Q1. Prophecy and Prayer

[Barbiemac]

Daniel 9:1-2) What encourages Daniel to seek God for the forgiveness and restoration of Israel to its homeland? What practice on Daniel's part leads him to pray?

He realized from the scriptures that Israel's desolation of 70 yrs was almost up. Daniel studied the scriptures daily.

[parkerslope]

What encourages Daniel to seek God for the forgiveness and restoration of Israel to its homeland?

The vision that Daniel saw was the destruction of many nations with Israel in the middle.  They were to suffer for their time of false worship and leaning on other nations instead of God Himself.

 

What practice on Daniel’s part leads him to pray? 

​Daniel prayed daily.  So it was not a hard decision to make to make intercession for the nation of Israel. 

[Old Jerry]

Daniel noticed that the seventy years that they would be captive was coming to an end and that he needed to ask God for the forgiveness and restoration of Israel to its homeland. Daniel’s practice of prayer lead him to pray again.

[linda bass]

What encourages Daniel to seek God for the forgiveness and restoration of Israel to its homeland is, God's promise that Judah's captivity would only last 70 years.

The practice on Daniel's part that leads him to pray is, reading and pondering the scriptures.

[nancyann]

I think what encouraged Daniel to seek God for forgiveness and for the restoration of Isreal to its Homeland was the studing he had done of the scriptures and also the visions he had seen.  He work out that the time of Isreals captivity was nearing an end and that to succeed in getting back to Isreal the people would have to ask God for forgiveness and also for help to get home.

 

Daniel prayed everyday, he prayed at least three timesa a day so it stands to reason that this practice  lead him to meditation and prayer.

[Moises Percu]

 What encourages Daniel to seek God for the forgiveness and restoration of Israel to its homeland? What practice on Daniel’s part leads him to pray?         

Daniel is encouraged to seek for the forgiveness when he sees that Jeremiah prophesy is about to be fullfilled. The reading of the Scriptures and the searching for answer in God lead Daniel to pray.

[elizabeth kerr]

I disagree with Mr. Wilson that the vision Daniel saw in  Chapter 8 does not have much application for us today; so, it does not require much interaction (= study? meditation about?) by us.  Since it concerns the distant future (8:19 and 26) from Daniel's time, its fulfillment is coming closer.  Today's MedoPersian Empire, Iran, has a huge army, an airforce, and a navy, with a large arsenal of weapons including rockets.  It has enemies in the west (the Sunni Muslims in Syria and Iraq, and the Kurds), in the north (the Sunni Muslims in Turkey), and in the south (the Sunni Muslims in Saudi Arabia and Egypt and those ruling Bahrain and other Gulf states).  Is it not possible that Iran will attack these enemies some day?

     Before the Roman Empire existed, Greeks colonized much of Asia Minor, today's Turkey, and ruled it when Cyrus conquered it and also later, when Alexander the Great defeated the Persian Empire and took it back.  Is it not possible that Turkey, formerly the site of many Greek colonies, is the goat that will eventually defeat the ram, Iran?

     We need to wait and watch.  Right now, Iran and Turkey seem to be adversaries in a worsening conflict.

 

Daniel was encouraged and impelled to pray for God to forgive Israel and Judah for their sins (for which He had punished them by sending Assyria [to Israel -- 2 Kings 17:6 and various prophets] and Babylon [to Judah -- 2 Kings 20:12-18, 25:1-30; 2 Chronicles 32:24-26, 36:1-21 and various prophets] to conquer them and take many of the people into exile as slaves) and to restore the people exiled from Judah to the land of Israel since the restoration of the people after 70 years of enslavement in Babylon was prophesied by God through the prophet Jeremiah (Jeremiah 25:11-12; 2 Chronciles 36:21), BY HIS READING and probably by his meditation on JEREMIAH's PROPHECY.

 

Daniel did what was natural or habitual for him:  He read the Scriptures and meditated on them (Daniel 9:2) and he prayed even when he was forbidden to pray to God (Daniel 6).

[Lionwolf]

Q1. (Daniel 9:1-2) What encourages Daniel to seek God for the forgiveness and restoration of Israel to its homeland? What practice on Daniel's part leads him to pray?

It seems Daniel's reading and study of Jeremiah renewed his awareness of the Jews return to Jerusalem. This awareness and continued study made him realize the time of this return was near. Daniel, as he always has, prays to God for help and understanding. Prayer is, after all, that part of Daniel we should all take from his example. He prayed to God not only in times of trouble but when times were good. He trusted God and had faith in God's plan for him. 

[Clelie]

Daniel read the scriptures and he read about the prophesy of Jeremiah on the ending of exile of Israel. 
Daniel was a man of prayer and lead him to pray concerning the release Of the exille of Israel. 

[Krissi]

What encourages Daniel to seek God for the forgiveness and restoration of Israel to its homeland? What practice on Daniel's part leads him to pray?

Habit. Daniel was a man of prayer. 

Visions. Daniel received visions from God directly and thus it makes sense that he would "talk to" the God who gave him these visions, asking for explanation, perhaps, and also how to respond/react.

Study. Daniel was a man who spent many hours in study of the scriptures which could be why God trusted him with the visions and horrible testing he had to endure. He had proven his faith, his reliable dependence on God.

[Krissi]

I find it inspiring that Daniel was so certain of his interpretation of scripture that he based his entire future (prayers and life direction) on it. He was convinced that God would restore Israel in a certain timeframe. So many times, prophetic words such as those of Jeremiah, are obscure and interpreted in many ways. Such interpretations differ. Well-meaning Christians argue over their "true" meaning. But Daniel was absolutely certain that his interpretation of Jeremiah was true and reliable. I wish I had such certainty about my own interpretation of biblical verses, prophetic or not.

The problem with God's promises is not "only" that they can be vague and open to various interpretations, but that our own minds cause us to desire certain outcomes. We tend to look for answers/promises that confirm what we want. In the case of Daniel, he wanted his own captivity to end. His interpretation of scripture was clouded by his desires and YET, still,  it was correct. God pierced through his human desires with the truth.

Daniel, as a Jew, had certain ingrained  and ritualized habits which he continued through his searching and pleading with God to deliver the Jews from captivity, within the timeframe that the prophecy indicated.