The Word of Yahweh pressed upon us the need to humble ourselves before the Almighty in a time when sin and sinful practises have reached alarming proportions and in a time when people have turned their backs upon the One who has never ceased to bestow his favour and his righteousness on the people of this world. The Spirit of Yahweh convinced us that it had become absolutely imperative for us to set apart a day of fasting and affliction ("Dag van Verootmoediging") in order to afflict ourselves, do repentance for the sin in our midst and call upon the favour and the intervention of Yahweh, the Almighty.

Throughout history, there has always been times when desperate measures were needed in order to bring some degree of restoration and stability to a community. In the Old Covenant Scriptures we read of such a time in Yoél 1 and 2: "Gird yourselves and lament, you priests. Wail, you attendants of the altar. Come, lie all night in sackcloth, you attendants of my Elohim. For the grain offering and the drink offering are withheld from the house of your Elohim. Set apart a fast. Call an assembly, gather the elders, all the inhabitants of the land, into the House of Yahweh your Elohim, and cry out to Yahweh … Yet even now," declares Yahweh, "turn to Me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning. And tear your heart and not your garments, and turn back to Yahweh your Elohim, for He shows favour and is compassionate, patient, and of great kindness, and He shall relent concerning the evil. Who knows – He might turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind Him, a grain offering and a drink offering for Yahweh  your Elohim? Blow a ram’s horn in Tsiyon, set apart a fast, call an assembly. Gather the people, set the assembly apart, assemble the elders, gather the children and nursing babes. Let a bridegroom come out from his room, and a bride from her dressing room. Let the priests, servants of Yahweh, weep between the porch and the altar. And let them say, "Spare Your people, O Yahweh, and do not give Your inheritance to reproach, for the gentiles to rule over them. Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their Elohim?" (1:13-14; 2:12-17).

The two most important words used in Hebrew to emphasise the idea of affliction and humbleness before Yahweh are "kanah" and "anah". Previously, we learned that "kanah" is the root word of the name of the land ("Kena’an) that Yahweh had given to Yisraél as their inheritance and that this is an indication that from the beginning it was his intention for his people to be a humble people. The root word "anah" is also very significant. This word is often translated as "poor" but in essence the word "anah" means more than just "being poor". Its primary meaning is: "to be depressed; to be afflicted; to be humbled; to be weakened; to be hurt; to be dealt hardly with." These may come through the hands of others or may be inflicted upon oneself. What we should notice, in particular, is that Scriptures teach that many times "anah" is seen as a virtue, that is, something positive, something that is essential in the lives of believers – even though it may come as a result of disobedience. Let us have a closer look at some of the "positive" uses of this word and the ways in which "anah" may bring growth and blessings upon our lives.

Sometimes affliction becomes part of our lives because of outward circumstances – things that "happen" to us or things that other people do to us. Sometimes, however, it becomes necessary to humble ourselves (more than usually) and to "afflict or souls" before Yahweh, the Almighty. We may not like it and we may not enjoy it, but for our heavenly Father it is often an opportunity to shape our will and personalities, to prepare us for greater things to come and to prune us to perfection. May we all look upon this coming Day of Affliction (25 March 2007) from this perspective and allow the Spirit of Yahweh to do a mighty work in our lives!