In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the seed of the Medes, which was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans; In the first year of his reign I Daniel understood by books the number of the years, whereof the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet, that he would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem. And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes: And I prayed unto the Lord my God, and made my confession, and said, O Lord, the great and dreadful God, keeping the covenant and mercy to them that love him, and to them that keep his commandments; We have sinned, and have committed iniquity, and have done wickedly, and have rebelled, even by departing from thy precepts and from thy judgments: Daniel 9:1-5
Although a captive, Daniel had been placed in a position where he served the King of Babylon, his successor and now was held in a high position even with the Medes. In part, due to his humility of heart. He had the heart of a servant—first and foremost toward God and then toward those whom God had placed over him. He did not fear them; because, he trusted God. He did not rebel, riot or try to incite discontent when the pagan King would declare edicts that went against God. Instead, Daniel would with a gentle voice say, “I will follow God first.” At risk of death, he refused to eat the foods that had been presented to idols. Knowing that he would be thrown into the Den of Lions for praying, he prayed anyway. He did not fear what man could do to him. He served God first with all his heart. Then, from that same heart of a servant he served those whom God had placed in authority over him.
Had Daniel previously read the books that included the letter from Jeremiah the prophet to the captives in Babylon? Jeremiah chapter 29:1 says,
“These are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem unto the residue of the elders which were carried away captives, and to the priests, and to the prophets and to all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had carried away captive from Jerusalem to Babylon.”
WHEN OPPRESSED, WHAT SHOULD WE PRAY?
In that letter, the people were given instructions in how to live while in exile. Those same lessons apply to us whenever we find ourselves in oppression. It applies to how we behave as citizens. It also applies to when we find ourselves in seasons of painful or difficult situations in this world.
Seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives and pray unto the Lord for it: for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace. Jeremiah 29:7
Pray for peace! Right now in our country there is so much turmoil. You cannot turn on the news without hearing of unrest, violence, and anger. What if every follower of Christ would set aside one hour each day to pray for peace in our nation!!
AWAKENED TO THE TRUTH OF GOD
So, back to the previous question. We are not told if Daniel had read these letters before. What we are told is that he did read them after the Medes had overthrown the Babylonian empire. So, Daniel may have gone in search of the letter from Jeremiah; but, that is pure speculation as to why at that moment he read it. All we know is that he did and in doing so discovered that God had said that the exile in Babylon was to last 70 years. At the time that Daniel was reading this, it was 67 years that they had been in exile. As Daniel was reading, he must have also read:
For thus saith the Lord, That after seventy years be accomplished at Babylon I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place. For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart. Jeremiah 29: 10-13
Daniel began to fervently pray for the nation of Israel. Encouraged by the promise of God, Daniel determined in his heart to call upon the Lord and to seek Him with all his heart—that God might be found. As Daniel bowed to pray once more we see his utter humility, as he pleaded for mercy for the nation and for himself. Look at the words of Daniel. “We have sinned, and have committed iniquity, and have done wickedly, and have rebelled, even by departing from thy precepts and from thy judgments” In fact, 4 times Daniel when referring to the sins of the nation he uses the word we. He recognized that first he must include his own heart as well as the people.
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR YOU AND ME?
Just as certain as this was a time in which Daniel recognized that God was about to fulfill the prophecy of returning Israel to Jerusalem; we also know that God will one day fulfill the end prophecy of Christ returning to gather His people. Until that day, we are called to pray for our nation and for the world. We are to remain light that pierces into the darkness. It begins with my confessing my sins, the selfish thoughts of my own heart, the desires that are unpleasing to God, and my failures. Then, I can plead for my nation. I must urgently pray for those who are lost that they might find Christ. My heart must bleed for the sorrows and pains of this world. It all begins with prayer. Won’t you join me!! Today is the day of salvation!
[tweetthis]A broken and contrite heart sees the sorrows of others more than their own[/tweetthis]
[bctt tweet=”When I consider eternity, then praying for the world becomes of greater priority than my comfort” username=”effiedarlene”]
Picture above is titled A Broken and Contrite Heart it is used by permission of the artist whose works can be found at RoninRon Custom Art or this particular piece can be found at http://fineartamerica.com/featured/broken-and-contrite-heart-ronald-barba.html
©Effie Darlene Barba, 2016
Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I have mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.