the daniel fast

³I ate no desirable bread, and neither meat, nor wine, entered my mouth, neither was I anointed with ointment, until the three weeks of days were completed.

⁸But Daniel resolved in his heart that he would not be polluted with the king’s meal, nor with the wine he drank, and he requested of the chief of the eunuchs that he might not be contaminated. ⁹And so God gave Daniel grace and mercy in the sight of the leader of the eunuchs. ¹⁰And the leader of the eunuchs said to Daniel, “I am afraid of my lord the king, who has appointed food and drink for you, who, if he should see that your faces are leaner than those of the other youths your age, you would condemn my head to the king.” ¹¹And Daniel said to Malasar, whom the leader of the eunuchs had appointed over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, ¹²“I beg you to test us, your servants, for ten days, and let roots be given to us to eat and water to drink, ¹³and then observe our faces, and the faces of the children who eat the king’s food, and then deal with your servants according to what you see.”

¹⁶And when you fast, do not choose to become gloomy, like the hypocrites. For they alter their faces, so that their fasting may be apparent to men. Amen I say to you, that they have received their reward. ¹⁷But as for you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, ¹⁸so that your fasting will not be apparent to men, but to your Father, who is in secret. And your Father, who sees in secret, will repay you.

¹In the third year of Cyrus, king of the Persians, a message was revealed to Daniel, called Belteshazzar, and a true word, and great strength. And he understood the message, for understanding is needed in a vision. ²In those days, I, Daniel, mourned for three weeks of days. ³I ate no desirable bread, and neither meat, nor wine, entered my mouth, neither was I anointed with ointment, until the three weeks of days were completed. ⁴But on the twenty-fourth day of the first month, I was next to the great river, which is the Tigris. ⁵And I lifted up my eyes, and I saw, and behold, one man clothed in linen, and his waist was wrapped with the finest gold, ⁶and his body was like the golden stone, and his face had the appearance of lightning, and his eyes that of a burning lamp, and his arms and all that is downward all the way to the feet had the appearance of glowing brass, and his speaking voice was like the voice of a multitude.

⁴And in response he said, “It has been written: ‘Not by bread alone shall man live, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ ”

¹⁰Now when Daniel learned of this, namely, that the law had been established, he entered his house, and, opening the windows in his upper room towards Jerusalem, he knelt down three times a day, and he adored and gave thanks before his God, as he had been accustomed to do previously. ¹¹Therefore, these men, inquiring diligently, discovered that Daniel was praying and making supplication to his God. ¹²And they approached and spoke to the king about the edict. “O king, did you not decree that every man who makes a request to any of the gods or men for thirty days, except to yourself, O king, would be cast into the den of lions?” To which the king replied, saying, “The sentence is true, and according to the decree of the Medes and Persians, it is not lawful to violate it.” ¹³Then they answered and said before the king, “Daniel, of the sons of the captivity of Judah, is not concerned about your law, nor about the decree that you have established, but three times a day he prays his supplication.” ¹⁴Now when the king had heard these words, he was greatly grieved, and, on behalf of Daniel, he set his heart to free him, and he labored even until sunset to rescue him.

⁷But the end of everything draws near. And so, be prudent, and be vigilant in your prayers. ⁸But, before all things, have a constant mutual charity among yourselves. For love covers a multitude of sins. ⁹Show hospitality to one another without complaining. ¹⁰Just as each of you has received grace, minister in the same way to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. ¹¹When anyone speaks, it should be like words of God. When anyone ministers, it should be from the virtue that God provides, so that in all things God may be honored through Jesus Christ. To him is glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

²In those days, I, Daniel, mourned for three weeks of days.

¹Cry out! Cease not! Exalt your voice like a trumpet, and announce to my people their wicked acts, and to the house of Jacob their sins. ²For they also seek me, from day to day, and they are willing to know my ways, like a nation which has done justice and has not abandoned the judgment of their God. They petition me for judgments of justice. They are willing to draw near to God. ³“Why have we fasted, and you have not taken notice? Why have we humbled our souls, and you have not acknowledged it?” Behold, in the day of your fasting, your own will is found, and you petition for payment from all your debtors. ⁴Behold, you fast with strife and contention, and you strike with the fist impiously. Do not choose to fast as you have done even to this day. Then your outcry will be heard on high. ⁵Is this a fast such as I have chosen: for a man to afflict his soul for a day, to contort his head in a circle, and to spread sackcloth and ashes? Should you call this a fast and a day acceptable to the Lord? ⁶Is not this, instead, the kind of fast that I have chosen? Release the constraints of impiety; relieve the burdens that oppress; freely forgive those who are broken; and break apart every burden.

⁵Let your behavior be without avarice; be content with what you are offered. For he himself has said, “I will not abandon you, and I will not neglect you.” ⁶So then, we may confidently say, “The Lord is my helper. I will not fear what man can do to me.”

⁶But piety with sufficiency is great gain. ⁷For we brought nothing into this world, and there is no doubt that we can take nothing away. ⁸But, having nourishment and some kind of covering, we should be content with these. ⁹For those who want to become rich fall into temptation and into the snare of the devil and into many useless and harmful desires, which submerge men in destruction and in perdition. ¹⁰For desire is the root of all evils. Some persons, hungering in this way, have strayed from the faith and have entangled themselves in many sorrows.

¹⁹You know this, my most beloved brothers. So let every man be quick to listen, but slow to speak and slow to anger. ²⁰For the anger of man does not accomplish the justice of God. ²¹Because of this, having cast away all uncleanness and an abundance of malice, receive with meekness the newly-grafted Word, which is able to save your souls.