Daniel 9:17 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Now therefore, O our God, listen to the prayer of your servant and to his pleas for mercy, and for your own sake, O Lord, make your face to shine upon your sanctuary, which is desolate.

NIV: "Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant. For your sake, Lord, look with favor on your desolate sanctuary.

NASB: So now, our God, listen to the prayer of Your servant and to his pleas, and for Your sake, Lord, let Your face shine on Your desolate sanctuary.

CSB: Therefore, our God, hear the prayer and the petitions of your servant. Make your face shine on your desolate sanctuary for the Lord’s sake.

NLT: 'O our God, hear your servant’s prayer! Listen as I plead. For your own sake, Lord, smile again on your desolate sanctuary.

KJV: Now therefore, O our God, hear the prayer of thy servant, and his supplications, and cause thy face to shine upon thy sanctuary that is desolate, for the Lord's sake.

NKJV: Now therefore, our God, hear the prayer of Your servant, and his supplications, and for the Lord’s sake cause Your face to shine on Your sanctuary, which is desolate.

God warned His people that they would suffer terribly if they betrayed Him (Deuteronomy 28:15–24, 48–50; 29:25). Despite that advice, the people eventually turned away from God, and the threats became reality (2 Kings 17:1–8; 2 Chronicles 36:5–7; Jeremiah 25:7–11). At the same time, God promised that the terrible exile of Jewish people would not last forever (Jeremiah 29:10–14). This is what inspires Daniel to pray (Daniel 9:3–4), in response to the fall of Babylon and the words of the prophet Jeremiah (Daniel 9:1–2). He confesses the nation's sins (Daniel 9:5–14) and asks the Lord to make good on His promise of restoration (Daniel 9:15–16).

A servant is willing to accept his master's will, no matter what. To be sure, Daniel was willing to accept the Lord's answer, whether yes or no. He demonstrated this level of faith repeatedly during his many years in Babylon (Daniel 1:8; 6:10–13). Yet the servant may also ask the master for something. Daniel begs for mercy and includes his sincere belief that this answer to prayer would glorify God. Specifically, Daniel asked the Lord to shine upon His sanctuary: the temple in Jerusalem. Daniel longed for the restoration of the place where the people of Israel offered sacrifices and worshiped and where God met His people.

"Lifting up" one's face or causing it to shine meant to look with favor upon a person or object. For the Lord to withdraw His face would indicate His disfavor or punishment. The shining of the Lord's face on His people was one of the elements the Lord told Moses to direct Aaron and his sons to include in the blessing of the people (Numbers 6:22–26).

Daniel 9:1–19 records a prayer of confession on behalf of God's rebellious people; Daniel includes himself by using terms such as "us" and "we." After the fall of Babylon, Daniel sees evidence in the writings of Jeremiah that Israel's exile may be nearing an end. He prays for forgiveness and restoration, referring to God as righteous, merciful, and forgiving. This prayer leads to an appearance from the angel Gabriel. Gabriel will deliver a prophetic message about Israel's future.

Darius became king when Babylon fell to Medo-Persia. Daniel compared this to writings from Jeremiah, and realized the exile of Israel was almost over. As he prayed for God's intervention, the angel Gabriel arrived to provide further explanation. Gabriel's prophecy ties the arrival of an "anointed one," or "Messiah," or "Christ," to a moment in history followed by a set interval of time. This prediction includes dire moments for Israel and Jerusalem.

This chapter forms part of the prophetic section of Daniel's writing. After confessing the sins of both Israel and his own life, Daniel received a visit from the angel Gabriel. Gabriel revealed a message about Israel's then-future. This includes reference to the arrival of Christ and information about the still-future end times. Chapter 10 begins the last of Daniel's prophetic messages.

The book of Daniel contains famous Old Testament stories and prophecies. Daniel was taken from the Israelite people and made an advisor for a conquering empire. He demonstrates faithfulness and wisdom during many years serving in this role. Though Daniel does not deliver a public message, Jesus refers to him as a "prophet" (Matthew 24:15). The first portion of the book mostly describes Daniel's interpretations of dreams and other events. The second portion looks ahead to the end times. Daniel is classified in English Bibles as a "major" prophet, meaning the book is relatively long and the content has broad implications. The book of Revelation echoes and expands on many of the same themes.