Zechariah 7:6
A focused desk for reading, commentary, cross-references, original language notes, and your own observations.
Zechariah 7:6
6 And when ye did eat, and when ye did drink, did not ye eat for yourselves, and drink for yourselves?
Chapter Context
Zechariah 7 is a prophetic vision chapter in the Old Testament that explores themes of covenant, righteousness, fellowship. Written during the early post-exilic period (c. 520-480 BCE), this chapter should be understood within its historical context: Persian support for temple rebuilding came with continued imperial control.
The chapter can be divided into several sections:
- Verses 1-5: Introduction and setting the context
- Verses 6-12: Development of key themes
- Verses 13-14: Central message and teachings
This chapter is significant because it contributes to the biblical metanarrative of redemption. When studying this passage, it's important to consider both its immediate context within Zechariah and its broader place in the scriptural canon.
Verse Study
Zechariah 7:6
6 And when ye did eat, and when ye did drink, did not ye eat for yourselves, and drink for yourselves?
Analysis
And when ye did eat, and when ye did drink, did not ye eat for yourselves, and drink for yourselves?—God responds to the delegation's fasting question (7:1-3) by probing motives. The Hebrew vəkhī 'akhōl 'akhaltem vəkhī shātōh shəthītem hălō' 'attem hā'ōkhəlīm və'attem hashshōthīm (וְכִי אָכוֹל אֲכַלְתֶּם וְכִי שָׁתֹה שְׁתִיתֶם הֲלוֹא אַתֶּם הָאֹכְלִים וְאַתֶּם הַשֹּׁתִים, 'and when you ate and when you drank, was it not you who were eating and you who were drinking?') uses emphatic repetition. The rhetorical question exposes self-centered religion: their eating and drinking served themselves, not God.
The principle extends to fasting (v. 5): if eating serves self, doesn't fasting also serve self? God desires neither self-indulgent feasting nor self-righteous fasting but heart-level worship. Isaiah 58:3-7 similarly rebukes fasting divorced from justice and mercy. Jesus taught, 'when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; that thou appear not unto men to fast' (Matthew 6:17-18). The question 'Did not ye eat for yourselves?' diagnoses religious externalism—ritual without relationship, form without faithfulness. True worship flows from love for God and neighbor, not self-focused performance seeking divine favor or human applause.
Historical Context
The delegation asked whether to continue fasting in the fifth month (commemorating Jerusalem's destruction, 586 BC) now that the temple was being rebuilt (7:3). God's response: your fasts were never about Me but about yourselves—your grief, your ritual, your tradition. After seventy years, their fasting had become empty routine. The question challenged post-exilic Judah to examine motives: Do you fast to manipulate God or to genuinely mourn sin? Do you eat to enjoy God's gifts gratefully or merely to satisfy appetites?
Reflection
- How does the question 'did not ye eat for yourselves?' expose self-centered religion?
- In what ways can fasting become as self-serving as feasting?
- What motives drive your spiritual disciplines—genuine love for God or self-focused performance?
Cross-References
- Parallel theme: Hosea 8:13, 1 Corinthians 10:31