Daniel 9:1-17 has been the passage I’ve read each of the past 3 days, associated with my daily devotionals. (I would recommend you read the passage.) The author of my devotional book had some excellent points each of the 3 days relating to specific verses in that scripture passage. I may address the other 2 days at a later time, but the one for today really ministered to me.
First, some background: Keep in mind that Daniel was a young Jewish noble that was taken from Jerusalem into Babylonian exile by King Nebuchadnezzar and he remained faithful to God.
(1) Rather than bending to their captors, Daniel and 3 of his friends refused to eat the king’s rich food & wine – staying obedient to Jewish laws. Their overseer agreed to allow them to continue with their diet, when after 10 days they appeared even healthier than the others.
(2) Daniel had been gifted by God with the ability to interpret dreams & visions, so was called upon to interpret a dream for the king that no one else could. (This story is in Daniel 2 – note that the king refused to actually tell them the dream – he wanted them to tell him what the dream was, then interpret it. He wasn’t asking for much, was he?) God did reveal it to Daniel, but Daniel took no credit for the knowledge for himself. In 2:27-28 (MSG) it says: “Daniel answered the king, ‘No mere human can solve the king’s mystery, I don’t care who it is—no wise man, enchanter, magician, diviner. But there is a God in heaven who solves mysteries, and he has solved this one. He is letting King Nebuchadnezzar in on what is going to happen in the days ahead…’”
(3) When Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego (Daniel’s 3 friends) refused to worship a golden idol, they were thrown into a blazing furnace but emerged unharmed by divine protection. (Somehow, Daniel wasn’t caught up into that situation with them – some sources indicate Daniel may not have been present when the order to worship the idol was given, possibly away conducting business that his high position required. But I firmly believe that if he’d been around, he would’ve been caught up in that ordeal with his friends, because he was not timid about his relationship with his God.)
(4) In Daniel 6 we find he has been promoted to a high position – verses 1-3 (CEV): “Darius divided his kingdom into 120 states and placed a governor in charge of each one. In order to make sure that his government was run properly, Darius put three other officials in charge of the governors. One of these officials was Daniel. And he did his work so much better than the other governors and officials that the king decided to let him govern the whole kingdom.” In this familiar story we read about how his peers weren’t happy with that promotion, but had a hard time figuring out a way to get rid of him. Verse 5 (CEV) says: “Finally, they said to one another, ‘We will never be able to bring any charge against Daniel, unless it has to do with his religion.’” They knew of Daniel’s ritual of praying 3 times a day to his God, so secretly convinced the arrogant king to establish a law that everyone was to pray only to him for 30 days. The punishment for disobedience was to be thrown into a den of lions. Then in verse 10 (CEV): “Daniel heard about the law, but when he returned home, he went upstairs and prayed in front of the window that faced Jerusalem. In the same way that he had always done, he knelt down in prayer three times a day, giving thanks to God.” He refused to compromise his beliefs regardless of the threats. Of course, his conniving peers reported this to the king. He didn’t want to enforce the punishment on David, but had his back to the wall legally. The king even said to Daniel before having him tossed in with the lions: “‘You have been faithful to your God, and I pray that he will rescue you.’” (Daniel 6:16b CEV) He was thrown into the den with the lions and it was sealed shut. “At daybreak the king got up and ran to the pit. He was anxious and shouted, ‘Daniel, you were faithful and served your God. Was he able to save you from the lions?’” (Verses 19-20 CEV) Daniel replied to him (verse 22a CEV): “‘My God knew that I was innocent, and he sent an angel to keep the lions from eating me.’”
Daniel was faithful and obedient to God; humble; and, full of faith and peace. This all won over the king enough that he commanded everyone, everywhere to worship the God of Daniel. (See 6:25-27)
That brings me to Daniel 9 where he had discovered the writings of the prophet Jeremiah that told about how Jerusalem would lie in ruins for 70 years and why that happened. Verses 3-4a (CEV): “Then, to show my sorrow, I went without eating and dressed in sackcloth and sat in ashes. I confessed my sins and earnestly prayed to the Lord my God:” Then in verses 5-7 in his prayer, he repeatedly references “we” (which would, of course, include himself.) This young man that seemed to have lived such a virtuous life, was confessing his sins and including himself with everyone else (see verse 8) that had broken so many of God’s laws that it resulted in banishment from their homeland. He prayed in verse 15 (MSG): “‘Master, you are our God, for you delivered your people from the land of Egypt in a show of power—people are still talking about it! We confess that we have sinned, that we have lived bad lives.’”
Chris Tiegreen says this: “Even so, Daniel prayed for forgiveness. He knew the corporate nature of sin, that no one is only an individual.” (This made me think of the story in Joshua 7 where Achan disobeyed a command – taking plunder for himself and hiding it. Because of his hidden sin, the entire camp of Israel was held responsible. God withdrew His favor, which resulted in a shocking military defeat for Israel in their next battle. Everyone paid for the sin of one man.) Mr. Tiegreen continued: “The righteousness (or lack thereof) of any person has consequences in the community as a whole, and repentance on the part of the few can speak for the many. Daniel understood that God looks for representatives of a nation or a people. Just as God would later let His Son die on behalf of the world, Daniel let his own repentance plead for the exiles. He mourned the nation’s sin because he was part of the nation.
[In our] “Western culture…We emphasize individual rights to the point that we hardly see the effects of a few on society as a whole.
“According to God, we are the ones responsible. We are like society’s leaven or the salt of the earth, having both the opportunity and the obligation to live as priests before God. Both our sins and our faith can stand on the behalf of others. So when God is looking for repentance, we qualify. Even if we’re as righteous as Daniel.
“In fact, those who are righteous are more likely to repent for the nation than those who are not….Pray ‘we’ more often than ‘I’.”
Back to that story in Joshua, verse 7:1 (ESV) says: “But the people of Israel broke faith in regard to the devoted things, for Achan…took some of the devoted things. And the anger of the Lord burned against the people of Israel.” Achan took, but the entire community was blamed for breaking faith and suffered from the Lord’s anger. After they were defeated in their next battle, verse 6a (ESV) says: “Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell to the earth on his face before the ark of the Lord until the evening, he and the elders of Israel…” So as Mr. Tiegreen referenced – the prayers/repentance on the part of the few were for the many, as Joshua and the elders exemplified.
In the world today, there are innumerable “issues” that Christians should be aware of and deeply concerned about. We must determine to be the leaven – the salt – the light for our world. Yes, we certainly have to be responsible for our own personal sins; but, the sins of others around us can and will affect us all – consider Achan’s story. God looked at the depravity in the world and Isaiah 59:15b-16 (ERV) says: “The Lord looked and saw there was no justice. He did not like what he saw. He did not see anyone speak up for the people. He was shocked to see that no one stood up for them.” Where were the intercessors?
In Amos 7, God shows Amos two different visions revealing what He’s about to do to the sinful nation of Israel. But Amos intercedes both times, calling on God to forgive (vs. 2b) and to please stop (vs. 5) proclaiming that they would not survive. Because of Amos’ intercession, God relented (vss. 3 & 6). Christians are a nation of priests and when judgment is pronounced, it’s up to us to intervene by intercession.
We need to turn from just self (inward) to others (outward). In other words, I believe we need to become serious intercessors/advocates – intervening, mediating, praying for others/defending, supporting, pleading the cause of others; with special focus on our leaders. 1 Timothy 2:1-2 (VOICE): “So, first and foremost, I urge God’s people to pray. They should make their requests, petitions, and thanksgivings on behalf of all humanity. Teach them to pray for kings (or anyone in high places for that matter) so that we can lead quiet, peaceful lives—reverent, godly, and holy.”
It might require a different mindset, but I believe that our prayers need to be altered in order to be “We” more than “I”, as we repent for the abundance of sins all around us; and then believe that the mercy of God will turn things around for our homes/cities/states/nation/and the world at large.
Written by Karran Martin – September 3, 2026
[All bold emphasis is mine]
Karran's Korner 