1. “Shout loudly! Don’t be quiet!Yell as loud as a trumpet!Confront my people with their rebellious deeds;confront Jacob’s family with their sin!
2. They seek me day after day;they want to know my requirements,like a nation that does what is rightand does not reject the law of their God.They ask me for just decrees;they want to be near God.
3. 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.
4. Look, your fasting is accompanied by arguments, brawls,and fistfights.Do not fast as you do today,trying to make your voice heard in heaven.
5. Is this really the kind of fasting I want?Do I want a day when people merely humble themselves,bowing their heads like a reedand stretching out on sackcloth and ashes?Is this really what you call a fast,a day that is pleasing to the Lord?
6. No, this is the kind of fast I want.I want you to remove the sinful chains,to tear away the ropes of the burdensome yoke,to set free the oppressed,and to break every burdensome yoke.