Daniel’s Prayer for His People

9 bIn the first year of cDarius the son of Ahasuerus, by descent a dMede, who was made king over the realm of the eChaldeans— 2 in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, perceived in the books the number of years that, according to fthe word of the Lord to Jeremiah the prophet, must pass before the end of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely, seventy years.

3 Then I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by gprayer and pleas for mercy with fasting and sackcloth and ashes. 4 I prayed to the Lord my God and hmade confession, saying, i“O Lord, the igreat and awesome God, who jkeeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, 5 kwe have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly land rebelled, turning aside from your commandments and rules. 6 mWe have not listened to nyour servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to oour kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land. 7 To you, pO Lord, belongs righteousness, but to us open shame, as at this day, to the men of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to all Israel, qthose who are near and qthose who are far away, in rall the lands to which you have driven them, because of sthe treachery that they have committed against you. 8 To us, O Lord, belongs open shame, to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because kwe have sinned against you. 9 tTo the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, for we have rebelled against him 10 mand have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God by walking in his laws, which he set before us by nhis servants the prophets. 11 uAll Israel has transgressed your law and turned aside, vrefusing to obey your voice. wAnd the curse and oath xthat are written in the Law of yMoses the servant of God have been poured out upon us, because kwe have sinned against him. 12 He has confirmed his words, which he spoke against us and against zour rulers who ruled us,1 by abringing upon us a great calamity. bFor under the whole heaven there has not been done anything like what has been done against Jerusalem. 13 xAs it is written in the Law of Moses, all this calamity has come upon us; yet we have not entreated the favor of the Lord our God, cturning from our iniquities and gaining insight by your truth. 14 dTherefore the Lord has kept ready the calamity and has brought it upon us, efor the Lord our God is righteous in all the works that he has done, and fwe have not obeyed his voice. 15 And now, O Lord our God, who brought your people out of the land of Egypt gwith a mighty hand, and hhave made a name for yourself, as at this day, iwe have sinned, we have done wickedly.

16 “O Lord, jaccording to all your righteous acts, let your anger and your wrath turn away from your city Jerusalem, kyour holy hill, lbecause for our sins, and for mthe iniquities of our fathers, nJerusalem and your people have become oa byword among all who are around us. 17 Now therefore, O our God, listen to the prayer of your servant and to his pleas for mercy, and for your own sake, O Lord,2 pmake your face to shine upon qyour sanctuary, which is desolate. 18 rO my God, incline your ear and hear. Open your eyes and see sour desolations, and tthe city that is called by your name. For we do not present our pleas before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy. 19 O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive. O Lord, pay attention and act. uDelay not, vfor your own sake, O my God, because tyour city and wyour people are called by your name.”

Gabriel Brings an Answer

20 xWhile I was speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my plea before the Lord my God for ythe holy hill of my God, 21 while I was speaking in prayer, the man zGabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the first, acame to me in swift flight at bthe time of the evening sacrifice. 22 cHe made me understand, speaking with me and saying, “O Daniel, I have now come out to give you dinsight and understanding. 23 eAt the beginning of your pleas for mercy a word went out, fand I have come to tell it to you, for gyou are greatly loved. Therefore consider the word hand understand the vision.

The Seventy Weeks

24 i“Seventy weeks3 are decreed about your people and jyour holy city, to finish kthe transgression, to put an end to sin, land to atone for iniquity, mto bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal both vision and prophet, and nto anoint a most holy place.4 25 oKnow therefore and understand that pfrom the going out of the word to restore and qbuild Jerusalem to the coming of an ranointed one, a sprince, there shall be seven weeks. Then for sixty-two weeks it shall be built again5 with squares and moat, tbut in a troubled time. 26 And after the sixty-two weeks, an anointed one shall ube cut off and shall have nothing. And the people of the prince who is to come vshall destroy the city and the sanctuary. wIts6 end shall come with a flood, xand to the end there shall be war. yDesolations are decreed. 27 And he shall make a strong covenant with many for one week,7 and for half of the week he shall put an end to sacrifice and offering. zAnd on the wing of abominations shall come one who makes desolate, until athe decreed end is poured out on the desolator.”

Daniel’s Terrifying Vision of a Man

10 bIn the third year of Cyrus king of Persia a word was revealed to Daniel, cwho was named Belteshazzar. And dthe word was true, and it was a great conflict.1 And ehe understood the word and ehad understanding of the vision.

2 In those days I, Daniel, was mourning for fthree weeks. 3 I ate no delicacies, no meat or wine entered my mouth, nor did I ganoint myself at all, for fthe full three weeks. 4 On the twenty-fourth day of the first month, as I was standing hon the bank of the great river (ithat is, the Tigris) 5 jI lifted up my eyes and looked, and behold, ka man clothed in linen, lwith a belt of fine mgold from Uphaz around his waist. 6 His body was like nberyl, his face olike the appearance of lightning, phis eyes like flaming torches, his arms and qlegs like the gleam of burnished bronze, and qthe sound of his words like the sound of a multitude. 7 rAnd I, Daniel, alone saw the vision, for the men who were with me did not see the vision, but a great trembling fell upon them, and they fled to hide themselves. 8 So I was left alone and saw this great vision, and sno strength was left in me. My radiant appearance was fearfully changed,2 tand I retained no strength. 9 Then I heard the sound of his words, uand as I heard the sound of his words, I fell on my face in deep sleep uwith my face to the ground.

10 And behold, va hand touched me and set me trembling on my hands and knees. 11 And he said to me, “O Daniel, wman greatly loved, xunderstand the words that I speak to you, and ystand upright, for znow I have been sent to you.” And when he had spoken this word to me, I stood up trembling. 12 Then he said to me, a“Fear not, Daniel, for from the first day that you bset your heart to understand and bhumbled yourself before your God, cyour words have been heard, dand I have come because of your words. 13 eThe prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me ftwenty-one days, but gMichael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I was left there with the kings of Persia, 14 dand came to make you understand what is to happen to your people hin the latter days. For ithe vision is for days yet to come.”

15 When he had spoken to me according to these words, jI turned my face toward the ground kand was mute. 16 And behold, lone in the likeness of the children of man mtouched my lips. Then I opened my mouth and spoke. I said to him who stood before me, “O my lord, by reason of the vision pains have come upon me, and nI retain no strength. 17 How can my lord’s servant talk with my lord? For now no strength remains in me, and no breath is left in me.”

18 Again lone having the appearance of a man mtouched me and strengthened me. 19 And he said, o“O man greatly loved, pfear not, peace be with you; be strong and of good courage.” And as he spoke to me, I was strengthened and said, “Let my lord speak, for you have strengthened me.” 20 Then he said, “Do you know why I have come to you? But now I will return to fight against the qprince of Persia; and when I go out, behold, the prince of rGreece will come. 21 But I will tell you swhat is inscribed in the book of truth: there is none who contends by my side against these except tMichael, your prince.

The Kings of the South and the North

11 “And as for me, uin the first year of uDarius the Mede, I stood up to confirm and strengthen him.

2 “And now I will show you vthe truth. Behold, three more kings shall arise in Persia, and a fourth shall be far richer than all of them. And when he has become strong through his riches, he shall stir up all against the kingdom of Greece. 3 Then wa mighty king shall arise, who shall rule with great dominion and xdo as he wills. 4 And as soon as he has arisen, yhis kingdom shall be broken and divided ytoward the zfour winds of heaven, but anot to his posterity, nor according to the authority with which he ruled, for his kingdom shall be plucked up and go to others besides these.

5 “Then the king of the south shall be strong, but one of his princes shall be stronger than he band shall rule, and his authority shall be a great authority. 6 After some years cthey shall make an alliance, and the daughter of the king of the south shall come to the king of the north to make an agreement. But she shall not retain the strength of her arm, and he and his arm shall not endure, but she shall be given up, and her attendants, he who fathered her, and he who supported1 her in those times.

7 “And from a branch from her roots one shall arise in his place. He shall come against the army and enter the dfortress of the king of the north, and he shall deal with them and shall prevail. 8 He shall also carry off to Egypt their gods …