Daniel 9 New International Version (NIV)
Daniel’s Prayer
9 In the first year of Darius son of Xerxes[a] (a Mede by descent), who was made ruler over the Babylonian[b] kingdom— 2 in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, understood from the Scriptures, according to the word of the Lord given to Jeremiah the prophet, that the desolation of Jerusalem would last seventy years. 3 So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes.
4 I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed:
“Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of lovewith those who love him and keep his commandments, 5 we have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws. 6 We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our ancestors, and to all the people of the land.
7 “Lord, you are righteous, but this day we are covered with shame—the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, both near and far, in all the countries where you have scattered us because of our unfaithfulness to you. 8 We and our kings, our princes and our ancestors are covered with shame, Lord, because we have sinned against you. 9 The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him; 10 we have not obeyed the Lordour God or kept the laws he gave us through his servants the prophets. 11 All Israel has transgressed your law and turned away, refusing to obey you.
“Therefore the curses and sworn judgments written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against you. 12 You have fulfilled the words spoken against us and against our rulers by bringing on us great disaster. Under the whole heaven nothing has ever been done like what has been done to Jerusalem. 13 Just as it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come on us, yet we have not sought the favor of the Lord our God by turning from our sins and giving attention to your truth. 14 The Lorddid not hesitate to bring the disaster on us, for the Lord our God is righteous in everything he does; yet we have not obeyed him.
15 “Now, Lord our God, who brought your people out of Egypt with a mighty hand and who made for yourself a name that endures to this day, we have sinned, we have done wrong. 16 Lord, in keeping with all your righteous acts, turn away your anger and your wrath from Jerusalem, your city, your holy hill. Our sins and the iniquities of our ancestors have made Jerusalem and your people an object of scorn to all those around us.
17 “Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant. For your sake, Lord, look with favor on your desolate sanctuary. 18 Give ear, our God, and hear; open your eyes and see the desolation of the city that bears your Name. We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy. 19 Lord, listen! Lord, forgive! Lord, hear and act! For your sake, my God, do not delay, because your city and your people bear your Name.”
The Seventy “Sevens”
20 While I was speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel and making my request to the Lord my God for his holy hill— 21 while I was still in prayer, Gabriel, the man I had seen in the earlier vision, came to me in swift flight about the time of the evening sacrifice.22 He instructed me and said to me, “Daniel, I have now come to give you insight and understanding. 23 As soon as you began to pray, a word went out, which I have come to tell you, for you are highly esteemed. Therefore, consider the word and understand the vision:
24 “Seventy ‘sevens’[c] are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish[d] transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the Most Holy Place.[e]
25 “Know and understand this: From the time the word goes out to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One,[f] the ruler, comes, there will be seven ‘sevens,’ and sixty-two ‘sevens.’ It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench but in times of trouble. 26 After the sixty-two ‘sevens,’ the Anointed One will be put to death and will have nothing.[g]The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed. 27 He will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven.’[h] In the middle of the ‘seven’[i] he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And at the temple[j] he will set up an abomination that causes desolation until the end that is decreed is poured out on him.
Daniel
His name means: "God Is My Judge"
His work: He was a Jew who became a governor of Babylon.
His character: Daniel was an exile who exhibited great discipline and faithfulness to his God in adverse circumstances.
His sorrow: Daniel experienced the tearing of his people from their homeland to be exiled to Babylon. He was never able to return to the land he loved.
His triumph: God used his faith and his godly diligence to win the loyalty of kings and kingdoms.
Key Scriptures: Daniel 1-to 11
A Look at the Man
Daniel's life was filled with unpleasant—and sometimes tragic—surprises.
When he was a young man, the Babylonians laid siege to his homeland, tearing down the walls and buildings of Jerusalem. Even the sacred temple was ransacked and destroyed. Along with the other Israelites who had survived the carnage, Daniel was taken as a prisoner of war back to Babylon.
Knowing that the future of his nation rested on the shoulders of the brightest young men in the land—including Hebrew men—Nebuchadnezzar the king called for the finest in the land: "young men without any physical defect, handsome, showing aptitude for every kind of learning, well informed, quick to understand, and qualified to serve in the king's palace." Among these carefully chosen Jews was a young man named Daniel, along with three of his friends.
The young men lived in the palace. It was Daniel's first experience of sleeping with the enemy, but it would not be his last.
To more fully indoctrinate the men, Nebuchadnezzar gave them Babylonian names. Then Daniel and his friends were placed under the instruction of the teachers of Babylon, and the four young men gained "knowledge and understanding of all kinds of literature and learning." So remarkable were these men that when they were presented to King Nebuchadnezzar for his review, he found them "ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his whole kingdom."
But it was to Daniel alone that God gave the special gift of interpreting visions and dreams of all kinds. And it was this ability that granted Daniel a place of honor in the kingdom. After a while, Nebuchadnezzar had a dream that haunted him. He sought an interpretation from all the wise men in the land—magicians, enchanters, sorcerers, and astrologers. Infuriated by their inability to help him, Nebuchadnezzar ordered the execution of all the wise men in Babylon.
Upon hearing of this decree, Daniel begged for an audience with the king, pleading for his life and the lives of the wise men. Then Daniel interpreted Nebuchadnezzar's troubling dream. In thanks, the king promoted Daniel as the ruler of an entire Babylonian province and "lavished many gifts on him."
But in spite of the power and wealth bestowed on Daniel, his love and loyalty to the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were unaltered. His daily regimen included three visits to an upstairs window facing his precious homeland, where he knelt and prayed. Daniel's faithfulness to God—and his divine gift of interpreting dreams—placed him in great prominence in the kingdoms of Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar his son, and Darius.
Under Darius, Daniel rose to power over one-third of the kingdom. It was, in fact, in the king's plan to place Daniel over all of Babylon. But the other rulers seethed with envy over the king's favor of this Hebrew. And so they plotted to destroy him under the sanction of the kingdom.
These men went to the king with a flattering plan. "Issue an edict and enforce a decree," they proposed to Darius. "Anyone who prays to any god or man during the next thirty days, except the king, shall be thrown into the lions' den." Seeing an opportunity for glory and believing that there would be no harm in such a plan, the king put the decree in writing and secured it with his seal. Unfortunately for Daniel, the king himself could not reverse his decision.
Without regard to the consequences, Daniel prayed at his window. Facing prosperity or the threat of execution, he would not let his heart be drawn away from the God whom he loved and served. And his reward for this act of obedience was yet another restful night—in a cave of death for anyone but a man of God.
Reflect On: Daniel 6:19–28
Praise God: For his power and ability to change hearts.
Offer Thanks: For the faithful prayers of “the great cloud of witnesses” that have gone before us.
Confess: Our lack of spiritual discipline—our pretense of spiritual devotion rather than our daily practice of it.
Ask God: To fill you with a burning desire to know him.
Replies
The Seer Daniel one of the Major Prophets!
His name means: "God Is My Judge"
Reflect On: Daniel 6:19–28
Praise God: For his power and ability to change hearts.
Offer Thanks: For the faithful prayers of “the great cloud of witnesses” that have gone before us.
Confess: Our lack of spiritual discipline—our pretense of spiritual devotion rather than our daily practice of it.
Ask God: To fill you with a burning desire to know him.
God we ask for true burning desire to please you and that is to know you more intimately and we thank you.
MY GOD, God used his faith and his godly diligence to win the loyalty of kings and kingdoms.
His name means: "God Is My Judge"
His work: He was a Jew who became a governor of Babylon.
His character: Daniel was an exile who exhibited great discipline and faithfulness to his God in adverse circumstances.
His sorrow: Daniel experienced the tearing of his people from their homeland to be exiled to Babylon. He was never able to return to the land he loved.
His triumph: God used his faith and his godly diligence to win the loyalty of kings and kingdoms.
THIS IS WONDERFUL, I AM SO BLESSED WITH THIS TEACHING...
Blessings Apostle Trina, do you think can and will utilize you as a vessel like the Seer Daniel?
Yes, ma'am. I do believe, God has gifted me and my girls with the seers anointing... Reading week one and week two, I really believe now God has given us the seers anointing.
Like David we should be obedient and never let anything separate us from Gods Love. We must continue to hunger and thirst after his heart.
Prayer is one of the most important things we need on this journey. It is the path to the right way and we have to stay on that path in order to have a relationship with God. We can learn so much from David for he is known as the man after God's own heart. We should want the things of Gods heart.
Amen to daniel amen. Showing us how to stay faithful no matter what amen.