9:15,16
This verse sums up the situation. The Lord had brought the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt. He had made a name for Himself in Israel, and they still saw this as the defining event in their history. Conversely, the people had sinned and done wrong. “In keeping with all your righteous acts, turn away your anger and your wrath from Jerusalem”. There are (at least) two ways of looking at this. One is that because of the cross God is that if we confess our sins “He is righteous and just and will forgive our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). Of course, this only makes sense in the light of the cross. The other way is that Daniel is asking God to act in accordance with the way He acted when they were enslaved in Egypt. Currently the people were an object of shame, as was Jerusalem. This was going against God’s plans and purposes. So Daniel is calling on God to save Israel for His namesake. In order for God’s purposes to be fulfilled He has to make His people righteous, and this can only be done through the cross.
9:17-19
Daniel calls upon the Lord to hear his prayer, and for the Lord’s sake to look upon the “desolate sanctuary”. The emphasis here is not on the salvation of the people for their sake, but for God’s sake, so that His Name will no longer be besmirched.
The basis of Daniel’s prayer is not any righteousness of the people, but the mercy of God. “ Listen, forgive, hear and act!”. Note how different the basis and theme of this prayer is different from the approach that we so often take. We have a lot to learn from this prayer!
No comments:
Post a Comment