Praying Daniel's Prayer
By Hildegard Schneider
We who pray in the Torahhouse honor the Father and the Son, the living Torah, for their blessed legislation, and for the Torah of Yeshua’s kingdom. This becomes more and more important and urgent as lawlessness takes over more and more of the world in the spirit of the anti-Messiah.
Let us look at Daniel’s prayer that was born out of his understanding of the covenant with YHWH.
Daniel was in exile in Babylon, and, because of his Bible study of the prophet Jeremiah, he understood that he was living in a time of upheaval in which the 70 years of Babylonian captivity was about to come to an end for his people.
Daniel knew that YHWH would fulfill his promise, as he had sought the LORD in the scriptures:
“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 9:2
What scripture did Daniel read? What scripture gave him the “heads up“ that the 70 years of exile were nearly over? It was Jeremiah 25:11-12:
“And this whole land shall be a desolation, and an astonishment; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years. And it shall come to pass, when seventy years are accomplished, that I will punish the king of Babylon, and that nation, saith the LORD, for their iniquity, and the land of the Chaldeans, and will make it perpetual desolations.” Jeremiah 25:11-12, KJV
With this understanding, he put his mind and heart to seek the LORD in prayer and to intercede for his people.
“And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes.” Daniel 9:3; KJV
It goes on to say from Daniel:
“And I prayed unto Adonai my Elohim, and made my confession, and said, O Adonai, the great and dreadful Elohim, 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 9,4-5, KJV
Daniel, though he certainly kept the covenant, identified with the sin of his people and prayed:
“We have sinned and were ungodly.”
And he prayed from the depths of an understanding of the covenant:
“You great and dreadful Elohim, keeping the covenant and mercy to them that keep his commandments.”
And Daniel, because of his deep understanding of the covenant, understood why the curses had come upon his people:
“Yea, all Israel have transgressed thy law, even by departing, that they might not obey thy voice; therefore the curse is poured upon us, and the oath that is written in the law of Moses the servant of Elohim, because we have sinned against him.” Daniel 9:11, KJV
While Daniel continued to pray in the depths of his heart and spirit, the angel Gabriel came. I would like to recall at this point that Daniel prayed for an understanding regarding the end of the 70 years of Babylonian captivity of his time.
“And he informed me, and talked with me, and said, O Daniel, I am now come forth to give thee skill and understanding. At the beginning of thy supplications the commandment came forth, and I am come to shew thee; for thou art greatly beloved: therefore understand the matter, and consider the vision.”
Daniel 9:22-23, KJV
Daniel received a reply from Gabriel that refers to the 70 years of Babylonian captivity, but it also was an answer about the future prophetic 70 weeks at the end of days.
We too are living in a tremendous period of upheaval, an epic shift. And we know from the studies of the Bible (Daniel, Revelation) that we will soon be facing this event:
“And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.” Daniel 9:27, KJV
I encourage all of us, like Daniel, to stand in the gap as intercessors and seek the LORD’s face concerning these matters. May YHVH give us understanding of the covenant, especially in the Torahhouse.
May we approach the courtroom of Heaven in humility and repentance on Yom Kippur. May Yeshua, our Chief Defender, advocate for us on our behalf. May God the Father, the Judge of the Universe, render his favorable decree upon each of us through the blood of the lamb. As YHVH continues to render His judgments upon the nations for sins and transgressions, may we each stay hidden under the robe of Yeshua’s righteousness. May this present age soon come to a conclusion, as a new day of the Messianic kingdom dawns, yetser harah!
PRAYER TARGETS
- May we each identify with the sin of our nation and confess and repent of that sin.
“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 9:5, KJV - As we read in Revelation, Yochanan wept because at first there was no one worthy to open the scroll with the seven seals. He understood that this present age must be brought to an end:
Now when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. Revelation 5:8.
Do we pray that Yeshua will open the seven seals?
- Let us pray that the scripture of Daniel 9:24 will soon be fullfilled:
“Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.” Daniel 9:24, KJV
These prayer targets should accompany us from now on until they are fulfilled!
May you all be abundantly blessed and have a rich and meaningful Yom Kippur and Sukkot!
Hildegard