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.

ISAIAH 58:3KJV
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Isaiah 58:3 (KJV)

What does Isaiah 58:3 mean?

Isaiah 58:3 shows people complaining to God that their fasting and self-denial seem to go unnoticed, asking why God does not respond to their efforts. God replies that even while they fast, they still pursue their own interests and treat others harshly, making their religious acts empty.

In this verse, the people of Israel are speaking to God, frustrated that their outward acts of fasting have not brought the results they expect. God’s answer points out that their fasting is not sincere because they continue to seek their own pleasure (instead of God’s will) and demand hard work from others even on days meant for humility. The verse highlights the difference between outward religious rituals and genuine inner change.

The Hebrew behind Isaiah 58:3

  • "Fasted" (צָם, tsam): This word means to abstain from food, but here it refers to the ritual act the people are performing, expecting God to notice.
  • "Afflicted our soul" (עִנִּינוּ נַפְשֵׁנוּ, innu nafshenu): This phrase means to humble or oppress oneself, often by going without food or comfort. The people claim they have truly humbled themselves, but God questions the reality of their humility.
  • "Find pleasure" (תִּמְצְאוּ חֵפֶץ, timtze'u chefetz): This means seeking one’s own enjoyment or desires. God points out that even on their fast days, the people are still focused on their own interests.
  • "Exact all your labours" (תִּנְגֹּשׂוּ כָּל־עַצְּבֵיכֶם, tingoshu kol-atzveichem): The word for "exact" means to drive or oppress, and "labours" refers to workers or those under their authority. God criticizes them for making others work hard even while they claim to be humbling themselves.

Why Isaiah 58:3 matters

  • Isaiah 58:3 clears up the misunderstanding that outward religious acts, like fasting, automatically earn God’s favor if the heart and actions are not right.
  • The verse emphasizes that God cares more about justice, kindness, and true humility than about ritual alone, setting the stage for the rest of Isaiah 58’s message about genuine worship.
  • This verse connects to the wider passage by showing that God wants a change in how people treat others, not just in how they perform religious duties.

Where else these words appear

“fasted” Hebrew H6684 · used in 17 verses

  • Judges 20:26 Then all the children of Israel, and all the people, went up, and came unto the house of God, and wept, and sat there before the LORD, and fasted that day until even, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the LORD.
  • 2 Samuel 12:21 Then said his servants unto him, What thing is this that thou hast done? thou didst fast and weep for the child, while it was alive; but when the child was dead, thou didst rise and eat bread.
  • Ezra 8:23 So we fasted and besought our God for this: and he was intreated of us.

“fast” Hebrew H6685 · used in 22 verses

  • 2 Samuel 12:16 David therefore besought God for the child; and David fasted, and went in, and lay all night upon the earth.
  • Esther 9:31 To confirm these days of Purim in their times appointed, according as Mordecai the Jew and Esther the queen had enjoined them, and as they had decreed for themselves and for their seed, the matters of the fastings and their cry.
  • Jeremiah 36:9 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.

“exact” Hebrew H5065 · used in 23 verses

  • Exodus 3:7 And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows;
  • 1 Samuel 13:6 When the men of Israel saw that they were in a strait,(for the people were distressed,) then the people did hide themselves in caves, and in thickets, and in rocks, and in high places, and in pits.
  • Isaiah 9:4 For thou hast broken the yoke of his burden, and the staff of his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor, as in the day of Midian.

“pleasure” Hebrew H2656 · used in 38 verses

  • 1 Samuel 15:22 And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.
  • Psalms 1:2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.
  • Ecclesiastes 12:1 Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them;