Charles Spurgeon Commentary Daniel 9

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.

Daniel was himself a prophet, but he studied the inspired prophecies of Jeremiah. If such a man needed to read Scripture, how much more ought we! Whatever light we may suppose to dwell within us, we shall do well to walk by the mere sure word of prophecy.

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 certainly had rebelled less than any of his countrymen, and yet he is the first to make confession on their behalf. So, my brothers, when we have confessed our own sins and have found mercy, then we should begin to be intercessors for others. We should make confession for the sins of our families, for the sins of our city, for the sins of our country. If we no longer need to plead for salvation for ourselves because we have obtained it, let us give the full force of our prayers for the benefit of others.

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.

Therefore, discovering that the end of the captivity had nearly come, he set himself to plead mightily with God that now he would turn the hand of his love upon the destroyed and desolate city of Jerusalem. Notice that Daniel recollected the exact date when the captivity was to end; and when you and I have had a term set for any trial or chastisement from God, we ought to remember it, and record it among our special notes. I am afraid it is not always so.

We do not forget when a great sorrow overtook us; we can probably recollect when some dear one died; we remember the very day of the week and month when that happened; but are we equally tenacious of the memory of God's lovingkindness? I am afraid not; yet it should be so. We should be able to write about it as definitely as Daniel did when he said, In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the seed of the Medes; and then mention the time when we had some particularly choice communion with God, or when we were led to cry out in more than usually earnest prayer, or when we had a specially gracious answer from our God.

And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes;

I set my face unto the Lord God. This expression is full of meaning. When people resolutely set their faces to prayer, bending their whole mind that way, seeking God with their faces toward him, not in pretense but in deep and solemn earnestness, it is then that they succeed with their supplication.

Daniel speaks of prayer and supplications, by which we may understand that he prayed much and prayed often, setting apart a regular and considerable portion of his time for this holy exercise. He was a very busy man, for he was the first of the presidents over the one hundred and twenty princes; yet, despite that, or because of that, he would make time for communion with God.

And he was wise in doing so, for any portion of our time that is stolen from prayer is also stolen from ourselves. The old saying is true: "Prayer and provender hinder no man's journey."

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;

You must have noticed how, in prayer, holy men of old were accustomed to vary the names of God. Here, we find Daniel addressing him as the great and dreadful God; but that title was not chosen haphazardly, for the prophet felt that, as Jerusalem had remained so long a desolation, the terrible aspect of God's character was more conspicuous even than the tender one; yet he coupled with it that gracious truth, keeping the covenant and mercy to them that love him, and to them that keep his commandments.