FASTING ON THE
DAY OF ATONEMENT

   There are some people who believe we should only abstain from eating food on the Day of Atonement. They do not see the need to abstain from water. Let's see what the Scriptures have to say about the subject.

   The Day of Atonement is one of the most important of all of Yahweh’s appointed days. In Leviticus 23:27-32, Yahweh told Moses, The tenth day of the seventh month is the Day of Atonement. Hold a sacred assembly and deny yourselves, and present an offering made to Yahweh by fire.  28 Do no work on that day because it is the Day of Atonement, when atonement is made for you before your Elohim. 29 Anyone who does not deny himself on that day must be cut off from his people. 30 I will destroy from among his people anyone who does any work on that day. 31 you shall do no work at all ... 32 It is a Sabbath of rest for you, and you must deny yourselves. From the evening of the ninth day of the month until the following evening you are to observe your Sabbath. The early New Testament assembly recognized the proper, biblical method of fasting by neither eating nor drinking. But as time went on, devotion to proper fasting lessened. Man practiced his own ideas of what constituted fasting. Religious leaders began allowing one meal a day to be eaten while fasting. Then in the first century, bread, salt and water were allowed. Later, fruits, eggs and sometimes fish were permitted while fasting. Finally, fasting came to be defined as abstaining from flesh or wine. Following are eight scriptures confirming that correct fasting means totally avoiding all food AND drink.

Exodus 34:28, And he was there with Yahweh forty days and forty nights; he did neither eat bread, nor drink water. And he wrote upon the tables the words of the covenant, the Ten Commandments.

Deuteronomy 9:18, And I fell down before Yahweh, as at the first, forty days and forty nights: I did neither eat bread, nor drink water, because of all your sins which you sinned, in doing wickedly in the sight of Yahweh, to provoke Him to anger.

Ezra 10:6, Then Ezra rose up from before the house of Elohim, and went into the chamber of Johanan the son of Eliashib: and when he came thither, he did eat no bread, nor drink water: for he mourned because of the transgression of them that had been carried away.

Esther 4:16, Go, gather together all the Jews that are present in Shushan, and fast for me, and neither eat nor drink three days, night or day ...

Daniel 10:2-3, In those days, I Daniel was mourning three full weeks. I ate no pleasant bread, neither came flesh nor wine in my mouth.

Jonah 3:5-7, So the people of Nineveh believed Elohim, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them. For word came unto the King of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. And he caused it to be proclaimed and published through Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, "Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste any thing: let them not feed, nor drink water."

Luke 5:33-35, And they said unto him, "Why do the disciples of John fast often, and make prayers, and likewise the disciples of the Pharisees; but yours eat and drink?" And He said unto them, "Can you make the children of the bridechamber fast, while the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and then shall they fast in those days."

Acts 9:9, And Saul [Paul] was three days without sight, and neither did eat nor drink.

HalleluYAH!