A Prayer of Repentance: Daniel 9:1-10

Prayers of repentance, when done right, are an incredibly beautiful thing.  There is a certain peace about a good prayer of repentance.  There is a certain comfort found within a good prayer of repentance.  There is a surety of faith in a good prayer of repentance.

This chapter is a prayer from Daniel.  We are told Daniel was studying the writings of Jeremiah.  While he was studying God’s Word, he perceived the amount of time the exile would last.  The knowledge that the exile would eventually end drove Daniel to prayer.

One of the things I love most about the prayer of Daniel is his choice of pronouns.  Daniel was a very righteous man.  Certainly, Daniel was not perfect.  Daniel had his moments of sinfulness like the rest of us.  Because of this, Daniel consistently uses the first person plural in his prayer.  Daniel confesses “we have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly.”  He continues, “we have not listened to the prophets.”  This pattern of speech continues throughout his prayer.

Daniel understands something that is rather easy to forget.  As righteous as he was and as close as he was to his God, he easily could have placed the blame on the Hebrew people who actively rebelled against God’s ways.  Since Daniel was a boy when Nebuchadnezzar brought him to Babylon, Daniel could have easily blamed the Hebrew adults who abandoned God’s ways and got him into this mess.  Daniel could have said “they sinned” and “they rebelled” and nobody would have thought anything about it.  After all, had the Hebrew people in general followed God as closely as Daniel followed God, God would have had no reason to send his people into exile.

Because Daniel follows God as closely as he does, though, he doesn’t place blame on others.  He communally accepts blame.  He understands a leader models repentance rather than modelling blame.  Daniel embraces the shame of exposed sinfulness rather than shifting the blame to others.

It is Daniel’s relationship with God that allows this to happen.  Daniel knows he is not innocent from sin.  Even more importantly he knows what it is like to serve a loving and forgiving God.  Daniel knows God is willing to forgive the repentant.  Those who come before God with contrite hearts seeking to change will find themselves embraced by a God who loves, forgives, and gives second chances.

There is no need for Daniel to shift the blame onto others.  God prefers to forgive rather than remember transgression.  As the people prepare for the end of exile, blame isn’t nearly as important as repentance.  The people need leaders who model the confession of guilt, the reception of forgiveness, and the manifestation of change in our lives.  The people need leaders who understand how repentance is the first step in a right relationship with God.

Prayers of repentance, when done right, are an incredibly beautiful thing.