‘ Why have we fasted, and you see it not? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no knowledge of it?’ Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure, and oppress all your workers.

他们说：‘我们禁食，你为何不看见呢？我们刻苦己心，你为何不理会呢？’看哪，你们禁食的日子仍求利益，勒逼人为你们做苦工。

“我们禁食，你为何不看呢？我们刻苦己心，你为何不理会呢？”看哪，你们禁食的时候仍追求私利，剥削为你们做苦工的人。

“我们禁食，你为何不看呢？我们刻苦己心，你为何不理会呢？”看哪，你们禁食的时候仍追求私利，剥削为你们做苦工的人。

他们说，‘我们禁食，你为什么不看呢？我们刻苦己身，你为什么不理睬呢？’我说，‘看啊，禁食之日你们仍然随心所欲，压榨你们的工人。

他们说：“为什么我们禁食，你不看呢？为什么我们刻苦己身，你不理会呢？”看哪！你们在禁食的日子，仍然追求自己喜欢作的事，欺压为你们作工的人。

于是他们问：‘我们禁食，你为什么不看；我们刻苦己心，你为什么不理会呢？’看哪！在禁食的日子里，你们实际上寻求自己所喜悦的，压迫一切为你们做工的人；

他們說：我們禁食，你為何不看見呢？我們刻苦己心，你為何不理會呢？看哪，你們禁食的日子仍求利益，勒逼人為你們做苦工。

「我們禁食，你為何不看呢？我們刻苦己心，你為何不理會呢？」看哪，你們禁食的時候仍追求私利，剝削為你們做苦工的人。

「我們禁食，你為何不看呢？我們刻苦己心，你為何不理會呢？」看哪，你們禁食的時候仍追求私利，剝削為你們做苦工的人。

他們說，『我們禁食，你為什麼不看呢？我們刻苦己身，你為什麼不理睬呢？』我說，『看啊，禁食之日你們仍然隨心所欲，壓榨你們的工人。

他們說：“為甚麼我們禁食，你不看呢？為甚麼我們刻苦己身，你不理會呢？”看哪！你們在禁食的日子，仍然追求自己喜歡作的事，欺壓為你們作工的人。

他們說：「為甚麼我們禁食，而你不看呢？為甚麼我們刻苦自己，而你不理會呢？」嘿，你們禁食的日子、仍然追求所喜歡作的事！逕自壓迫一切為你們作苦工的人！

於是他們問：『我們禁食，你為什麼不看；我們刻苦己心，你為什麼不理會呢？』看哪！在禁食的日子裡，你們實際上尋求自己所喜悅的，欺壓一切為你們做工的人；

彼曰、我禁食、爾不顧、我苦心、爾不知、何也、曰、爾禁食時、尚營己事、苛虐傭人、

彼曰、我已禁食、卑以自牧、爾不垂顧、其意何居、曰、爾雖禁食、乃縱私欲、威迫傭人。

彼曰、我儕禁食而主不視、反躬克己而主不顧、是何故歟、曰、爾曹禁食、仍求利己、且勒逼人為爾作工、

‘ Why have we fasted,’ they say,‘ and you have not seen it? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you have not noticed?’“ Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please and exploit all your workers.

‘ We have gone without food,’ they say.‘ Why haven’t you noticed it? We have made ourselves suffer. Why haven’t you paid any attention to us?’“ On the day when you fast, you do as you please. You take advantage of all your workers.

‘ We have fasted before you!’ they say.‘ Why aren’t you impressed? We have been very hard on ourselves, and you don’t even notice it!’“ I will tell you why!” I respond.“ It’s because you are fasting to please yourselves. Even while you fast, you keep oppressing your workers.

“ Why have we fasted, but you have not seen? We have denied ourselves, but you haven’t noticed!”“ Look, you do as you please on the day of your fast, and oppress all your workers.

‘ Why have we fasted and You do not see? Why have we humbled ourselves and You do not notice?’ Behold, on the day of your fast you find your desire, And oppress all your workers.

‘ Why have we fasted,’ they say,‘ and You have not seen? Why have we afflicted our souls, and You take no notice?’“ In fact, in the day of your fast you find pleasure, And exploit all your laborers.

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 your own pleasure, and exact all your labors.

“ Why have we fasted, but You have not seen? We have denied ourselves, but You haven’t noticed!”“ Look, you do as you please on the day of your fast, and oppress all your workers.

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.

They lament,‘ Why don’t you notice when we fast? Why don’t you pay attention when we humble ourselves?’ Look, at the same time you fast, you satisfy your selfish desires, you oppress your workers.

‘ Why have we fasted,’ they say,‘ and you don’t see? Why have we afflicted our soul, and you don’t notice?’“ Behold, in the day of your fast you find pleasure, and oppress all your laborers.

You have said,‘ It is vain to serve God. What is the profit of our keeping his charge or of walking as in mourning before the Lord of hosts?

When I wept and humbled my soul with fasting, it became my reproach.

He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt:“ Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus:‘ God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’

If one turns away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer is an abomination.

“ Say to all the people of the land and the priests,‘ 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 when you drink, do you not eat for yourselves and drink for yourselves?Were not these the words that the Lord proclaimed by the former prophets, when Jerusalem was inhabited and prosperous, with her cities around her, and the South and the lowland were inhabited?’”

The word reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.And he issued a proclamation and published through Nineveh,“ By the decree of the king and his nobles: Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything. Let them not feed or drink water,but let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and let them call out mightily to God. Let everyone turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands.

I took counsel with myself, and I brought charges against the nobles and the officials. I said to them,“ You are exacting interest, each from his brother.” And I held a great assembly against them

but he answered his father,‘ Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends.

In those days I, Daniel, was mourning for three weeks.I ate no delicacies, no meat or wine entered my mouth, nor did I anoint myself at all, for the full three weeks.

and behold, joy and gladness, killing oxen and slaughtering sheep, eating flesh and drinking wine.“ Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.”

that everyone should set free his Hebrew slaves, male and female, so that no one should enslave a Jew, his brother.And they obeyed, all the officials and all the people who had entered into the covenant that everyone would set free his slave, male or female, so that they would not be enslaved again. They obeyed and set them free.But afterward they turned around and took back the male and female slaves they had set free, and brought them into subjection as slaves.The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah from the Lord:“ Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: I myself made a covenant with your fathers when I brought them out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, saying,‘ At the end of seven years each of you must set free the fellow Hebrew who has been sold to you and has served you six years; you must set him free from your service.’ But your fathers did not listen to me or incline their ears to me.You recently repented and did what was right in my eyes by proclaiming liberty, each to his neighbor, and you made a covenant before me in the house that is called by my name,but then you turned around and profaned my name when each of you took back his male and female slaves, whom you had set free according to their desire, and you brought them into subjection to be your slaves.“ Therefore, thus says the Lord: You have not obeyed me by proclaiming liberty, every one to his brother and to his neighbor; behold, I proclaim to you liberty to the sword, to pestilence, and to famine, declares the Lord. I will make you a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth.

I was angry with my people; I profaned my heritage; I gave them into your hand; you showed them no mercy; on the aged you made your yoke exceedingly heavy.

But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying,‘ Pay what you owe.’So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him,‘ Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt.When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place.Then his master summoned him and said to him,‘ You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me.And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt.So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”

and God met Balaam. And Balaam said to him,“ I have arranged the seven altars and I have offered on each altar a bull and a ram.”

Hear this, you heads of the house of Jacob and rulers of the house of Israel, who detest justice and make crooked all that is straight,who build Zion with blood and Jerusalem with iniquity.Its heads give judgment for a bribe; its priests teach for a price; its prophets practice divination for money; yet they lean on the Lord and say,“ Is not the Lord in the midst of us? No disaster shall come upon us.”

It is a Sabbath of solemn rest to you, and you shall afflict yourselves; it is a statute forever.

During those many days the king of Egypt died, and the people of Israel groaned because of their slavery and cried out for help. Their cry for rescue from slavery came up to God.And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob.

“ Now on the tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement. It shall be for you a time of holy convocation, and you shall afflict yourselves and present a food offering to the Lord.

And on receiving it they grumbled at the master of the house,saying,‘ These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.’

“ And it shall be a statute to you forever that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall afflict yourselves and shall do no work, either the native or the stranger who sojourns among you.