Today’s selected reading continues in the Old Testament prophetic book of Daniel, and more specifically, begins with the first verse of the ninth chapter, and continues through to the ninth verse of the tenth chapter. This passage of Scripture begins with a marked and noticeable transition from the previous two chapters, as the previous two chapters unfolded during the first and third years of the reign of Belshazzar king of Babylon. When we come to the ninth chapter of the prophetic book of Daniel, we find what follows and is contained within it a description of the period of time in which the text unfolds. “In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the seed of the Medes, which was made king over the realm of theChaldeans; 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. And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek Bey prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes: and I prayed unto the Lord my God, and made my confession, and said” (Daniel 9:1-14). What helps set the context of what is found in the ninth chapter of this prophetic book is what we read in the sixth chapter. It is in the sixth chapter of this prophetic book that we find another reference—not only to Daniel, and not only to Darius the Mede, but also to Daniel praying before and unto his God. If you read the sixth chapter of the prophetic book of Daniel, you will find it to be a chapter that is centered upon the integrity and character of Daniel—an integrity that was equally matched, if not matched in greater measure by a consistent prayer life. I feel the need to emphatically declare that one cannot expect to walk upon the earth with character and integrity without and apart from a genuine, a fervent and consistent prayer life. We would love to separate integrity and character from prayer and humbling oneself before the Lord, yet the truth of the matter is that that simply isn’t the case. Consider if you will the text that is found in the sixth chapter of this powerful prophetic book.

“It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom an hundred and twenty princes, which should be over the whole kingdom; and over these three presidents; of whom Daniel was first: that the princes might give accounts unto them, and the king should have no damage. Then this Daniel was preferr3ed above the presidents and princes, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king thought to set him over the whole realm. Then the presidents and princes sought to find occasion against Daniel concerning the kingdom; but they could find none occasion nor fault; forasmuch as he was faithful, neither was there any error or fault found in him. Then said these men, We shall not find any occasion against this Daniel, except we find it against him concerning the law of his God. Then these presidents and princes assembled together to the king, and said thus unto him, King Darius, live for ever. All the presidents of the kingdom, the governors, and the princes, the counsellers, and the captains, have consulted together to establish a royal statute, and to make a firm decree, that whosoever shall ask a petition of any God or man for thirty days, save of thee, O king, he shall be cast into the den of lions. Now, O king, establish the decree, and sign the writing, that it be not changed, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which altered not. Wherefore king Darius signed the writing and the decree. Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being open in his chamber twoard Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime. Then these men assembled, and found Daniel praying and making supplication before his God. Then they came near, and spake before the king concerning the king’s decree; Hast thou not signed a decree, that every man that shall ask a petition of any God or man within thirty days, save of thee, O king, shall be cast into the den of lions? The king answered and said, The thing is true, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which altered not. Then answered they and said before the king. That Daniel, which is of the children of the captivity of Judah, regardeth not thee, O king, nor the decree that thou hast signed, but maketh his petition three times a day. Then the king when he heard these words was sore displeased with himself, and set his heart on Daniel to deliver him: and he laboured till the going down of the sun to deliver him” (Daniel 6:1-14).

I am convinced that if we are going to truly understand what takes place in the ninth chapter of the prophetic book of Daniel, it is necessary that we first turn and direct our attention to the sixth chapter. While the sixth chapter doesn’t describe at what point during the reign of Darius the Mede these events unfolded—we nonetheless learn that they did occur during the reign of the king. The events that unfolded within the context of the sixth chapter were centered upon the integrity and character of Daniel, and ultimately his commitment and devotion to prayer. What’s worth noting and pointing out when reading this passage of Scripture is that when we find Daniel praying we find him praying and giving thanks three times a day “as he did aforetime.” Please don’t lose sight of or miss the significance and importance of this phrase “as he did aforetime,” nor even the fact that Scripture records how Daniel went into his house, and with his windows open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God. Essentially, what we find within this passage is not only a consistent habit of prayer, but also a consistent daily habit of prayer. That which we find within this passage of Scripture is a powerful testimony to the prayer life of Daniel, for not only was he committed to daily prayer before the Lord each and every day, but he was also devoted to consistent prayer within each day. In other words, not only did Daniel pray every day, but he prayed three times a day before the Lord his God. In fact, Scripture records How three times a day he knelt upon his knees, and prayer, and gave thanks before his God in his chamber with his window open toward Jerusalem. When Daniel is discovered by those who sought to accuse him before the king, they found him “praying and making supplication before his God.” While it is true that we aren’t aware of what it was Daniel prayed before the Lord his God, that which we find in the ninth chapter most certainly sheds a tremendous deal of light upon it.

The context of the ninth chapter of the prophetic book of Daniel is centered upon the first year of the reign of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the seed of the Medes, which was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans. It was in the first year of the reign of Darius the Mede that 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. I feel the need to pause for a moment and comment on this particular revelation which Daniel received, for it was according to the writing of the prophet Jeremiah that Daniel understood that seventy years had been decreed for the desolations of Jerusalem. I have previously written that captivity has an expiration date, and that exile has an expiration date. It is and it was true that the Lord allowed His people to be carried away as captives into a strange and foreign land, but the Lord would not relegate his people to that foreign land. Although the Lord would permit His people to live as strangers and foreigners within the land of the Chaldeans, He would and could not leave them there. It was through the prophet Jeremiah the Lord revealed unto His people that although they would enter into captivity and exile, they would not remain in that place. What a powerful prophetic declaration this truly is, for although there might be men and women who right now might feel as though they are in captivity, or perhaps are very well in captivity, they were not destined to remain in that place. There are a number of men and women who have found themselves living as strangers and foreigners in a place of captivity, and they have grown discouraged and perhaps even sorrowful, angry and bitter while in that place. There are a number of men and women who right now are living and have been living in a place of captivity, and they have been wondering how, if and when they can or ever will escape and come forth. There is not a doubt in my mind that there were a number of men and women within the land of the Chaldeans who felt this way—felt as though they had been abandoned and forsaken by the Lord their God. One needs only journey to the Old Testament poetic book of the Psalms and they will discover what was the general mindset of many within the land of the Chaldeans:

“By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion. We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof. For there they that carried us away captive required of us a song; and they that wasted us required of us mirth, saying, Sin us one of the songs of Zion. How shall we sing the Lord’s song in a strange land? If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, Let my right hand forget her cunning. If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth; if I prefer not Jerusalem above my chief joy” (Psalm 137:1-6).

What I happen to find as so incredibly powerful about the ninth chapter of the prophetic book of Daniel is that it reveals how Daniel came to understand the length of time and duration of the captivity of the children of Israel. I am reminded of the words which Jeremiah the prophet wrote unto the children of Israel—words which are recorded for us in the twenty-ninth chapter of the prophetic book bearing his name: “Now these are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem unto the residue of the elders which were carried away captives, and to the priests, and to the prophets, and to all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had carried away captive from Jerusalem to Babylon; (After that JEconiah the king, and the queen, and eunuchs, the princes of Judah and Jerusalem, and the carpenters, and the smiths, were departed from Jerusalem;) by the hand of Elisha the son of Shaphan, and Gemariah the son of Hilkiah, (whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent unto Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon) saying, Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, unto all that are carried away captives whom I have caused to be carried away from Jerusalem unto Babylon; Build ye houses, and dwell in them; and plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them; Take ye wives, and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; that ye may be increased there, and not diminished. And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray unto the Lord for it: for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace. For thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; Let not your prophets and your diviners, that be in the midst of you, deceive you, neither hearken to your dreams which ye cause to be dreamed. For they prophetsy falsely unto you in my name: I have not sent them, saith the Lord. For thus saith the Lord, That after seventy years be accomplished at Babylon I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place. For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Then shall ye Call upon me and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart. And I will be found of you, saith the Lord: and I will turn away your captivity, and I will gather you from all the nations, and from all the places whither I have driven you, saith the Lord; and from all the places whither I have driven you, saith the Lord; and I will bring you again into the Place when I caused you to be carried away captive” (Jeremiah 29:1-14).

BUILD! DWELL! PLANT! BEGET! BE INCREASED! NOT DIMINISHED! These words are absolutely stunning and breathtaking when you truly take the time to consider the context in which they were written. These words weren’t written to those who were still living within the comfort and security of the land of the inheritance. These words were written “unto the residue of the elders which were carried away captives, and to the priests, and to the prophets, and to all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had carried away captive from Jerusalem to Babylon.” Through the prophet Jeremiah, the Lord was not only encouraging and instructing the people to build houses, and plant vineyards, and dwell in the land of the Chaldeans, but the Lord was also instructing them to be increased and not diminished. This is incredibly significant and important—especially when speaking to those among us who find themselves facing captivity and exile within their lives. These words are especially powerful to all those who find themselves sitting by the rivers of Babylon weeping, having hung their harps upon the willows thereof, and having it demanded of them to sing the songs of Zion—songs of freedom, deliverance and victory. There are a number of men and women who right now find themselves in a place of captivity and exile, and instead of increasing and being fruitful, they instead find themselves decreasing. What I read in the one-hundred and thirty-seventh chapter of the book of the Psalms is a people who were in danger of decreasing within the land of their captivity, for they had allowed discouragement, sorrow, anguish, and perhaps even bitterness and offense to creep into their hearts. They had hung their harps upon the willows thereof, and not only could not play those harps, but also could not sing the sons of Zion. It is unto these people the prophet Jeremiah was instructed to write the words that were contained within this letter, for the Lord of hosts sought to encourage those who were living as captives, as strangers, as foreigners and as exiles within a land that was not their own. It was in the context of seventy years being decreed for the captivity of the people of God the Lord not only encouraged them to increase and prosper within the land, but also declared unto them that He knew the plans He had for them—plans not to harm them, but to prosper them. How incredibly wonderful and powerful it is to how even in the midst of captivity and exile the people of God could increase and even prosper. It was never the intention and/or desire of the Lord to allow His people to decrease, diminish, and even be destroyed by and in the midst of their captivity.

WHAT WILL YOU DO WITH YOUR CAPTIVITY? WHAT WILL YOU DO IN THE MIDST OF YOUR CAPTIVITY? I happen to find the words we read in the twenty-ninth chapter of the prophetic book of Jeremiah as a powerful word of encouragement and instruction to those who had been carried away and removed from the land of their captivity and exile. Despite the fact the Lord permitted the children of Israel to be carried away as captives into the land of the Chaldeans and to remain their as strangers and foreigners, He was still intimately involved within and among them. It was the Lord who permitted them to be carried away as captives into the land of the Chaldeans, but the Lord never brought them there to remain, nor did He bring them there to be diminished and decreased. I DID NOT PERMIT YOU TO ENTER INTO CAPTIVITY TO REMAIN THERE! I DID NOT PERMIT YOU TO ENTER INTO CAPTIVITY TO BE DESTROYED BY IT! I DID PERMIT YOU TO ENTER INTO CAPTIVITY TO DIMINISH WITHIN IT! I DID NOT PERMIT YOU TO ENTER INTO CAPTIVITY TO BE OVERWHELMED AND OVERCOME BY IT! I know there would be those who would think, and perhaps even believe that captivity was intended on destroying them, and perhaps even decrease and diminish them. The truth of the matter, however, is that that simply is not the case. It would be through the prophet Jeremiah the Lord would declare unto those who had been and would be carried away as captives into the land of the Chaldeans that their captivity would have an expiration date. YOUR CAPTIVITY WASN’T MEANT TO LAST! YOUR CAPTIVITY WASN’T MEANT TO DESTROY YOU! What’s more, is that your captivity wasn’t meant to define who you are, but was only intended on serving as an instrument to develop you. YOUR CAPTIVITY WASN’T INTENDED ON DEFINING YOU BUT RATHER TO DEVELOP YOU! The question that must be asked is whether or not you will allow your captivity to define you, or whether you will allow it to develop you. Those who were living and dwelling as captives within the land of the Chaldeans had a choice to make—they could either allow their captivity to define them, and thus define their perception of themselves, and even of God; or they could allow their captivity to develop them. In other words, it is possible that captivity can bring forth transformation and increase, for it was the Lord of hosts who encouraged and instructed them to build, to plant, and to increase, and to never diminish. Please pay attention to this, for captivity was never, and is never, and will never be intended on diminishing, decreasing or destroying you.

If you journey to the twenty-fifth chapter of the same prophetic book you will discover a second reference concerning the captivity of the children of Israel, and the expiration date the Lord placed upon it. “The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, that was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; the which Jeremiah the prophet spake unto all the people of Judah, and to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying, From the thirteenth year of Josiah the son of Amon king of Judah, even unto this day, that is the three and twentieth year, the word of the Lord hath come unto me, and I have spoken unto you, rising early and speaking; but ye have not heartened. And the Lord hath sent unto you all his servants the prophets, rising early and sending them; but ye have not heartened, nor inclined your ear to hear. They said, Turn ye again now every one from his evil way, and form the evil of your doings, and dwell in the land that the Lord hath given unto you and to your fathers for ever and ever. And go not after other gods to serve them, and to worship them, and provoke me not to anger with the works of your hands; and I will do you no hurt. Yet ye have not harkened unto me, saith the Lord; that ye might provoke me to anger with the works of your hands to your own hurt. Therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts; Because ye have not heard my words, Behold, I will send and take all the families of the north, saith the Lord, and Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and will bring them against this land, and against the inhabitants thereof, and against all these nations round about, and will utterly destroy them, and make them an astonishment, and an hissing, and perpetual desolations. Moreover I will take from them the voice of mirth, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones, and the light of the candle. And this whole land shall be a defoliation, 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. And I will bring upon that land all my words which I have pronounced against it, even all that is written in this book, which Jeremiah hath prophesied against all the nations” (Jeremiah 25:1-3).

The ninth chapter of the prophetic book of daniel must be understood in light of the sixth chapter of the same book, for it is in the sixth chapter of the book that we find Daniel praying unto the Lord his God three times a day with his window open toward Jerusalem. Reading the ninth chapter of the prophetic boo of Daniel causes me to wonder what Daniel’s prayers were like as he knelt upon his knees three times a day. The words and language we find in the ninth chapter bring us face to face with a great amount of insight into the language Daniel released before and unto the Lord his God in prayer. What’s more, is that what we read in the ninth chapter was a direct response to the understanding of the expiration date of the captivity of the children of Israel. Thus the ninth chapter of this prophetic book of must not only be understood in light of what we read in the sixth chapter of the book, but also in light of what we read and what we find in the twenty-fifth and twenty-ninth chapters of the prophetic book of Daniel. It’s worth noting that after seventy years had been completed, not only would the Lord visit His people and bring them forth from their captivity and exile, but the Lord would also deal with their captors and those who invaded their inheritance. Directly connected and associated with their release and return was the overthrow of their captors, and the overthrow of the reign of those who removed them from their inheritance, and forced them to live as strangers and foreigners in a land that wasn’t their own. It would be during the reign of Belshazzar king of Babylon that the Lord’s judgment would come upon Babylon in response to their carrying away captive the children of Israel from their inheritance. Similarly, the Lord also death with Pharaoh king of Egypt during the days of Moses and Aaron, and caused the children of Israel to be brought forth from the midst of their slavery, bondage and oppression. When the Lord sought to rescue and redeem His people from their slavery and bondage, He visited Pharaoh whose heart was hardened, and who would not allow them to be released from the land. When them Lord sought to release and restore His people from their captivity and exile, He visited Himself upon Belshazzar and the Chaldeans, and allowed Belshazzar to be struck down, and the Chaldeans to be overthrown by the Medes and the Persians. When the time comes for you to be released from your captivity and exile, the Lord can, and the Lord will deal with your captors who have kept you captive all this time. Not only did the captivity of the children of Israel have an expiration date, but so also did the reign of their captors have an expiration date as well. We dare not and must not forget this reality, for it is absolutely powerful when seeking to understand any captivity you might be facing right now within your life.

When 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, he immediately set his face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes. Moreover, Daniel prayed unto the Lord his God, and made his confession before that same God. The more I read the words found within this particular chapter the more I am convinced that Daniel spent three times a day praying unto the Lord and offering his confession before Him in prayer and supplication. In fact, within this very chapter we find Daniel declaring unto the Lord, saying, “We have sinned, and have committed iniquity, and have done wickedly, and have rebelled, even by departing from thy precepts and from thy judgments: neither have we heartened unto thy servants the prophets, which spake in thy name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land” (Daniel 9: 5-6). Daniel would continue to make confession before the Lord of hosts, and would continue to confess the sins of his people who had transgressed the command of the Lord. Daniel recognized and understood that everything that happened unto the people of Israel and Judah was a direct response to their rebellion, their transgression and their disobedience before the Lord of hosts. It is true that Daniel understood by books the number of years that were decreed for the children of Israel to remain as captives and exiles in the land of the Chaldeans, and I can’t help but wonder if he didn’t spend time speaking unto those who remained within the land and revealing unto them the timeframe of their captivity. Were there those who were living as captives and exiles in the land of the Chaldeans who understood the timeframe of seventy years and who even spent their days counting the years until those years had been completed. I wonder how old Daniel, Hananiah, Azariah and Mishael were when they were carried away as captives and exiles into the land of the Chaldeans, and even how old Daniel was when Darius the Mede began to reign from Babylon in the land of the Chaldeans. Is it possible that Daniel not only took part in the captivity of the people of God, but also took part in the release, the return and the restoration of the children of Israel unto their land? It is absolutely certain that daniel understood the time frame of the captivity of the people of God, and of the desolations of Jerusalem, as well as the days of Babylon.

IT WAS THE SAME YEAR! I can’t help but think of the night Belshazzar conducted the banquet for a thousand of his lords, princes and wives, and how it was during that banquet the handwriting on the wall was manifested in their midst. The handwriting on the wall continued the words “Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin.” Beginning with the twenty-sixth verse we find Daniel proceeding to interpret the handwriting on the wall and revealing it unto Belshazzar and those present that evening: “This is the interpretation of the thing: MENE; God hath numbered thy kingdom, and finished it. TEKEL; Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting. PERES; Thy kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians” (Daniel 5:26-28). That very same night Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans was slain, and Darius the Median took the kingdom at the age of sixty-two. This is actually quite remarkable, for in the ninth chapter we find that Daniel understood by books the number of years that was decreed for the desolations of Jerusalem, and for the captivity of the people of God. Thus, it was in the same year that Belshazzar was slain, the kingdom of the Chaldeans and Babylonians was given unto Darius the Mede, and Darius began reigning as king over the entire land of the Chaldeans. It was in the same year that this notable transition took place that Daniel came to understand the times in which both he and his people were living. Daniel had witnessed Belshazzar being slain, and the Medes and Persians taking the kingdom of Babylon, and reigning in the place of the Chaldeans. It was during a time of transition that not only did Daniel understand the time frame and expiration date of the desolations of Jerusalem, but also of the captivity of the children of Israel. It was during that year Daniel prayed before and prayed unto the Lord his God concerning his people, for he recognized and understood that another powerful transition was about to take place—namely, that the captivity was about to draw to a close, and the children of Israel were about to return unto their own land. It was during this period of transition that Daniel sought the Lord on behalf of himself, and on behalf of his people. Thus just prior to their return, their release, and their restoration to the land, there was one who went before the Lord in intercession and supplication. What an incredibly powerful picture is painted within this passage of Scripture—not only concerning prayer and supplication before the Lord, not only concerning judgment upon the enemies and adversaries of the Lord, but also concerning the return, restoration and release of the people of God.