Daniel 9

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1. 1In the 1st year of Darius son of Ahasuerus — a Mede by birth who had been made king over the Babylonian empire —
2. 2during that 1st year of his reign, I, Daniel, was studying the Scriptures and realized that the word of the LORD given to the prophet Jeremiah meant that Jerusalem would lie in ruins for 70 years.
3. 3So I turned to the Lord God in earnest prayer and pleading, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes.
4. 4I prayed to the LORD my God and confessed: "O Lord, you are a great and awesome God who keeps his covenant and shows mercy to those who love him and obey his commandments.
5. 5We have sinned and done wrong. We have acted wickedly and rebelled, turning away from your commands and your laws.
6. 6We refused to listen to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our leaders, our ancestors, and all the people of the land.
7. 7O LORD, righteousness belongs to you, but we are in confusion and shame, as it is today; this applies to the men of Judah, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and all of Israel, both those near and those far away in all the countries where you have driven them because of their trespass against you.
8. 8LORD, we are covered in shame — our kings, our leaders, and our ancestors — because we have sinned against you.
9. 9But mercy and forgiveness belong to the Lord our God, even though we have rebelled against him.
10. 10We have not obeyed the voice of the LORD our God or followed the laws he gave us through his servants the prophets.
11. 11All of Israel has broken your law and turned away, refusing to obey you. That is why the curse and the sworn judgment written in the law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured out on us — because we sinned against him.
12. 12He carried out the warnings he spoke against us and against the rulers who governed us, bringing a disaster on us so terrible that nothing like it has ever happened anywhere under heaven as what happened to Jerusalem.
13. 13Just as it is written in the law of Moses, all this evil has come upon us. Yet we have not made our prayer before the LORD our God, that we might turn from our iniquities and understand your truth.
14. 14So the LORD kept this disaster ready and brought it on us. The LORD our God is righteous in everything he does, and we simply did not obey him.
15. 15"Now, Lord our God, you brought your people out of Egypt with a mighty hand and made a name for yourself that endures to this day. We have sinned. We have done wrong.
16. 16LORD, because of all your righteous acts, I beg you — turn your anger and your fury away from Jerusalem, your city, your holy mountain. Because of our sins and the sins of our ancestors, Jerusalem and your people have become an object of mockery to everyone around us.
17. 17So now, our God, hear the prayer and the pleas of your servant. For your own sake, Lord, let your face shine on your ruined sanctuary.
18. 18O my God, listen and hear; open your eyes and see our desolations and the city that bears your name. We do not bring our requests to you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy.
19. 19Lord, hear us! Lord, forgive us! Lord, listen and act! Don't delay — for your own sake, my God — because your city and your people bear your name."
20. 20While I was still speaking, praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and pouring out my plea before the LORD my God on behalf of his holy mountain —
21. 21while I was speaking in prayer, the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening sacrifice.
22. 22He spoke to me and said, "Daniel, I have come right now to give you wisdom and understanding.
23. 23The moment you began to pray, a command was issued, and I have come to explain it to you, because you are deeply loved. So pay close attention and understand what this vision means.
24. 2470 weeks have been set apart for your people and your holy city. In that time, rebellion will be ended, sin will be brought to a close, atonement will be made for iniquity, everlasting righteousness will be established, vision and prophecy will be sealed up, and the Most Holy will be anointed.
25. 25Know this and understand it: from the time the command goes out to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Messiah, the Prince, arrives, there will be 7 weeks and 62 weeks. Jerusalem will be rebuilt with streets and walls, even during troubled times.
26. 26After sixty-two weeks, Messiah will be cut off, but not for himself. The people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. Its end will come with a flood, and desolations are decreed until the end of the war.
27. 27He will confirm the covenant with many for one week. In the middle of the week he will cause the sacrifice and the offering to stop, and for the spreading of abominations he will make it desolate, even until the end, and what is determined will be poured out on the desolate.