16 " Whenever you fast , do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they neglect their appearance so that they will be noticed by men when they are fasting . Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full . 17 "But you, when you fast , anoint your head and wash your face 18 so that your fasting will not be noticed by men , but by your Father who is in secret ; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Matthew 6:16-18
Commentary on Matthew 6:16-18
(Read Matthew 6:16-18)
Religious fasting is a duty required of the disciples of Christ, but it is not so much a duty itself, as a means to dispose us for other duties. Fasting is the humbling of the soul, Psalm 35:13; that is the inside of the duty; let that, therefore, be thy principal care, and as to the outside of it, covet not to let it be seen. God sees in secret, and will reward openly.