66 Bible verses about the power of Fasting

The power of fasting really lies in honestly opening your heart to the Lord. It's in that space where His love shines through and transforms every part of who you are. Fasting is something you do when you’re truly seeking Jesus, when you're willing to sacrifice physical needs to ask for a deeper connection with Him.

It strengthens your spirit, grows your faith, and draws you closer to God. By saying "no" to the physical demands of your body, you're saying "yes" to a deeper, more intimate relationship with Him. It's about prioritizing that connection above all else.

When you abstain from food or drink for a set time, it’s like a spiritual and physical cleanse. It helps to clear away anything that might be holding you back or weighing you down.

Remember what Matthew 6:16-17¹ says – it's not about showing off or seeking attention when you fast. It's about humility and sincerity before the Lord.

But there will come days, when the bridegroom shall be taken from them, and, then, they will fast, in that day.

Then said he unto me, Do not fear, Daniel, for, from the first day that thou didst set thy heart to understand and to humble thyself before thy God, thy words were heard; and, I, am come, by reason of thy words.

Hallow ye a fast, Call a solemn assembly, Gather, O elders, all the inhabitants of the land, unto the house of Yahweh your God,—and make ye outcry unto Yahweh.

And Cornelius said—Four days ago, counting unto this very hour, I was keeping, the ninth hour, as one of prayer, in my house. And lo! a man stood before me, in bright clothing,

And Jesus said unto them,—Can, the sons of the bridechamber, mourn, so long as, the bridegroom, is, with them? But days will come, when the bridegroom, shall be taken from them, and, then, will they fast.

Then touched he their eyes, saying, According to your faith, be it done unto you.

Like this, shall the fast be that I choose, A day for the son of earth to humble his soul? Is it to bow down as a rush his head, And sackcloth and ashes, to spread out? Is it, this, thou wilt call a fast, Or a day of acceptance with Yahweh?

Wherefore have we Fasted and thou hast not seen? Humbled our soul, and thou wouldst take no note? Lo! in the day of your fast, ye take pleasure, But all your toilers, ye drive on!

Even now, therefore, urgeth Yahweh, Turn ye unto me, with all your heart,—and with fasting and with weeping, and with lamentation;

And, when ye may he fasting, become not ye, as the hypocrites, of sullen countenance,—for they darken their looks, that they may appear, unto men, to be fasting: Verily, I say unto you, they are getting back their reward.But, when, thou, art fasting, anoint thy head, and, thy face, wash,—that thou do not appear, unto men, to be fasting, but to thy Father who is in secret,—and, thy Father who seeth in secret, will reward thee.

Is not, this, the fast that I must ever choose—To unbind the tight cords of lawlessness, To unloose the bands of the yoke,—and To let the crushed go free, and That every yoke, ye tear off?Is it not to break unto the hungry, thy bread, And the thrust-out oppressed, that thou bring into a home,—When thou seest one naked, that thou cover him, And from thine own flesh, shalt not hide thyself?

Even now, therefore, urgeth Yahweh, Turn ye unto me, with all your heart,—and with fasting and with weeping, and with lamentation;And rend your heart, and not your garments, turn therefore, unto Yahweh your God,—for, gracious and full of compassion, is he, slow to anger, and abundant in loving- kindness, and will grieve over calamity.

Blow ye a horn, in Zion,—hallow a fast, call a solemn assembly:

Is not, this, the fast that I must ever choose—To unbind the tight cords of lawlessness, To unloose the bands of the yoke,—and To let the crushed go free, and That every yoke, ye tear off?

And the people of Nineveh believed in God,—and proclaimed a fast, and clothed themselves in sackcloth, from the greatest of them, even unto the least of them.

And, as they were publicly ministering unto the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said—Separate forthwith unto me, Barnabas and Saul, unto the work whereunto I have called them.Then, fasting and praying, and laying their hands upon them, they sent them away.

So then he was there, with Yahweh, forty days and forty nights, bread, did he not eat and, water, did he not drink, and he wrote upon the tables, the words of the covenant, the ten words.

But, as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth, I humbled, with fasting, my soul, though, my prayer, unto mine own bosom, might return:

Moreover, appointing unto them by vote, in each assembly, elders, praying with fastings, they commended them unto the Lord on whom they had believed.

Then, shalt thou Call, and Yahweh, will answer, Cry out, and he will say, Behold me! If thou remove, out of thy midst the yoke, The pointing of the finger, and The speaking of iniquity;And shalt let thine own soul a go out to the hungry, And the soul of the oppressed, thou shalt satisfy, Then shall break forth in darkness thy light, And thy thick darkness, become as the splendour of noon;Then will Yahweh guide thee continually, And will satisfy, even in scorched regions thine own soul, Yea Shy very bones, will he invigorate,—So shall thou become like a garden well—watered, And like a spring of water whose waters do not deceive;

Then proclaimed I there a fast, by the river Ahava, that we might humble ourselves before our God,—to seek of him a smooth way, for us and for our little ones, and for all our substance.For I was ashamed to ask of the king, a band of soldiers and horsemen, to help us against the enemy in the way, because we had spoken unto the king, saying, The hand of our God, is upon all who seek him, for good, But, his power and his anger, are against all who forsake him.So we fasted and sought of our God, concerning this,—and he suffered himself to be entreated by us.

And, Jesus, full of Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan, and was led in the Spirit in the desert,forty days,—being tempted by the adversary; and he did eat nothing in those days,—and, when they were concluded, he hungered.

And Jehoshaphat was afraid, and set his face to seek unto Yahweh,—and proclaimed a fast for all Judah.And Judah gathered themselves together, to enquire of Yahweh,—even, out of all the cities of Judah, came they in, to seek Yahweh.

When I have humbled my soul with fasting, Then hath it turned to my reproach;

Then went up all the sons of Israel, and all the people, and came to Bethel, and wept, and tarried there before Yahweh, and fasted on that day, until the evening,—and caused to go up ascending-sacrifices and peace-offerings, before Yahweh.

Be not depriving one another—unless perhaps by consent for a season, that ye may have leisure for prayer, and, again, may be together,—lest Satan be tempting you by reason of your want of self-control.

So they gathered themselves unto Mizpah, and drew water, and poured it out before Yahweh, and fasted on that day, and said, there, We have sinned against Yahweh. And Samuel judged the sons of Israel in Mizpah.

and, fasting forty days and forty nights,—afterwards, he hungered.

But, they, said unto him—The disciples of John, do fast much, and, supplications, do make,—likewise also the disciples of the Pharisees; but, thine, do eat and drink!Jesus, however, said unto them—Can, ye make, the sons of the bridechamber, fast, while the bridegroom is with them?But there will come days, even when the bridegroom shall be taken from them, then, will they fast, in those days.

Speak thou unto all the people of the land, and unto the priests, saying,—When ye fasted and lamented in the fifth and in the seventh, even these seventy years, did ye, really fast, unto, me?

And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and I mourned certain days,—and continued fasting and praying, before the God of the heavens;

Then, shalt thou Call, and Yahweh, will answer, Cry out, and he will say, Behold me! If thou remove, out of thy midst the yoke, The pointing of the finger, and The speaking of iniquity;And shalt let thine own soul a go out to the hungry, And the soul of the oppressed, thou shalt satisfy, Then shall break forth in darkness thy light, And thy thick darkness, become as the splendour of noon;

And Jehoshaphat was afraid, and set his face to seek unto Yahweh,—and proclaimed a fast for all Judah.

Be made low in presence of the Lord, and he will lift you up.

Speak thou unto all the people of the land, and unto the priests, saying,—When ye fasted and lamented in the fifth and in the seventh, even these seventy years, did ye, really fast, unto, me?And, when ye used to eat and when ye used to drink, was it not, of your own accord, ye did eat, and, of your own accord, ye did drink?

And the people of Nineveh believed in God,—and proclaimed a fast, and clothed themselves in sackcloth, from the greatest of them, even unto the least of them.And the word reached unto the king of Nineveh, so he arose from his throne, and laid aside his robe from off him,—and covered him with sackcloth, and sat on ashes.And he caused an outcry to be made—and said—throughout Nineveh, By decree of the king and of his great men, Be it known:—Man and beast, herd and flock, Let them taste, nothing, let them not feed, and, water, let them not drink:Let both man and beast, cover themselves with sackcloth, and let them cry unto God, mightily,—Yea let them turn, every man from his wicked way, and from the violence which is in their hands:Who knoweth whether God himself—may turn and grieve,—and turn away from the glow of his anger, that we perish not?And God saw their doings, that they turned from their wicked way,—and God was grieved over the calamity which he had spoken of executing upon them, and executed it not.

And it came to pass, in these days, that he went forth into the mountain to pray, and was spending the night in the prayer-house of God.

Wherewith, shall I come before Yahweh? bow myself to God on high? Shall I come before him with ascending-sacrifice? with calves of a year old?Will Yahweh, be pleased, with thousands of rams? with myriads of torrents of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression? the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?He hath told thee, O son of earth, what is good,—what then is, Yahweh, seeking of thee, but, to do justice, to delight in lovingkindness, and humbly to walk with thy God?

Then come near unto him the disciples of John, saying,—Wherefore do, we, and the Pharisees, fast, whereas, thy disciples, fast not?And Jesus said unto them,—Can, the sons of the bridechamber, mourn, so long as, the bridegroom, is, with them? But days will come, when the bridegroom, shall be taken from them, and, then, will they fast.

For, the flesh, coveted against the Spirit, but, the Spirit, against the flesh,—for, these, unto one another, are opposed, lest, whatsoever things ye chance to desire, these, ye should be doing!

I beseech you therefore, brethren, through the compassions of God, to present your bodies a living, holy sacrifice, unto God acceptable,—your rational divine service;And be not configuring yourselves unto this age, but be transforming yourselves by the renewing of your mind, to the end ye may be proving what is the thing willed by God—the good and acceptable and perfect.

For nothing, be anxious, but, in everything, by your prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let, your petitions, be made known unto God;And, the peace of God, which riseth above every mind, shall guard your hearts and your thoughts, in Christ Jesus.

But, they who wait for Yahweh, shall renew their strength, They shall mount on strong pinion like eagles,—They shall run and not grew weary, They shall walk and not faint.

Be watching and praying, that ye may not enter into temptation: The spirit, indeed, is, eager, but, the flesh, weak.

But, as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth, I humbled, with fasting, my soul, though, my prayer, unto mine own bosom, might return:Like as for a friend, like as for a brother of mine own, I walked to and fro, As though mourning for a mother, I gloomily bowed myself down.

I beseech you therefore, brethren, through the compassions of God, to present your bodies a living, holy sacrifice, unto God acceptable,—your rational divine service;

I fast twice in the week, I give a tenth of whatsoever things I gain!

For, the weapons of our warfare, are not fleshly, but mighty, by God, unto a pulling down of strongholds,—When we pull down, calculations, and every height that uplifteth itself against the knowledge of God, and when we bring into captivity every thought unto the obedience of the Christ,

BOOK THE SECOND To the Chief Musician. An Instructive Psalm for the Sons of Korah. As, the hart, cometh panting up to the channels of water, So my soul, panteth for thee, O God.My soul thirsteth for God, for a GOD who liveth,—When shall I enter in, and see the face of God?

My knees, tremble from fasting, and, my flesh, faileth of fatness:

Therefore, indeed, seeing that, we also, have encircling us, so great a cloud of witnesses, stripping off every incumbrance and the easily entangling sin, with endurance, let us be running, the race that is lying before us,

In those days, I, Daniel, was mourning three sevens of days:food to delight in, did I not eat, neither flesh nor wine, came into my mouth, nor did I so much as, anoint, myself,—until were fulfilled three sevens of days.

For, many, are walking—of whom I have often been telling you, and, now, even weeping, am telling,—the enemies of the cross of the Christ;Whose, end, is destruction, whose, God, is the belly, and whose , glory, is in their shame, who, upon the earthly things, are resolved.

But be watching in every season, making supplication, that ye may gain full vigour, to escape all these things that are about to be coming to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.

Give thee according to thy heart, and, all thy purposes, fulfil.

But be seeking first, the kingdom and its righteousness,—and, all these things, shall be added unto you.

A pure heart, create for me, O God, And, a steadfast spirit, renew within me.Do not cast me away from thy presence, And, thy Holy Spirit, do not take from me:Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation, And, with a willing spirit, wilt thou uphold me:—

I say, moreover—by Spirit, be walking, and, fleshly coveting, ye will in nowise fulfil;For, the flesh, coveted against the Spirit, but, the Spirit, against the flesh,—for, these, unto one another, are opposed, lest, whatsoever things ye chance to desire, these, ye should be doing!

So we fasted and sought of our God, concerning this,—and he suffered himself to be entreated by us.

And he said unto them—This kind, by nothing, can come out, save, by prayer.

Then proclaimed I there a fast, by the river Ahava, that we might humble ourselves before our God,—to seek of him a smooth way, for us and for our little ones, and for all our substance.

But, when, thou, art fasting, anoint thy head, and, thy face, wash,—that thou do not appear, unto men, to be fasting, but to thy Father who is in secret,—and, thy Father who seeth in secret, will reward thee.

And, when ye may he fasting, become not ye, as the hypocrites, of sullen countenance,—for they darken their looks, that they may appear, unto men, to be fasting: Verily, I say unto you, they are getting back their reward.

But, every man who striveth in the games, in all things, useth self-control;—they, indeed, then, that a corruptible crown, they may receive; but, we, an incorruptible!I, therefore, so, am running, as, not uncertainly, so, am boxing, as not thrashing air;But am beating my body under, and leading it captive, lest, by any means,—unto others, having proclaimed, the contest , I myself, should be rejected.

So I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek him by prayer, and supplication,—with fasting, and sackcloth and ashes;

Prayer