PRAYER FOR RETURN
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Opening Prayer
Lord God, thank you for your Spirit’s speaking into my life. Please continue to lead me into truth and help me reflect more of my Savior’s love.
Read DANIEL 9:1–19
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
Daniel’s Prayer
9 In the first year of Darius son of Xerxes (a Mede by descent), who was made ruler over the Babylonian kingdom— 2 in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, understood from the Scriptures, according to the word of the Lord given to Jeremiah the prophet, that the desolation of Jerusalem would last seventy years. 3 So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes.
4 I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed:
“Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments, 5 we have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws. 6 We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our ancestors, and to all the people of the land.
7 “Lord, you are righteous, but this day we are covered with shame—the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, both near and far, in all the countries where you have scattered us because of our unfaithfulness to you. 8 We and our kings, our princes and our ancestors are covered with shame, Lord, because we have sinned against you. 9 The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him; 10 we have not obeyed the Lord our God or kept the laws he gave us through his servants the prophets. 11 All Israel has transgressed your law and turned away, refusing to obey you.
“Therefore the curses and sworn judgments written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against you. 12 You have fulfilled the words spoken against us and against our rulers by bringing on us great disaster. Under the whole heaven nothing has ever been done like what has been done to Jerusalem. 13 Just as it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come on us, yet we have not sought the favor of the Lord our God by turning from our sins and giving attention to your truth. 14 The Lord did not hesitate to bring the disaster on us, for the Lord our God is righteous in everything he does; yet we have not obeyed him.
15 “Now, Lord our God, who brought your people out of Egypt with a mighty hand and who made for yourself a name that endures to this day, we have sinned, we have done wrong. 16 Lord, in keeping with all your righteous acts, turn away your anger and your wrath from Jerusalem, your city, your holy hill. Our sins and the iniquities of our ancestors have made Jerusalem and your people an object of scorn to all those around us.
17 “Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant. For your sake, Lord, look with favor on your desolate sanctuary. 18 Give ear, our God, and hear; open your eyes and see the desolation of the city that bears your Name. We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy. 19 Lord, listen! Lord, forgive! Lord, hear and act! For your sake, my God, do not delay, because your city and your people bear your Name.”
Reflect
What names for God are most meaningful to you? Why?
Daniel is a colossus in the Bible. Totally devoted to God from his youth,1 he had the gift to reveal dreams2 and was fearless when faced with persecution.3 He was a great visionary, a counselor to successive emperors, a true witness to the living God, and an intercessor for Israel (vv. 1–19). The seventy years of exile prophesied by Jeremiah (Israel was in exile between 605 and 539 BC)4 had elapsed. Daniel appears to be agitated in case the hope of restoration passes. He could not contemplate the demise of the people of God as a nation. So, he turned to prayer.
He was not praying to change God’s mind but to plead with him on behalf of a nation which had sorely tried his patience and was in danger of extinction. He humbled himself, fasted, wore sackcloth, and sprinkled his body with ashes. The prayer is based on Scripture (v. 2)5 and is rich in theology. Daniel shows intimate knowledge of the nature and character of God. The names of God: the Lord (Yahweh), God (Elohim), the Creator and the Sustainer appear 13 times in this passage. The prayer falls into four parts – Adoration (v. 4), Confession (vv. 5–8, 10–16), Thanksgiving (v. 9) and Supplication (vv. 17–19). All the great prayers in the Bible start with, and in, God.6 The Lord is the object of our worship, so our prayers must reflect that focus. The confession is comprehensive, without self-justification or rationalization of sin. Supplication is not a selfish shopping list but is based on the honor and glory of God—see ‘For your sake’ (vv. 17, 19), ‘the city that bears your Name’ (v. 18), and ‘because of your great mercy’ (v. 18). God’s answer, when it came, was Cyrus’ decree for the Israelites to return to their homeland.7
Apply
The church in the West is in serious decline. We desperately need to raise up an army of intercessors to engage in Scripture-fueled, God- honoring, and glorifying prayer.
Closing prayer
Lord Jesus, your Spirit has given me all I need in Scripture and in his power at work in me to be a witness for you. Please build in me vision and courage to do what you have called me to.
1 Dan 1:8. 2 Dan 2:24. 3 Dan 6:10–16. 4 Jer 29:10–14. 5 Cf Ezra 7:10. 6 Eg 1 Kings 8:23; Neh 1:5. 7 Ezra 1:1–4.
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