Daniel’s Prayer for the People

9 In the first year aof Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the lineage of the Medes, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans—2 in the first year of his reign I, Daniel, understood by the books the number of the years specified by the word of the Lord through bJeremiah the prophet, that He would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem.

3 cThen I set my face toward the Lord God to make request by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes. 4 And I prayed to the Lord my God, and made confession, and said, “O dLord, great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant and mercy with those who love Him, and with those who keep His commandments, 5 ewe have sinned and committed iniquity, we have done wickedly and rebelled, even by departing from Your precepts and Your judgments. 6 fNeither have we heeded Your servants the prophets, who spoke in Your name to our kings and our princes, to our fathers and all the people of the land. 7 O Lord, grighteousness belongs to You, but to us shame of face, as it is this day—to the men of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, those near and those far off in all the countries to which You have driven them, because of the unfaithfulness which they have committed against You.

8 “O Lord, to us belongs shame of face, to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, because we have sinned against You. 9 hTo the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, though we have rebelled against Him. 10 We have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God, to walk in His laws, which He set before us by His servants the prophets. 11 Yes, iall Israel has transgressed Your law, and has departed so as not to obey Your voice; therefore the curse and the oath written in the jLaw of Moses the servant of God have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against Him. 12 And He has kconfirmed His words, which He spoke against us and against our judges who judged us, by bringing upon us a great disaster; lfor under the whole heaven such has never been done as what has been done to Jerusalem.

13 m“As it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come upon us; nyet we have not made our prayer before the Lord our God, that we might turn from our iniquities and understand Your truth. 14 Therefore the Lord has okept the disaster in mind, and brought it upon us; for pthe Lord our God is righteous in all the works which He does, though we have not obeyed His voice. 15 And now, O Lord our God, qwho brought Your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and made Yourself ra name, as it is this day—we have sinned, we have done wickedly!

16 “O Lord, saccording to all Your righteousness, I pray, let Your anger and Your fury be turned away from Your city Jerusalem, tYour holy mountain; because for our sins, uand for the iniquities of our fathers, vJerusalem and Your people ware a reproach to all those around us. 17 Now therefore, our God, hear the prayer of Your servant, and his supplications, xand yfor the Lord’s sake 1cause Your face to shine on 2Your sanctuary, zwhich is desolate. 18 aO my God, incline Your ear and hear; open Your eyes band see our desolations, and the city cwhich is called by Your name; for we do not present our supplications before You because of our righteous deeds, but because of Your great mercies. 19 O Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, listen and act! Do not delay for Your own sake, my God, for Your city and Your people are called by Your name.”