Then the angel of the LORD answered and said, O LORD of hosts, how long wilt thou not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah, against which thou hast had indignation these threescore and ten years?

Behold, ye fast for strife and debate, and to smite with the fist of wickedness: ye shall not fast as {ye do this} day, to make your voice to be heard on high. {ye shall...: or, ye fast not as this day}

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.

He that regardeth the day, regardeth {it} unto the Lord; and he that regardeth not the day, to the Lord he doth not regard {it}. He that eateth, eateth to the Lord, for he giveth God thanks; and he that eateth not, to the Lord he eateth not, and giveth God thanks. {regardeth: or, observeth}

{And} to speak unto the priests which {were} in the house of the LORD of hosts, and to the prophets, saying, Should I weep in the fifth month, separating myself, as I have done these so many years?

For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.

Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

To what purpose {is} the multitude of your sacrifices unto me? saith the LORD: I am full of the burnt offerings of rams, and the fat of fed beasts; and I delight not in the blood of bullocks, or of lambs, or of he goats. {he goats: Heb. great he goats}

Therefore when thou doest {thine} alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. {do not...: or, cause not a trumpet to be sounded}

And when ye did eat, and when ye did drink, did not ye eat {for yourselves}, and drink {for yourselves}? {did not ye: or, be not ye they that}

And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites {are}: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

And whatsoever ye do, do {it} heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men;

Thus saith the LORD of hosts; The fast of the fourth {month}, and the fast of the fifth, and the fast of the seventh, and the fast of the tenth, shall be to the house of Judah joy and gladness, and cheerful feasts; therefore love the truth and peace. {feasts: or, solemn, or, set times}

And {that} he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.

And this whole land shall be a desolation, {and} an astonishment; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years.

Now it came to pass in the seventh month, {that} Ishmael the son of Nethaniah the son of Elishama, of the seed royal, and the princes of the king, even ten men with him, came unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizpah; and there they did eat bread together in Mizpah.

And when all the captains of the armies, they and their men, heard that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah governor, there came to Gedaliah to Mizpah, even Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and Johanan the son of Careah, and Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite, and Jaazaniah the son of a Maachathite, they and their men.

But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments, {phylacteries: pieces of parchment containing sentences of the law}

Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.

For thus saith the LORD, That after seventy years be accomplished at Babylon I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place.

In the first year of his reign I Daniel understood by books the number of the years, whereof the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah the prophet, that he would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem.

Is it such a fast that I have chosen? a day for a man to afflict his soul? {is it} to bow down his head as a bulrush, and to spread sackcloth and ashes {under him}? wilt thou call this a fast, and an acceptable day to the LORD? {a day...: or, to afflict his soul for a day?}

Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye {even} to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning:

Thus saith the LORD of hosts; The fast of the fourth {month}, and the fast of the fifth, and the fast of the seventh, and the fast of the tenth, shall be to the house of Judah joy and gladness, and cheerful feasts; therefore love the truth and peace. {feasts: or, solemn, or, set times}

And whatsoever ye do, do {it} heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men;

Then the angel of the LORD answered and said, O LORD of hosts, how long wilt thou not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah, against which thou hast had indignation these threescore and ten years?

And this whole land shall be a desolation, {and} an astonishment; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years.

But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of {that} bread, and drink of {that} cup.

But it came to pass in the seventh month, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, of the seed royal, came, and ten men with him, and smote Gedaliah, that he died, and the Jews and the Chaldees that were with him at Mizpah. {royal: Heb. of the kingdom}

Thou hast not brought me the small cattle of thy burnt offerings; neither hast thou honoured me with thy sacrifices. I have not caused thee to serve with an offering, nor wearied thee with incense. {small...: Heb. lambs, or, kids}

Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. {alms: or, righteousness} {of your: or, with your}

And they have not cried unto me with their heart, when they howled upon their beds: they assemble themselves for corn and wine, {and} they rebel against me.

It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the carrying away of Jerusalem captive in the fifth month.

And when the people heard these evil tidings, they mourned: and no man did put on him his ornaments.

Wherefore have we fasted, {say they}, and thou seest not? {wherefore} have we afflicted our soul, and thou takest no knowledge? Behold, in the day of your fast ye find pleasure, and exact all your labours. {labours: or, things wherewith ye grieve others: Heb. griefs}

They have made it desolate, {and being} desolate it mourneth unto me; the whole land is made desolate, because no man layeth {it} to heart.

And it came to pass in the fifth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, in the ninth month, {that} they proclaimed a fast before the LORD to all the people in Jerusalem, and to all the people that came from the cities of Judah unto Jerusalem.

Israel {is} an empty vine, he bringeth forth fruit unto himself: according to the multitude of his fruit he hath increased the altars; according to the goodness of his land they have made goodly images. {an...: or, a vine emptying the fruit which it giveth} {images: Heb. statues, or, standing images}

Have ye offered unto me sacrifices and offerings in the wilderness forty years, O house of Israel?

{And} to speak unto the priests which {were} in the house of the LORD of hosts, and to the prophets, saying, Should I weep in the fifth month, separating myself, as I have done these so many years?

Ye said also, Behold, what a weariness {is it}! and ye have snuffed at it, saith the LORD of hosts; and ye brought {that which was} torn, and the lame, and the sick; thus ye brought an offering: should I accept this of your hand? saith the LORD. {and ye have...: or, whereas ye might have blown it away}

I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.

He that regardeth the day, regardeth {it} unto the Lord; and he that regardeth not the day, to the Lord he doth not regard {it}. He that eateth, eateth to the Lord, for he giveth God thanks; and he that eateth not, to the Lord he eateth not, and giveth God thanks. {regardeth: or, observeth}

Then said he also to him that bade him, When thou makest a dinner or a supper, call not thy friends, nor thy brethren, neither thy kinsmen, nor {thy} rich neighbours; lest they also bid thee again, and a recompence be made thee.

Unto the pure all things {are} pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving {is} nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled.