Click below to download the Cornerstone Connections leader’s guide and student lesson. This week’s resources also include two lesson plans and a discussion starter video which offer different ways of looking at the topic. Each lesson plan includes opening activities, scripture passages, discussion questions, and real-life applications.
When the world reveals trouble, tragedy, and rebellion, the certainty from God’s Word that He is still in control can bring comfort.
SCRIPTURE PASSAGES
Genesis 3:1-5, 14-15
Matthew 1:3-6, 16
Genesis 38:6-7, 13-26
Joshua 2:1-12
Ruth 4:18-20
Matthew 1:18-24
Daniel 8:14
Genesis 22:1-2
Daniel 9:20-27
OVERVIEW
Have you ever told a lie? Don’t answer that out loud. Everyone, more than likely, has told a lie at some point in their lives. The inclination to distort the truth when it serves us seems to be in our very DNA. What started out as a perfect world turned ugly when Adam and Eve disobeyed God. It may have seemed like a small thing when Eve believed the lie the serpent told her, but it was enough to derail the entire human race. Today’s lesson gives us an in-depth glimpse into the timing of the cure.
OPENING ACTIVITY
Supplies: Paper
Have each student find a piece of paper. After everyone has their paper, ask them to make a paper airplane. Here’s the fun part. You get to decide whether you want them to make one that goes straight, does loops, or goes the farthest. After everyone has completed their plane, count to three and have them throw them at the same time. You get to determine the winner.
QUESTIONS
TRANSITION
COVID-19 has disrupted all our lives. It has changed the way we do everything. Sin has that same effect. People have been looking for the cure to sin since Adam and Eve. Before sin there weren’t any problems. Sin caused strife, murder, and all other kinds of evil things. Our characters were marred so much that the only cure was the coming of the Messiah to bruise the head of the serpent. Young women throughout scripture hoped and prayed that they might be the one to be the mother of the Messiah. In today’s lesson, we will look at some of the unlikely women who were mentioned by name as part of the lineage of the Messiah and see that Daniel foretold when the Messiah would come.
BIBLE STUDY GUIDE
It’s been mentioned before that the Bible isn’t all children’s reading material. It’s filled with wars, rapes, murders, adultery, and lots of other difficult topics. However, God put these stories into scripture for a reason. They not only show the depravity of humanity, but they also show that God can use anyone to do good things. In addition, these examples demonstrate how God works in the lives of people to redeem them.
Let’s start at the beginning with the problem that led to the coming of the Messiah.
Read Genesis 3:1-5.
1Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”
2 The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3 but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’ ”
4 “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. 5 “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
QUESTIONS
Read Genesis 3:14-15.
14 So the Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, Cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. 15 And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”
QUESTIONS
Jesus is the Messiah. Matthew chapter 1 gives us an in-depth view of the genealogy of the Messiah. In scripture, this is usually traced by looking at the list of men who make up the family tree, but the family tree of the Messiah is different. Matthew deviates from this by giving us the names of five woman who played important roles. Here are their names and stories.
Read Matthew 1:3-6 & Matthew 1:16.
3 Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar, Perez the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram, 4 Ram the father of Amminadab, Amminadab the father of Nahshon,
Nahshon the father of Salmon, 5 Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab, Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth, Obed the father of Jesse, 6 and Jesse the father of King David. David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah’s wife . . .
16and Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and Mary was the mother of Jesus who is called the Messiah.
First woman mentioned in the line of David—Tamar
Read Genesis 38:6-7.
6 Judah got a wife for Er, his firstborn, and her name was Tamar. 7 But Er, Judah’s firstborn, was wicked in the Lord’s sight; so the Lord put him to death.
Who was Tamar? Tamar was upset because her rights were not being properly fulfilled. These rights were important because she was supposed to marry her husband’s brother in order to carry on the family line and provide a way to transfer property, because typically property could only be passed down through the male offspring. Over and over, she was denied her rights, so she devised a plan to make sure her family line continued.
Read Genesis 38:13-26.
13 When Tamar was told, “Your father-in-law is on his way to Timnah to shear his sheep,” 14 she took off her widow’s clothes, covered herself with a veil to disguise herself, and then sat down at the entrance to Enaim, which is on the road to Timnah. For she saw that, though Shelah had now grown up, she had not been given to him as his wife.
15 When Judah saw her, he thought she was a prostitute, for she had covered her face. 16 Not realizing that she was his daughter-in-law, he went over to her by the roadside and said, “Come now, let me sleep with you.”
“And what will you give me to sleep with you?” she asked.
17 “I’ll send you a young goat from my flock,” he said.
“Will you give me something as a pledge until you send it?” she asked.
18 He said, “What pledge should I give you?”
“Your seal and its cord, and the staff in your hand,” she answered. So he gave them to her and slept with her, and she became pregnant by him. 19 After she left, she took off her veil and put on her widow’s clothes again.
20 Meanwhile Judah sent the young goat by his friend the Adullamite in order to get his pledge back from the woman, but he did not find her. 21 He asked the men who lived there, “Where is the shrine prostitute who was beside the road at Enaim?”
“There hasn’t been any shrine prostitute here,” they said.
22 So he went back to Judah and said, “I didn’t find her. Besides, the men who lived there said, ‘There hasn’t been any shrine prostitute here.’ ”
23 Then Judah said, “Let her keep what she has, or we will become a laughingstock. After all, I did send her this young goat, but you didn’t find her.”
24 About three months later Judah was told, “Your daughter-in-law Tamar is guilty of prostitution, and as a result she is now pregnant.”
Judah said, “Bring her out and have her burned to death!”
25 As she was being brought out, she sent a message to her father-in-law. “I am pregnant by the man who owns these,” she said. And she added, “See if you recognize whose seal and cord and staff these are.”
26 Judah recognized them and said, “She is more righteous than I, since I wouldn’t give her to my son Shelah.” And he did not sleep with her again.
QUESTION
Second woman mentioned in the line of David—Rahab
Read Joshua 2:1-12.
1Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim. “Go, look over the land,” he said, “especially Jericho.” So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there.
2 The king of Jericho was told, “Look, some of the Israelites have come here tonight to spy out the land.” 3 So the king of Jericho sent this message to Rahab: “Bring out the men who came to you and entered your house, because they have come to spy out the whole land.”
4 But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. She said, “Yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they had come from. 5 At dusk, when it was time to close the city gate, they left. I don’t know which way they went. Go after them quickly. You may catch up with them.” 6 (But she had taken them up to the roof and hidden them under the stalks of flax she had laid out on the roof.) 7 So the men set out in pursuit of the spies on the road that leads to the fords of the Jordan, and as soon as the pursuers had gone out, the gate was shut.
8 Before the spies lay down for the night, she went up on the roof 9 and said to them, “I know that the Lord has given you this land and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you. 10 We have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed. 11 When we heard of it, our hearts melted in fear and everyone’s courage failed because of you, for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below.
12 “Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that you will show kindness to my family, because I have shown kindness to you.
QUESTIONS
Third woman mentioned in the line of David—Ruth
Read Ruth 1:1-6.
1In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land. So a man from Bethlehem in Judah, together with his wife and two sons, went to live for a while in the country of Moab. 2 The man’s name was Elimelek, his wife’s name was Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Kilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem, Judah. And they went to Moab and lived there.
3 Now Elimelek, Naomi’s husband, died, and she was left with her two sons. 4 They married Moabite women, one named Orpah and the other Ruth. After they had lived there about ten years, 5 both Mahlon and Kilion also died, and Naomi was left without her two sons and her husband.
6 When Naomi heard in Moab that the Lord had come to the aid of his people by providing food for them, she and her daughters-in-law prepared to return home from there.
Read Ruth 4:9-16.
9 Then Boaz announced to the elders and all the people, “Today you are witnesses that I have bought from Naomi all the property of Elimelek, Kilion and Mahlon. 10 I have also acquired Ruth the Moabite, Mahlon’s widow, as my wife, in order to maintain the name of the dead with his property, so that his name will not disappear from among his family or from his hometown. Today you are witnesses!”
11 Then the elders and all the people at the gate said, “We are witnesses. May the Lord make the woman who is coming into your home like Rachel and Leah, who together built up the family of Israel. May you have standing in Ephrathah and be famous in Bethlehem. 12 Through the offspring the Lord gives you by this young woman, may your family be like that of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah.”
13 So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife. When he made love to her, the Lord enabled her to conceive, and she gave birth to a son. 14 The women said to Naomi: “Praise be to the Lord, who this day has not left you without a guardian-redeemer. May he become famous throughout Israel! 15 He will renew your life and sustain you in your old age. For your daughter-in-law, who loves you and who is better to you than seven sons, has given him birth.”
16 Then Naomi took the child in her arms and cared for him.
QUESTIONS
Fourth woman mentioned in the lineage of Jesus—Bathsheba
Read 2 Samuel 11:1-5.
1In the spring, at the time when kings go off to war, David sent Joab out with the king’s men and the whole Israelite army. They destroyed the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah. But David remained in Jerusalem.
2 One evening David got up from his bed and walked around on the roof of the palace. From the roof he saw a woman bathing. The woman was very beautiful, 3 and David sent someone to find out about her. The man said, “She is Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite.” 4 Then David sent messengers to get her. She came to him, and he slept with her. (Now she was purifying herself from her monthly uncleanness.) Then she went back home. 5 The woman conceived and sent word to David, saying, “I am pregnant.”
QUESTIONS
After Uriah was killed in battle, David sent for Bathsheba and married her. Their first son died. But the second son, the first one to live, became King Solomon.
Fifth woman mentioned in the lineage of Jesus—Mary
Read Matthew 1:18-24.
18 This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. 19 Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.
20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”
22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).
24 When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. 25 But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.
QUESTIONS
It may seem a little unusual to take a look at the women of the line of David and Jesus in this lesson about Daniel. However, each of these women had something in common—they weren’t from the elite class of people and probably none of them would have dared to dream that they would have any role to play in the coming of the Messiah. It just goes to show that God can use anyone who is willing to let Him change their life.
Read Daniel 9:20-23.
20 While I was speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel and making my request to the Lord my God for his holy hill—21 while I was still in prayer, Gabriel, the man I had seen in the earlier vision, came to me in swift flight about the time of the evening sacrifice. 22 He instructed me and said to me, “Daniel, I have now come to give you insight and understanding. 23 As soon as you began to pray, a word went out, which I have come to tell you, for you are highly esteemed. Therefore, consider the word and understand the vision.
QUESTIONS
Read Genesis 22:1-12.
1Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham!”
“Here I am,” he replied.
2 Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.”
3 Early the next morning Abraham got up and loaded his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about. 4 On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 5 He said to his servants, “Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you.”
6 Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together, 7 Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, “Father?”
“Yes, my son?” Abraham replied.
“The fire and wood are here,” Isaac said, “but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?”
8 Abraham answered, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them went on together.
9 When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. 10 Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. 11 But the angel of the Lord called out to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!”
“Here I am,” he replied.
12 “Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.”
This story in Genesis 22 is not just about testing Abraham’s loyalty. It’s a story about the coming of the Lamb of God. There is so much symbolism in this story. Verse 8 says, “God will provide a Lamb.” Verse 12 says, “Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.” Both of these are references to the fact that the coming Messiah would be God’s only Son, the Lamb of God. It’s a beautiful story about the willingness of a Father to give up His only son. God the Father willingly gave up His son so that all who believe in Him would live (John 3:16).
Read Daniel 8:14.
14 He said to me, “It will take 2,300 evenings and mornings; then the sanctuary will be reconsecrated.”
Read Daniel 9:24-27.
24 “Seventy ‘sevens’ are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the Most Holy Place.
25 “Know and understand this: From the time the word goes out to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One, the ruler, comes, there will be seven ‘sevens,’ and sixty-two ‘sevens.’ It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of trouble. 26 After the sixty-two ‘sevens,’ the Anointed One will be put to death and will have nothing. The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed. 27 He will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven.’ In the middle of the ‘seven’ he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And at the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him.”
Here’s a chart that helps us visualize the narrative described in Daniel 8 and 9.
There are so many pieces of information here that one should take the time to study because of their significance in the story of the Messiah and the redemption of His people.
If you want to understand more about this prophecy the Adventist Review has a great article by Clifford Goldstein that you could check out: www.adventistreview.org/the-70-weeks-made-simple
APPLICATION
Why the review of these stories and prophecies that made a prophet ill? How would you feel if the Bible was only full of stories about perfect people who always did what was right? Remember, in the introduction, I asked if you had ever told a lie. All of us have made mistakes! By allowing people with flaws to be part of the genealogy of Jesus, God is attempting to let us know that He can take what the world considers to be flawed and turn it into a masterpiece. You are loved by God—no matter what! God can use anyone who is willing. I love the story of Salvation because it gives me hope. Hope that God can use me and hope that someday Jesus is going to come and fix what humans messed up.
FOLLOW UP
SCRIPTURE PASSAGES
Daniel 8:1-27
Daniel 9:1-27
1 Corinthians 3:16
LEADER’S NOTE
For a Relational Bible Study (RBS) you’ll want to get into the Scripture passage and encourage the youth to imagine participating in the story while it’s happening. Then you will be able to better apply it to your own situation today.
You will need to ask God for the Holy Spirit to be present as your small group discusses the questions (no more than 3-6 people in a group is recommended). Start with the opening question. It is a personal question and the answer is unique for each individual. There is no right answer and nobody is an expert here, so don’t be surprised when you hear different responses. You are depending on the Holy Spirit to be present and to speak through your group. Say what God prompts you to say, and listen to what others share.
Take turns reading the chapter out loud. Follow that with giving the students some time to individually mark their responses to the questions (a PDF version of the handout is available as a download). This gives each person a starting point for responding when you start to share as a group. Next, begin the discussion by asking the students to share what they marked and why on each question as you work your way through. Feel free to take more time on some questions than others as discussion warrants.
Encourage each person in the group to apply what is discussed to their personal lives and to share with the group what they believe God wants them to do. Then ask them to pray that God will help each of them to follow through in doing so. Remind them to expect that God will show them ways to live out the message of this passage in the coming week, and that they are free to ask others in the group to help hold them accountable.
OVERVIEW
With two chapters from the book of Daniel in just one lesson, you’ll have to pick and choose what you want to cover.
Daniel 8 starts with another vision given to Daniel just two years after the vision he recorded in the previous chapter. This time instead of beasts, he saw a ram and goat, which are both sacrificial animals used in the sanctuary services. The sanctuary receives special attention in Daniel 8. (The language switches from Aramaic back to Hebrew with the start of chapter 8.) Keep in mind that the sanctuary represented more than a church building. The sanctuary was God’s physical presence among His people. Recall God’s words to Moses in Exodus 25:8 (KJV), “Make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them.” But when Daniel received this vision, decades already had passed since the sanctuary in Jerusalem had been destroyed.
This vision would have done little to put Daniel at ease. A little horn took center stage after the ram and goat. This “little” horn expanded until it seemed to take over the entire earth. Furthermore, it destroyed the sanctuary and its services, throwing truth to the ground. Daniel heard a holy one ask the time and event question, “How long for this vision to be fulfilled?” (Daniel 8:13).
The enigmatic response has held significance for Seventh-day Adventists since our denomination’s birth in the 19th century: “Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed” (Daniel 8:14, KJV). Seventh-day Adventist identity, 1844, and “The Great Disappointment” all coalesce in this one verse. Most Adventists today are unable to decipher this passage. The Cornerstone Connections lesson for this week has a few technical pieces of information. If you would like a longer explanation, consider these sources:
And that’s just chapter 8. This lesson also includes chapter 9. The largest part of chapter 9 presents an amazing intercessory prayer by Daniel for God’s people to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the sanctuary, just as the prophecy in Jeremiah had predicted (Jeremiah 25:11-12 and 29:10). This prayer, by itself, could be the entire lesson!
During Daniel’s prayer, Gabriel interrupted to give Daniel understanding about the vision. But Daniel wasn’t having a vision. There are multiple reasons to believe this is a further explanation of the most recent vision Daniel recorded—more about the vision from Daniel 8. What Gabriel explained in Daniel 9 is known as the “70 weeks” prophecy. Complete books, with a variety of interpretations, have been written about the four verses of Daniel 9:24-27. Consult the previous books mentioned and simply read the next chapter and you’ll have plenty of content for Daniel 9.
For this RBS (Relational Bible Study), we’ll look at the two chapters, Daniel 8-9, with a view for how to live right now, this week, in light of what Daniel recorded.
Dream On
What’s a dream you’ve had that made no sense to you?
Read Daniel 8:1-9:27.
Chapter 8 - Daniel’s Vision of a Ram and a Goat
1 In the third year of King Belshazzar’s reign, I, Daniel, had a vision, after the one that had already appeared to me. 2 In my vision I saw myself in the citadel of Susa in the province of Elam; in the vision I was beside the Ulai Canal. 3 I looked up, and there before me was a ram with two horns, standing beside the canal, and the horns were long. One of the horns was longer than the other but grew up later. 4 I watched the ram as it charged toward the west and the north and the south. No animal could stand against it, and none could rescue from its power. It did as it pleased and became great.
5 As I was thinking about this, suddenly a goat with a prominent horn between its eyes came from the west, crossing the whole earth without touching the ground. 6 It came toward the two-horned ram I had seen standing beside the canal and charged at it in great rage. 7 I saw it attack the ram furiously, striking the ram and shattering its two horns. The ram was powerless to stand against it; the goat knocked it to the ground and trampled on it, and none could rescue the ram from its power. 8 The goat became very great, but at the height of its power the large horn was broken off, and in its place four prominent horns grew up toward the four winds of heaven.
9 Out of one of them came another horn, which started small but grew in power to the south and to the east and toward the Beautiful Land. 10 It grew until it reached the host of the heavens, and it threw some of the starry host down to the earth and trampled on them. 11 It set itself up to be as great as the commander of the army of the Lord; it took away the daily sacrifice from the Lord, and his sanctuary was thrown down. 12 Because of rebellion, the Lord’s people and the daily sacrifice were given over to it. It prospered in everything it did, and truth was thrown to the ground.
13 Then I heard a holy one speaking, and another holy one said to him, “How long will it take for the vision to be fulfilled—the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, the rebellion that causes desolation, the surrender of the sanctuary and the trampling underfoot of the Lord’s people?”
14 He said to me, “It will take 2,300 evenings and mornings; then the sanctuary will be reconsecrated.”
The Interpretation of the Vision
15 While I, Daniel, was watching the vision and trying to understand it, there before me stood one who looked like a man. 16 And I heard a man’s voice from the Ulai calling, “Gabriel, tell this man the meaning of the vision.”
17 As he came near the place where I was standing, I was terrified and fell prostrate. “Son of man,” he said to me, “understand that the vision concerns the time of the end.”
18 While he was speaking to me, I was in a deep sleep, with my face to the ground. Then he touched me and raised me to my feet.
19 He said: “I am going to tell you what will happen later in the time of wrath, because the vision concerns the appointed time of the end. 20 The two-horned ram that you saw represents the kings of Media and Persia. 21 The shaggy goat is the king of Greece, and the large horn between its eyes is the first king. 22 The four horns that replaced the one that was broken off represent four kingdoms that will emerge from his nation but will not have the same power.
23 “In the latter part of their reign, when rebels have become completely wicked, a fierce-looking king, a master of intrigue, will arise. 24 He will become very strong, but not by his own power. He will cause astounding devastation and will succeed in whatever he does. He will destroy those who are mighty, the holy people. 25 He will cause deceit to prosper, and he will consider himself superior. When they feel secure, he will destroy many and take his stand against the Prince of princes. Yet he will be destroyed, but not by human power.
26 “The vision of the evenings and mornings that has been given you is true, but seal up the vision, for it concerns the distant future.”
27 I, Daniel, was worn out. I lay exhausted for several days. Then I got up and went about the king’s business. I was appalled by the vision; it was beyond understanding.
Chapter 9 - Daniel’s Prayer
1 In the first year of Darius son of Xerxes (a Mede by descent), who was made ruler over the Babylonian kingdom—2 in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, understood from the Scriptures, according to the word of the Lord given to Jeremiah the prophet, that the desolation of Jerusalem would last seventy years. 3 So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes.
4 I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed:
“Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments, 5 we have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws. 6 We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our ancestors, and to all the people of the land.
7 “Lord, you are righteous, but this day we are covered with shame—the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, both near and far, in all the countries where you have scattered us because of our unfaithfulness to you. 8 We and our kings, our princes and our ancestors are covered with shame, Lord, because we have sinned against you. 9 The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him; 10 we have not obeyed the Lord our God or kept the laws he gave us through his servants the prophets. 11 All Israel has transgressed your law and turned away, refusing to obey you.
“Therefore the curses and sworn judgments written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against you. 12 You have fulfilled the words spoken against us and against our rulers by bringing on us great disaster. Under the whole heaven nothing has ever been done like what has been done to Jerusalem. 13 Just as it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come on us, yet we have not sought the favor of the Lord our God by turning from our sins and giving attention to your truth. 14 The Lord did not hesitate to bring the disaster on us, for the Lord our God is righteous in everything he does; yet we have not obeyed him.
15 “Now, Lord our God, who brought your people out of Egypt with a mighty hand and who made for yourself a name that endures to this day, we have sinned, we have done wrong. 16 Lord, in keeping with all your righteous acts, turn away your anger and your wrath from Jerusalem, your city, your holy hill. Our sins and the iniquities of our ancestors have made Jerusalem and your people an object of scorn to all those around us.
17 “Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant. For your sake, Lord, look with favor on your desolate sanctuary. 18 Give ear, our God, and hear; open your eyes and see the desolation of the city that bears your Name. We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy. 19 Lord, listen! Lord, forgive! Lord, hear and act! For your sake, my God, do not delay, because your city and your people bear your Name.”
The Seventy “Sevens”
20 While I was speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel and making my request to the Lord my God for his holy hill—21 while I was still in prayer, Gabriel, the man I had seen in the earlier vision, came to me in swift flight about the time of the evening sacrifice. 22 He instructed me and said to me, “Daniel, I have now come to give you insight and understanding. 23 As soon as you began to pray, a word went out, which I have come to tell you, for you are highly esteemed. Therefore, consider the word and understand the vision:
24 “Seventy ‘sevens’ are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the Most Holy Place.
25 “Know and understand this: From the time the word goes out to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One, g the ruler, comes, there will be seven ‘sevens,’ and sixty-two ‘sevens.’ It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of trouble. 26 After the sixty-two ‘sevens,’ the Anointed One will be put to death and will have nothing. The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed. 27 He will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven.’ In the middle of the ‘seven’ he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And at the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him.”
1. The vision in Daniel brings to mind:
2. The “little horn” that grows in power:
3. What does it mean for the sanctuary to be “cleansed” (8:14)?
4. What did Gabriel reveal in his interpretation of Daniel’s dream?
5. What grabs your attention in Daniel’s prayer (9:4-19)?
6. What understanding did Gabriel give Daniel at their second meeting?
7. In Daniel’s vision things seem to get worse rather than better. Do you expect things to get worse or better, or just stay the same? Where is God in everything that is going on today?
8. Daniel prayed for the sanctuary—God’s presence on earth—to be rebuilt. Where do you pray to see God’s visible presence today?
SUMMARY
Daniel received another vision from God, with plenty of symbolic imagery. With symbols, sometimes the meaning is clear and sometimes it’s not clear. There might even be multiple meanings or competing meanings. The angel Gabriel explains part of this to Daniel, and then returns another time to give additional understanding. Even when Daniel didn’t understand things, he continued with his practice of serving God faithfully, including praying for himself and for others. He also prayed for God’s presence in the world and a clear presentation of God to His people. Even if we don’t understand all that God shares with us, He has given us plenty to provide us guidance. Our practices of staying in tune with God directs us in large and small matters.
APPLICATION
“Be careful what you pray for because . . .” certainly turned out to be true for Daniel and his prayer in Daniel 9. Let Daniel’s prayer be an example for your prayer life this week. Here are some ideas to get you started.
