19. Lord, listen! Lord, forgive! Lord, hear us and do something! For your sake, don’t wait! Your city and your people are called by your name.”
20. I was saying those things in my prayer to the Lord, my God. I was confessing my sins and the sins of the people of Israel. I was praying for God’s holy hill.
21. While I was still praying, Gabriel came to me. Gabriel was the person I had seen in my last vision. He came flying quickly to me about the time of the evening sacrifice.
22. Gabriel said to me, “Daniel, I have come to give you wisdom and to help you understand.
23. When you first started praying, an answer was given. And I came to tell you, because God loves you very much. So think about the message and understand the vision.
24. “God has ordered 490 years for your people and your holy city. These years are ordered for these reasons: to stop people from turning against God; to put an end to sin; to take away evil; to bring in goodness that continues forever; to make the vision and prophecy come true; and to appoint a most holy place.
25. “Learn and understand these things. A command will come to rebuild Jerusalem. The time from this command until the appointed leader comes will be 49 years and 434 years. Jerusalem will be rebuilt with streets and a trench around it. But it will be built in times of trouble.