Daniel 9:1-27

DANIEL—NOTE ON Daniel 9:1 While reading the book of Jeremiah 1:1 and realizing that the “seventy years” (v. Daniel 9:2) are almost over (see Jeremiah 29:10), Daniel turns to God in prayer, seeking mercy for Jerusalem. The angel Gabriel appears to him (Daniel 9:21) and explains that another period of 70 “sevens” is at hand for God’s people. The name Yahweh (represented by LORD, in small capital letters), not used elsewhere in Daniel 1:1, is used seven times in this chapter, emphasizing God’s covenantal relationship to his people. This vision occurs in Darius’s first year (539 B.C.), about 11 years after the one in ch. Daniel 8:1. Daniel appears to be over 80 years old. On the identity of Darius the Mede, see note on 5:30–31.