If we’re speaking here in biblical terms, the difference between a diet and a fast is like the difference between an airplane and a chariot. They are both methods of transportation, but one of these would not have even entered into the mind of a biblical author. That’s why, if I’m being honest, I find all these books on biblical dieting to be strange. You can no more diet “biblically” than you can fly on an airplane “biblically.”
This is why, even if I might differ on some points, I appreciate Wendy Speake’s take on not confusing dieting with fasting. In an interview with Relevant, she shares about her 40-Day-Sugar Fast, saying:
“What would happen if we gave up sugar for forty days? Just physiologically, would we be able to be calmer, kinder, more consistent, maybe even more Christ-like?” But it’s not a diet that I wanted to suggest. “What if we actually fasted? What if instead of turning from sugar high to sugar high to get us through our hard days, we started turning to the Most High?”[1]
Speake is correct, there is a difference between a diet and a fast, and I’d like to explore that briefly today.
The concept of dieting for purely aesthetic weight loss or fitness in the modern sense was not part of the way of thinking for those in biblical times. Yes, they would only eat certain foods, but this was tied to spiritual disciplines or moral beliefs. Even the Romans, like Pythagoras, followed a vegetarian diet as part of their philosophical or ethical reasoning and not because of some health benefit.
The reality is that dieting is a modern convention. Without proper food storage and often experiencing a scarcity of food, the idea of “going on a diet” was a luxury that few would have understood. The Ancient Greeks valued the harmony of the body and mind. Because of this, their call for things like moderation might look similar to modern dieting practices. But there were still many differences.
Even still what we want to look at when we consider “biblical” dieting are the practices of the Ancient Near East (ANE). In the ANE, the concept of dieting as a deliberate restriction of food intake for health, fitness, or weight loss didn’t exist. Food practices were shaped by trying to survive each day or by religious observance and cultural norms. Even discussions of gluttony had more to do with responsibility to the community than making sure that your Thanksgiving turkey didn’t add a few extra pounds.
Because of this, whenever the Bible talks about consuming foods or things like fasting, we must not impose our contemporary understandings of diets upon the text. I speak more about this in Why Did Daniel Refuse the King’s Food?[2] The short version is that Daniel’s fast didn’t make him fit and trim by only eating vegetables. No, the mind-boggling thing to the Babylonians was that Daniel was rather plump even without eating the king’s food. He was miraculously chubby, but that isn’t going to sell many diet books for Westerners.
This all means that when the Bible talks about fasting it is vastly different than anything we might say about dieting.
The simple definition of fasting is that it’s a spiritual discipline or a response to mourning, where a person intentionally abstains from food (or another comfort) for a set period of time to focus attention on God. Dieting, as we have seen, is primarily focused on physical health or appearance. But fasting shifts the emphasis away from the body and onto the soul. This is why, in Scripture, fasting is usually paired with prayer. Fasting isn’t about deprivation for its own sake or even for any health reason, but rather to draw closer to God.
I like John Piper’s explanation. In his book, A Hunger for God, he shows us that the core principle of fasting is a declaration that we want God more than stuff:
If you don’t feel strong desires for the manifestation of the glory of God, it is not because you have drunk deeply and are satisfied. It is because you have nibbled so long at the table of the world. Your soul is stuffed with small things, and there is no room for the great. God did not create you for this. There is an appetite for God. And it can be awakened. I invite you to turn from the dulling effects of food and the dangers of idolatry and to say with some simple fast: “This much, O God, I want you.”[3]
There are many examples in the Bible of fasting, Jesus among them. He fasted in the wilderness for 40 days. It was at the height of this fast that Jesus was tempted by the devil, but Jesus demonstrated a reliance upon God instead of stuff. In the Old Testament, fasting was a common response to times of mourning and repentance. It was often used to seek divine intervention (Nehemiah 1:4 and Esther 4:16 are examples). The early church, we are told, also engaged in fasting—and they did this in Acts 13:2-3 when trying to make an important decision.
The core of fasting is about worship and surrender. It is a reminder to believers that our deepest need is spiritual and not physical. It is a way to communicate with our bodies and our natural desires that “it” is not sovereign, but God is. This is why Wendy Speake says what she does here:
This is more than a physical detox. We know that in God’s presence, there is fullness of joy. We’re not looking for just a physical answer to our problems. A diet will change your body, but a fast will change your life. God never said, “Hey, I want a sugar sacrifice.” He said, “I want a living sacrifice.”
If you just need to sacrifice sugar, you probably need a diet. But if you want to grow, to feast on Christ, to have him reshape your life, not just reshape your body, then go to a fast, not just a diet.
She is correct, a fast is radically different than a diet.
Practically speaking, it may not matter much if you call your diet a fast or your fast a diet. The reality is that you will experience health benefits. And in as much as you depend upon God to help you with your “diet” or your “fast,” you’ll likely even have some spiritual benefits. But I think there is one massive difference here that necessitates an article. Fasting isn’t about what you’re giving up as much as it is about what you are pursuing. As that Piper quote earlier points out, fasting is meant to address our soul's hunger for God.
Furthermore, fasting has a way of exposing things in our hearts that dieting may not necessarily address. Yes, any kind of deprivation will require self-control and willpower. And often, when we miss the mark on these things, it will expose things about our character. But there is something more profound that happens with fasting. Richard Foster explains:
More than any other single Discipline, fasting reveals the things that control us. This is a wonderful benefit to the true disciple who longs to be transformed into the image of Jesus Christ. We cover up what is inside us with food and other good things, but in fasting these things surface. If pride controls us, it will be revealed almost immediately. David said, "I humbled my soul with fasting" (Ps. 69:10). Anger, bitterness, jealousy, strife, fear—if they are within us, they will surface during fasting. At first, we will rationalize that our anger is due to our hunger, and then we know that we are angry because the spirit of anger is within us. We can rejoice in this knowledge because we know that healing is available through the power of Christ.[4]
Dieting tends to be more about improving ourselves holistically—with a focus on our physical well-being. But fasting has a laser-like focus upon our souls. Both can be valuable, sure. But I think we do well to keep them separate and understand our purpose for eating or not eating certain things. Fasting will have a different goal, and it’s important that we acknowledge that.
[1] https://relevantmagazine.com/life5/wellness/the-difference-between-dieting-and-fasting/
[2] https://www.crosswalk.com/faith/bible-study/why-did-daniel-refuse-the-kings-food.html
[3] John Piper, A Hunger for God (Wheaton: Crossway Books, 1997), 23
[4] Richard Foster in Celebration of Discipline (San Francisco: HarperCollins, 1998) 55.
Photo Credit: ©Unsplash/ Tara Evans
Mike Leake is husband to Nikki and father to Isaiah and Hannah. He is also the lead pastor at Calvary of Neosho, MO. Mike is the author of Torn to Heal and Jesus Is All You Need. His writing home is http://mikeleake.net and you can connect with him on Twitter @mikeleake. Mike has a new writing project at Proverbs4Today.