Daniel — Chapter 10
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1In the third year of Cyrus king of Persia a thing was revealed unto Daniel, whose name was called Belteshazzar; and the thing was true, but the time appointed was long: and he understood the thing, and had understanding of the vision.
2In those days I Daniel was mourning three full weeks.
3I ate no pleasant bread, neither came flesh nor wine in my mouth, neither did I anoint myself at all, till three whole weeks were fulfilled.
4And in the four and twentieth day of the first month, as I was by the side of the great river, which is Hiddekel;
5Then I lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and behold a certain man clothed in linen, whose loins were girded with fine gold of Uphaz:
6His body also was like the beryl, and his face as the appearance of lightning, and his eyes as lamps of fire, and his arms and his feet like in colour to polished brass, and the voice of his words like the voice of a multitude.
7And I Daniel alone saw the vision: for the men that were with me saw not the vision; but a great quaking fell upon them, so that they fled to hide themselves.
8Therefore I was left alone, and saw this great vision, and there remained no strength in me: for my comeliness was turned in me into corruption, and I retained no strength.
9Yet heard I the voice of his words: and when I heard the voice of his words, then was I in a deep sleep on my face, and my face toward the ground.
10And, behold, an hand touched me, which set me upon my knees and upon the palms of my hands.
11And he said unto me, O Daniel, a man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak unto thee, and stand upright: for unto thee am I now sent. And when he had spoken this word unto me, I stood trembling.
12Then said he unto me, Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words were heard, and I am come for thy words.
13But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia.
14Now I am come to make thee understand what shall befall thy people in the latter days: for yet the vision is for many days.
15And when he had spoken such words unto me, I set my face toward the ground, and I became dumb.
16And, behold, one like the similitude of the sons of men touched my lips: then I opened my mouth, and spake, and said unto him that stood before me, O my lord, by the vision my sorrows are turned upon me, and I have retained no strength.
17For how can the servant of this my lord talk with this my lord? for as for me, straightway there remained no strength in me, neither is there breath left in me.
18Then there came again and touched me one like the appearance of a man, and he strengthened me,
19And said, O man greatly beloved, fear not: peace be unto thee, be strong, yea, be strong. And when he had spoken unto me, I was strengthened, and said, Let my lord speak; for thou hast strengthened me.
20Then said he, Knowest thou wherefore I come unto thee? and now will I return to fight with the prince of Persia: and when I am gone forth, lo, the prince of Grecia shall come.
21But I will shew thee that which is noted in the scripture of truth: and there is none that holdeth with me in these things, but Michael your prince.
1In the third year of Cyrus king of Persia a thing was revealed unto Daniel, whose name was called Belteshazzar; and the thing was true, even a great warfare: and he understood the thing, and had understanding of the vision.
2In those days I, Daniel, was mourning three whole weeks.
3I ate no pleasant bread, neither came flesh nor wine into my mouth, neither did I anoint myself at all, till three whole weeks were fulfilled.
4And in the four and twentieth day of the first month, as I was by the side of the great river, which is Hiddekel,
5I lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and, behold, a man clothed in linen, whose loins were girded with pure gold of Uphaz:
6his body also was like the beryl, and his face as the appearance of lightning, and his eyes as flaming torches, and his arms and his feet like unto burnished brass, and the voice of his words like the voice of a multitude.
7And I, Daniel, alone saw the vision; for the men that were with me saw not the vision; but a great quaking fell upon them, and they fled to hide themselves.
8So I was left alone, and saw this great vision, and there remained no strength in me; for my comeliness was turned in me into corruption, and I retained no strength.
9Yet heard I the voice of his words; and when I heard the voice of his words, then was I fallen into a deep sleep on my face, with my face toward the ground.
10And, behold, a hand touched me, which set me upon my knees and upon the palms of my hands.
11And he said unto me, O Daniel, thou man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak unto thee, and stand upright; for unto thee am I now sent. And when he had spoken this word unto me, I stood trembling.
12Then said he unto me, Fear not, Daniel; for from the first day that thou didst set thy heart to understand, and to humble thyself before thy God, thy words were heard: and I am come for thy words` sake.
13But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days; but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me: and I remained there with the kings of Persia.
14Now I am come to make thee understand what shall befall thy people in the latter days; for the vision is yet for [many] days:
15and when he had spoken unto me according to these words, I set my face toward the ground, and was dumb.
16And, behold, one in the likeness of the sons of men touched my lips: then I opened my mouth, and spake and said unto him that stood before me, O my lord, by reason of the vision my sorrows are turned upon me, and I retain no strength.
17For how can the servant of this my lord talk with this my lord? for as for me, straightway there remained no strength in me, neither was there breath left in me.
18Then there touched me again one like the appearance of a man, and he strengthened me.
19And he said, O man greatly beloved, fear not: peace be unto thee, be strong, yea, be strong. And when he spake unto me, I was strengthened, and said, Let my lord speak; for thou hast strengthened me.
20Then said he, Knowest thou wherefore I am come unto thee? and now will I return to fight with the prince of Persia: and when I go forth, lo, the prince of Greece shall come.
21But I will tell thee that which is inscribed in the writing of truth: and there is none that holdeth with me against these, but Michael your prince.
1In the third year of King Cyrus of Persia a message was revealed to Daniel (who was also called Belteshazzar). This message was true and concerned a great war. He understood the message and gained insight by the vision.
2In those days I, Daniel, was mourning for three whole weeks.
3I ate no choice food, no meat or wine came to my lips, nor did I anoint myself with oil until the end of those three weeks.
4On the twenty-fourth day of the first month I was beside the great river, the Tigris.
5I looked up and saw a man clothed in linen; around his waist was a belt made of gold from Ufaz.
6His body resembled yellow jasper, and his face had an appearance like lightning. His eyes were like blazing torches; his arms and feet had the gleam of polished bronze. His voice thundered forth like the sound of a large crowd.
7Only I, Daniel, saw the vision; the men who were with me did not see it. On the contrary, they were overcome with fright and ran away to hide.
8I alone was left to see this great vision. My strength drained from me, and my vigor disappeared; I was without energy.
9I listened to his voice, and as I did so I fell into a trance-like sleep with my face to the ground.
10Then a hand touched me and set me on my hands and knees.
11He said to me, “Daniel, you are of great value. Understand the words that I am about to speak to you. So stand up, for I have now been sent to you.” When he said this to me, I stood up shaking.
12Then he said to me, “Don’t be afraid, Daniel, for from the very first day you applied your mind to understand and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard. I have come in response to your words.
13However, the prince of the kingdom of Persia was opposing me for 21 days. But Michael, one of the leading princes, came to help me, because I was left there with the kings of Persia.
14Now I have come to help you understand what will happen to your people in future days, for the vision pertains to days to come.”
15While he was saying this to me, I was flat on the ground and unable to speak.
16Then one who appeared to be a human being was touching my lips. I opened my mouth and started to speak, saying to the one who was standing before me, “Sir, due to the vision, anxiety has gripped me and I have no strength.
17How, sir, am I able to speak with you? My strength is gone, and I am breathless.”
18Then the one who appeared to be a human being touched me again and strengthened me.
19He said to me, “Don’t be afraid, you who are highly valued. Peace be to you! Be strong! Be really strong!” When he spoke to me, I was strengthened. I said, “Sir, you may speak now, for you have given me strength.”
20He said, “Do you know why I have come to you? Now I am about to return to engage in battle with the prince of Persia. When I go, the prince of Greece is coming.
21However, I will first tell you what is written in a dependable book. (There is no one who strengthens me against these princes, except Michael your prince.
1In the third year of Cyrus king of Persia a thing was revealed to Daniel, whose name was called Belteshazzar; and the thing was true, even a great warfare. He understood the thing, and had understanding of the vision.
2In those days I, Daniel, was mourning three whole weeks.
3I ate no pleasant bread. No meat or wine came into my mouth. I didn’t anoint myself at all, until three whole weeks were fulfilled.
4In the twenty-fourth day of the first month, as I was by the side of the great river, which is Hiddekel,
5I lifted up my eyes, and looked, and behold, there was a man clothed in linen, whose thighs were adorned with pure gold of Uphaz.
6His body also was like the beryl, and his face as the appearance of lightning, and his eyes as flaming torches. His arms and his feet were like burnished brass. The voice of his words was like the voice of a multitude.
7I, Daniel, alone saw the vision; for the men who were with me didn’t see the vision; but a great quaking fell on them, and they fled to hide themselves.
8So I was left alone, and saw this great vision. No strength remained in me; for my comeliness was turned in me into corruption, and I retained no strength.
9Yet I heard the voice of his words. When I heard the voice of his words, then I fell into a deep sleep on my face, with my face toward the ground.
10Behold, a hand touched me, which set me on my knees and on the palms of my hands.
11He said to me, Daniel, you greatly beloved man, understand the words that I speak to you, and stand upright; for I have been sent to you, now. When he had spoken this word to me, I stood trembling.
12Then he said to me, “Don’t be afraid, Daniel; for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard. I have come for your words’ sake.
13But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; but, behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me because I remained there with the kings of Persia.
14Now I have come to make you understand what will happen to your people in the latter days; for the vision is yet for many days.”
15When he had spoken these words to me, I set my face toward the ground, and was mute.
16Behold, one in the likeness of the sons of men touched my lips. Then I opened my mouth, and spoke and said to him who stood before me, “My lord, by reason of the vision my sorrows have overtaken me, and I retain no strength.
17For how can the servant of this my lord talk with this my lord? For as for me, immediately there remained no strength in me. There was no breath left in me.”
18Then one like the appearance of a man touched me again, and he strengthened me.
19He said, “Greatly beloved man, don’t be afraid. Peace be to you. Be strong. Yes, be strong.” When he spoke to me, I was strengthened, and said, “Let my lord speak; for you have strengthened me.”
20Then he said, “Do you know why I have come to you? Now I will return to fight with the prince of Persia. When I go out, behold, the prince of Greece will come.
21But I will tell you that which is inscribed in the writing of truth. There is no one who holds with me against these, but Michael your prince.
Summary
Daniel fasts and mourns for 21 days, then receives a terrifying angelic visitation. The angel reveals he was sent from the first day of Daniel's prayer but was delayed for three weeks by "the prince of the kingdom of Persia" — a demonic territorial power. Only when Michael, Israel's archangel, came to help was the messenger released. This chapter pulls back the curtain on invisible spiritual warfare.
Authorship & Background
- Daniel's 21-Day Fast and Mourning (vv.1-3)
- The Angelic Appearance: Terrifying Glory (vv.4-9)
- Daniel Strengthened to Hear (vv.10-14)
- The Revelation of Spiritual Warfare (vv.13-14)
- Daniel Speechless and Weak (vv.15-17)
- Strengthened Again: "Be Strong" (vv.18-19)
- The Angel Returns to Fight; Michael Helps (vv.20-21)
Map & Geography
Commentary
- Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com
- Charles Spurgeon: "From the FIRST DAY your words were heard. Oh praying saint, take heart! God did not wait twenty-one days to listen. He heard at once. The delay was not in heaven's ear but in hell's resistance. Your unanswered prayer is not unheard prayer. The battle rages BECAUSE your prayer was heard. Keep praying. The reinforcements are coming."
Reflection
- 1. "From the first day... thy words were heard" (v.12). God heard you the MOMENT you prayed. The silence between prayer and answer isn't divine indifference — it may be spiritual warfare. Don't stop praying because you don't see results yet. The answer is fighting its way to you.
- 2. There is an invisible war behind visible events (v.13). When you see political turmoil, national decline, or opposition to God's people — there are spiritual forces at work behind the scenes. Ephesians 6:12 is not metaphor. Pray accordingly.
- 3. Daniel fasted 21 days (v.3). Not a casual prayer — sustained, sacrificial, costly intercession. Some breakthroughs require more than a quick request. Some battles require sustained, desperate, costly engagement. What are you willing to GIVE UP to see God move?
- 4. "Be strong, yea, be strong" (v.19). God strengthens the weak to receive what He wants to reveal. If you feel too weak to hear from God — ask for strength to hear. He doesn't just send the message; He prepares the receiver.
- 5. Michael fights for you (v.21). You have angelic assistance you cannot see. The battle is NOT yours alone. God has assigned warriors to your cause. You are never as outnumbered as you feel (2 Kings 6:16 — "they that be with us are more than they that be with them").