Daniel - Chapter 10
Chapter 10 allows us the view of another heavenly visitation and then the final two chapters will focus on the future.
This chapter will give us biblical insight into the the nature of reality and it will emphasize that human causes and their effects are not the only forces working on the history of our world. We will see that these human causes are actually not even nearly as important as we once thought.
We have already seen that Daniel's long season of prayer and fasting brought God's angel, Gabriel, from heaven to tell him the secrets of the centuries to come. The strength of the prayer life of Daniel is one of the main principles taught us in this book of history and prophecy. Once more we are given a look into the understanding granted to Daniel that the foresight of history not yet here is in the hand of God and in His grace, He opens the eyes of Daniel, sharing with him the picture of events to come.
(10:1-3) Concern for the People of God
With special care and detail Daniel begins the chapter giving us a view of his final vision from The Lord. He pinpoints the exact time and will give even the exact date of the vision as he tells us the message was true, the time was long and he understood the message. However, he also advises that in those days he was fasting for three full weeks.
Remember that this type of fast clearly shows Daniel to be in full submission to the Lord, denying comfort or sustenance to himself.
We know from Ezra 1:1-4 that this time was the period which granted the return of God's chosen people to Jerusalem. The allowance granted for the return is related so clearly by Ezra to be the word of God himself, not of the king from his own goodness.
Ezra writes, “... that the word of the Lord spoken by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus, king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation... and put it in writing”.
Daniel did not return under this proclamation. Perhaps he considered himself too old for the journey and physical labor of rebuilding. It may also be that his close relation to the Lord led him to remain where he was and to continue his prayer warrior position for his people. He likely knew that there was resistance to the rebuilding (as seen so clearly in Nehemiah) and felt he could do more by prayer than he could in the Holy City.
This position assumed by Daniel who had longed for the restoration, includes him within the roll call of heroes in Hebrews 11, which labored long and prayed in mighty belief, but never saw the promise kept with their mortal eyes. The Lord had nurtured this spirit within Daniel by the visions given him before and now the Lord prepares him to see this further revelation.
(10:4-21) Vision of God as Sufficient and The Kingdom is Shown
God took Daniel in spirit to the edge of the Tigris river, and there he saw a majestic figure before him. While there were others with Daniel, they did not see the vision but felt it and fled in fear. The physical description of this one almost matches in all aspects the vision John relates in the beginning of the Revelation. Daniel quickly falls to the ground, trembles and is speechless, with his face on the ground. He finds himself weak and unable to find any confidence in his own body strength. But quickly he is granted grace and strength to begin the vision. Here we see a preview of the perfect answer to Paul's request of the Lord to remove the thorn of his flesh. Jesus told him that His strength is made perfect in weakness. Here is proof.
Daniel is told that the vision has been given so that he may understand what will happen to his people in the latter days. Now Daniel finds himself able to speak and says that because of the vision, sorrows have overwhelmed him. Once more Daniel is told that he is a man greatly beloved. Daniel had once more been seeking the face of God in most serious prayer and fasting, preparing himself in humility and surely was hoping to grasp a better understanding of the previous vision of the weeks.
While the original being of the vision seems clearly to be a view of Jesus in His glory we see in verses 10 & 11 that he was not alone. There was with Him one that came and touched Daniel, helping him up and preparing him for the vision to come.
The messenger had seemed to have intended to come as soon as Daniel began to pray but we are given a strong and supernatural reason for the arrival. He says that the king of Persia had withstood him and that God's angel Michael arrived to help him overcome whatever was causing the delay. The conflict being described to Daniel is not one of flesh and blood but is one of spiritual warfare against principalities, powers and rulers of the darkness of this world. (Our first study together was on this issue in Ephesians 6). Daniel is being allowed to know of the warfare that rages invisible to men, and this description was a view of only one battle in this perpetual war.
If this curtain were to be drawn back for all of us, we would see warfare so intense and fierce that all the wars of mankind for all time would be viewed as only a speck in importance.
Daniel was learning that the ultimate power struggle is a ruthless conflict between the forces of light and the forces of darkness. Through his own willingness to pray and fast, Daniel himself now was connected to this raging conflict through the vision. Now he is beginning to fully grasp the power of prayer and it being the only path to see more of God's kingdom while we are here.
Mary, Queen of Scots, (a Roman Catholic), once said that she feared the prayers of John Knox more than any invading army on earth.
Two things we must know about this revealing moment, given to us by Daniel:
The power of prayer does not belong to the one who prays, but to God. Prayer has no power within itself. It is wholehearted dependence on God and is a confession that we can do nothing without the Lord. God alone is sufficient and we are nothing more than a channel for communication. It is in our weakness that His strength is found and revealed.
We should also remember that the only prayer that has any hope of effect through God's will is a prayer that is sent from the sinner's heart seeking only His righteousness, for we have none on our own.
Once more it makes sense to recall that the object of all prayer is not to get our will done in heaven but to get God's will done on earth. When Jesus prepared the teaching for his twelve (and therefore us) he was so very clear to ask for the will of the Lord to be done on earth as it is done in heaven.
Daniel had become a crossroads of sort through his seeking the face of the Lord and greater understanding through humble asking with much fasting and willingness to devote himself to the seeking first the Lord, and then all other things were added to him, and we are told many times that he was beloved above.
We should not leave this chapter without strong focus on the verses concerning the day of the arrival of Gabriel. This curtain drawn back for us is the supernatural protection God provided through His angel for king Darius, who had confirmed the decree of Cyrus allowing the return of God's people to Jerusalem. In addition to confirming the decree, Darius commanded that the cost for the rebuilding, including God's Holy Temple, would be paid from his own treasury and any violation of his command would result in death (Ezra 6:8-12). In this way Darius “blessed” the sons of Abraham and was himself in turn “blessed” by God, protected by God's angel in Persia in accordance with the promise God made to Abraham in Genesis 12:3 “I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you”.
We should be sure to remember that this promise is still in effect even in later times, even in our own times as well. When the Greeks over took Palestine and desecrated the Temple, they were conquered by the Romans. When the Romans killed Paul, and many other faithful ones, and ruined the Temple, Rome fell after it was overwhelmed by Christian faith led by the mother of Constantine. Spain was reduced to weakness after the inquisition against non Catholics AND Jews. Poland fell to Germany after the persecution of the Jews and Germany then fell after its horrible treatment of the chosen people.
We should be much in prayer for our own leaders that none will lead us away from the strongest possible support for Israel.
