God’s Word for You
Daniel 9:20 While I was speaking…
by Pastor Timothy Smith on Friday, December 19, 2025
20 While I was speaking—praying and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my plea for mercy before the LORD my God on behalf of the holy mountain of my God—
This verse really serves as the introduction to what follows. The prayer has ended, and the response is on the way, and Daniel shows us that it was while he was praying that something happened. That something is the arrival of an angel (once again Gabriel) in verse 21. But it is worthwhile to pause here to notice the word “while” and the significance this has to all of our prayers.
What I and others translate as “while” at the beginning of the verse is the Hebrew word ’od, to which Daniel also says “and” (ve ’od, וְעוֹד). Daniel tells us that the Lord responded to his prayer while he was still praying it. The prophet’s words illustrate some important points about prayer that the Christian should keep in mind.
First: Pray, without delay, and without giving up. Jesus commands us to pray (Luke 18:1; John 16:23). This is also the best and most godly way for most every Christian to keep the Second Commandment. For just as the first part of Daniel’s book illustrates the meaning of the Second Table of the law, and especially the Fourth Commandment and the true place of government in the world, so the second part of the book illustrates the meaning of the First Table; here the Second Commandment in particular and how we should correctly use his name. As Luther explains simply to child and adult alike: “Pray, praise, and give thanks.”
There is no reason to delay a prayer. If someone thinks he should be more worthy in God’s eyes before he prays, he will never attain that goal, because we are poor, unworthy, and miserable sinners. God does not look at the righteousness of our lives, but the righteousness of Christ. Will Christ be more worthy in the Father’s eyes tomorrow than he is today? No. So pray now, right now, when you need to, and let Christ’s worthiness be the threshold you stand on, and don’t worry about the muddy shoes of your own condition. James says, “Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is any one of you sick? He should ask others to pray for him” (James 5:13-14). Luther illustrates: “If a robber delayed praying until he was worthy, he would never pray. It is necessary for him to learn how to pray in the middle of his sins and leap forth from them and say, ‘This prayer wasn’t based on my devotion and holiness. Instead, a promise has come from the mouth of your Son that whoever prays will receive. So if my heart isn’t fervent and devout enough, I build on the Word of God.”
Then, the Christian prays as the Lord teaches: “In my name” (John 16:23). He is the one at the right hand of God who is also interceding for us (Romans 8:34). After the fall into sin and the promise of the Savior, what gave comfort to Adam and Eve in their prayers? They were driven from the garden, one of their own children was a murderer, and almost every blessing they had known in their younger days was no longer a part of their lives. But they had the promise of the Savior! They certainly couldn’t base their prayers on their own worthiness, and so they based everything on the worthiness of the one who was coming. This means that they based their prayers on Christ just as we do, although they didn’t know his name or the titles that we know him by. But they thought of him as the “promised one,” “the one who was to come.” Or because he was promised from Eve’s descendants, they could think of him as “the Son.” That’s not so far from our knowledge and understanding at all—it’s only a matter of time and perspective. The faith is the same. So Daniel prays to “The LORD my God,” using God’s title that proclaims the Gospel of his promises, which is “the LORD.”
Now, the devil is the great enemy of the church and of all God’s people. The devil is never your friend, and he will try to get in the way of your prayers. Like a maniac in a fist-fight, he will pick up any weapon he can find to hurt you, blind you, or distract you. He will try to get you to pray to an angel or a dead person instead of praying to God the Father, as Jesus teaches us to do in the Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9). He throws arrows of doubt and especially his favorite throwing-knife, guilt. Enough guilt and he knows we will be too weak to do anything about it, except that the Gospel is the true bandage that heals even the worst guilt, as Jesus says gently to the sinner: “Has no one condemned you? No? Only the devil, who is of no importance? I don’t condemn you at all” (John 8:10). So pray, and pray in Jesus’ name.
Thirdly, pray knowing that you need something, and that you need it urgently. You may need a change in your life, or safety from danger, or food. You may desire to have a baby, or something about your health. You may desire a spouse to end your loneliness, or you might desire to get away from a ruthless or wicked leader or employer who fills your life with doubt and stresses. Or there may be some spiritual crisis you pray for—just as Daniel does, about the sins of his people and the devastation of the holy mountain of God, Mount Zion.
God promises to hear us and to answer us, and even “to do immeasurably more than all we ask for or imagine” (Ephesians 3:20). I once stood at the death bed of a Christian woman who prayed urgently that her death might lead her unbelieving brother to turn back once again to God the way he had as a boy. “When some need comes upon us, there is no other consolation and aid than clinging to prayer.”
What about “Amen”? Amen means “This is the truth,” or “This is most certainly true.” It is an excellent way to end a prayer. It is used that way in the short prayers and blessings that end Paul’s letters. Pray boldly, and believe that what you pray will be. The more we read God’s word, study it, take it to heart, listen and listen and listen to it in worship, the more we will recognize when our will lines up with his, and we will pray for what is good and right and within his plans for us. Pray, as Daniel did, believing that God will answer, and that his answer will already be on its way while you are still saying the prayer. “Come, Lord Jesus. Amen.”
In Christ,
Pastor Timothy Smith
Pastor Smith serves St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in New Ulm, Minnesota. To receive God’s Word for You via e-mail, please visit the St. Paul’s Lutheran Church website.