Isaiah 58
v.2
For day after day they seek me out; they seem eager to know my ways, as if they were a nation that does what is right and has not forsaken the commands of its God. They ask me for just decisions and seem eager for God to come near them.
True delight in religion is in religion itself; in the service of God as such, and because it is holy. It is not mere pleasure in creeds, and liturgies, and theological discussions, and in the triumph of our cause, nor even in the triumph of Christianity as a mere party measure; but it is delight in God as he is, in his holy service, and in his truth.
v.3
‘Why have we fasted,’ they say, ’ and you have not seen it? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you have not noticed?’
The principle is that the importance of the request causes an individual to be so concerned about his or her spiritual condition that physical necessities fade into the background. In this sense the act of fasting is designed as a process leading to purification and humbling oneself before God (Ps 69:10; 102:4). It is not an end in itself, but rather it is the disciplined training in preparation for an important event.
v.4
Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife, and in striking each other with wicked fists. You cannot fast as you do today and expect your voice to be heard on high.
Their fastings were accompanied with the loud and hoarse voice of contention and strife, and on that account could not be acceptable to God.
If prayer offers incense to the Lord, dissension is an odor to Him.
v.9
Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.
Such are the prayers of truly noble men. Before they finish they persuade God to accede to their words. You too, therefore, when you are going to take a wife, do not seek human aid, nor have recourse to women who trade in others’ misfortunes and whose only object is to obtain a profit for themselves. Turn to God for help. He is not ashamed to become your matchmaker. He Himself promised this when He said, “Seek the kingdom of heaven, and all this shall be added to you.”