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DECEMBER 3
DAY 2: How can we answer those who doubt Daniel’s authorship
because his prophecies are so astonishingly accurate?

Confidence in the divine origin of Scripture does not rely on blind faith.There are reasonable
explanations and acceptable corroborating evidence that point to the trustworthiness of the Bible.
Daniel’s use of what is now called Imperial Aramaic in writing the book points to an early date.The
Dead Sea Scrolls offer evidence that also pushes back the date for Daniel.
When accurate prophecy and possible miracles are discounted by definition as unacceptable,
proving Daniel’s value becomes challenging. But the problem has little to do with lack of evidence
and much to do with willful unbelief.Skeptical interpreters,unwilling to acknowledge supernatural
prophecies in Daniel that came to pass (over 100 in chapter 11 alone that were fulfilled),attempt to
replace miraculous foresight with simple observation. They assume that the writer of Daniel was
actually living in the time of Antiochus and reported current events in prophetic form.That is, the
writer wrote as though he was predicting certain events, when, in reality, he was writing after the
events had occurred.For scholars like these,no amount of fulfilled prophecy will be enough to con-
vince them.They actually become a reminder to believers that people are not argued into the king-
dom of God. The most compelling evidence as well as the most resistant people both need the
assistance of God’s Spirit in arriving at genuine faith.

belong mercy and forgiveness, though we have
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rebelled against Him. We have not obeyed the
December 3 voice of the LORD our God, to walk in His laws,
which He set before us by His servants the
prophets. Yes, all Israel has transgressed Your
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Daniel 9:1–10:21
law, and has departed so as not to obey Your
In the first year of Darius the son of voice; therefore the curse and the oath written
9 Ahasuerus, of the lineage of the Medes, in the Law of Moses the servant of God have
who was made king over the realm of the been poured out on us, because we have sinned
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Chaldeans— in the first year of his reign I, against Him. And He has confirmed His
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Daniel, understood by the books the number words, which He spoke against us and against
of the years specified by the word of the LORD our judges who judged us, by bringing upon us
through Jeremiah the prophet, that He would a great disaster; for under the whole heaven
accomplish seventy years in the desolations of such has never been done as what has been
Jerusalem. done to Jerusalem.
3 Then I set my face toward the Lord God to 13 “As it is written in the Law of Moses, all
make request by prayer and supplications, this disaster has come upon us; yet we have
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with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes. And I not made our prayer before the LORD our God,
prayed to the LORD my God, and made confes- that we might turn from our iniquities and
sion, and said, “O Lord, great and awesome understand Your truth. Therefore the LORD
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God, who keeps His covenant and mercy with has kept the disaster in mind, and brought it
those who love Him, and with those who keep upon us; for the LORD our God is righteous in
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His commandments, we have sinned and all the works which He does, though we have
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committed iniquity, we have done wickedly not obeyed His voice. And now, O Lord our
and rebelled, even by departing from Your God, who brought Your people out of the land
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precepts and Your judgments. Neither have we of Egypt with a mighty hand, and made
heeded Your servants the prophets, who spoke Yourself a name, as it is this day—we have
in Your name to our kings and our princes, to sinned, we have done wickedly!
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our fathers and all the people of the land. O 16 “O Lord, according to all Your righteous-
Lord, righteousness belongs to You, but to us ness, I pray, let Your anger and Your fury be
shame of face, as it is this day—to the men of turned away from Your city Jerusalem, Your
Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all holy mountain; because for our sins, and for the
Israel, those near and those far off in all the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and Your
countries to which You have driven them, people are a reproach to all those around us.
because of the unfaithfulness which they have 17 Now therefore, our God, hear the prayer of
committed against You. Your servant, and his supplications, and for the
8 “O Lord, to us belongs shame of face, to our Lord’s sake cause Your face to shine on Your
kings, our princes, and our fathers, because we sanctuary, which is desolate. O my God, incline
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have sinned against You. To the Lord our God Your ear and hear; open Your eyes and see our
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