Daniel 9

Chapter 9

Daniel’s Prayer for His People

1 It was the first year of the reign of Darius the Mede, the son of Ahasuerus, who became king of the Babylonians.t2 During the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, learned from reading the word of the LORD, as revealed to Jeremiah the prophet, that Jerusalem must lie desolate for seventy years.t

3 So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and fasting. I also wore rough burlap and sprinkled myself with ashes.

4 I prayed to the LORD my God and confessed:

“O Lord, you are a great and awesome God! You always fulfill your covenant and keep your promises of unfailing love to those who love you and obey your commands.5 But we have sinned and done wrong. We have rebelled against you and scorned your commands and regulations.6 We have refused to listen to your servants the prophets, who spoke on your authority to our kings and princes and ancestors and to all the people of the land.7 “Lord, you are in the right; but as you see, our faces are covered with shame. This is true of all of us, including the people of Judah and Jerusalem and all Israel, scattered near and far, wherever you have driven us because of our disloyalty to you.8 O LORD, we and our kings, princes, and ancestors are covered with shame because we have sinned against you.9 But the Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him.10 We have not obeyed the LORD our God, for we have not followed the instructions he gave us through his servants the prophets.11 All Israel has disobeyed your instruction and turned away, refusing to listen to your voice.
“So now the solemn curses and judgments written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured down on us because of our sin.12 You have kept your word and done to us and our rulers exactly as you warned. Never has there been such a disaster as happened in Jerusalem.13 Every curse written against us in the Law of Moses has come true. Yet we have refused to seek mercy from the LORD our God by turning from our sins and recognizing his truth.14 Therefore, the LORD has brought upon us the disaster he prepared. The LORD our God was right to do all of these things, for we did not obey him.15 “O Lord our God, you brought lasting honor to your name by rescuing your people from Egypt in a great display of power. But we have sinned and are full of wickedness.16 In view of all your faithful mercies, Lord, please turn your furious anger away from your city Jerusalem, your holy mountain. All the neighboring nations mock Jerusalem and your people because of our sins and the sins of our ancestors.17 “O our God, hear your servant’s prayer! Listen as I plead. For your own sake, Lord, smile again on your desolate sanctuary.18 “O my God, lean down and listen to me. Open your eyes and see our despair. See how your city—the city that bears your name—lies in ruins. We make this plea, not because we deserve help, but because of your mercy.19 “O Lord, hear. O Lord, forgive. O Lord, listen and act! For your own sake, do not delay, O my God, for your people and your city bear your name.”

Gabriel’s Message about the Anointed One

20 I went on praying and confessing my sin and the sin of my people, pleading with the LORD my God for Jerusalem, his holy mountain.21 As I was praying, Gabriel, whom I had seen in the earlier vision, came swiftly to me at the time of the evening sacrifice.22 He explained to me, “Daniel, I have come here to give you insight and understanding.

23 The moment you began praying, a command was given. And now I am here to tell you what it was, for you are very precious to God. Listen carefully so that you can understand the meaning of your vision.
24 “A period of seventy sets of sevent has been decreed for your people and your holy city to finish their rebellion, to put an end to their sin, to atone for their guilt, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to confirm the prophetic vision, and to anoint the Most Holy Place.t

25 Now listen and understand! Seven sets of seven plus sixty-two sets of sevent will pass from the time the command is given to rebuild Jerusalem until a ruler—the Anointed Onet—comes. Jerusalem will be rebuilt with streets and strong defenses,t despite the perilous times.
26 “After this period of sixty-two sets of seven,t the Anointed One will be killed, appearing to have accomplished nothing, and a ruler will arise whose armies will destroy the city and the Temple. The end will come with a flood, and war and its miseries are decreed from that time to the very end.

27 The ruler will make a treaty with the people for a period of one set of seven,t but after half this time, he will put an end to the sacrifices and offerings. And as a climax to all his terrible deeds,t he will set up a sacrilegious object that causes desecration,t until the fate decreed for this defiler is finally poured out on him.”

Daniel 9

Daniel Prays for His People

1 In the first year of Dariuss son of Ahasuerus,s who was of Median descent and who had beens appointed king over the Babyloniant empire –2 in the first year of his reigns I, Daniel, came to understand from the sacred bookst that, according to the word of the Lords disclosed to the prophet Jeremiah, the years for the fulfilling of the desolation of Jerusalems were seventy in number.3 So I turned my attentiont to the Lord Godt to implore him by prayer and requests, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes.s

4 I prayed to the Lord my God, confessing in this way:
“O Lord,t great and awesome God who is faithful to his covenantt with those who love him and keep his commandments,5 we have sinned! We have done what is wrong and wicked; we have rebelled by turning away from your commandments and standards.

6 We have not paid attention to your servants the prophets, who spoke by your authorityt to our kings, our leaders, and our ancestors,t and to all the inhabitantst of the land as well.
7 “You are righteous,t O Lord, but we are humiliated this dayt – the peoplet of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, both near and far away in all the countries in which you have scattered them, because they have behaved unfaithfully toward you.8 O Lord, we have been humiliatedt – our kings, our leaders, and our ancestors – because we have sinned against you.9 Yet the Lord our God is compassionate and forgiving,t even though we have rebelled against him.

10 We have not obeyedt the Lord our God by living according tot his lawss that he set before us through his servants the prophets.
11 “All Israel has brokent your law and turned away by not obeying you.t Therefore you have poured out on us the judgment solemnly threatenedt in the law of Moses the servant of God, for we have sinned against you.t12 He has carried out his threatst against us and our rulerst who were overt us by bringing great calamity on us – what has happened to Jerusalem has never been equaled under all heaven!13 Just as it is written in the law of Moses, so all this calamity has come on us. Still we have not tried to pacifyt the Lord our God by turning back from our sin and by seeking wisdomt from your reliable moral standards.t

14 The Lord was mindful of the calamity, and he brought it on us. For the Lord our God is justt in all he has done,t and we have not obeyed him.t
15 “Now, O Lord our God, who brought your people out of the land of Egypt with great powert and made a name for yourself that is remembered to this day – we have sinned and behaved wickedly.

16 O Lord, according to all your justice,t please turn your raging angert away from your city Jerusalem, your holy mountain. For due to our sins and the iniquities of our ancestors, Jerusalem and your people are mocked by all our neighbors.
17 “So now, our God, acceptt the prayer and requests of your servant, and show favor tot your devastated sanctuary for your own sake.t18 Listen attentively,t my God, and hear! Open your eyes and look on our desolated ruinst and the city called by your name.t For it is not because of our own righteous deeds that we are praying to you,t but because your compassion is abundant.

19 O Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, pay attention, and act! Don’t delay, for your own sake, O my God! For your city and your people are called by your name.”t

Gabriel Gives to Daniel a Prophecy of Seventy Weeks

20 While I was still speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel and presenting my request before the Lord my God concerning his holy mountaint –21 yes, while I was still praying,t the man Gabriel, whom I had seen previouslyt in a vision, was approaching me in my state of extreme weariness,t around the time of the evening offering.22 He spoke with me, instructing me as follows:t “Daniel, I have now come to impart understanding to you.

23 At the beginning of your requests a message went out, and I have come to convey it to you, for you are of great value in God’s sight.t Therefore consider the message and understand the vision:t

24 “Seventy weekst have been determined
concerning your people and your holy city
to put an end tos rebellion,
to bring sins to completion,t
to atone for iniquity,
to bring in perpetualt righteousness,
to seal ups the prophetic vision,t
and to anoint a most holy place.t

25 So know and understand:
From the issuing of the commandt to restore and rebuild
Jerusalems until an anointed one, a prince arrives,t
there will be a period of seven weeksts and sixty-two weeks.
It will again be built,t with plaza and moat,
but in distressful times.

26 Now after the sixty-two weeks,
an anointed one will be cut off and have nothing.s
As for the city and the sanctuary,
the people of the coming prince will destroys them.
But his end will come speedilyt like a flood.s
Until the end of the war that has been decreed
there will be destruction.

27 He will confirm a covenant with many for one week.t
But in the middle of that week
he will bring sacrifices and offerings to a halt.
On the wingt of abominations will comet one who destroys,
until the decreed end is poured out on the one who destroys.”