דניאל, פרק ט׳, פסוק ו׳

The seriousness of the nation's sins is made even worse by the clear and constant warnings they received. The primary approach among commentators is that ignoring the prophets completely removes any excuse of ignorance or innocent mistake. God sent His messengers repeatedly to warn the people, yet they stubbornly refused to listen [אלשיך].

Because these prophets spoke directly in God's name, ignoring them was not merely a rejection of a human messenger, but a direct rebellion against God Himself. A king's messenger represents the king, and rebelling against the messenger is exactly like rebelling against the king to His face [מלבי״ם]. Furthermore, the people could not claim they were confused and unable to tell the difference between true and false prophets. True prophets were easily recognized because they delivered God's message publicly, speaking with boldness and without fear even when confronting the government. In contrast, false prophets hid and only targeted small groups of people who were easily persuaded [אלשיך].

The warnings of the prophets were not limited to a specific group; they reached all levels of society across all generations [מלבי״ם]. The prophets warned the great and honored figures, such as kings and princes, alongside the simple, everyday citizens [יוסף אבן יחיא]. The older generation of elders is also included, emphasizing that the veteran leaders share in the guilt and the resulting shame [אבן עזרא]. Finally, the message reached the general masses. Some explain that this specific group refers to those who ultimately perished completely due to their sins, leaving no descendants behind [מצודת דוד].