The event recorded in chapter 7 takes place almost two years after the eight night visions (chapters 1-6). On the fourth day of the ninth month of king Darius’ fourth year, Zechariah receives a message from the Lord in response to a question from the men of Bethel (7:1-2). Several leaders from the town of Bethel (twenty miles north of Jerusalem) had been dispatched to ask a question of the “priests of the house of the Lord of hosts and the prophets” (7:3). They wanted to know “Should I weep and abstain [from food] in the fifth month as I have done for so many years?” (7:3).
During their seventy-year exile, many Jews had fasted and mourned in the “fifth month and in the seventh” (7:5). The fifth month commemorated the month the Temple was destroyed (2 Kgs 25:8); the seventh month the time, two months later, when Gedaliah was assassinated and the remnant fled to Egypt (2 Kgs 25:25-26). Now that they were back in the land and the Temple was being rebuilt (it would be completed in two years—Ezra 6:15), the people of Bethel wanted to know if they should continue their fasting and mourning.
The Lord gives Zechariah a “word” to answer the question. He answers their question with two questions: “When you fasted and mourned in the fifth month and in the seventh, for these seventy years, was it for me that you fasted? And when you eat and drink, do you not eat for yourselves and drink for yourselves?” (7:5-6). The Lord’s questions focus, not on their religious practice of fasting or feasting, but on the motives behind those actions. What’s more, the way the Lord asks about their motives (“was it for me”) implies their underlying motives were generally selfish not genuinely spiritual.
The Lord’s message not only probes their motives, but it also reminds them of their history; the “former prophets” had spoken to their ancestors about what God wanted from his people in a prosperous time before the exile occurred (7:8). The former prophets told the Jews to “Render true judgments, show kindness and mercy to one another, do not oppress the widow, the fatherless, the sojourner, or the poor, and let none of you devise evil against another in your heart” (7:10). Prophets like Isaiah and Jeremiah had called the people to live righteous lives, not just perform ritual acts (see Isa 58:1-14).
The Jews’ response to the former prophets revealed their true spiritual condition. “They refused to pay attention and turned a stubborn shoulder and stopped their ears that they might not hear. They made their hearts diamond-hard lest they should hear the law and the words that the Lord of hosts had sent by his Spirit through the former prophets” (7:11-12). No wonder the Lord queried them regarding their motives for fasting or feasting. The way they treated one another pointed to a deep insincerity and hypocrisy in their spiritual practices. Outwardly, they appeared to be honouring Him, but inwardly other desires were driving their actions. As Isaiah had written, “. . . this people draws near with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me” (Isa 29:13).
As a result, the Lord unleashed his anger towards His people. “Therefore, great anger came from the Lord of hosts” (7:12). He treats them as they were treating Him: “As I called, and they would not hear, so they called, and I would not hear” (7:13). He stopped answering their prayers for help. Further, He actively disciplined them: “and I scattered them with a whirlwind among all the nations they had not known” (7:14). So Israel went into exile and the “pleasant land was made desolate” (7:14).
Knowing God: Understanding His Person and Ways
The Lord knows the motives behind our religious activities. When the people of Bethel ask whether they should continue their regular fasts now that they are back in from exile, the Lord’s reply (through Zechariah) probes their motives for fasting: “was it for me that you fasted?” (7:5). He also focuses on their motives for celebrating Jewish feast days: “do you not eat for yourselves and drink for yourselves?” (7:6). The implied answer to both questions was that their motives were more self-centered than God-honouring. They looked pious to people, but not to God: “For the Lord sees not as man sees; man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart” (1 Sam 16:7). Here is a sobering reminder that God is not fooled or impressed by mere religious activity devoid of true, heart-level devotion.
The Lord wants religious practices to shape our relational patterns. In addition to probing the motives behind His people’s religious observances, the Lord reminds us that religious practices must be linked to godly relational patterns. Fasting and feasting only have value when our lives are marked by truth and grace (7:9-10). The Lord wants His people to treat one another with “true judgments”, “kindness”, and “mercy” (7:9). This is especially the case when dealing with those who are vulnerable and powerless (the widow, fatherless, sojourner, poor—7:10). The Lord requires our intentions (“heart”) towards others be good not “evil” (7:10). Here is a reminder that religious devotion to God must be combined with honourable dealings with people.
The Lord’s hot anger scorches and scatters those who give Him a cold shoulder. The Lord’s word through Zechariah explains the reason for the Jewish exile: “they refused to pay attention and turned a stubborn shoulder and stopped their ears that they might not hear” (7:11). Their hearts became “diamond-hard” towards the words “that the Lord of hosts had sent by his Spirit through the former prophets” (7:12). As a result, the Lord’s “great anger” burned against His people. He did not listen to their calls for help and He “scattered them with a whirlwind among all the nations” (7:14). Turning a cold shoulder to God provokes His hot discipline.
Joining God: Moving with God on Mission
We need the right motives and a right focus in our spiritual practices. The Lord’s probing questions (7:4-6) reveal He is looking for more than outward religious practices. Fasting or feasting—or Bible reading, prayer, church attendance, and ministry service—have value to God only if done with the right motives and the right focus. Our spiritual practices must be done with a sincere desire to please Him, not to impress others or fulfill a duty or obligation. The Lord sees past our behaviours to the heart attitudes behind them.
Religious practices are a sham without right relational and ethical practices. The Lord also makes it painfully clear that fasting and feasting (and other spiritual practices) are empty and offensive when we fail to treat others in a righteous way. The second great commandment (Love your neighbour as yourself) must be followed to fulfill the first (Love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind and strength—Matthew 22:34-37).
If we won’t listen to God, He won’t listen to us. The Lord explains His response to His hard-hearted people with these words: “As I called, and they would not hear, so they called, and I would not hear” (7:13). While the Lord may be gracious to answer our prayers when our hearts are far from, we cannot assume that will be the case. He may choose to treat us the way we are treating Him. As David acknowledged, “If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened” (Ps 66:18). Proverbs 15:8 reminds us, “The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord, but the prayer of the upright is acceptable to him.” If we want our prayers heard, we must be hearing and obeying God’s Word.
Rick and Linda Reed 