Daniel’s Prayer

9 These things happened during the first year Darius son of Ahasuerus was king over ·Babylon [^Lthe Chaldeans; ^C539 bc]. He was ·a descendant [^Lfrom the seed] of the Medes [^Ca people group within the Persian empire]. ² During Darius’ first year as king, I, Daniel, was ·reading in [pondering/reflecting on] the Scriptures. I saw ·that the Lord told Jeremiah that Jerusalem would be empty ruins for seventy years [^Lthe number of years which were according to the word of the Lord to Jeremiah the prophet to fulfill the ruin of Jerusalem was seventy years; 2 Chr. 36:20–22; Jer. 25:11–12; 29:10].

³ Then I turned [^Lmy face] to the Lord God and ·prayed [^Lsought in prayer] and ·asked him for help [supplication]. ·To show my sadness, I fasted, put on rough cloth, and sat in [^L…with fasting, and sackcloth, and] ashes.