Part 136

It is plain from the accounts we have in Scripture, that the Prophet _Daniel_ was one of these; he is stiled by the angel, not only a “man that was beloved,” but a “man that was _greatly_ beloved,” or as it is in the margin of your bibles, “he was a man of desires,” of large and extensive desires to promote the glory of GOD; he was a desirable man, a man that did much good in his generation, and therefore his life was much to be desired by those who loved GOD. The words which I have chosen for the subject of our present meditation, contain part of a revelation made to this man. If you look back to the beginning of this chapter, you will find how the good man was employed, when GOD was pleased to give him this revelation; verse 2. “In the first year of _Darius_’s 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_.” _Daniel_ was a great man, and withal a good man; great as he was, it seems he was not above reading his Bible; he made the Bible his constant study; for it is the Bible we are to understand by what is here termed books, and elsewhere, the scriptures of truth. He found, that the time for GOD’s people being delivered from the captivity, was now at hand. Well, one would have thought, that therefore _Daniel_ needed not to pray; but this, instead of retarding, quickened him in his prayers: and therefore we are told in the third verse, “I set my face unto the LORD GOD, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting and sackcloth, and ashes.” It is beautifully expressed: “he set his face,” as though he was resolved never to let his eye go off GOD, till GOD was pleased to give him an answer; he was resolved, _Jacob_-like, to wrestle with the LORD GOD, until GOD should be pleased to give him the desired blessing. We are told in the fourth verse, that “he prayed unto the LORD, and made confession,” not only of his own sins, but the sins of his people. And when ye retire home to your houses, before ye go to bed, I would recommend to you the reading of this prayer; every word of it bespeaks his exceeding concern for the public good. It would take me up too much time, was I to make such observations as indeed the prayer deserves; to bring you sooner to the words of the text, let us go forward to the twentieth verse, and there you will find the success that _Daniel_ met with, when praying. Says he, “while I was praying and confessing my sin, and the sin of my people _Israel_, and presenting my supplication before the LORD my GOD, for the holy mountain of my GOD; yea, while I was speaking in prayer, even the man _Gabriel_, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening oblation.” The manner in which _Daniel_ expresses himself, is very emphatical: “While I was _speaking in prayer_;” implying, that GOD suffers us, when we draw near to him by faith in prayer, to lay all our complaints before him; he suffers us to speak unto, and talk with him, as a man talketh with his friend. _Daniel_ at this time too was making _confession_ one part of his prayer; for we are never, never in a better frame to receive answers from above, than when we are humbling ourselves before the LORD. He was not only confessing his own sins, but he was confessing the sins of his people; he was praying for those, who perhaps seldom prayed for themselves; “while I was speaking in prayer, the man _Gabriel_:” which word, by interpretation, signifies _the strength of_ GOD; a very proper name, says Bishop _Hall_, for that angel who was to come and bring the news to the world, of the GOD of strength, the LORD JESUS CHRIST. This angel is here represented as flying, and as flying swiftly; to show us how willing, how unspeakably willing those blessed spirits are, to bring good news to men. And it is upon this account, I suppose, that we are taught by our LORD to pray, “that GOD’s will may be done by us on earth, as it is done in heaven,” that we may imitate a little of that alacrity and vigour, which angels employ, when they are sent on errands for GOD.