דניאל, פרק ט׳, פסוק י״א

Daniel’s confession paints a painful picture of an entire nation that broke its covenant and must now face the full reality of past warnings. This is an absolute recognition of the direct link between spiritual stubbornness and national destruction. The rebellion was not limited to a few individuals; rather, the sin engulfed the entire nation [מלבי״ם, אלשיך]. This collective betrayal was carried out with a deliberate intent to anger God [יוסף אבן יחיא], and it involved the violation of both the Written and Oral Law [אלשיך]. The nation steadily and consistently strayed from the proper path [מצודת דוד, ביאור שטיינזלץ], completely ignoring the voices of the prophets who desperately tried to guide them back [מלבי״ם].

Because of this continuous rebellion, a harsh punishment was unleashed. The destruction arrived with immense force, likened to a heavy, torrential rain pouring down to the earth [רש״י, מצודת ציון, אבן עזרא]. Commentators differ on how this wrath was delivered. One approach maintains that the punishment struck the nation all at once with absolute finality, a sudden consequence of ignoring all prior warnings [מלבי״ם]. Conversely, another perspective views this pouring as a subtle expression of God's mercy. In this view, the punishment was dispensed slowly, drop by drop, designed to soften the blow rather than destroying the nation in a single, overwhelming strike [אלשיך].

The devastation experienced by the nation was the realization of the curse [מצודת ציון, ביאור שטיינזלץ] and the penalty for breaking the covenantal oath they had accepted at Mount Sinai [רש״י, מצודת דוד]. This specific penalty points directly to the curses recorded in the Book of Deuteronomy rather than the warnings found in the Book of Leviticus. The curses in Deuteronomy were explicitly accompanied by an oath and were delivered directly by Moses acting as God's messenger [מלבי״ם, יוסף אבן יחיא, אלשיך]. While the warnings in Leviticus were spoken directly by God as a gradual call to repentance, the curses in Deuteronomy served as a final penalty for past sins after the nation stubbornly refused to change [מלבי״ם]. Additionally, Daniel may have chosen to reference the curses from Deuteronomy because they are considered more moderate than those in Leviticus, subtly appealing to God's mercy [אלשיך].

Ultimately, the confession concludes with a simple, piercing truth: all of this occurred because the people sinned against Him [אבן עזרא]. The curses and the resulting devastation were not random tragedies. They were the direct, just, and inescapable consequence of a nation that had sinned against God [מצודת דוד, מלבי״ם].