Daniel 9:2–23

²in 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.

³Then I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by ^gprayer and pleas for mercy with fasting and sackcloth and ashes. ⁴I 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, ^5kwe have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly ^land rebelled, turning aside from your commandments and rules. ^6mWe 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. ⁷To 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. ⁸To us, O Lord, belongs open shame, to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because ^kwe have sinned against you. ^9tTo the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, for we have rebelled against him ^10mand 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. ^11uAll 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. ¹²He 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. ^13xAs 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. ^14dTherefore 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. ¹⁵And 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. ¹⁷Now 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 p}make your face to shine upon ^qyour sanctuary, which is desolate. ^18rO 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. ¹⁹O 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

^20xWhile 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, ²¹while 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. ^22cHe made me understand, speaking with me and saying, “O Daniel, I have now come out to give you ^dinsight and understanding. ^23eAt 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.