acceptable to the Lord?
6 “Is not this the kind of fasting(K) I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice(L)
and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed(M) free
and break every yoke?(N)
7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry(O)
and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter(P)—
when you see the naked, to clothe(Q) them,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?(R)
8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn,(S)
and your healing(T) will quickly appear;
then your righteousness[a](U) will go before you,
and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.(V)
9 Then you will call,(W) and the Lord will answer;(X)
you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 58:8 Or your righteous One
New American Bible (Revised Edition) (NABRE)
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.
New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)
New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Common English Bible (CEB)
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible
New American Standard Bible (NASB) 
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.