Daniel 9:4–20

From the beginning of the chapter we learn that there is no reason to wait till a prophecy is fulfilled before profiting by it. Daniel did not wait. He learned the number of the years not by a special message given to him but "by books" — from the word of Jehovah that came to Jeremiah the prophet... Such was the effect on a man who judged the present in the light of God's word and prophecy: not political speculation, but confession and humiliation and intercession before God.

Daniel was a prophet, but here God gave him no special revelation. So we are told that he understood by books. He was simply one of the faithful studying prophecy. God gives him a direct revelation later. But at this point faith alone was acting, and he only came to understand what God had already spoken about His people. All is revealed in the Bible, and in searching it we can, like Daniel, know and understand what God has already written about His people.

Turning to God in confession, Daniel gets a deep sense of the greatness, holiness and faithfulness of God. Moreover, he realises that God is true to His word and, if His people will only cherish His Name and keep His word, they will find mercy.

Two things stand out in Daniel's prayers: confession, and the justification of God in what He had done with His people. In the address to God in verse 4, he lays the basis for justifying God... God could not fail to keep His covenant with His people. So the conduct of the people themselves must have been the cause of all the discipline that had overtaken them. And this sinful conduct is what Daniel went on to spell out.

Nowhere in the Bible do we find a finer example of thorough confession and prayer, though Ezra's prayer in Ezra 9 comes close to it. He made no reference to the covenant of promise made with Abraham. He stood before God on the ground of the covenant of the law of Moses, and of the later ministry through the prophets. About this he confessed complete breakdown and disaster, though he himself was less involved in it than anyone of his day.

Daniel had been led captive when very young, and he had taken no part in the actual sin of Israel. There was, therefore, no ground for self-accusation. But the fact is, there is no such thing as a Christian separated from the interests of his brothers and sisters... If Christ identifies Himself with all that the people have done from the beginning, Daniel too can say, "We have sinned." He takes his place with them all, as one people, though he had shared in none of these sins.

Daniel was qualified for intercessory prayer by the purity of his own ways... His enemies themselves said, "We shall not find any ground of complaint against this Daniel unless we find it in connection with the law of his God." And in a foreign land, surrounded by enemies and traps, his practice was to pray... No cloud in his own relationship with God — he is free to intercede for the state of God's people — a type in this of the great Intercessor.

True confession owns the evil. It offers no excuse and no softening. It owns that God's judgments and discipline are right. It pleads that God would grant deliverance, according to His word: "not... because of our righteousness, but because of Your great mercy." Let us cultivate these excellent features in our day. We too can ask for nothing on the ground of merit, but only on the ground of mercy.

Sin, iniquity, wickedness, rebellion — he uses every one of these words, as if to exhaust the list. He wanted to own their failure in full before God. "We," he says, not "They." Back in chapter two he linked his companions with himself in what was to their credit. He is just as ready now to line himself up with his people in their guilt. This is morally very beautiful. He was a blameless man, blameless even by his enemies' own judgement. Yet in the deepest lowliness of mind he joins himself to his captive countrymen in the national guilt.

He does not try to lay the blame for the division and scattering on certain people. Some of them may indeed have acted in a high-handed way, twisted the truth and led many into error. This, we know, was the case with the kings, priests and false prophets. But looking beyond the failure of individuals, he sees and owns the failure of God's people as a whole. He says, "We have sinned … our kings, our princes, our fathers, and … all the people of the land."

Daniel was taken captive when he was very young. He had taken no part in Israel's actual sin. There was no ground for self-accusation. But the fact is, there is no such thing as a Christian separated from the interests of his brothers and sisters… Christ identifies Himself with all that the people have done from the beginning. So Daniel too can say, "We have sinned." He identifies himself with them all, in the unity of the same people, though he had shared in none of these sins.

God could not fail to keep His covenant with His people. So the people's own conduct must have been the cause of all the discipline that had come upon them. And it is this sinful conduct that Daniel now goes on to specify… In every variety of expression, he makes the fullest confession of their many transgressions. They had made their sin worse by refusing to listen to the prophets whom God, in His patience and tender mercy, had sent… The guilt lay alike upon every class.

Many people in Scripture take the place of saying, "I have sinned." Yet not all of them receive cleansing. This is very remarkable. Take David, Nehemiah, Job, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, Micah, the prodigal son, and the thief on the cross. These all took the place of sinners, and all received cleansing or blessing. But look at Pharaoh, Balaam, Achan, Saul, Shimei, and Judas. These all confess they have sinned, yet they perish… There was no hatred of the sin. There was no desire to turn from it and give it up. There was no true repentance.

The marks of true confession come clearly to light here. Daniel admits the evil without excusing it or softening it. He fully owns that God's judgments and discipline are right. He pleads for deliverance according to God's word, and asks "not because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy"… We too can ask for nothing on the ground of merit, but only on the ground of mercy.

It was from "God's word written" that His people had departed, he acknowledged in verse 5; in the verse following he confesses yet more. They had refused the spoken ministry of the prophets sent to speak to them in God's name, calling them back to obedience to His commandments, His precepts, and His judgments. They had added sin to sin.

Nothing is more striking than the way the people of God have kept on persecuting the prophets. It was so in that day, and it is so in this. We do not like to have our conscience disturbed by hearing of our failures. Admitting that we are wrong, or have done wrong, is too humbling to religious flesh — unless we keep it vague and general. So the prophet who stirs the conscience — who reminds God's people of their sins — is never popular. The mere "teacher" gets a warm welcome. Gaining knowledge at a teacher's feet is pleasing to the flesh. Having a great teacher among us tends to lift us up. But who wants a prophet to wake the conscience by telling us of our failures and sins?

He offers no excuse for the enormity of his people's guilt, and he does not try to soften it. Instead he makes the fullest confession of their many sins, in every way he can put it. They had made their sin worse by refusing to listen to the prophets. God, in His long-suffering and tender mercy, had sent those prophets to their kings, their princes, their fathers, and to all the people of the land (v. 6). The guilt lay alike upon every class.

Daniel had been carried away captive when very young, and he had taken no part in the actual sin of Israel. There was, therefore, no ground for self-accusation... He identifies himself with them all, in the unity of the same people, though he had not shared in any of these sins... Those kings were no longer in existence, but he saw the whole thing together: "we have not listened to your servants the prophets."

Focusing on the human instruments used to break up the people of God may blind us to the true cause. The real cause was the low condition that went along with our high claims. We may have had no definite part in the folly and high-handed action of the few. Their action scattered the people of God at that moment. But we have all had our part in the low condition that made the break-up necessary.

Daniel brings "all Israel" before God — the people as a whole. This was faith and love, for in fact only a remnant of Judah and Benjamin was in Babylon... It is a mere cheat if we confess only some of our sins, and perhaps not the greatest. God will have it all out, so that He may forgive.

The two prominent features of Daniel's supplications are confession and the justification of God in what He had done in His dealings with His people... God could not fail in keeping His covenant with His people. So the conduct of the people themselves must have been the cause of all the discipline that had come upon them... He offers no excuse for how great his people's guilt was, and he does not try to lessen it. In every variety of expression he makes the fullest confession of their many sins.

Daniel had been led captive when very young, and he had taken no part in the actual wrongdoing of Israel. There was, therefore, no ground for self-accusation. But the fact is, there is no such thing as a Christian separated from the interests of his brothers and sisters... If, then, Christ identifies Himself with all that the people have done from the beginning, Daniel also can say, "We have sinned" (vv. 5-7).

Daniel takes hold of a deeply important principle. When division and scattering have happened, we must accept these evils as coming from God, acting in His holy discipline. They are not simply brought about by particular acts of folly or wickedness by individual men... Daniel loses sight of the folly and wickedness of individual men. He mentions no names. He does not speak of Jehoiakim or "his abominations which he did." He does not mention Zedekiah and his folly, or the ruthless violence of Nebuchadnezzar. Looking beyond these men, he sees in the scattering the hand of a righteous God.

A large part of the people of Israel did not return to Palestine from the Babylonian captivity with Zerubbabel, Ezra and Nehemiah. They stayed scattered across the whole earth. Yet God-fearing Israelites always kept alive the thought that the twelve tribes were one people, even after the division under Rehoboam. Elijah the prophet built an altar with twelve stones "according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob" (1 Kings 18:31). Daniel prayed for all Israel and not for Judah only (Dan. 9:7).

When we set our faces toward God, we look to the One who can not only divide but unite, not only scatter but gather, not only break up but heal (Hosea 6:1). Man indeed can scatter, and divide, and break up, but he cannot gather again, and unite, and heal. God can do both, and do both righteously. This is clearly seen in Daniel's confession... Then for a third time he appeals to the righteousness of God. But this time it is to bless and show mercy. He says, "O Lord, according to all Your righteousness, I beg You, let Your anger and Your fury be turned away" (v. 16).

God has granted us an incomparably higher order of blessing and privileges. Remembering that, we have far greater reason than those much more faithful and humble men of God to bow down before God in dust and ashes... and to say, "O Lord, to us belongs open shame, because we have sinned against You." But then we also, like them, may go on: "To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgiveness, though we have rebelled against Him." First the "because," then the "although."

Daniel had been led captive when very young, and he had taken no part in the actual iniquity of Israel. There was, therefore, no ground for self-accusation. But the fact is, there is no such thing as a Christian separated from the interests of his brothers and sisters... He identifies himself with all, in the unity of the same people, though he had not shared in any of these sins: "O Lord, to us belongs confusion of face, to our kings," and so on. These kings were no longer in existence, but he saw the whole thing together.

He does not try to pin the blame for the division and scattering on certain people. Some of them may indeed have acted in a high-handed way, twisted the truth and led many into error. But he looks beyond the failure of particular people. He sees and owns the failure of God's people as a whole... He himself was not responsible, and much time had passed. Even so, he does not ignore the division and scattering, and he does not blame people long since gone from the scene. Instead he identifies himself before God with the people of God.

He wants light, but he begins by confession. He goes down. He conceals nothing. He had learned that to the God with whom he had to do "all things were naked and open," and who, above all else, seeks in those who come to Him openness, truth, and sincerity.

It is a mere cheat if we confess only some of our sins, and perhaps not the greatest. God will have it all brought out so that He can forgive.

In verse 8 Daniel confesses again that shame belonged to every class of the people because of their sins. Then he says, "To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgivenesses, though we have rebelled against Him"... In that one sentence Daniel had reached the only foundation he could rest on as he prayed for his people. If he had known only the law, he could not have hoped to be heard.

We can say, "O Lord, to us belongs confusion of face, because we have sinned against You." But then we too, like them, may go on, "To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgiveness, though we have rebelled against Him." First the "because," then the "although." Take the second without the first, and you have plain lawlessness.

The marks of true confession come clearly to light here. Daniel owns the evil without trying to excuse it or soften it. He owns that God's judgments and discipline are right, and he pleads for deliverance, according to God's word, "not... for our righteousnesses, but for Your great mercies." Let us cultivate these features in our day. We too can ask for nothing on the ground of merit, but only on the ground of mercy.

Open shame belongs to every class and each generation of Israel, from the fathers onwards. But "mercies and forgivenesses" belong to the Lord our God. Not only is God righteous, but He is merciful and full of forgiveness. In spite of this the nation had rebelled and again aggravated their guilt.

This is an unusual reason. But he had such a conviction of the goodness of God that he says: in God there is not only the justice that punishes — though we have sinned, there is mercy… It is as if he said, nothing will do for me, nothing will meet my case, but mercy… The prophet draws it as a conclusion: there is sin; well then, mercy alone can meet it.

What encouragement after failure! Righteous He is. Daniel owned it and proved it. His life as an exile showed it, for he shared in the fortunes of his people. But mercies and forgivenesses belong also to God, so grace can be shown when failure is complete. Forgivenesses! Let us mark the language here. The prophet did not write forgiveness, but forgivenesses. He can forgive not one sin only, but many. The blood of Christ is the ground on which one sin is pardoned. On that same ground God can forgive many sins — yes, all sins — for all who seek it.

In that one sentence — "To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgivenesses" — Daniel reached the only foundation he could rest on as he prayed for his people. If he had known only the law, he could not have hoped that God would hear him. But he also knew the Lord his God as far as God had shown Himself in grace — to Moses, to David, and to Solomon when the temple was built on Mount Zion. From then on that temple stood as the expression of royal grace. So the prophet leaned on God as known in grace. And only a heart that knows that grace can unburden its sins and sorrows.

God has granted us a far higher order of blessing and privileges. So we have far greater reason than those much more faithful and humble men of God to bow down before Him in dust and ashes, "remembering from where we have fallen." We too should say, "O Lord, to us belongs open shame, because we have sinned against You." But then we also like them may continue, "To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgiveness, though we have rebelled against Him." First the "because," then the "although." The second without the first would be simple antinomianism.

Daniel went into captivity when very young, and he had taken no part in Israel's actual sin. There was, therefore, no ground for self-accusation. But the fact is, no Christian stands apart from the interests of fellow believers… Christ identifies Himself with all that the people have done from the beginning. So Daniel too can say, "We have sinned."

Here Daniel sums up the sin of Israel. The nation had not obeyed the voice of the LORD; they had broken His laws and disregarded the prophets.

Israel failed, as all have failed except Christ, who was perfect in every way. God still tests man, however. He sends prophets to call the people back to the law. So "the Law and the Prophets were until John." Under God's government of the world, obedience was the way of happiness for man. That is why the prophets called them back to obedience as the way of man's happiness.

Daniel does not try to soften their sin. On the contrary, he owns that they made it worse. They refused to listen to the prophets. God had sent those prophets from time to time to call them back to Himself. Nothing is more striking than to see how the people of God, in that day as in this, have kept on persecuting the prophets. We do not like our conscience disturbed by hearing of our failures. Admitting that we are wrong, or have done wrong, is too humbling for religious flesh — unless we keep it vague and general. So the prophet who tries to reach the conscience, who reminds God's people of their sins, is never popular. People welcome the mere "teacher" with applause. Gaining knowledge at a teacher's feet is rather pleasant to the flesh.

He took the place of humble confession before God. He became the voice of the people, their representative, spreading out their sins before God. Perhaps there was not another soul who did so; certainly there were not many. It is rare indeed to find many souls taking the place of real confession before God. In Babylon, those who were most guilty felt it least, while the man who was most free from guilt was the one who spread it out most honestly before God.

The act may well be imperfect. But on the principles of faith there must be identification with the people — a full confession before God. Suppose I thought a partial confession could get my sins forgiven, in the sense of lifting God's chastening. Or suppose I thought I could have that without ever feeling how serious the sins were. It is plain I would be mocking the just government of God.

Daniel confesses again that shame belonged to every class of the people because of their sins. Yet, he goes on to say, "to the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness" — even though they had rebelled against Him, even though they had not obeyed His voice through the prophets. In that one sentence Daniel had reached the only ground on which he could rest his intercession. Had he known nothing but the law, he could have had no hope of being heard. But he also knew his God in grace, and only grace lets the heart pour out its sins and sorrows before God.

The marks of true confession come clearly to light here. Daniel acknowledges the evil and does not try to excuse it or soften it. He fully owns that God's judgments and discipline are right. He asks God to deliver His people, according to His word, "not because of our righteousness, but because of Your great mercy." Let us cultivate these fine features in our own day. We too can ask for nothing on the ground of merit, only on the ground of mercy.

Verses 11, 12. So the curse announced in the law had fallen on them. God had confirmed the words He had spoken against the nation by bringing this great evil upon them.

Oh, what foolishness is ours that could ever doubt a word of God! And what has God given us all this for? Only that we may know that if that word stands in what is evil, how much more in what is good. If God carries out His threats to the letter, can His promises fail for an instant?

He speaks of "the Lord our God… bringing upon us a great evil"; and again, "the Lord watched upon the evil, and brought it upon us." So Daniel loses sight of the folly and wickedness of individual men. He mentions no names. He does not speak of Jehoiakim, or of "his abominations which he did." He does not speak of Zedekiah and his folly. He does not point to the ruthless violence of Nebuchadnezzar.

These men of God do not soften their strong statements about God's dealings in discipline. They do not even say that God has "allowed" His people to be scattered, or "permitted" them to be driven away. They say plainly that God Himself has driven the people away and brought the evil.

Daniel will hide nothing. God had only confirmed His words in bringing so great an evil on His people, and there was never a greater evil under the whole heaven than what fell on Jerusalem. The evil came on them exactly as written in the law of Moses.

Verses 11-14 set out the deserved curse as written in the law of Moses. Throughout this prayer we see how fully he identified himself with the sins, the failure, the shame and the judgment of the people of God. This is remarkable. He speaks of the nation's sins, their rebellion, their transgressions of the law and their wicked deeds as if they belonged to him.

"Yet we have not entreated the favour of the Lord our God, turning from our iniquities and gaining insight by Your truth" (v. 13). That is, we have not only transgressed. When the chastening came, we did not turn to the Lord with a true heart, to turn us from our iniquities. Here sin reached its height. "Therefore the Lord has watched upon the evil and brought it upon us" (v. 14), as He watched over the good to bless. How terrible, when the government of God watches over evil to make it come upon His people!

We have not only broken the law. When the chastening came, we did not turn to the Lord with a true heart, so that we might be turned from our iniquities. Here sin reached its height. "Therefore the Lord has watched over the evil and brought it upon us" (v. 14) — as He watched over the good to bless. How terrible, when the government of God watches over evil to make it come upon His people!

Daniel went to the very bottom. He viewed all the sins of his people in the light of God's holiness. He justified God, and owned that the judgment which had come on Jerusalem, Judah, Israel, kings, princes, and people was only what they righteously deserved. So it is a pattern confession for all time, for believers and for sinners alike. Only remember that grace is known even better now (see 1 John 2:1-2; 1:9). And if it is better known, that is one more reason to confess thoroughly and openly.

He fully justifies God. Then he adds this to his confession: they had not turned to Him in prayer, asking to be freed from their moral state and to understand His truth (v. 13). And is not this in large measure the reason why so few today understand God's truth — His Word? To most it seems a sealed book, passed from one to another with the admission that it cannot be understood. (See Isaiah 29:11-12.) But how could it be otherwise? Men — and Christian men at that — fail to cry to God for light. They are unwilling to turn from their worldly ways, or to break with their ungodly company. Here lies the real reason why most professing Christians today fail to understand the Scriptures.

Daniel was led captive when very young, and he had taken no part in the actual sin of Israel. There was therefore no ground for self-accusation. But the fact is, there is no such thing as a Christian who is separate from the interests of his fellow believers. This could not be… Since Christ identifies Himself with all that the people have done from the beginning, Daniel too can say, "We have sinned." He joins himself to them all, as one of the same people, though he had shared in none of these sins.

Has this solemn verse no voice for the people of God in our own day? The people of God are scattered and divided because of their sins. Yet how calmly, even contentedly, they look at this division! What is more, God's truth is little understood at the moment, and there is little desire to understand it. Oh that the state of God's people would stir us so deeply that we must make our prayer before the Lord our God, turn from our iniquities, and set our faces to understand the truth of God!

In the first place, Daniel, in his day, could look back over one thousand years of failure among the professing people of God. In his confession he goes back to the time when God brought Israel out of Egypt, and from that time he says, "We have sinned, we have done wickedly."

There was yet a further aggravation of their guilt which Daniel confesses. The people who had sinned and done so wickedly were the redeemed of the Lord. They were the people He had brought out of Egypt with a mighty hand. God had won renown through them, and now these same people had dishonoured Him by their sin. God's redeeming power on behalf of Israel had spread His fame among the nations. Israel's sin had made the Gentiles blaspheme His Name. So God vindicated His glory by driving Israel back into bondage.

"O Lord, according to all your righteous acts, let your anger and your wrath turn away from your city Jerusalem, your holy hill" (v. 16). The words of Daniel are quite touching. He deeply felt that it was the sin of the people that had brought down all the evil. Even so, he repeats, It is a question of Your name; he says nothing about the name of the people.

Daniel's faith outreaches their sin, and rests on God's faithfulness; so did that of Moses — only here he goes back to Moses and Egypt; Moses also goes back to the fathers.

Yet again he mentions another thing that makes their guilt worse. They had sinned and done wickedly against the very One who had redeemed them with a mighty hand out of the land of Egypt, and had won renown for Himself (v. 15). Daniel went to the very bottom. He viewed all the sins of his people in the light of God's holiness. He justified God, and owned that the judgment which had overtaken Jerusalem, Judah, Israel, kings, princes, and people was only their righteous due. It is therefore a pattern confession for all time, whether for saints or for sinners. We only need to remember that grace is now known even more fully. That is one more reason for thoroughness and openness in confession.

The things that mark true confession come clearly to light here. Daniel admits the evil without any excuse or softening. He owns that God's judgments and discipline are right. He asks God to grant deliverance according to His word, pleading "not… for our righteousness, but for your great mercy." Let us cultivate these excellent features in our day. We too can ask for nothing on the ground of merit, but only on the ground of mercy.

Daniel has confessed the sin and failure of God's people, and he has justified God in all His ways. Now he turns to prayer and pleads with Him. Surprising as we may find it, his first plea is the righteousness of God, and later the "great mercies" of God. He realises that mercy must rest on righteousness. In verse 14 he had already owned the "righteousness" of God in bringing all this sorrow on the people. Now he asks that in righteousness God would turn His anger and fury away from Jerusalem.

The prophet had a right to plead the Lord's righteousness. Jehovah had put His name in the sanctuary Solomon built. He had also accepted Solomon's prayer at its dedication. In this way He bound Himself to hear the prayers of His people when their sins had humbled them before Him. So in this plea Daniel counted on all that Jehovah was as revealed to Israel, and on His faithfulness to His own word. Nothing gives the soul so much courage as grasping God's righteousness, or sets it so completely free in God's presence.

The words of Daniel are quite touching. He felt deeply that the sin of the people had brought down all this evil. Still, he repeats: it is a question of Your name. He says nothing about the name of the people. He had truly felt their misery and sin, and he was humbled for it. But he insists on this point: Jerusalem is the city of God. As he confessed the sins of his fathers, he could not bear the thought of the city of God lying in ruins. Those sins were the cause, so God must forgive them before He can restore the city.

It is very touching to see the way Daniel uses the term "Your people." God had in fact written Lo-ammi ("not my people") on Israel. But faith would rebuild the link, and so it refuses that name of reproach.

God Himself becomes the motive. Faith sees the sins of the people. Yet the glory of God identifies itself with such a people, so faith can claim deliverance from the results of those sins. This very glory makes forgiveness necessary, for God has identified Himself in goodness with the people. And if God is to act for His name, He must deliver Jerusalem, for there was no other place on earth that bore His name.

Note that the prophet forgets himself. He makes not one single request for himself. He prays only for others. And even when he prays for them, he thinks not so much of their blessing, or relief from oppression, or even their return to the land. God's honour is uppermost in his thoughts.

The subjects of his supplication are the city, the holy mountain, the sanctuary and the people of God. He is not pleading for himself, his own interests, or the particular needs of his companions in captivity. His whole heart is taken up with the interests of God on earth. If only we knew more of the spirit of Daniel! If only our hearts were so filled with what is nearest and dearest to the heart of Christ that we rose above all personal and local needs. Then we could cry to God for His Church, His Name, His house and His people, confessing the common failure and feeling the common need.

Daniel has confessed the sin and failure of God's people. He has also justified God in all His ways. Now he prays in the form of a request. Surprisingly, as we might think, his first plea is the righteousness of God, and only later the "great mercy" of God. He realises that mercy must be based on righteousness. He had already owned the "righteousness" of God in bringing all this sorrow on this people (verse 14). Now he pleads that in righteousness God would turn His anger and fury away from Jerusalem.

The marks of true confession come to light here. Daniel admits the evil with no attempt to excuse it or play it down. He owns that God's judgments and discipline are right. Then he asks God to grant deliverance, according to His word, "not … because of our righteousness, but because of Your great mercy." Let us cultivate these excellent features in our day. We too can ask for nothing on the ground of merit, but only on the ground of mercy.

Daniel's confession is touching in the extreme. In it he owns the sin of his people as his own sin, even sins committed long before he was born. Since a youth he had been captive, though put at times in high office and standing in great favour. He had seen the Babylonian Empire crumble in a night. Now an old man, at the very end of his career, he shines never brighter than when on his knees in this chapter.

Next he brings up the sanctuary in all its ruin. He asks God to cause His face to shine on His sanctuary, and the ground of that request is "for the Lord's sake" — an appeal that could not be refused. In the next verse (18) the subject of his petition is "our desolations, and the city that is called by Your name." For this he urges yet another plea: "We do not present our pleas before You because of our righteousness, but because of Your great mercy."

It is striking that when he pleads for the city, the mountain, the sanctuary and the people, he does not see them in relation to himself or the nation. He sees them as belonging to God. He does not say our city, or our sanctuary, or our people, but "Your city," "Your holy mountain," "Your sanctuary," and "Your people." Rising above all the failure, he turns to God and pleads, "We are Yours."

"O my God, incline Your ear and hear … for we do not present our pleas before You because of our righteousness, but because of Your great mercy" (v. 18). "Delay not, for Your own sake, O my God, because Your city and Your people are called by Your name" (v. 19). Daniel makes God Himself the motive. The glory of God identifies itself with such a people. So faith that sees the sins of the people can still claim deliverance from the results of those sins. That very glory makes the forgiveness necessary, since God has identified Himself in goodness with the people… But if God is to act for His name, He must deliver Jerusalem. There was no other place on earth that bore His name.

These are the three pleas Daniel urges before the Lord — His righteousness, His own sake, and His mercies… Here was the secret of his strength. He cared most of all for the name of his God, and for God's interests in His sanctuary, His city, and His people. He has not one single thing to ask for himself, or even for his fellow captives… So this is a prayer worth studying often, by anyone who wants, in any measure, to share God's heart about the sad state of His church in the world.

These, then, are the three pleas Daniel urges before the Lord — His righteousness, His own sake, and His mercies. Having laid these out in His presence, he gathers up all his desires and pours them out in one last earnest entreaty: "O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive. O Lord, pay attention and act. Delay not, for your own sake, O my God, because your city and your people are called by your name." Here was the secret of his strength. He was concerned most of all for the name of his God, and for His interests in His sanctuary, His city, and His people.

Surprising as it may seem to us, his first plea is the righteousness of God, and later the "great mercies" of God. He realises that mercy must be based on righteousness. He had already agreed that God was righteous in bringing all this sorrow on this people (verse 14). Now he asks God, in that same righteousness, to turn His anger and fury away from Jerusalem.

God Himself is made the motive. Faith sees the sins of the people, and it sees them because of the glory of God — a glory that links itself with such a people. That faith can claim deliverance from the results of these sins. This very glory makes the forgiveness necessary, since God has linked Himself in goodness with the people... But if God is to act for His name, He must deliver Jerusalem, for there was no other place on earth that bore His name.

There is a wholesome flavour about this confession coming from such a devoted servant of the Lord. There is no "I thank you that I am not like other men." Such words would not fit in the mouth of a man like Daniel... He has not one word to say for himself or for his nation. But he has a great deal to say for God, and for the honour and glory of His holy Name. What he wants done for his nation by way of deliverance is for the Lord's sake.

Notice how he pleads for the city, the mountain, the sanctuary and the people. He does not see them as tied to himself or to the nation. He sees them as belonging to God. He does not say our city, or our sanctuary, or our people, but "your city," "your holy mountain," "your sanctuary," and "your people." Rising above all the failure, he turns to God and pleads, "We are yours."

Before Daniel had finished praying, the answer to his cries came — at least as far as God revealing His mind about the things Daniel had prayed for... Let us remind ourselves again that God's ear is always open to the prayers of His people. As John wrote, "If we ask anything according to His will, He hears us," and it was so in this case. Daniel was in the secret of God's mind, and God delighted in His servant's supplications. Every word went up before Him like sweet incense, for in truth they were His own desires, born in His servant's heart.

If only we knew more of the spirit of Daniel. If only our hearts were so filled with what is nearest and dearest to the heart of Christ that we could rise above all personal and local needs. Then we could cry to God for His Church, His Name, His house and His people, confessing the common failure and feeling the common need.

Daniel's enemies say, "We shall not find anything against this Daniel, except we find it against him concerning the law of his God." Yet this same Daniel says, "I was confessing my sin" (Dan. 6:5; 9:20). Man saw nothing to condemn. Daniel knew God's eye saw much. And, like the honest man that he was, he records with his own hand that he had sins to confess to God.

In the spirit of love, of patience, and of humiliation, we have always to take the place of those who have sinned. See Daniel. Daniel himself was righteous, yet he confesses the people's sin as his own, saying, "O Lord... we have sinned, and have committed iniquity... to us belongs confusion of face." The remnant should confess the sin and evil of those who have sinned. They had no share in the sin, but they must share its consequences, suffering in all the affliction with true sympathy and fellowship.

Notice that the self-forgetting prophet asks nothing at all for himself. He prays only for others. And even when he prays for them, he thinks not so much of their own blessing, or their relief from oppression, or even their return to the land. God's honour is uppermost in his thoughts. He speaks of the city as "your city," "your holy mountain," "your sanctuary that is desolate," and only then of "the people that is called by your name." Summing up his exercises, he ends with, "presenting my plea before the LORD my God for the holy hill of my God."

The evening oblation was the perpetual burnt offering. God appointed it to be presented morning and evening, without a break. The temple had been destroyed, so no one could offer it any longer. But Daniel stood before God in the value of that offering. That is, he identified himself in spirit with all its sweet fragrance, as what made him acceptable and made his prayers effective. So it is with our prayers now, when by faith and in the power of the Holy Spirit we rest completely on what Christ is, and on all the value of His sacrifice, before God.

He repeats twice, "while I was speaking"; he had not finished before Gabriel appeared and cut it short by delivering the prophecy that follows.

Daniel was in the secret of God's mind, and God delighted in His servant's prayers. Every word of them went up before Him like sweet incense. In truth, they were His own desires, which He had planted in His servant's heart.

Notice, all his thoughts are about Israel and about Jerusalem. The prophecy is not about Christianity, but about Israel. There is no understanding it, unless we hold this fast... Then, in verse 24, the prophecy begins. It has to do with Daniel's people — "upon your people." It speaks of a special period, marked out in connection with Israel's full deliverance.