Zechariah 7:8-14
“Thus saith the LORD of hosts; When ye fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh month, even those seventy years, did ye at all fast unto me, even to me?”
King James Version
God questioning Israel's fasting and challenging them to true justice and mercy rather than ritual observance.
Fulfillment References
Micah 6:8 Matthew 23:23
How Traditions Read This Prophecy
Apostolic (Oneness) PentecostalGod's word through Zechariah: 'Execute true judgment, and shew mercy and compassions every man to his brother' — but they refused, and judgment scattered them. The LORD desires mercy and justice over ritual (cf. Micah 6:8; Matt. 23:23). This is the heart of God revealed fully in the Lord Jesus, who weighed the 'weightier matters of the law — judgment, mercy, and faith.'
JewishA prophetic rebuke that fasting without justice and mercy is empty; the moral core of the covenant over mere ritual, with exile as the consequence of refusing it.
CatholicThe primacy of justice and mercy over ritual observance, fulfilled in Christ's teaching (Matt. 23:23) and the law of love.
ProtestantTrue religion as justice and mercy, not ceremony; Israel's refusal bringing judgment — echoed by Jesus (Matt. 23:23).
AcademicA classic prophetic 'mercy not sacrifice' oracle reflecting on the exile; it frames the post-exilic community's fasting questions (Zech. 7-8).
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Bible Prophecy Explorer · based on J. Barton Payne’s Encyclopedia of Biblical Prophecy catalogue · an openly Apostolic (Oneness) Pentecostal study resource — all traditions presented fairly. Pastor: C. Myles Young, PhD · Bishop: Nathaniel J. Wilson, Ed.D.