Rachel Workman: “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.” I love how Daniel says "We do not make requests
of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy". Without
Christ there is nothing righteous in us. I can't imagine a world without God's
mercy. I wish God would just touch a small part of my heart with forgiveness so
that I would be a more forgiving person.
____________________________________________________________________________________
John Burnett:
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. Israel sounds just like America. Israel will be restored and
their King will reign forever. Thankfully He is my King too.
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.
God calls for us to be humble and this is as good of an example as
you will find.
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.” I really love this prayer and see how it can apply
to our state, country and world. Recognizing God’s grace and mercy is
what saves and forgives our sin, Daniel gets it. Especially the part
where he asks God “do not delay”. I pray that God will not delay.
____________________________________________________________________________________
Krista Cook: “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.
- What
powerful words!
I
especially like verse 19 -
"Hear,
forgive, listen, act"-
simple
one word requests that carry with them such great meaning. Sometimes the
most powerful prayers can be the shortest of prayers said with a sincere heart.
____________________________________________________________________________________
Allen Michaels: 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. As Daniel prayed he remembered
that the Lord delivered Israel from Egypt. He remembers the Old Testament
standard of God’s power, the deliverance from Egypt. The New Testament standard
of God’s power is the resurrection of Jesus (Ephesians 1:19-20). 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. Deliverance of God's people shows God's
righteousness as an act of mercy. God has identified himself with Jerusalem,
the City of God ("your city") and the temple mount ("your holy
hill"). While Israel's sins have brought scorn to Jerusalem and Israel --
and to God, by association -- deliverance will erase that scorn.
17 “Now, our God,
hear the prayers and petitions of your servant. For your sake, (notice that Daniel points out that this is "for your
sake") Lord, look with favor on your desolate sanctuary. Daniel’s prayer was consumed with the glory of God, not
primarily with the benefit of man. His purpose in prayer was to see God’s work
accomplished and His cause glorified. 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. Daniel begged for
mercy, not for help, because he knew that his people deserved God’s wrath and
punishment. God sends his help, not because we deserve it, but because he wants
to show great mercy. If God were to refuse to help us because of our sin, how
could we possibly complain? He owes us nothing. But when he sends mercy when we
deserve punishment, how can we withhold our praise and thanksgiving? 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.”
It
would be a mistake to read the Bible as dry history and miss the deep personal
feelings. In this section, Daniel was crying out to the Lord. He had a deep
concern for his nation and his people. So often our prayers are without passion
and true compassion for others. Are we willing to pray by pouring out our deep
feelings to God?
____________________________________________________________________________________
Tomorrow’s reading for Daniel 9:20-27
24 “Seventy ‘sevens’[c] are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish[d] transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, 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 Jerusalem until the Anointed One,[f] the ruler, comes, there will be seven ‘sevens,’ and sixty-two ‘sevens.’ It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of trouble. 26 After the sixty-two ‘sevens,’ the Anointed One will be put to death 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: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed. 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 is poured out on him.
No comments:
Post a Comment