Daniel 9
Living Bible
9 It was now the first year of the reign of King Darius, the son of Ahasuerus. (Darius was a Mede but became king of the Chaldeans.) 2 In that first year of his reign, I, Daniel, learned from the book of Jeremiah the prophet that Jerusalem must lie desolate for seventy years.[a] 3 So I earnestly pleaded with the Lord God to end our captivity and send us back to our own land.[b]
As I prayed, I fasted and wore rough sackcloth, and I sprinkled myself with ashes 4 and confessed my sins and those of my people.
“O Lord,” I prayed, “you are a great and awesome God; you always fulfill your promises of mercy to those who love you and keep your laws. 5 But we have sinned so much; we have rebelled against you and scorned your commands. 6 We have refused to listen to your servants the prophets, whom you sent again and again down through the years, with your messages to our kings and princes and to all the people.
7 “O Lord, you are righteous; but as for us, we are always shamefaced with sin, just as you see us now; yes, all of us—the men of Judah, the people of Jerusalem, and all Israel, scattered near and far wherever you have driven us because of our disloyalty to you. 8 O Lord, we and our kings and princes and fathers are weighted down with shame because of all our sins.
9 “But the Lord our God is merciful and pardons even those who have rebelled against him.
10 “O Lord our God, we have disobeyed you; we have flouted all the laws you gave us through your servants, the prophets. 11 All Israel has disobeyed; we have turned away from you and haven’t listened to your voice. And so the awesome curse of God has crushed us—the curse written in the law of Moses your servant. 12 And you have done exactly as you warned us you would do, for never in all history has there been a disaster like what happened at Jerusalem to us and our rulers. 13 Every curse against us written in the law of Moses has come true; all the evils he predicted—all have come. But even so we still refuse to satisfy the Lord our God by turning from our sins and doing right.
14 “And so the Lord deliberately crushed us with the calamity he prepared; he is fair in everything he does, but we would not obey. 15 O Lord our God, you brought lasting honor to your name by removing your people from Egypt in a great display of power. Lord, do it again! Though we have sinned so much and are full of wickedness, 16 yet because of all your faithful mercies, Lord, please turn away your furious anger from Jerusalem, your own city, your holy mountain. For the heathen mock at you because your city lies in ruins for our sins.
17 “O our God, hear your servant’s prayer! Listen as I plead! Let your face shine again with peace and joy upon your desolate sanctuary—for your own glory, Lord.
18 “O my God, bend down your ear and listen to my plea. Open your eyes and see our wretchedness, how your city lies in ruins—for everyone knows that it is yours. We don’t ask because we merit help, but because you are so merciful despite our grievous sins.
19 “O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive. O Lord, listen to me and act! Don’t delay—for your own sake, O my God, because your people and your city bear your name.”
20 Even while I was praying and confessing my sin and the sins of my people, desperately pleading with the Lord my God for Jerusalem, his holy mountain, 21 Gabriel, whom I had seen in the earlier vision, flew swiftly to me at the time of the evening sacrifice 22 and said to me, “Daniel, I am here to help you understand God’s plans. 23 The moment you began praying a command was given. I am here to tell you what it was, for God loves you very much. Listen and try to understand the meaning of the vision that you saw!
24 “The Lord has commanded 490 years[c] of further punishment upon Jerusalem and your people. Then at last they will learn to stay away from sin, and their guilt will be cleansed; then the kingdom of everlasting righteousness will begin, and the Most Holy Place in the Temple will be rededicated, as the prophets have declared. 25 Now listen! It will be 49 years plus 434 years[d] from the time the command is given to rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One comes! Jerusalem’s streets and walls will be rebuilt despite the perilous times.
26 “After this period of 434 years, the Anointed One will be killed, his kingdom still unrealized . . . and a king will arise whose armies will destroy the city and the Temple. They will be overwhelmed as with a flood, and war and its miseries are decreed from that time to the very end. 27 This king will make a seven-year treaty with the people, but after half that time, he will break his pledge and stop the Jews from all their sacrifices and their offerings; then, as a climax to all his terrible deeds, the Enemy shall utterly defile the sanctuary of God. But in God’s time and plan, his judgment will be poured out upon this Evil One.”
Footnotes
- Daniel 9:2 Jerusalem must lie desolate for seventy years, see Jeremiah 25:11-12; 29:10. This interval had now almost expired.
- Daniel 9:3 to end our captivity and send us back to our own land, implied.
- Daniel 9:24 490 years, literally, “seventy weeks” or “seventy sevens” (of years). These were not in uninterrupted sequence. See vv. 25-27.
- Daniel 9:25 It will be 49 years plus 434 years. This totals 483 years, instead of the 490 years mentioned in v. 24, leaving 7 years unaccounted for at the time of Messiah’s death. For their future fulfillment, see v. 27 and the Revelation. Or, consider the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70 by Titus and the subsequent slaughter of one million Jews during the following three and a half years as at least a partial fulfillment of this prophecy.
Daniel 9
Expanded Bible
Daniel’s Prayer
9 These things happened during the first year Darius son of Ahasuerus was king over ·Babylon [L the Chaldeans; C 539 bc]. He was ·a descendant [L from the seed] of the Medes [C a 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 [L the 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 [L my face] to the Lord God and ·prayed [L sought 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. 4 I prayed to the Lord my God and ·told him about all of our sins [made confession]. I said, “Lord, you are a great ·God who causes fear and wonder [L and awesome God]. You ·keep [guard] ·your agreement of love [covenant and loyalty] with all who love you and ·obey [keep; guard] your commands.
5 “But we have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and ·turned [rebelled] against you, your commands, and your ·laws [judgments]. 6 We did not listen to your servants, the prophets, who spoke ·for you [L in your name] to our kings, our ·leaders [princes], our ·ancestors [fathers], and all the people of the land.
7 “Lord, ·you are good and right [L to you is righteousness], but ·we are full of shame [L to us is shame of face] today—the people of Judah and Jerusalem, all the people of Israel, those near and far whom you ·scattered [drove away] among many nations because they were ·not loyal [treacherous] to you. 8 Lord, ·we are all ashamed [L to us is shame of face]. Our kings and ·leaders [princes] and our ·fathers [ancestors] are ·ashamed [shame-faced], because we have ·sinned against [or failed] you.
9 “But, Lord our God, you ·show us mercy [have compassion] and forgive us even though we have ·turned [rebelled] against you. 10 We have not ·obeyed [L listened to the voice of] the Lord our God or the ·teachings [instructions; laws] he gave us through his servants, the prophets. 11 All the people of Israel have ·disobeyed [transgressed] your ·teachings [instructions; laws] and have turned away, refusing to ·obey you [L listen to your voice]. So you ·brought [poured] on us the curses and ·promises of punishment [oaths] written in the ·Teachings [Instructions; Laws] of Moses [Deut. 28:64–68], the servant of God, because we ·sinned against [failed] you.
12 “·You said these things would happen to us and our ·leaders [judges], and you made them happen; you brought on us a great disaster. Nothing has ever been done ·on earth [L under all the heavens] like what was done to Jerusalem. 13 All this disaster came to us just as it is written in the ·Teachings [Instructions; Laws] of Moses [Deut. 28:15–68]. But we have not ·pleaded [entreated] with the Lord our God. We have not ·stopped [turned from] ·sinning [iniquity]. We have not ·paid attention to [considered; pondered; reflected on] your ·truth [faithfulness]. 14 The Lord ·was ready to bring [L kept watch on and brought] the disaster on us, and he did it because the Lord our God is ·right [righteous] in everything he does. But we still did not ·obey him [L listen to his voice].
15 “Lord our God, ·you used your power and [L by your strong hand you] brought us out of Egypt [Ex. 12–15]. Because of that, your name is known even today. But we have sinned and ·have done wrong [acted wickedly]. 16 Lord, ·you do what is right, but [L according to all your righteousness,] ·please do not be angry with [L turn aside your anger and your wrath from] Jerusalem, your city on your holy hill [C Zion, the location of the Temple]. Because of our sins and the ·evil things [iniquity] done by our ·ancestors [fathers], people all around ·insult and make fun of [scorn; reproach] Jerusalem and your people.
17 “Now, our God, hear the prayers of your servant. Listen to my ·prayer for help [supplication], and for ·your [L the Lord’s] sake ·do good things for [L make your face shine on] your ·holy place [sanctuary] that is in ruins. 18 My God, ·pay attention [L extend/incline your ear] and hear me. Open your eyes and see all ·the terrible things that have happened to us [L our desolation/destruction] and the city that is called by your name. We do not ·ask these things [present our supplication] because ·we are good [of our righteousness]; instead, we ask because of your ·mercy [compassion]. 19 Lord, listen! Lord, forgive! Lord, ·hear us [pay attention] and do something! For your sake, don’t ·wait [delay], because your city and your people are called by your name.”
Gabriel’s Explanation
20 While I was ·saying these things in my prayer [L speaking and praying] to the Lord, my God, confessing my sins and the sins of the people of Israel and ·praying [L laying down my supplication] for God’s holy hill [C Zion, the location of the Temple], 21 Gabriel came to me. (I had seen him in my ·last vision [L vision in the beginning; 8:1].) ·He came flying quickly to me [or…when I was tired and weary] about the time of the evening sacrifice, while I was still praying. 22 He ·taught me [L made me understand] and said to me, “Daniel, I have come [L out now] to give you wisdom and to help you understand. 23 ·When you first started praying [L At the beginning of your supplication], an ·answer [L word] ·was given [L went out], and I came to tell you, because ·God loves you very much [L you are favored/coveted/desired]. So ·think about [consider; reflect; ponder] the ·message [L word] and ·understand [consider; reflect; ponder] the vision.
24 “·God has ordered four hundred ninety years [L Seventy sevens/weeks are given] for your people and your holy city [C for the following reasons]: to ·stop [finish] ·people from turning against God [transgression]; to put an end to sin; to ·take away [atone for] ·evil [iniquity]; to bring in ·goodness that continues forever [everlasting righteousness]; to ·bring about [seal] the vision and prophecy; and to ·appoint [anoint] a most holy place.
25 “Learn and understand these things. A command will come to ·rebuild [L restore and build] Jerusalem. The time from this command until the ·appointed leader [anointed prince] comes will be ·forty-nine years [L seven sevens/weeks] and ·four hundred thirty-four years [L sixty-two sevens/weeks]. Jerusalem will be ·rebuilt [L restored and built] with ·streets [or public squares] and a ·trench filled with water around it [moat; or conduits], but it will be built in times of ·trouble [oppression]. 26 After the ·four hundred thirty-four years [L sixty-two sevens/weeks] the ·appointed leader [L anointed one] will be ·killed [L cut off]; he will have nothing. The ·people [or troops] of the ·leader [prince] who is to come will destroy the city and the holy place. The end of ·the city [L it/or him] will come like a flood, and war will continue until the end. ·God has ordered that place to be completely destroyed [L Desolation/Destruction is decreed]. 27 ·That leader [L He] will make firm an ·agreement [covenant; treaty] with many people for ·seven years [L one seven/week]. He will ·stop [make cease] the offerings and sacrifices after ·three and one-half years [L a half a seven/week]. ·A destroyer will do blasphemous things until the ordered end comes to the destroyed city [L …and upon a wing will be the horrible abominations until the decreed end overwhelms the desolator].”
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