Daniel 9

Daniel's Prayer of Confession and Intercession

¹In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the offspring of the Medes, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans—

²in the first year of his reign I, Daniel, understood by the books the number of the years about which the LORD’s word came to Jeremiah the prophet for the accomplishing of the desolations of Jerusalem, even seventy years.

³I set my face to the Lord God, to seek by prayer and petitions, with fasting and sackcloth and ashes.

⁴I prayed to the LORD my God, and made confession, and said, “Oh, Lord, the great and dreadful God, who keeps covenant and loving kindness with those who love him and keep his commandments,

⁵we have sinned, and have dealt perversely, and have done wickedly, and have rebelled, even turning aside from your precepts and from your ordinances.

⁶We haven’t listened to 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.

⁷“Lord, righteousness belongs to you, but to us confusion of face, as it is today; to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to all Israel, who are near and who are far off, through all the countries where you have driven them, because of their trespass that they have trespassed against you.

⁸Lord, to us belongs confusion of face, to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against you.

⁹To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgiveness, for we have rebelled against him.

¹⁰We haven’t obeyed the LORD our God’s voice, to walk in his laws, which he set before us by his servants the prophets.

¹¹Yes, all Israel have transgressed your law, turning aside, that they should not obey your voice. “Therefore the curse and the oath written in the law of Moses the servant of God has been poured out on us, for we have sinned against him.

¹²He has confirmed his words, which he spoke against us and against our judges who judged us, by bringing on us a great evil; for under the whole sky, such has not been done as has been done to Jerusalem.

¹³As it is written in the law of Moses, all this evil has come on us. Yet we have not entreated the favor of the LORD our God, that we should turn from our iniquities and have discernment in your truth.

¹⁴Therefore the LORD has watched over the evil, and brought it on us; for the LORD our God is righteous in all his works which he does, and we have not obeyed his voice.

¹⁵“Now, Lord our God, who has brought your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and have gotten yourself renown, as it is today, we have sinned. We have done wickedly.

¹⁶Lord, according to all your righteousness, please let your anger and your wrath be turned away from your city Jerusalem, your holy mountain; because for our sins and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and your people have become a reproach to all who are around us.

¹⁷“Now therefore, our God, listen to the prayer of your servant and to his petitions, and cause your face to shine on your sanctuary that is desolate, for the Lord’s sake.

¹⁸My God, turn your ear and hear. Open your eyes and see our desolations, and the city which is called by your name; for we do not present our petitions before you for our righteousness, but for your great mercies’ sake.

¹⁹Lord, hear. Lord, forgive. Lord, listen and do. Don’t defer, for your own sake, my God, because your city and your people are called by your name.”

Gabriel's Prophecy of the Seventy Weeks

²⁰While I was speaking, praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the LORD my God for the holy mountain of my God—

²¹yes, while I was speaking in prayer—the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening offering.

²²He instructed me and talked with me, and said, “Daniel, I have now come to give you wisdom and understanding.

²³At the beginning of your petitions the commandment went out, and I have come to tell you, for you are greatly beloved. Therefore consider the matter and understand the vision.

²⁴“Seventy weeks are decreed on your people and on your holy city, to finish disobedience, to make an end of sins, to make reconciliation for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most holy.

²⁵“Know therefore and discern that from the going out of the commandment to restore and build Jerusalem to the Anointed One, the prince, will be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks. It will be built again, with street and moat, even in troubled times.

²⁶After the sixty-two weeks the Anointed One will be cut off, and will have nothing. The people of the prince who come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. Its end will be with a flood, and war will be even to the end. Desolations are determined.

²⁷He will make a firm covenant with many for one week. In the middle of the week he will cause the sacrifice and the offering to cease. On the wing of abominations will come one who makes desolate; and even to the decreed full end, wrath will be poured out on the desolate.”

Previous Daniel 8

Next Daniel 10

Daniel reads Jeremiah's prophecy about Jerusalem's seventy-year desolation and responds with intense prayer, fasting, and confession on behalf of Israel's sins. In a remarkable prayer of intercession, Daniel acknowledges God's righteousness while confessing the nation's rebellion and pleading for mercy on Jerusalem. The angel Gabriel appears to Daniel with the prophetic vision of the seventy weeks, revealing God's timeline for Israel's restoration and the coming of the Messiah.

Context

This chapter transitions from Daniel's earlier visions of world empires to focus specifically on God's timeline for Israel's restoration and messianic hope.

Key Themes

Outline

1-2
Daniel Studies Jeremiah's Prophecy Daniel realizes from Jeremiah's writings that Jerusalem's desolation would last seventy years
3-14
Daniel's Confession of National Sin Daniel fasts and prays, confessing Israel's rebellion and acknowledging God's righteous judgment
15-19
Plea for Jerusalem's Restoration Daniel appeals to God's past deliverance and asks for mercy on Jerusalem and the temple
20-23
Gabriel Appears to Daniel While Daniel continues praying, the angel Gabriel comes to give him understanding
24-27
The Prophecy of Seventy Weeks Gabriel reveals the timeline of seventy weeks for Israel's restoration and the coming Messiah

Daniel's Prayer of Confession and Intercession

9:1–9:19

prophecy prayer mournful

Daniel offers a heartfelt prayer of confession on behalf of Israel, acknowledging their sins and disobedience while appealing to God's mercy and covenant faithfulness. He fasts and mourns while interceding for his people's restoration after understanding Jeremiah's prophecy about the seventy years of desolation.

person_contrast

Daniel's intercessory prayer uniquely combines his prophetic authority with priestly confession, making him the only major prophet who both receives apocalyptic visions and leads corporate repentance.

Gabriel's Prophecy of the Seventy Weeks

9:20–9:27

apocalyptic vision solemn

Gabriel delivers the prophecy of the seventy weeks, outlining God's timeline for finishing transgression, making atonement for sin, and bringing everlasting righteousness. The prophecy includes the coming of the Anointed One and the eventual destruction of the city and sanctuary.

person_contrast

Gabriel interrupts Daniel's confession prayer with mathematical precision, delivering the only biblical prophecy that calculates exact timeframes for both Messiah's arrival and Jerusalem's destruction.

Insight Character Study

Cross-References

Connected passages across Scripture

Daniel 9:1 1 reference

Lexicals 1

Esther 1:19 Lexical

“If it pleases the king, let a royal commandment go from him, and let it be written among the laws of the Persians and t…

Daniel 9

Daniel's Prayer of Confession and Intercession

Gabriel's Prophecy of the Seventy Weeks

Daniel's Prayer of Confession and Intercession

Gabriel's Prophecy of the Seventy Weeks

Insights

Cross-References

Daniel 9:1 1 reference

Daniel 9:2 5 references

Daniel 9:3 3 references

Daniel 9:4 5 references

Daniel 9:7 3 references

Daniel 9:11 2 references

Daniel 9:13 3 references

Daniel 9:16 4 references

Daniel 9:18 1 reference

Daniel 9:20 5 references

Daniel 9:21 1 reference

Daniel 9:22 3 references

Daniel 9:24 5 references

Daniel 9:26 1 reference

Daniel 9:27 4 references

Interlinear

Historical Context

Timeline

Exile