Daniel 9:2
in Daniel 9in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, understood from the sacred books, according to the word of the LORD to Jeremiah the prophet, that the desolation of Jerusalem would last seventy years.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
in the first year of his reign I, Daniel, understood by the books the number of the years whereof the word of Jehovah came to Jeremiah the prophet, for the accomplishing of the desolations of Jerusalem, even seventy years.
KJV
In the first year of his reign I Daniel understood by books the number of the years, whereof the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet, that he would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem.
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This verse in Daniel 9
Commentary
3 notes on this verseVerse 2. "I, Daniel, understood by the books the number of the years concerning which the word of the Lord had come to the prophet Jeremiah, that seventy years would be accomplished for the desolation of Jerusalem." Jeremiah had predicted seventy years for the desolation of the Temple (Jeremiah 29:1-10), at the end of which the people would again return to Judaea and build the Temple and the city of Jerusalem. But this fact did not render Daniel careless, but rather encouraged him to pray that God might through his supplications fulfil that which He had graciously promised.
This site's exposition
made king over the realm of the Chaldeans
on Daniel 9:1-2
Darius the Mede, son of Ahasuerus, is made king over the Chaldean kingdom, a figure the commentators cannot pin to a single monument, and the positions run from a separate ruler under Cyrus, commonly proposed as Gubaru or Cyaxares, to a title for Cyrus himself, named here with their holders rather than settled. In the first year of this reign Daniel understands by books the number of years the word of the Lord gave to Jeremiah, that the desolations of Jerusalem would run seventy years, the thread the Jeremiah brief already verifies at 25:11-12 and 29:10. Daniel reads Jeremiah's own scroll as Scripture even in his own generation, and the reading drives him straight to prayer rather than to calculation alone.
The record, by era
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
I Daniel understood by books - The prophecy referred to here is found Jer 25:12; Jer 29:10. The people must have been satisfied of the Divine inspiration of Jeremiah, or his prophecies would not have been so speedily collected nor so carefully preserved. It appears that there was a copy of them then in Daniel’s hands.
The words behind it
21 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| בִּשְׁנַ֤ת | bishnat | in year | H8141 → | 877 times |
| אַחַת֙ | ʾachat | one | H259 → | 971 times |
| לְמָלְכ֔וֹ | lemalekho | of reigning his | H4427 → | |
| אֲנִי֙ | ʾani | I | H589 → | 874 times |
| דָּֽנִיֵּ֔אל | daniyel | Daniel | H1840 → | 24 times |
| בִּינֹ֖תִי | binoti | I observed | H995 → | 170 times |
| בַּסְּפָרִ֑ים | basefarim | in the scrolls | H5612 → | 186 times |
| מִסְפַּ֣ר | mispar | [the] number of | H4557 → | |
| הַשָּׁנִ֗ים | hashanim | the years | H8141 → | 877 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֨ר | ʾasher | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| הָיָ֤ה | hayah | it came | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| דְבַר־ | devar- | [the] word of | H1697 → | 1440 times |
| יְהוָה֙ | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| אֶל־ | ʾel- | to | H413 → | 5510 times |
| יִרְמִיָ֣ה | yirmiyah | Jeremiah | H3414 → | |
| הַנָּבִ֔יא | hanavi' | the prophet | H5030 → | 314 times |
| לְמַלֹּ֛אות | lemalot | to complete | H4390 → | |
| לְחָרְב֥וֹת | lecharevot | to [the] ruins of | H2723 → | |
| יְרוּשָׁלִַ֖ם | yerushalim | Jerusalem | H3389 → | 643 times |
| שִׁבְעִ֥ים | shivim | seventy | H7657 → | |
| שָׁנָֽה׃ | shanah | year[s] | H8141 → | 877 times |
בִּשְׁנַ֤תin year
bishnatH8141 →877 times
אַחַת֙one
ʾachatH259 →971 times
לְמָלְכ֔וֹof reigning his
lemalekhoH4427 →
אֲנִי֙I
ʾaniH589 →874 times
דָּֽנִיֵּ֔אלDaniel
daniyelH1840 →24 times
בִּינֹ֖תִיI observed
binotiH995 →170 times
בַּסְּפָרִ֑יםin the scrolls
basefarimH5612 →186 times
מִסְפַּ֣ר[the] number of
misparH4557 →
הַשָּׁנִ֗יםthe years
hashanimH8141 →877 times
אֲשֶׁ֨רwhich
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
הָיָ֤הit came
hayahH1961 →3559 times
דְבַר־[the] word of
devar-H1697 →1440 times
יְהוָה֙Yahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
אֶל־to
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
יִרְמִיָ֣הJeremiah
yirmiyahH3414 →
הַנָּבִ֔יאthe prophet
hanavi'H5030 →314 times
לְמַלֹּ֛אותto complete
lemalotH4390 →
לְחָרְב֥וֹתto [the] ruins of
lecharevotH2723 →
יְרוּשָׁלִַ֖םJerusalem
yerushalimH3389 →643 times
שִׁבְעִ֥יםseventy
shivimH7657 →
שָׁנָֽה׃year[s]
shanahH8141 →877 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Revelation 1:3Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear and obey what is written in it, because the time is near.
it leads to
- Luke 11:28
But He replied, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.”
- Revelation 22:10
Then he told me, “Do not seal up the words of prophecy in this book, because the time is near.
- Romans 13:11
And do this, understanding the occasion. The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, for our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.
- 1 Peter 4:7
The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear-minded and sober, so that you can pray.
- Proverbs 8:34
Blessed is the man who listens to me, watching daily at my doors, waiting at the posts of my doorway.
- Luke 11:28
Through
2 Chronicles 36:21So the land enjoyed its Sabbath rest all the days of the desolation, until seventy years were completed, in fulfillment of the word of the LORD through Jeremiah.
it leads to
- Zechariah 1:12
Then the angel of the LORD said, “How long, O LORD of Hosts, will You withhold mercy from Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, with which You have been angry these seventy years?”
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Jeremiah 29:10
For this is what the LORD says: “When Babylon’s seventy years are complete, I will attend to you and confirm My promise to restore you to this place.
- Leviticus 26:34–35
Then the land shall enjoy its Sabbaths all the days it lies desolate, while you are in the land of your enemies. At that time the land will rest and enjoy its Sabbaths.
- Zechariah 1:12
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies12
About Daniel

Who and where
3 names in this verse with a page on the site.
- PersonBabylonian Exile (6th century BCE)DanielExilic prophet and Judean court official serving under Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar, Darius the Mede, and Cyrus; traditionally named…
- PersonLate monarchy / ExileJeremiahPriest of Anathoth called before birth to uproot and to plant; the weeping prophet of Jerusalem's fall who bought a field in the s…
- PlaceJerusalemJerusalemThe city David took from the Jebusites and made his capital, where Solomon built the temple, where Christ was crucified and rose,…
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Book of Daniel; Carl Friedrich Keil, Biblical Commentary on the Book of Daniel and Jerome, St. Jerome, Commentary on Daniel, CHAPTER NINE.
