Bible Commentaries
Isaiah 58

Verses 1-14

The Meaning of True Fasting ( 58 : 1 - 14 )

The exhortation in this chapter is comparable in intensity and condemnation to the earlier prophecy delivered before the fall of Jerusalem. It deals with the question of what true worship involves and repudiates the shallowness of a religious observance which is regarded as fulfilling the desire of the Deity while leaving the daily life of the community completely unaffected (compare 1:10-20; Amos 5:21-24; Micah 6:1-8). Yet the wording here is fresh, penetrating, and original. It is also to be noted that in form this poem is largely exhortation and explanation, while the form of earlier prophecy dealing with the sin of Israel is that of a messenger’s report on the decree of the heavenly Judge concerning the trial and sentencing of Israel as God’s vassal people (see Introduction to Isaiah 1-39).

The poem begins with God’s summoning the prophet to make a proclamation to the house of Jacob concerning their sins (vs. 1). Of course, the people are going to be hard to convince of this fact (vs. 2). As a nation they are very faithful in the worship of God, who declares, “They seek me daily, and delight to know my ways . . . they delight to draw near to God.” When they are told that they are sinners, they are going to reply in effect: “Have you not seen how we have fasted and humbled ourselves?” That is, “Have you not noticed what excellent worshipers we are?” In times of national peril or trouble, ritual fasting had always been the accustomed thing in Israel. We know that after the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Temple by the Babylonians in 587 (or 586) b.c., regular services of fasting and mourning were carried on at the site of the former Temple. Jeremiah 41:4-5 refers to people from Shechem, Shiloh, and Samaria going on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem in deep mourning. This mourning and fasting for the Temple is also referred to in Zechariah 7:2-7; Zechariah 8:19. Mourning for the fall of Jerusalem and its Temple was evidently one dominant theme of the worship in the exilic and postexilic periods. In Isaiah 58, however, it is probable that the term “fast” is simply a short way of speaking about the external forms of religious worship in the revived community of the early postexilic period.

Beginning with the word “Behold” in the second half of verse 3 and continuing through verse 5, the prophet, or God through the prophet, exposes the shallowness of this worship which the people take to be sufficient. In their fasting the people have no interest in what God really wants of them, nor have they any interest in the needs of their fellow men. Are their fast days going to be acceptable to the Lord, and will the Lord listen to their prayers, if all they have done is put on the formal trappings of humility while they continue to quarrel and fight among themselves and to oppress the people who work for them?

In verses 6-7 God’s true fast is explained in terms of the classic Hebrew doctrine of righteousness. That is, as God used his great power to save Israel from slavery in Egypt, so the strong and responsible citizens among God’s people should use their power “to let the oppressed go free” and “to share . . . bread with the hungry.” True fasting is to “loose the bonds of wickedness” which harm and enslave others. The formal rites of fasting mean nothing if the common life of those who fast does not reflect the righteousness of God. Like First Isaiah, the prophet regards a worship that is separated from righteousness in the common life as a worship which God hates (see 1:14). Prayers offered by people who keep the spheres of religion and common life separate will not be heard by the Lord.

Beginning in verse 8, the consequences of a sincere fast that has radical consequences in the common life are developed. In the second half of the verse, the figure of the glory of God leading the people through the wilderness is used. The phrase “your righteousness” is in synonymous parallelism with “the glory of the Lord” and is a divine title (for the figure see Numbers 10:34; compare Exodus 16:7; Exodus 16:10). In its literal sense “the glory of the Lord” meant a cloud or a brilliant light which surrounded God so that he could not be seen by the human eye. Yet the presence of God is certain whenever his glory is seen. The striking figure enabled the Israelite to express the certainty of God’s presence, while at the same time preserving the sense of the mystery of his holiness into which man cannot penetrate.

In the concluding verses of chapter 58, God’s promise of his protecting presence and guidance and of the rebuilding of the “ancient ruins” is made conditional upon righteousness in personal and corporate life. In verses 13-14 the prophet turns again to the Sabbath, as in 56:2. Some commentators in the past have felt this to be too prosaic and mundane a matter for so great a spirit as Second Isaiah and that this concern with the Sabbath indicates a smallness of heart on the part of another author or authors of these chapters. This is a mistake in judgment (see also the comment on 56:1-8). Taking seriously the Sabbath as “the holy day of the Lord” is not meant by the prophet as a mere legalistic observance. Instead he is talking about a religious observance which gives expression to the people’s loyalty and delight in the Lord. The phrase in verse 14, “I will make you ride upon the heights of the earth,” is a metaphor reminiscent of Canaanite mythology. The figure is that of a dragon in charge of the underworld, and to “ride upon” his back was a way of speaking about taming or conquering him (see also Deuteronomy 32:13; Deuteronomy 33:29; 2 Samuel 22:34; Psalms 18:33). Thus “heights” probably originally meant “back,” though it is not improbable that the original signification of the allusion may have been forgotten in Israel by the time of Second Isaiah. In any event, it is an old metaphorical expression for exaltation and security.