Daniel 9:18 Meaning: Prayer Rests on God's Mercy, Not Our Righteousness
My God, turn your ear and hear. Open your eyes and see our desolations, and the city which is called by your name; for we do not present our petitions before you for our righteousness, but for your great mercies’ sake.
O my God, incline thine ear, and hear; open thine eyes, and behold our desolations, and the city which is called by thy name: for we do not present our supplications before thee for our righteousnesses, but for thy great mercies.
O my God, incline thine ear, and hear; open thine eyes, and behold our desolations, and the city which is called by thy name: for we do not present our supplications before thee for our righteousnesses, but for thy great mercies’ sake.
`Incline, O my God, Thine ear, and hear, open Thine eyes and see our desolations, and the city on which Thy name is called; for not for our righteous acts are we causing our supplications to fall before Thee, but for Thy mercies that are many.
Incline thine ear, O my God, and hear; open thine eyes and behold our desolations, and the city that is called by thy name: for we do not present our supplications before thee because of our righteousnesses, but because of thy manifold mercies.
Meaning in one sentence
What Daniel 9:18 means: Daniel prays not based on his people's goodness but on God's great compassion. A model for coming to God empty-handed.
Context
Daniel is an old man in exile, reading the prophet Jeremiah. He has realized that the seventy years of captivity are nearly complete. So he begins to pray, not with a list of his people's achievements, but with confession. He admits their sin, their rebellion, their refusal to listen. Then, about two-thirds of the way through his prayer, he makes this bold appeal. He asks God to incline His ear and open His eyes. The city Jerusalem lies in ruins. The temple is a heap. Daniel knows he has nothing to offer except God's own character. He says plainly: we are not presenting our petitions because of our righteous acts. It is Your compassion we are counting on.
Key Words
The first word Daniel uses for 'incline' in Hebrew is natah, meaning to stretch out or extend. He pictures God reaching down, bending His ear toward the prayer of a desperate man. It is the same word used in the prayer of Hezekiah when the Assyrian army surrounded Jerusalem. Daniel borrows that plea because he is in his own kind of siege.
Then he asks God to 'open' His eyes. The Hebrew paqach means to open something that has been shut. It is the same word used when God opens the eyes of the blind. Daniel is saying, 'Look at what we cannot fix. See the desolation we cannot repair.'
The phrase 'present our supplications' comes from the Hebrew naphal, which literally means to cause to fall. Daniel pictures himself and his people falling prostrate before God, their prayers dropping like empty hands before a throne. That is the posture: not standing tall with earned merit, but lying low with nothing but need.
And the word for 'mercies' is rachamim, the deep, womb-like compassion of God. It is the same word used in Exodus when God proclaimed His name to Moses: 'The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious.' Daniel is not appealing to a vague kindness but to the very character of God, the tenderness He promised to His people.
How Christians Read This Verse
Christians across traditions have been struck by the boldness and the humility in this verse. John Calvin saw in Daniel's words a 'wonderful fervor and vehemence of prayer,' as if Daniel was carried out of himself. Calvin pointed out that Daniel was not trying to be eloquent; he was pleading as a man who had exhausted all other hope.
Albert Barnes focused on the phrase 'the city which is called by your name.' He saw Daniel appealing to God's own reputation. The city belonged to God, so its ruin reflected on His honor. That gave Daniel a reason to ask for help that had nothing to do with Israel's worthiness.
John Gill, writing from a Baptist perspective, noted that Daniel pleaded 'for Christ's sake,' because the great mercies of God flow through the promised Redeemer. While interpreters differ on how explicitly Daniel saw Christ, they agree on the central point: the ground of prayer is God's grace, not human merit.
A common misunderstanding
Some readers think Daniel is bargaining with God, offering their confession as a kind of payment: 'We have admitted our sins, so now You owe us an answer.' But the verse itself refutes that. Daniel says plainly, 'We do not present our petitions before you for our righteousness.' Not even their confession is presented as merit. In fact, the whole prayer rests on one word: but. Not for our righteousness, but for Your great mercies. The only currency Daniel brings is God's compassion.
Living This Out
This week, you will face a reason to pray. Maybe a situation you cannot fix, a relationship that feels broken, a fear you have carried for years. Before you open your mouth, notice what you are holding in your hands. Are you rehearsing your good behavior? Are you hoping God will notice how many times you have read your Bible or how long you have waited patiently? Daniel invites you to come with empty hands. You do not need to convince God of your worthiness. You only need to remind yourself of His compassion. And that is the one thing you can always count on.
Main takeaway: We bring nothing to God but our need; He answers not because we are good, but because He is merciful.
For Families
For ages 5, 8
Daniel prayed a brave prayer. He told God, 'I am not asking because I have been good. I am asking because You are kind.' You can pray that way too.
For ages 9, 12
Daniel knew that his people had made a lot of mistakes. They had disobeyed God for many years. When he prayed, he did not try to convince God that they deserved help. Instead, he said, 'We are asking because You are full of mercy.' That is still how we come to God. Not with a report card of our good choices. Just with our need and His kindness.
Questions People Ask
What does Daniel mean when he says 'incline your ear'?
He is using a picture from human life. When someone is far away or not paying attention, you ask them to lean in and listen. Daniel felt that God had been silent for seventy years, so he begged God to bend His ear close to the prayer. It is a raw, honest way of asking God to pay attention to the suffering of His people.
Why does Daniel say 'not for our righteousness'?
Daniel had just spent many verses confessing the sins of his people. He knew they did not deserve God's help. If God only helped people who earned it, Israel would have no hope. So Daniel cut off that whole line of thinking. He refused to present any human goodness as a reason for God to act. Instead, he based everything on God's character.
What are the 'great mercies' Daniel refers to?
The Hebrew word is rachamim, which comes from a word meaning womb. It pictures the deep, tender compassion a mother has for her child. Daniel is not asking for a small favor. He is asking for the kind of mercy that flows from God's very nature, the mercy God promised to Moses when He passed before him and proclaimed His name.
Does this verse mean we should never mention our good deeds in prayer?
Not exactly. There are times in Scripture where people remind God of His promises to the faithful, like Abraham. But the point is that our good deeds are never the foundation of our request. Even when we have been faithful, we still come as beggars at the door of mercy. Daniel's prayer teaches us the right order: first confess, then appeal to God's compassion, never to our own merit.
How does Daniel's prayer connect to Jesus?
Many Christian readers see in Daniel's appeal the shape of the gospel. Daniel prays on the basis of God's mercy, not human righteousness. That is exactly what Jesus came to fulfill. He lived the righteousness we could not produce, and He died so that God's great mercies could be poured out on us. When we pray in Jesus' name, we are doing what Daniel did, trusting that God's compassion, not our performance, is our only hope.
For pastors & researchers
Hebrew interlinear, 8 commentaries & word study