Daniel’s Prayer for His People
9 In the first year of (A)Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of Median descent, who was made king over the kingdom of the Chaldeans— 2 in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, observed in the books the number of the years which was revealed as the word of the Lord to (B)Jeremiah the prophet for the completion of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely, (C)seventy years. 3 So I [a]gave my attention to the Lord God to seek Him by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth and ashes. 4 I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed and said, “Alas, O Lord, the (D)great and awesome God, who (E)keeps His covenant and lovingkindness for those who love Him and keep His commandments, 5 (F)we have sinned, committed iniquity, acted wickedly and (G)rebelled, even (H)turning aside from Your commandments and ordinances. 6 Moreover, we have not (I)listened to Your servants the prophets, who spoke in Your name to our kings, our princes, our fathers and all the people of the land.
7 “(J)Righteousness belongs to You, O Lord, but to us [b](K)open shame, as it is this day—to the men of Judah, the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, those who are nearby and those who are far away in (L)all the countries to which You have driven them, because of their unfaithful deeds which they have committed against You. 8 [c]Open shame belongs to us, O Lord, to our kings, our princes and our fathers, because we have sinned against You. 9 To the Lord our God belong (M)compassion and forgiveness, [d]for we have (N)rebelled against Him; 10 nor have we obeyed the voice of the Lord our God, to walk in His [e]teachings which He (O)set before us through His servants the prophets. 11 Indeed (P)all Israel has transgressed Your law and turned aside, not obeying Your voice; so the (Q)curse has been poured out on us, along with the oath which is written in the law of Moses the servant of God, for we have sinned against Him. 12 Thus He has (R)confirmed His words which He had spoken against us and against our [f](S)rulers who ruled us, to bring on us great calamity; for under the whole heaven there has (T)not been done anything like what was done to Jerusalem. 13 As it is written in the (U)law of Moses, all this calamity has come on us; yet we have (V)not [g]sought the favor of the Lord our God by (W)turning from our iniquity and [h]giving attention to Your truth. 14 Therefore the Lord has [i](X)kept the calamity in store and brought it on us; for the Lord our God is (Y)righteous with respect to all His deeds which He has done, but we have not obeyed His voice.
15 “And now, O Lord our God, who have (Z)brought Your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand and have (AA)made a name for Yourself, as it is this day—we have sinned, we have been wicked. 16 O Lord, in accordance with all Your [j]righteous acts, let now Your (AB)anger and Your wrath turn away from Your city Jerusalem, Your (AC)holy mountain; for because of our sins and the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and Your people have become a (AD)reproach to all those around us. 17 So now, our God, listen to the prayer of Your servant and to his supplications, and for [k]Your sake, O Lord, (AE)let Your face shine on Your (AF)desolate sanctuary. 18 O my God, (AG)incline Your ear and hear! Open Your eyes and (AH)see our desolations and the city which is (AI)called by Your name; for we are not [l](AJ)presenting our supplications before You on account of [m]any merits of our own, but on account of Your great compassion. 19 O Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, listen and take action! For Your own sake, O my God, (AK)do not delay, because Your city and Your people are called by Your name.”
Gabriel Brings an Answer
20 Now while I was (AL)speaking and praying, and (AM)confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and [n]presenting my supplication before the Lord my God in behalf of the holy mountain of my God, 21 while I was still speaking in prayer, then the man (AN)Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision [o]previously, [p]came to me [q]in my extreme weariness about the time of the (AO)evening offering. 22 He gave me instruction and talked with me and said, “O Daniel, I have now come forth to give you insight with (AP)understanding. 23 At the (AQ)beginning of your supplications the [r]command was issued, and I have come to tell you, for you are [s](AR)highly esteemed; so give heed to the message and gain (AS)understanding of the vision.
Seventy Weeks and the Messiah
24 “Seventy [t](AT)weeks have been decreed for your people and your holy city, to [u]finish the transgression, to [v]make an end of sin, to (AU)make atonement for iniquity, to bring in (AV)everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and [w]prophecy and to anoint the most holy place. 25 So you are to know and discern that from the issuing of a [x](AW)decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until [y](AX)Messiah the (AY)Prince there will be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; it will be built again, with [z]plaza and moat, even in times of distress. 26 Then after the sixty-two weeks the [aa]Messiah will be (AZ)cut off and have [ab]nothing, and the people of the prince who is to come will (BA)destroy the city and the sanctuary. And [ac]its end will come with a (BB)flood; even to the end [ad]there will be war; desolations are determined. 27 And he will make a firm covenant with the many for one week, but in the middle of the week he will put a stop to sacrifice and grain offering; and on the wing of [ae](BC)abominations will come one who [af]makes desolate, even until a (BD)complete destruction, one that is decreed, is poured out on the one who [ag]makes desolate.”
Footnotes
- Daniel 9:3 Lit set my face
- Daniel 9:7 Lit the shame of face
- Daniel 9:8 Lit The shame of face
- Daniel 9:9 Or though
- Daniel 9:10 Or laws
- Daniel 9:12 Lit judges who judged us
- Daniel 9:13 Lit softened the face of
- Daniel 9:13 Or having insight into
- Daniel 9:14 Lit watched over the evil
- Daniel 9:16 Lit righteousnesses
- Daniel 9:17 Lit the sake of the Lord
- Daniel 9:18 Lit causing to fall
- Daniel 9:18 Lit our righteousnesses
- Daniel 9:20 Lit causing to fall
- Daniel 9:21 Lit at the beginning
- Daniel 9:21 Lit was reaching; or touching
- Daniel 9:21 Lit wearied with weariness
- Daniel 9:23 Lit word went out
- Daniel 9:23 Lit desirable; or precious
- Daniel 9:24 Or units of seven, and so throughout the ch
- Daniel 9:24 Or restrain
- Daniel 9:24 Another reading is seal up sins
- Daniel 9:24 Lit prophet
- Daniel 9:25 Lit word
- Daniel 9:25 Or an anointed one
- Daniel 9:25 Or streets
- Daniel 9:26 Or anointed one
- Daniel 9:26 Or no one
- Daniel 9:26 Or his
- Daniel 9:26 Or war will be decreed for desolations
- Daniel 9:27 Or detestable things
- Daniel 9:27 Or causes horror
- Daniel 9:27 Or causes horror
Cross references
- Daniel 9:1 : Dan 5:31; 11:1
- Daniel 9:2 : 2 Chr 36:21; Ezra 1:1; Jer 25:11, 12; 29:10; Zech 7:5
- Daniel 9:2 : 2 Chr 36:21; Ezra 1:1; Jer 25:11, 12; 29:10; Zech 7:5
- Daniel 9:4 : Deut 7:21; Neh 9:32
- Daniel 9:4 : Deut 7:9
- Daniel 9:5 : 1 Kin 8:48; Neh 9:33; Ps 106:6; Is 64:5-7; Jer 14:7
- Daniel 9:5 : Lam 1:18, 20
- Daniel 9:5 : Ps 119:176; Is 53:6; Dan 9:11
- Daniel 9:6 : 2 Chr 36:16; Jer 44:4, 5
- Daniel 9:7 : Jer 23:6; 33:16; Dan 9:18
- Daniel 9:7 : Ps 44:15; Jer 2:26, 27; 3:25
- Daniel 9:7 : Deut 4:27
- Daniel 9:9 : Neh 9:17; Ps 130:4
- Daniel 9:9 : Ps 106:43; Jer 14:7; Dan 9:5, 6
- Daniel 9:10 : 2 Kin 17:13-15; 18:12
- Daniel 9:11 : Is 1:3, 4; Jer 8:5-10
- Daniel 9:11 : Deut 27:15-26
- Daniel 9:12 : Is 44:26; Jer 44:2-6; Lam 2:17; Zech 1:6
- Daniel 9:12 : Job 12:17; Ps 82:2-7; 148:11
- Daniel 9:12 : Lam 1:12; 2:13; Ezek 5:9
- Daniel 9:13 : Lev 26:14-45; Deut 28:15-68; Dan 9:11
- Daniel 9:13 : Job 36:13; Is 9:13; Jer 2:30; 5:3
- Daniel 9:13 : Jer 31:18
- Daniel 9:14 : Jer 31:28; 44:27
- Daniel 9:14 : Ps 51:14; Dan 9:7
- Daniel 9:15 : Deut 5:15
- Daniel 9:15 : Neh 9:10; Jer 32:20
- Daniel 9:16 : Jer 32:31, 32
- Daniel 9:16 : Ps 87:1-3; Dan 9:20; Joel 3:17; Zech 8:3
- Daniel 9:16 : Ezek 5:14
- Daniel 9:17 : Num 6:24-26; Ps 80:3, 7, 19
- Daniel 9:17 : Lam 5:18
- Daniel 9:18 : Is 37:17
- Daniel 9:18 : Ps 80:14
- Daniel 9:18 : Jer 7:10-12
- Daniel 9:18 : Jer 36:7
- Daniel 9:19 : Ps 44:23; 74:10, 11
- Daniel 9:20 : Ps 145:18; Is 58:9; Dan 9:3; 10:12
- Daniel 9:20 : Is 6:5
- Daniel 9:21 : Dan 8:16; Luke 1:19, 26
- Daniel 9:21 : Ex 29:39; 1 Kin 18:36; Ezra 9:4
- Daniel 9:22 : Dan 8:16; 10:21; Zech 1:9
- Daniel 9:23 : Dan 10:12
- Daniel 9:23 : Dan 10:11, 19
- Daniel 9:23 : Matt 24:15
- Daniel 9:24 : Lev 25:8; Num 14:34; Ezek 4:5, 6
- Daniel 9:24 : 2 Chr 29:24; Is 53:10; Rom 5:10
- Daniel 9:24 : Is 51:6, 8; 56:1; Jer 23:5, 6; Rom 3:21, 22
- Daniel 9:25 : Ezra 4:24; 6:1-15; Neh 2:1-8; 3:1
- Daniel 9:25 : John 1:41; 4:25
- Daniel 9:25 : Is 9:6; Dan 8:11, 25
- Daniel 9:26 : Is 53:8; Mark 9:12; Luke 24:26
- Daniel 9:26 : Matt 24:2; Mark 13:2; Luke 19:43, 44
- Daniel 9:26 : Nah 1:8
- Daniel 9:27 : Dan 11:31; Matt 24:15; Mark 13:14; Luke 21:20
- Daniel 9:27 : Is 10:23; 28:22