Daniel 9:3

Daniel 9:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes:
• English Standard Version (ESV)Then I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by prayer and pleas for mercy with fasting and sackcloth and ashes.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Then I set my face toward the Lord God to make request by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes.
• New Living Translation (NLT)So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and fasting. I also wore rough burlap and sprinkled myself with ashes.

Context of Daniel 9:3

1In the first year of Darius son of Xerxes (a Mede by descent), who was made ruler over the Babylonian kingdom— 2in 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. So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes. 4I 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, 5we have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws.

Daniel 9:3 word by word

וָאֶתְּנָ֣ה אֶת־פָּנַ֗י אֶל־אֲדֹנָי֙ הָֽאֱלֹהִ֔ים לְבַקֵּ֥שׁ תְּפִלָּ֖ה וְתַחֲנוּנִ֑ים בְּצ֖וֹם וְשַׂ֥ק וָאֵֽפֶר׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And I setנָתַןnâthan · to give: putH5414
• my faceפָּנֶהpânîym · faceH6440
• unto the Lordאֲדֹנָי'ădônây · LordH136
• Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• to seekבָּקַשׁbâqash · to seekH1245
• by prayerתְּפִלָּהtephillâh · prayerH8605
• and supplicationsתַּחֲנוּןtachănûn tachănûnâh · supplicationH8469
• with fastingצוֹםtsôm tsôm · fastH6685
• and sackclothשַׂקώaq · sackclothH8242
• and ashesאֵ֫פֶר'êpher · ashesH665

Cross-references for Daniel 9:3

• Daniel 6:10Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before.
• Nehemiah 1:4When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven.
• Psalms 102:13You will arise and have compassion on Zion, for it is time to show favor to her; the appointed time has come.
• Jeremiah 29:10This is what the Lord says: “When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my good promise to bring you back to this place.
• Jeremiah 33:3‘Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.’
• Ezekiel 36:37“This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Once again I will yield to Israel’s plea and do this for them: I will make their people as numerous as sheep,
• James 5:16Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.
• Daniel 10:2At that time I, Daniel, mourned for three weeks.
• Ezra 8:21There, by the Ahava Canal, I proclaimed a fast, so that we might humble ourselves before our God and ask him for a safe journey for us and our children, with all our possessions.
• Ezra 9:5Then, at the evening sacrifice, I rose from my self-abasement, with my tunic and cloak torn, and fell on my knees with my hands spread out to the Lord my God
• Ezra 10:6Then Ezra withdrew from before the house of God and went to the room of Jehohanan son of Eliashib. While he was there, he ate no food and drank no water, because he continued to mourn over the unfaithfulness of the exiles.
• Nehemiah 9:1On the twenty-fourth day of the same month, the Israelites gathered together, fasting and wearing sackcloth and putting dust on their heads.
• Esther 4:1When Mordecai learned of all that had been done, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the city, wailing loudly and bitterly.
• Psalms 35:13Yet when they were ill, I put on sackcloth and humbled myself with fasting. When my prayers returned to me unanswered,
• Psalms 69:10When I weep and fast, I must endure scorn;
• Isaiah 22:12The Lord, the Lord Almighty, called you on that day to weep and to wail, to tear out your hair and put on sackcloth.

Commentaries on Daniel 9:3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3I set my face - to seek by prayer - He found that the time of the promised deliverance could not be at any great distance; and as he saw nothing that indicated a speedy termination of their oppressive captivity, he was very much afflicted, and earnestly besought God to put a speedy end to it; and how earnestly he seeks, his own words show. He prayed, he supplicated, he fasted, he put sackcloth upon his body, and he put ashes upon his head. He uses that…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3And I set my face unto the Lord God - Probably the meaning is, that he turned his face toward Jerusalem, the place where God had dwelt; the place of his holy abode on earth. See the notes at Daniel 6:10. The language, however, would not be inappropriate to denote prayer without such a supposition. We turn to one whom we address, and so prayer may be described by “setting the face toward God.” The essential idea here is, that he engaged in a set and formal…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3Daniel realized the seventy years were almost over, so he asked the Lord God to restore his people and Jerusalem. People who were mourning often wore rough burlap clothing and placed ashes on themselves as a sign of sorrow (compare Nehemiah 9:1; Esther 4:1; Lamentations 2:10; Luke 10:13). Focused prayer often included fasting to prioritize spiritual concerns over physical needs.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. prayer ... supplications--literally, "intercessions ... entreaties for mercy." Praying for blessings, and deprecating evils.Read the comment

Topics related to Daniel 9:3

• Ashes
• Fasting
• Intercession
• Nation
• Prayer
• Prophets
• Sackcloth
• Seekers

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Accomplish
• Belong
• Confession
• Daniel
• Finish
• Prince
• Reconciliation
• Restore

Commentaries on Daniel 9

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings