DANIEL 9
Read Daniel 9:1-27
Here we see Daniel having another vision from God, but this time the vision is in response to his prayer. We find him first studying the scriptures. While the Israelites may have lost the symbol of the presence of God when the temple was destroyed, they could still find God in the scriptures and in prayer. Daniel was encouraged by Jeremiah saying that the exile would last only seventy years and so when he prayed he came before the Lord in humility seeking assurance.
Daniel’s prayer is a bit like the Lord’s Prayer in that it is a ‘we’ prayer rather than an ‘I’ prayer. Daniel is praying on behalf of the whole Israelite community, ‘our kings, our princes and our fathers, and to all the people of the land’ (v6). He came before the Lord acknowledging the Lord’s greatness and how the people have sinned against God by turning away from his commands and laws (v5). Only then does Daniel ask God for what he wants – the heart of his prayer; that God turn his anger aside and allow the Israelites to return to Jerusalem. That is a good pattern for our own prayers: start by praising him and then confessing our sins and then, and only then, asking him for what we want.
God’s response to Daniel’s prayer was to give him a vision and to give him the understanding required to interpret the vision. This vision encouraged Daniel to see that the exile would come to an end and that the people would be restored to the ‘holy city’ of Jerusalem (v24). Daniel could rely on the prophetic word of Jeremiah; it was scripture and scripture can be trusted. But the Lord revealed something else to Daniel; that in due course (and the numbers that are flying around in this chapter can be interpreted in several different ways) God would do something special; the anointed one would come. One of the things the anointed one will do is put an end to sacrifice, and here we see a reference to Jesus. When Jesus came and died on the cross there was no need for sacrifice to atone for sins any more. Jesus, the perfect sacrifice, the son of God, was sufficient a sacrifice for the sins of the world. It was almost as if God was saying to Daniel, ‘Going back to Jerusalem is extremely important for you, but in the grand scheme of things it is relatively minor. I will do something even greater’. And we have seen what that was in the events that we reflect upon at Easter; the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
This passage opens up to us Daniel’s worship and how that involves both the word of God and prayer to God. Neither sits in isolation. They are an integrated package. And our own worship should reflect that. Our prayers should be informed and inspired by God’s word. And when we read God’s word we should do it prayerfully. And we should also be ready for a response from God. He does answer prayer, though perhaps not always in the way that we would expect or want. And when that answer to prayer comes it will be clear what the Lord is saying to us. Daniel’s vision may seem strange to us, but God gave Daniel insight and understanding to know what God was saying to him.