9:1–19 · Daniel’s prayer: In the first year of Persian rule (539/8 BC), Darius, son of Xerxes (Hebrew, Ahasuerus) and a Mede by descent, becomes the governor of Babylon (9:1). Daniel is drawn to meditate on the prophecy of Jeremiah, who was one of the prophets predicting the era of restoration, consisting of covenant renewal, restoration of the people to the land, and the continuous service of the priesthood in the temple (Jeremiah 30–34). Jeremiah also predicted that the Babylonian kingdom was to last seventy years (Jer. 25:11–12) and that subsequently Jerusalem would be restored. Daniel longs for the era of restoration, for the establishment of the kingdom of God and of the messianic kingdom. To this end he fasts and prays for the restoration of his people to the land.
Daniel’s prayer…