Dan 9:14 | KingComments | STEP | Once again Daniel speaks in these verses about the fact that the voice of God has not been obeyed. All the misery that has come upon the people can be traced back to this. If we do not obey God’s Word and do not take the warnings to heart, God will fulfill His Word on us, not for good, but for evil. We lose the promised blessings and receive the promised curses. Daniel acknowledges that what has come upon the people is nothing but the fulfillment of what God said would happen if they turned aside. He understood that well. We see Daniel emphasizing time and again in his confession that none but God Himself has broken His people ( ). That is the basis of his pleading. We also see that the disaster is unparalleled. Never has a city been judged as severe as Jerusalem. That is because there has never been a city that has been so privileged. It is the only city God has chosen to establish His throne and to have His dwelling place, His holy temple. Of these people He says: “You only have I chosen among all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities” ( ). Judgment has come upon those nearest to Him and in whom He sanctifies Himself ( ). “For [it is] time for judgment to begin with the household of God” ( ; ). These verses also imply a serious message to God’s people for the days in which we live. The people of God are scattered and divided because of their sins. But who laments about that? We see it and accept it resignedly or even see it as a ‘valuable multicolor’. It shows that the truth of God about the unity of the church is hardly known. What is worse, there is hardly any desire to know that truth. It is to be hoped that we will be spiritually exercised about the condition of God’s people. Then it will drive us out to prayer before the Lord our God. God will be able to let His Word speak to us and we will learn to deal wisely with God’s truth. The latter means that we will know God’s truth, absorb it and obey it. Dealing with God’s truth wisely means taking every word of it seriously, both the promises and the warnings. Because the people of God did not deal with the Word of God wisely, evil came upon the people. God keeps Himself to His Word. He watches over it. He also watches over the doom that He has pronounced in it, so that it may come when the actions of the people demand it. The LORD also said this to Jeremiah: “Behold, I am watching over them for harm and not for good” ( ) and also: “As I have watched over them to pluck up, to break down, to overthrow, to destroy and to bring disaster” declares the LORD” ( ). We can understand – and we like to hear it – that the LORD watches over His people to protect them. But here we find that He watches over them for evil and that Daniel justifies Him in it: “For the LORD our God is righteous with respect to all His deeds which He has done, but we have not obeyed His voice” ( ).

‏ Daniel 9:14

Not Obeyed

Once again Daniel speaks in these verses about the fact that the voice of God has not been obeyed. All the misery that has come upon the people can be traced back to this. If we do not obey God’s Word and do not take the warnings to heart, God will fulfill His Word on us, not for good, but for evil. We lose the promised blessings and receive the promised curses. Daniel acknowledges that what has come upon the people is nothing but the fulfillment of what God said would happen if they turned aside. He understood that well. We see Daniel emphasizing time and again in his confession that none but God Himself has broken His people (Dan 9:7 ; 12 ; 14). That is the basis of his pleading.

We also see that the disaster is unparalleled. Never has a city been judged as severe as Jerusalem. That is because there has never been a city that has been so privileged. It is the only city God has chosen to establish His throne and to have His dwelling place, His holy temple. Of these people He says: “You only have I chosen among all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities” (Amos 3:2). Judgment has come upon those nearest to Him and in whom He sanctifies Himself (Lev 10:1-3). “For [it is] time for judgment to begin with the household of God” (1Pet 4:17a; Eze 9:4-7).

These verses also imply a serious message to God’s people for the days in which we live. The people of God are scattered and divided because of their sins. But who laments about that? We see it and accept it resignedly or even see it as a ‘valuable multicolor’. It shows that the truth of God about the unity of the church is hardly known. What is worse, there is hardly any desire to know that truth.

It is to be hoped that we will be spiritually exercised about the condition of God’s people. Then it will drive us out to prayer before the Lord our God. God will be able to let His Word speak to us and we will learn to deal wisely with God’s truth. The latter means that we will know God’s truth, absorb it and obey it. Dealing with God’s truth wisely means taking every word of it seriously, both the promises and the warnings.

Because the people of God did not deal with the Word of God wisely, evil came upon the people. God keeps Himself to His Word. He watches over it. He also watches over the doom that He has pronounced in it, so that it may come when the actions of the people demand it. The LORD also said this to Jeremiah: “Behold, I am watching over them for harm and not for good” (Jer 44:27) and also: “As I have watched over them to pluck up, to break down, to overthrow, to destroy and to bring disaster” declares the LORD” (Jer 31:28).

We can understand – and we like to hear it – that the LORD watches over His people to protect them. But here we find that He watches over them for evil and that Daniel justifies Him in it: “For the LORD our God is righteous with respect to all His deeds which He has done, but we have not obeyed His voice” (Dan 9:14b).