Dan. 9:1-19
Jay Horsley
We like to think of all the comforts of God's word. In an unstable and shifting world that are not many thing that we can rely on with absolute certainty. It seems that evil can reach every part of our earthly life and that every man has his price, even those that we depend on most. Only God is constant and true. His words and promises are a “strong encouragement” and the hope that we base on them are “an anchor of the soul...both sure and steadfast.” (Heb. 6:18,19)
Yet even as we take comfort in the surety of God's promises for help and good, we make take with equal seriousness all His promises that warn of punishment. So often we like to think of only the nice things. This is illustrated in the fact that poll after poll shows that a much greater number of people believe in heaven than in hell, even though we have equal evidence and authority for both. Jesus often speaks of rewards and punishments in the same sentence, yet only one is remembered. Before we get very far along this path of self-deception, let us consider the history of the working of God to see that His promises of curses and consequences are just as sure as His promises of blessings and rewards.
The life of Daniel fully showed both the goodness and severity of God. Ripped from his home and family at a young age, he was among the first wave of captives taken by Nebuchadnezzar to Babylon. But while at the royal court, he was blessed and prospered by God for his fidelity to the instructions given in the Law of Moses. He was given prophetic wisdom as a gift from God to teach and guide kings. He was protected from the lions when thrown in amongst them for praying to God. There is no doubt that God was good to Daniel, yet Daniel lived his entire adult life away from God's holy city as a stranger and an exile. Why? God was punishing the sinful nation that he was a part of. Daniel's life span saw the entire time of the Babylonian captivity. He was taken away among the first to go, survived to see the end of the seventy year time prophesied that the people would be gone and finally saw the first returnees to go back.
One day, after the Babylonian kingdom was overthrown and a new kingdom was in power, Daniel was engaged in Bible study. This is the regular habit of all godly men. The now aged Daniel read that it was time for his people to go back home. This is recorded in the 9th chapter of Daniel. “In the first year of his reign I, Daniel, observed in the books the number of the years which was revealed as the word of the LORD to Jeremiah the prophet for the completion of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely, seventy years.” (vs. 2) Daniel then went to God in prayer asking for the Lord to forgive the people and return them to the land, “And I prayed to the LORD my God and confessed and said...” (vss. 4-19).
One of the great themes of this prayer is that God keeps His promises. In the very first verse of the prayer Daniel states, “Alas, O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant.” (vs. 4) The people had the Law of Moses and the prophets, but they did not listen to them, as Daniel confessed: “Moreover, we have not listened to Thy servants the prophets, who spoke in Thy name to our kings, our princes, our fathers, and all the people of the land.” (vs. 6) And again, “nor have we obeyed the voice of the LORD our God, to walk in His teachings which He set before us through His servants the prophets.” (vs. 10)
In these confessions we see another great theme of the prayer: the sinfulness of the people. “We have sinned, committed iniquity, acted wickedly, and rebelled, even turning aside from Thy commandments and ordinances.” (vs. 5) “Open shame belongs to us, O Lord, to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, because we have sinned against Thee.” (vs. 8) “We have rebelled against Him.” (vs. 9) “We have sinned, we have been wicked.” (vs. 15) The law of Moses contained specific prohibitions against everything that the Jews did and detailed curses that would come when they disobeyed (Deut. 28:15-68), but they continued for generations in open rebellion, so what was God to do?
God did the only thing that one who is righteous can do. He kept His word. “Indeed all Israel has transgressed Thy law and turned aside, not obeying Thy voice; so the curse has been poured out on us, along with the oath which is written in the law of Moses the servant of God, for we have sinned against Him. Thus He has confirmed His words which He had spoken against us and against our rulers who ruled us, to bring on us great calamity; for under the whole heaven there has not been done anything like what was done to Jerusalem. As it is written in the law of Moses, all this calamity has come on us; yet we have not sought the favor of the LORD our God by turning from our iniquity and giving attention to Thy truth. Therefore, the LORD has kept the calamity in store and brought it on us; for the LORD our God is righteous with respect to all His deeds which He has done, but we have not obeyed His voice.” (vss. 11-14) Daniel went back to the law and said that God had warned about it, and now the history of the captivity showed that He had done it. This is the point so often missed.
People rightly take great comfort in God's faithfulness to forgive, just as Daniel did. “O my God, incline Thine ear and hear! Open Thine eyes and see our desolations and the city which is called by Thy name; for we are not presenting our supplications before Thee on account of any merits of our own, but on account of Thy great compassion. Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive..” (vs. 18,19) But do people have equal regard for the promises of God that are curses and not blessings?
How is it that so many more people believe in heaven than hell? How many believe in rewards but not punishments? How many think that they will be spared even as they continue in sin? Both the righteous goodness and righteous severity of God has been equally spoken and equally proven. All of God's word is confirmed. Will those living by the gospel faith go to heaven? Surely they will. Will those who are not obedient to it go to hell? Just as surely they will also. Salvation and condemnation are based on the same sure word of God. The scriptures, history and experience all confirm that we must give heed to all that God has said. Let His word be a dreadful and fearful thing to those who won't live by it – and let them not ignore it – even as His word is wondrously comforting to those who will live by it.