Daniel’s Prayer

In the first year of Darius(A) son of Xerxes[a](B) (a Mede by descent), who was made ruler over the Babylonian[b] kingdom— 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(C) years. So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting,(D) and in sackcloth and ashes.(E)

I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed:(F)

“Lord, the great and awesome God,(G) who keeps his covenant of love(H) with those who love him and keep his commandments, we have sinned(I) and done wrong.(J) We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away(K) from your commands and laws.(L) We have not listened(M) to your servants the prophets,(N) who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our ancestors,(O) and to all the people of the land.

“Lord, you are righteous,(P) but this day we are covered with shame(Q)—the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, both near and far, in all the countries where you have scattered(R) us because of our unfaithfulness(S) to you.(T) We and our kings, our princes and our ancestors are covered with shame, Lord, because we have sinned against you.(U) The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving,(V) even though we have rebelled against him;(W) 10 we have not obeyed the Lord our God or kept the laws he gave us through his servants the prophets.(X) 11 All Israel has transgressed(Y) your law(Z) and turned away, refusing to obey you.

“Therefore the curses(AA) and sworn judgments(AB) written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured out on us, because we have sinned(AC) against you. 12 You have fulfilled(AD) the words spoken against us and against our rulers by bringing on us great disaster.(AE) Under the whole heaven nothing has ever been done like(AF) what has been done to Jerusalem.(AG) 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(AH) our God by turning from our sins and giving attention to your truth.(AI) 14 The Lord did not hesitate to bring the disaster(AJ) on us, for the Lord our God is righteous in everything he does;(AK) yet we have not obeyed him.(AL)

15 “Now, Lord our God, who brought your people out of Egypt with a mighty hand(AM) and who made for yourself a name(AN) that endures to this day, we have sinned, we have done wrong. 16 Lord, in keeping with all your righteous acts,(AO) turn away(AP) your anger and your wrath(AQ) from Jerusalem,(AR) your city, your holy hill.(AS) Our sins and the iniquities of our ancestors have made Jerusalem and your people an object of scorn(AT) to all those around us.

17 “Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant. For your sake, Lord, look with favor(AU) on your desolate sanctuary. 18 Give ear,(AV) our God, and hear;(AW) open your eyes and see(AX) the desolation of the city that bears your Name.(AY) We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy.(AZ) 19 Lord, listen! Lord, forgive!(BA) Lord, hear and act! For your sake,(BB) my God, do not delay, because your city and your people bear your Name.”

The Seventy “Sevens”

20 While I was speaking and praying, confessing(BC) my sin and the sin of my people Israel and making my request to the Lord my God for his holy hill(BD) 21 while I was still in prayer, Gabriel,(BE) the man I had seen in the earlier vision, came to me in swift flight about the time of the evening sacrifice.(BF) 22 He instructed me and said to me, “Daniel, I have now come to give you insight and understanding.(BG) 23 As soon as you began to pray,(BH) a word went out, which I have come to tell you, for you are highly esteemed.(BI) Therefore, consider the word and understand the vision:(BJ)

24 “Seventy ‘sevens’[c] are decreed for your people and your holy city(BK) to finish[d] transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone(BL) for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness,(BM) to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the Most Holy Place.[e]

25 “Know and understand this: From the time the word goes out to restore and rebuild(BN) Jerusalem until the Anointed One,[f](BO) the ruler,(BP) comes, there will be seven ‘sevens,’ and sixty-two ‘sevens.’ It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of trouble.(BQ) 26 After the sixty-two ‘sevens,’ the Anointed One will be put to death(BR) and will have nothing.[g] The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood:(BS) War will continue until the end, and desolations(BT) have been decreed.(BU) 27 He will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven.’[h] In the middle of the ‘seven’[i] he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And at the temple[j] he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed(BV) is poured out on him.[k][l]

Daniel’s Vision of a Man

10 In the third year of Cyrus(BW) king of Persia, a revelation was given to Daniel (who was called Belteshazzar).(BX) Its message was true(BY) and it concerned a great war.[m] The understanding of the message came to him in a vision.

At that time I, Daniel, mourned(BZ) for three weeks. I ate no choice food; no meat or wine touched my lips;(CA) and I used no lotions at all until the three weeks were over.

On the twenty-fourth day of the first month, as I was standing on the bank(CB) of the great river, the Tigris,(CC) I looked up(CD) and there before me was a man dressed in linen,(CE) with a belt of fine gold(CF) from Uphaz around his waist. His body was like topaz,(CG) his face like lightning,(CH) his eyes like flaming torches,(CI) his arms and legs like the gleam of burnished bronze,(CJ) and his voice(CK) like the sound of a multitude.

I, Daniel, was the only one who saw the vision; those who were with me did not see it,(CL) but such terror overwhelmed them that they fled and hid themselves. So I was left alone,(CM) gazing at this great vision; I had no strength left,(CN) my face turned deathly pale(CO) and I was helpless.(CP) Then I heard him speaking, and as I listened to him, I fell into a deep sleep, my face to the ground.(CQ)

10 A hand touched me(CR) and set me trembling on my hands and knees.(CS) 11 He said, “Daniel, you who are highly esteemed,(CT) consider carefully the words I am about to speak to you, and stand up,(CU) for I have now been sent to you.” And when he said this to me, I stood up trembling.

12 Then he continued, “Do not be afraid,(CV) Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble(CW) yourself before your God, your words(CX) were heard, and I have come in response to them.(CY) 13 But the prince(CZ) of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days. Then Michael,(DA) one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was detained there with the king of Persia. 14 Now I have come to explain(DB) to you what will happen to your people in the future,(DC) for the vision concerns a time yet to come.(DD)

15 While he was saying this to me, I bowed with my face toward the ground and was speechless.(DE) 16 Then one who looked like a man[n] touched my lips, and I opened my mouth and began to speak.(DF) I said to the one standing before me, “I am overcome with anguish(DG) because of the vision, my lord, and I feel very weak. 17 How can I, your servant, talk with you, my lord? My strength is gone and I can hardly breathe.”(DH)

18 Again the one who looked like a man touched(DI) me and gave me strength.(DJ) 19 “Do not be afraid, you who are highly esteemed,”(DK) he said. “Peace!(DL) Be strong now; be strong.”(DM)

When he spoke to me, I was strengthened and said, “Speak, my lord, since you have given me strength.”(DN)

20 So he said, “Do you know why I have come to you? Soon I will return to fight against the prince of Persia, and when I go, the prince of Greece(DO) will come; 21 but first I will tell you what is written in the Book of Truth.(DP) (No one supports me against them except Michael,(DQ) your prince. 11 And in the first year of Darius(DR) the Mede, I took my stand to support and protect him.)

The Kings of the South and the North

“Now then, I tell you the truth:(DS) Three more kings will arise in Persia, and then a fourth, who will be far richer than all the others. When he has gained power by his wealth, he will stir up everyone against the kingdom of Greece.(DT) Then a mighty king will arise, who will rule with great power and do as he pleases.(DU) After he has arisen, his empire will be broken up and parceled out toward the four winds of heaven.(DV) It will not go to his descendants, nor will it have the power he exercised, because his empire will be uprooted(DW) and given to others.

“The king of the South will become strong, but one of his commanders will become even stronger than he and will rule his own kingdom with great power. After some years, they will become allies. The daughter of the king of the South will go to the king of the North to make an alliance, but she will not retain her power, and he and his power[o] will not last. In those days she will be betrayed, together with her royal escort and her father[p] and the one who supported her.

“One from her family line will arise to take her place. He will attack the forces of the king of the North(DX) and enter his fortress; he will fight against them and be victorious. He will also seize their gods,(DY) their metal images and their valuable articles of silver and gold and carry them off to Egypt.(DZ) For some years he will leave the king of the North alone. Then the king of the North will invade the realm of the king of the South but will retreat to his own country. 10 His sons will prepare for war and assemble a great army, which will sweep on like an irresistible flood(EA) and carry the battle as far as his fortress.

11 “Then the king of the South will march out in a rage and fight against the king of the North, who will raise a large army, but it will be defeated.(EB) 12 When the army is carried off, the king of the South will be filled with pride and will slaughter many thousands, yet he will not remain triumphant. 13 For the king of the North will muster another army, larger than the first; and after several years, he will advance with a huge army fully equipped.

14 “In those times many will rise against the king of the South. Those who are violent among your own people will rebel in fulfillment of the vision, but without success. 15 Then the king of the North will come and build up siege ramps(EC) and will capture a fortified city. The forces of the South will be powerless to resist; even their best troops will not have the strength to stand. 16 The invader will do as he pleases;(ED) no one will be able to stand against him.(EE) He will establish himself in the Beautiful Land and will have the power to destroy it.(EF) 17 He will determine to come with the might of his entire kingdom and will make an alliance with the king of the South. And he will give him a daughter in marriage in order to overthrow the kingdom, but his plans[q] will not succeed(EG) or help him. 18 Then he will turn his attention to the coastlands(EH) and will take many of them, but a commander will put an end to his insolence and will turn his insolence back on him.(EI) 19 After this, he will turn back toward the fortresses of his own country but will stumble and fall,(EJ) to be seen no more.(EK)

20 “His successor will send out a tax collector to maintain the royal splendor.(EL) In a few years, however, he will be destroyed, yet not in anger or in battle.

21 “He will be succeeded by a contemptible(EM) person who has not been given the honor of royalty.(EN) He will invade the kingdom when its people feel secure, and he will seize it through intrigue. 22 Then an overwhelming army will be swept away(EO) before him; both it and a prince of the covenant will be destroyed.(EP) 23 After coming to an agreement with him, he will act deceitfully,(EQ) and with only a few people he will rise to power. 24 When the richest provinces feel secure, he will invade them and will achieve what neither his fathers nor his forefathers did. He will distribute plunder, loot and wealth among his followers.(ER) He will plot the overthrow of fortresses—but only for a time.

25 “With a large army he will stir up his strength and courage against the king of the South. The king of the South will wage war with a large and very powerful army, but he will not be able to stand because of the plots devised against him. 26 Those who eat from the king’s provisions will try to destroy him; his army will be swept away, and many will fall in battle. 27 The two kings, with their hearts bent on evil,(ES) will sit at the same table and lie(ET) to each other, but to no avail, because an end will still come at the appointed time.(EU) 28 The king of the North will return to his own country with great wealth, but his heart will be set against the holy covenant. He will take action against it and then return to his own country.

29 “At the appointed time he will invade the South again, but this time the outcome will be different from what it was before. 30 Ships of the western coastlands(EV) will oppose him, and he will lose heart.(EW) Then he will turn back and vent his fury(EX) against the holy covenant. He will return and show favor to those who forsake the holy covenant.

31 “His armed forces will rise up to desecrate the temple fortress and will abolish the daily sacrifice.(EY) Then they will set up the abomination that causes desolation.(EZ) 32 With flattery he will corrupt those who have violated the covenant, but the people who know their God will firmly resist(FA) him.

33 “Those who are wise will instruct(FB) many, though for a time they will fall by the sword or be burned or captured or plundered.(FC) 34 When they fall, they will receive a little help, and many who are not sincere(FD) will join them. 35 Some of the wise will stumble, so that they may be refined,(FE) purified and made spotless until the time of the end, for it will still come at the appointed time.

The King Who Exalts Himself

36 “The king will do as he pleases. He will exalt and magnify himself(FF) above every god and will say unheard-of things(FG) against the God of gods.(FH) He will be successful until the time of wrath(FI) is completed, for what has been determined must take place.(FJ) 37 He will show no regard for the gods of his ancestors or for the one desired by women, nor will he regard any god, but will exalt himself above them all. 38 Instead of them, he will honor a god of fortresses; a god unknown to his ancestors he will honor with gold and silver, with precious stones and costly gifts. 39 He will attack the mightiest fortresses with the help of a foreign god and will greatly honor those who acknowledge him. He will make them rulers over many people and will distribute the land at a price.[r]

40 “At the time of the end the king of the South(FK) will engage him in battle, and the king of the North will storm(FL) out against him with chariots and cavalry and a great fleet of ships. He will invade many countries and sweep through them like a flood.(FM) 41 He will also invade the Beautiful Land.(FN) Many countries will fall, but Edom,(FO) Moab(FP) and the leaders of Ammon will be delivered from his hand. 42 He will extend his power over many countries; Egypt will not escape. 43 He will gain control of the treasures of gold and silver and all the riches of Egypt,(FQ) with the Libyans(FR) and Cushites[s] in submission. 44 But reports from the east and the north will alarm him, and he will set out in a great rage to destroy and annihilate many. 45 He will pitch his royal tents between the seas at[t] the beautiful holy mountain.(FS) Yet he will come to his end, and no one will help him.

The End Times

12 “At that time Michael,(FT) the great prince who protects your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress(FU) such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people—everyone whose name is found written in the book(FV)—will be delivered.(FW) Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake:(FX) some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt.(FY) Those who are wise[u](FZ) will shine(GA) like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness,(GB) like the stars for ever and ever.(GC) But you, Daniel, roll up and seal(GD) the words of the scroll until the time of the end.(GE) Many will go here and there(GF) to increase knowledge.”

Then I, Daniel, looked, and there before me stood two others, one on this bank of the river and one on the opposite bank.(GG) One of them said to the man clothed in linen,(GH) who was above the waters of the river, “How long will it be before these astonishing things are fulfilled?”(GI)

The man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, lifted his right hand(GJ) and his left hand toward heaven, and I heard him swear by him who lives forever,(GK) saying, “It will be for a time, times and half a time.[v](GL) When the power of the holy people(GM) has been finally broken, all these things will be completed.(GN)

I heard, but I did not understand. So I asked, “My lord, what will the outcome of all this be?”

He replied, “Go your way, Daniel, because the words are rolled up and sealed(GO) until the time of the end.(GP) 10 Many will be purified, made spotless and refined,(GQ) but the wicked will continue to be wicked.(GR) None of the wicked will understand, but those who are wise will understand.(GS)

11 “From the time that the daily sacrifice(GT) is abolished and the abomination that causes desolation(GU) is set up, there will be 1,290 days.(GV) 12 Blessed is the one who waits(GW) for and reaches the end of the 1,335 days.(GX)

13 “As for you, go your way till the end.(GY) You will rest,(GZ) and then at the end of the days you will rise to receive your allotted inheritance.(HA)

The word of the Lord that came(HB) to Hosea son of Beeri during the reigns of Uzziah,(HC) Jotham,(HD) Ahaz(HE) and Hezekiah,(HF) kings of Judah,(HG) and during the reign of Jeroboam(HH) son of Jehoash[w] king of Israel:(HI)

Hosea’s Wife and Children

When the Lord began to speak through Hosea, the Lord said to him, “Go, marry a promiscuous(HJ) woman and have children with her, for like an adulterous wife this land is guilty of unfaithfulness(HK) to the Lord.” So he married Gomer(HL) daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son.

Then the Lord said to Hosea, “Call him Jezreel,(HM) because I will soon punish the house of Jehu for the massacre at Jezreel, and I will put an end to the kingdom of Israel. In that day I will break Israel’s bow in the Valley of Jezreel.(HN)

Gomer(HO) conceived again and gave birth to a daughter. Then the Lord said to Hosea, “Call her Lo-Ruhamah (which means “not loved”),(HP) for I will no longer show love to Israel,(HQ) that I should at all forgive them. Yet I will show love to Judah; and I will save them—not by bow,(HR) sword or battle, or by horses and horsemen, but I, the Lord their God,(HS) will save them.”

After she had weaned Lo-Ruhamah,(HT) Gomer had another son. Then the Lord said, “Call him Lo-Ammi (which means “not my people”), for you are not my people, and I am not your God.[x](HU)

10 “Yet the Israelites will be like the sand on the seashore, which cannot be measured or counted.(HV) In the place where it was said to them, ‘You are not my people,’ they will be called ‘children of the living God.’(HW) 11 The people of Judah and the people of Israel will come together;(HX) they will appoint one leader(HY) and will come up out of the land,(HZ) for great will be the day of Jezreel.[y](IA)

[z]“Say of your brothers, ‘My people,’ and of your sisters, ‘My loved one.’(IB)

Israel Punished and Restored

“Rebuke your mother,(IC) rebuke her,
    for she is not my wife,
    and I am not her husband.
Let her remove the adulterous(ID) look from her face
    and the unfaithfulness from between her breasts.
Otherwise I will strip(IE) her naked
    and make her as bare as on the day she was born;(IF)
I will make her like a desert,(IG)
    turn her into a parched land,
    and slay her with thirst.
I will not show my love to her children,(IH)
    because they are the children of adultery.(II)
Their mother has been unfaithful
    and has conceived them in disgrace.
She said, ‘I will go after my lovers,(IJ)
    who give me my food and my water,
    my wool and my linen, my olive oil and my drink.’(IK)
Therefore I will block her path with thornbushes;
    I will wall her in so that she cannot find her way.(IL)
She will chase after her lovers but not catch them;
    she will look for them but not find them.(IM)
Then she will say,
    ‘I will go back to my husband(IN) as at first,(IO)
    for then I was better off(IP) than now.’
She has not acknowledged(IQ) that I was the one
    who gave her the grain, the new wine and oil,(IR)
who lavished on her the silver and gold(IS)
    which they used for Baal.(IT)

“Therefore I will take away my grain(IU) when it ripens,
    and my new wine(IV) when it is ready.
I will take back my wool and my linen,
    intended to cover her naked body.
10 So now I will expose(IW) her lewdness
    before the eyes of her lovers;(IX)
    no one will take her out of my hands.(IY)
11 I will stop(IZ) all her celebrations:(JA)
    her yearly festivals, her New Moons,
    her Sabbath days—all her appointed festivals.(JB)
12 I will ruin her vines(JC) and her fig trees,(JD)
    which she said were her pay from her lovers;(JE)
I will make them a thicket,(JF)
    and wild animals will devour them.(JG)
13 I will punish her for the days
    she burned incense(JH) to the Baals;(JI)
she decked herself with rings and jewelry,(JJ)
    and went after her lovers,(JK)
    but me she forgot,(JL)
declares the Lord.(JM)

14 “Therefore I am now going to allure her;
    I will lead her into the wilderness(JN)
    and speak tenderly to her.
15 There I will give her back her vineyards,
    and will make the Valley of Achor[aa](JO) a door of hope.
There she will respond[ab](JP) as in the days of her youth,(JQ)
    as in the day she came up out of Egypt.(JR)

16 “In that day,” declares the Lord,
    “you will call me ‘my husband’;(JS)
    you will no longer call me ‘my master.[ac]
17 I will remove the names of the Baals from her lips;(JT)
    no longer will their names be invoked.(JU)
18 In that day I will make a covenant for them
    with the beasts of the field, the birds in the sky
    and the creatures that move along the ground.(JV)
Bow and sword and battle
    I will abolish(JW) from the land,
    so that all may lie down in safety.(JX)
19 I will betroth(JY) you to me forever;
    I will betroth you in[ad] righteousness and justice,(JZ)
    in[ae] love and compassion.(KA)
20 I will betroth you in[af] faithfulness,
    and you will acknowledge(KB) the Lord.(KC)

21 “In that day I will respond,”
    declares the Lord
“I will respond(KD) to the skies,
    and they will respond to the earth;
22 and the earth will respond to the grain,
    the new wine and the olive oil,(KE)
    and they will respond to Jezreel.[ag](KF)
23 I will plant(KG) her for myself in the land;
    I will show my love to the one I called ‘Not my loved one.[ah](KH)
I will say to those called ‘Not my people,[ai]’ ‘You are my people’;(KI)
    and they will say, ‘You are my God.(KJ)’”

Footnotes

  1. Daniel 9:1 Hebrew Ahasuerus
  2. Daniel 9:1 Or Chaldean
  3. Daniel 9:24 Or ‘weeks’; also in verses 25 and 26
  4. Daniel 9:24 Or restrain
  5. Daniel 9:24 Or the most holy One
  6. Daniel 9:25 Or an anointed one; also in verse 26
  7. Daniel 9:26 Or death and will have no one; or death, but not for himself
  8. Daniel 9:27 Or ‘week’
  9. Daniel 9:27 Or ‘week’
  10. Daniel 9:27 Septuagint and Theodotion; Hebrew wing
  11. Daniel 9:27 Or it
  12. Daniel 9:27 Or And one who causes desolation will come upon the wing of the abominable temple, until the end that is decreed is poured out on the desolated city
  13. Daniel 10:1 Or true and burdensome
  14. Daniel 10:16 Most manuscripts of the Masoretic Text; one manuscript of the Masoretic Text, Dead Sea Scrolls and Septuagint Then something that looked like a human hand
  15. Daniel 11:6 Or offspring
  16. Daniel 11:6 Or child (see Vulgate and Syriac)
  17. Daniel 11:17 Or but she
  18. Daniel 11:39 Or land for a reward
  19. Daniel 11:43 That is, people from the upper Nile region
  20. Daniel 11:45 Or the sea and
  21. Daniel 12:3 Or who impart wisdom
  22. Daniel 12:7 Or a year, two years and half a year
  23. Hosea 1:1 Hebrew Joash, a variant of Jehoash
  24. Hosea 1:9 Or your I am
  25. Hosea 1:11 In Hebrew texts 1:10,11 is numbered 2:1,2.
  26. Hosea 2:1 In Hebrew texts 2:1-23 is numbered 2:3-25.
  27. Hosea 2:15 Achor means trouble.
  28. Hosea 2:15 Or sing
  29. Hosea 2:16 Hebrew baal
  30. Hosea 2:19 Or with
  31. Hosea 2:19 Or with
  32. Hosea 2:20 Or with
  33. Hosea 2:22 Jezreel means God plants.
  34. Hosea 2:23 Hebrew Lo-Ruhamah (see 1:6)
  35. Hosea 2:23 Hebrew Lo-Ammi (see 1:9)

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