Daniel Prays to the Lord

9 It was the first year that Darius was king of Babylon. He was from Media and was the son of Xerxes. ² In that year I learned from the Scriptures that Jerusalem would remain destroyed for 70 years. That was what the Lord had told Jeremiah the prophet. ³ So I prayed to the Lord God. I begged him. I made many appeals to him. I didn’t eat anything. I put on the rough clothing people wear when they’re sad. And I sat down in ashes.

⁴ I prayed to the Lord my God. I admitted that we had sinned. I said,

“Lord, you are a great and wonderful God. You keep the covenant you made with all those who love you and obey your commandments. You show them your love. ⁵ We have sinned and done what is wrong. We have been evil. We have refused to obey you. We have turned away from your commands and laws. ⁶ We haven’t listened to your servants the prophets. They spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our people of long ago. They also brought your message to all our people in the land.

⁷ “Lord, you always do what is right. But we are covered with shame today. We are the people of Judah and Jerusalem. All of us are Israelites, no matter where we live. We are now living in many countries. You scattered us among the nations because we weren’t faithful to you. ⁸ Lord, we are covered with shame. So are our kings and princes, and our people of long ago. We have sinned against you. ⁹ You are the Lord our God. You show us your tender love. You forgive us. But we have turned against you. ¹⁰ You are the Lord our God. But we haven’t obeyed you. We haven’t kept the laws you gave us through your servants the prophets. ¹¹ All the people of Israel have broken your law and turned away from it. They have refused to obey you.

“Curses and warnings are written down in the Law of Moses. He was your servant. Those curses have been poured out on us. That’s because we have sinned against you. ¹² The warnings you gave us and our rulers have come true. You have brought great trouble on us. Nothing like what has been done to Jerusalem has ever happened anywhere else on earth. ¹³ The curses that are written in the Law of Moses have fallen on us. We have received nothing but trouble. You are the Lord our God. But we haven’t asked for your favor. We haven’t turned away from our sins. We’ve refused to pay attention to the laws you gave us. ¹⁴ Lord, you didn’t hold back from bringing this trouble on us. You always do what is right. But we haven’t obeyed you.

¹⁵ “Lord our God, you used your mighty hand to bring your people out of Egypt. You made a name for yourself. It is still great to this day. But we have sinned. We’ve done what is wrong. ¹⁶ Lord, you saved your people before. So turn your great anger away from Jerusalem again. After all, it is your city. It’s your holy mountain. You have made those who live around us think little of Jerusalem and your people. That’s because we have sinned. Our people before us did evil things too.

¹⁷ “Our God, hear my prayers. Pay attention to the appeals I make to you. Lord, have mercy on your temple that has been destroyed. Do it for your own honor. ¹⁸ Our God, please listen to us. The city that belongs to you has been destroyed. Open your eyes and see it. We aren’t asking you to answer our prayers because we are godly. Instead, we’re asking you to do it because you love us so much. ¹⁹ Lord, please listen! Lord, please forgive us! Lord, hear our prayers! Take action for your own honor. Our God, please don’t wait. Your city and your people belong to you.”