Fasts and Feasts
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Fasts

Fasting in the Bible is a spiritual discipline that involves abstaining from food, and sometimes drink, for a period of time to seek God's face, express repentance, or prepare for a significant spiritual event. The practice is deeply rooted in the Old and New Testaments and is often associated with prayer, humility, and seeking divine intervention.

Old Testament Fasts

In the Old Testament, fasting is frequently observed during times of distress, repentance, or when seeking God's guidance. One of the earliest mentions of fasting is found in the account of Moses, who fasted for forty days and forty nights on Mount Sinai as he received the Law from God (Exodus 34:28). The Day of Atonement, or Yom Kippur, is the only fast explicitly commanded in the Mosaic Law, where the Israelites were to "afflict their souls" (Leviticus 16:29-31).

Other notable fasts include those of King David, who fasted and prayed for the life of his child (2 Samuel 12:16), and the people of Nineveh, who fasted in response to Jonah's warning of impending judgment (Jonah 3:5-10). Esther called for a fast among the Jews before she approached King Xerxes to plead for her people (Esther 4:16).

New Testament Fasts

In the New Testament, fasting continues to be a significant practice. Jesus Himself fasted for forty days and nights in the wilderness before beginning His public ministry (Matthew 4:2). He taught about fasting in the Sermon on the Mount, emphasizing sincerity and humility: "When you fast, do not be somber like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they already have their reward" (Matthew 6:16).

The early church also practiced fasting. The church at Antioch fasted and prayed before sending out Paul and Barnabas on their missionary journey (Acts 13:2-3). Paul mentions fasting in his epistles, indicating its role in his spiritual life and ministry (2 Corinthians 6:5; 11:27).

Feasts

Feasts in the Bible are times of celebration, remembrance, and worship, often commemorating significant events in Israel's history and God's acts of deliverance. These feasts were instituted by God and served as a means for the Israelites to remember their identity as His chosen people and to express gratitude for His provision and protection.

Old Testament Feasts

The Old Testament outlines several major feasts, primarily found in Leviticus 23. These include:

1. Passover (Pesach): Commemorates the Israelites' deliverance from slavery in Egypt. It involves the sacrifice of a lamb and the eating of unleavened bread (Exodus 12:1-14).

2. Feast of Unleavened Bread: Immediately follows Passover and lasts seven days, during which no leavened bread is eaten, symbolizing the haste of the Israelites' departure from Egypt (Exodus 12:15-20).

3. Feast of Firstfruits: Celebrated the first harvest of the season, acknowledging God's provision (Leviticus 23:9-14).

4. Feast of Weeks (Shavuot or Pentecost): Occurs fifty days after Firstfruits, celebrating the wheat harvest and the giving of the Law at Sinai (Leviticus 23:15-21).

5. Feast of Trumpets (Rosh Hashanah): Marks the beginning of the civil year with a day of rest and trumpet blasts (Leviticus 23:23-25).

6. Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur): A solemn day of fasting and repentance, seeking atonement for the sins of the nation (Leviticus 23:26-32).

7. Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot): Celebrates the Israelites' wilderness wanderings and God's provision, involving living in temporary shelters (Leviticus 23:33-43).

New Testament Feasts

In the New Testament, Jesus and His disciples observed these feasts, and they often served as the backdrop for significant events in His ministry. For instance, Jesus' crucifixion coincided with Passover, symbolizing Him as the ultimate Passover Lamb (John 19:14). The Holy Spirit's outpouring at Pentecost occurred during the Feast of Weeks (Acts 2:1-4).

The early church continued to recognize these feasts, though with a new understanding in light of Christ's fulfillment of the Law. The Apostle Paul addressed the observance of feasts, emphasizing the freedom believers have in Christ: "Therefore let no one judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a feast, a New Moon, or a Sabbath" (Colossians 2:16).

Fasts and feasts in the Bible serve as vital expressions of faith, devotion, and community, reflecting the rhythm of worship and remembrance that God established for His people.
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
Fasts and Feasts

FASTS AND FEASTS

See FEASTS AND FASTS.

Library

Sad Fasts Changed to Glad Feasts
... Yes, God turns our fasts into feasts, and we are glad in the midst of our sorrow;
we can praise and bless his name for all that he does. ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 38 1892/sad fasts changed to glad.htm

Appendix xiv. The Law in Messianic Times.
... as merely a general statement, it is definitely applied to the effect, that all
sacrifices except the thank-offering, and all fasts and feasts except the Day ...
/.../edersheim/the life and times of jesus the messiah/appendix xiv the law in.htm

Thou Shalt not Commit Adultery.
... Yet we go our way as if we were Christians; when we have been to church, have said
our little prayer, have observed the fasts and feasts, then we think our ...
/.../luther/a treatise on good works/thou shalt not commit adultery.htm

Certificate Laws and Western Land Bills
... [187] This law at times proved unsatisfactory to the Episcopalians, for the
Congregational fasts and feasts were appointed by the authorities, who naturally ...
/.../chapter xiii certificate laws and.htm

The Fig-Tree.
... ritual. You boast of your rigid adherence to its outward ceremonial, the
punctilious observance of your fasts and feasts. But I ...
//christianbookshelf.org/macduff/memories of bethany/xix the fig-tree.htm

B. The Second Period. Chs. 5:1 to 6:11
... He declared that he had not come to regulate the fasts and feasts or to amend the
Jewish ritual. That would be like sewing a new patch on an old garment. ...
/.../erdman/the gospel of luke an exposition/b the second period chs.htm

"To what Purpose is the Multitude of Your Sacrifices unto Me? ...
... To what purpose is the multitude of your fasts and feasts, of your preachings and
communions, of your praying in secret, and in your families, of conference ...
/.../binning/the works of the rev hugh binning/sermon ix to what purpose.htm

Political Parties in Connecticut at the Beginning of the ...
... Backus, Isaac Lewis, John Evans, and a host of secondary men who turned their pulpits
into lecture desks and the public fasts and feasts into electioneering ...
/.../chapter xiv political parties in.htm

Letter v. --For 333. Easter-Day , Coss. Dalmatius and Zenophilus ...
... 49. We duly proceed, my brethren, from feasts to feasts, duly from prayers to prayers,
we advance from fasts to fasts, and join holy-days to holy-days. ...
/.../select works and letters or athanasius/letter v for 333 easter-day.htm

The Montanists; Priscilla and Maximilla their Prophetesses; Some ...
... They introduce, however, the novelties of fasts, [949] and feasts, and meals of
parched food, and repasts of radishes, alleging that they have been instructed ...
/.../the refutation of all heresies/chapter xii the montanists priscilla and.htm

Resources
Who was Saint Francis of Assisi? | GotQuestions.org

What is Ramadan? | GotQuestions.org

What are the different types of fasting? | GotQuestions.org

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Fasts

Fasts and Feasts

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Entrails (18 Occurrences)

Innards (15 Occurrences)

Inwards (24 Occurrences)

Covers (50 Occurrences)

Lobe (19 Occurrences)

Redundance (11 Occurrences)

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Tail (16 Occurrences)

Inner (141 Occurrences)

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Joining (43 Occurrences)

Connected (11 Occurrences)

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Net (91 Occurrences)

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Portions (49 Occurrences)

Fattened (19 Occurrences)

Marrow (5 Occurrences)

Sleek (7 Occurrences)

Cows (33 Occurrences)

Fire-offering (45 Occurrences)

Oblations (24 Occurrences)

Grease (1 Occurrence)

Flanks (7 Occurrences)

Thigh (38 Occurrences)

Leg (24 Occurrences)

Inside (185 Occurrences)

Remove (173 Occurrences)

Lean (22 Occurrences)

Covering (191 Occurrences)

Insides (1 Occurrence)

Meat-offerings (10 Occurrences)

Suet (3 Occurrences)

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Kine (24 Occurrences)

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Gross (12 Occurrences)

Fire-offerings (18 Occurrences)

Ram's (7 Occurrences)

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Consecration (22 Occurrences)

Clean (298 Occurrences)

Contain (19 Occurrences)

Soothing (40 Occurrences)

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Cover (254 Occurrences)

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Finest (23 Occurrences)

Fatling (4 Occurrences)

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Pastures (25 Occurrences)

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Curds (9 Occurrences)

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