DANIEL 9 [†] b In the first year of  c Darius the son of Ahasuerus, by descent a  d Mede, who was made king over the realm of the  e Chaldeans— 2[^][†]in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, perceived in the books the number of years that, according to  f the word of the LORD to Jeremiah the prophet, must pass before the end of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely, seventy years.

3[†]Then I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by  g prayer and pleas for mercy with fasting and sackcloth and ashes. 4[†]I prayed to the LORD my God and  h made confession, saying,  i “O Lord, the  i great and awesome God, who  j keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, 5 k we have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly  l and rebelled, turning aside from your commandments and rules. 6 m We have not listened to  n your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to  o our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land. 7To you,  p O Lord, belongs righteousness, but to us open shame, as at this day, to the men of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to all Israel,  q those who are near and  q those who are far away, in  r all the lands to which you have driven them, because of  s the treachery that they have committed against you. 8To us, O LORD, belongs open shame, to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because  k we have sinned against you. 9[^] t To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, for we have rebelled against him 10 m and have not obeyed the voice of the LORD our God by walking in his laws, which he set before us by  n his servants the prophets. 11[†] u All Israel has transgressed your law and turned aside,  v refusing to obey your voice.  w And the curse and oath  x that are written in the Law of  y Moses the servant of God have been poured out upon us, because  k we have sinned against him. 12He has confirmed his words, which he spoke against us and against  z our rulers who ruled us, [1] by  a bringing upon us a great calamity.  b For under the whole heaven there has not been done anything like what has been done against Jerusalem. 13 x As it is written in the Law of Moses, all this calamity has come upon us; yet we have not entreated the favor of the LORD our God,  c turning from our iniquities and gaining insight by your truth. 14 d Therefore the LORD has kept ready the calamity and has brought it upon us,  e for the LORD our God is righteous in all the works that he has done, and  f we have not obeyed his voice. 15And now, O Lord our God, who brought your people out of the land of Egypt  g with a mighty hand, and  h have made a name for yourself, as at this day,  i we have sinned, we have done wickedly.

16“O Lord,  j according to all your righteous acts, let your anger and your wrath turn away from your city Jerusalem,  k your holy hill,  l because for our sins, and for  m the iniquities of our fathers,  n Jerusalem and your people have become  o a byword among all who are around us. 17[†]Now therefore, O our God, listen to the prayer of your servant and to his pleas for mercy, and for your own sake, O Lord, [2]  p make your face to shine upon  q your sanctuary, which is desolate. 18 r O my God, incline your ear and hear. Open your eyes and see  s our desolations, and  t the city that is called by your name. For we do not present our pleas before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy. 19O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive. O Lord, pay attention and act.  u Delay not,  v for your own sake, O my God, because  t your city and  w your people are called by your name.”

20[†] x While I was speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my plea before the LORD my God for  y the holy hill of my God, 21[†]while I was speaking in prayer, the man  z Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the first,  a came to me in swift flight at  b the time of the evening sacrifice. 22 c He made me understand, speaking with me and saying, “O Daniel, I have now come out to give you  d insight and understanding. 23 e At the beginning of your pleas for mercy a word went out,  f and I have come to tell it to you, for  g you are greatly loved. Therefore consider the word  h and understand the vision.

24[^][†] i “Seventy weeks [3] are decreed about your people and  j your holy city, to finish  k the transgression, to put an end to sin,  l and to atone for iniquity,  m to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal both vision and prophet, and  n to anoint a most holy place. [4] 25[†] o Know therefore and understand that  p from the going out of the word to restore and  q build Jerusalem to the coming of an  r anointed one, a  s prince, there shall be seven weeks. Then for sixty-two weeks it shall be built again [5] with squares and moat,  t but in a troubled time. 26And after the sixty-two weeks, an anointed one shall  u be cut off and shall have nothing. And the people of the prince who is to come  v shall destroy the city and the sanctuary.  w Its [6] end shall come with a flood,  x and to the end there shall be war.  y Desolations are decreed. 27[†]And he shall make a strong covenant with many for one week, [7] and for half of the week he shall put an end to sacrifice and offering.  z And on the wing of abominations shall come one who makes desolate, until  a the decreed end is poured out on the desolator.”