Chapter 9 teaches us many valuable lessons on the subject of prayer. We see that God delights to answer the sincere prayer of His children. Daniel 9 also teaches us that we should pray knowing that we are deeply loved by the Father. We even see a helpful model of prayer we can apply: pray promises, pray persistently, pray the biblical pattern (ACTS–adoration, confession, thanksgiving, supplication) and plead God’s mercy. The chapter closes with arguably the most difficult text in the entire Bible to interpret. Volumes have been written about decoding these final verses, but regardless of how one interprets these mysteries, the overarching point is gloriously clear: God is moving time & history to an appointed end with King Jesus defeating evil and establishing a new Kingdom of light, love and justice that will never dim.
