Intercession Series

Intercession

Daniel 9; Jeremiah 25:1-14; Deuteronomy 30

November 24, 2002

Intro:

A. Today we’re going to mix things up a bit…

1. I invite you to put your songbook away and get out your Bible and sermon outline and calculator.

2. We’re going to study the Word first this morning and see where God leads after that.

B. Today we come to the ninth chapter of the book of Daniel…

I. Study of God’s Word

Daniel 9:1-2 (NIV), In the first year of Darius son of Xerxes (a Mede by descent), who was made ruler over the Babylonian kingdom-- 2 in 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.

Jeremiah 25:1-14 (NIV), The word came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, which was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. 2 So Jeremiah the prophet said to all the people of Judah and to all those living in Jerusalem: 3 For twenty-three years--from the thirteenth year of Josiah son of Amon king of Judah until this very day--the word of the LORD has come to me and I have spoken to you again and again, but you have not listened. 4 And though the LORD has sent all his servants the prophets to you again and again, you have not listened or paid any attention. 5 They said, "Turn now, each of you, from your evil ways and your evil practices, and you can stay in the land the LORD gave to you and your fathers for ever and ever. 6 Do not follow other gods to serve and worship them; do not provoke me to anger with what your hands have made. Then I will not harm you." 7 "But you did not listen to me," declares the LORD, "and you have provoked me with what your hands have made, and you have brought harm to yourselves." 8 Therefore the LORD Almighty says this: "Because you have not listened to my words, 9 I will summon all the peoples of the north and my servant Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon," declares the LORD, "and I will bring them against this land and its inhabitants and against all the surrounding nations. I will completely destroy them and make them an object of horror and scorn, and an everlasting ruin. 10 I will banish from them the sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of bride and bridegroom, the sound of millstones and the light of the lamp. 11 This whole country will become a desolate wasteland, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon seventy years. 12 "But when the seventy years are fulfilled, I will punish the king of Babylon and his nation, the land of the Babylonians, for their guilt," declares the LORD, "and will make it desolate forever. 13 I will bring upon that land all the things I have spoken against it, all that are written in this book and prophesied by Jeremiah against all the nations. 14 They themselves will be enslaved by many nations and great kings; I will repay them according to their deeds and the work of their hands."

A. In the first verse we see that we’re back in the Medo-Persian Empire again.

1. Last week we studied chapters 7 & 8 and we found that we had jumped back to the Babylonian Empire and the reign of Belshazzar, which would place those two chapters chronologically between chapters 4 & 5.

2. Now we are back in the correct time order again.

3. Cyrus is actually the King of the entire Empire while Darius is in his first year as ruler over the Babylonian kingdom.

B. Verse two tells us what Daniel was doing in his spare time.

1. You may recall that Daniel had been overseeing one third of the Babylonian kingdom and Darius was considering putting Daniel second in command under himself over the entire Babylonian kingdom.

2. However, the other two administrators and the 120 governors got upset with him and conspired to get him thrown Daniel into the lions’ den.

3. Daniel survived the lions’ den, but the 122 did not.

4. The Bible doesn’t tell us whether Daniel ever got that promotion, but we could assume that he did since everybody else with experience was gone.

5. So Daniel was busy doing his job of overseeing the Babylonian kingdom, but he also tells us what he was doing in his spare time.

6. Daniel was studying the writings of another prophet.

C. Daniel was a prophet, but there was another prophet living back in Jerusalem.

1. That other prophet was Jeremiah.