Daniel’s Prayer for His People. Daniel 9:1-19
“The Lord’s Messenger”
II PROPHETICAL SECTION, Daniel 7-12
3. Daniel’s Prayer for Jerusalem and the Answer, Dan_9:1-27
DANIEL’S PRAYER FOR HIS PEOPLE
In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of Median descent, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans–
in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, understood from the books the number of years which, according to the word of the LORD to Jeremiah the prophet, must pass before the desolations [which had been] pronounced on Jerusalem would end; and it was seventy years. [Jer_25:11-12; Jer_29:10]
So I directed my attention to the Lord God to seek Him by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth and ashes.
I prayed to the LORD my God and confessed and said, “O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant and extends lovingkindness toward those who love Him and keep His commandments,
we have sinned and committed wrong, and have behaved wickedly and have rebelled, turning away from Your commandments and ordinances.
Further, we have not listened to and heeded Your servants the prophets, who spoke in Your name to our kings, our princes and our fathers, and to all the people of the land.
“Righteousness belongs to You, O Lord, but to us confusion and open shame, as it is this day–to the men of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to all Israel, those who are nearby and those who are far away, in all the countries to which You have driven them, because of the [treacherous] acts of unfaithfulness which they have committed against You.
O LORD, to us belong confusion and open shame–to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers–because we have sinned against You.
To the Lord our God belong mercy and lovingkindness and forgiveness, for we have rebelled against Him;
and we have not obeyed the voice of the LORD our God by walking in His laws which He set before us through His servants the prophets.
Yes, all Israel has transgressed Your law, even turning aside, not obeying Your voice; so the curse has been poured out on us and the oath which is written in the Law of Moses the servant of God, because we have sinned against Him. [Lev_26:14-45; Deu_28:15-68]
And He has carried out completely His [threatening] words which He had spoken against us and against our rulers [the kings, princes, and judges] who ruled us, to bring on us a great tragedy; for under the whole heaven there has not been done anything [so dreadful] like that which [He commanded and] was done to Jerusalem.
Just as it is written in the Law of Moses, all this tragedy has come on us. Yet we have not wholeheartedly begged for forgiveness and sought the favor of the LORD our God by turning from our wickedness and paying attention to and placing value in Your truth. [Deu_4:29; Deu_28:15]
Therefore the LORD has kept the tragedy ready and has brought it on us, for the LORD our God is [uncompromisingly] righteous and openly just in all His works which He does–He keeps His word; and we have not obeyed His voice.
“And now, O Lord our God, who brought Your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand and who made for Yourself a name, as it is today–we have sinned, we have been wicked.
INTERCESSION FOR A BELOVED PEOPLE
What a prayer is this! In many respects it is a model for us all. It was based on the divine Word. The fact that God had promised to restore the desolations of Jerusalem after seventy years, did not restrain, but prompted and inspired Daniel’s prayers. God’s promises are not independent of our faith, but await our appropriation. The blank checks are drawn and signed in our favor, but they must be presented at the bank for payment. It was very humble. Fasting, sackcloth, and ashes, were the outward habiliments, but notice the tone. We have sinned… and have rebelled…; unto us [belongeth] confusion of face. He confessed his sin and the sin of his people. There is such a thing as vicarious confession, in which some holy soul takes to himself the task of bearing the sins of his people, and pouring out the story before God, as though the sins were his own. But we hardly need go to our country or people for sins to confess, for we have plenty of our own, and the nearer we come to God’s infinite light and holiness, the more we abhor ourselves and repent in dust and ashes.
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