In those days I Daniel was mourning three full weeks
By the third year of Cyrus the exile was over on paper: the decree had gone out, and a company of Jews had gone home. Yet Daniel stayed on in Babylon and mourned for three weeks, and the chapter never says why.
Chapter 9 measured out "seventy weeks," and readers carry that arithmetic into chapter 10. The Hebrew wording here is not the same.
In Scripture a week usually stands for seven ordinary days. That is plainly the case in Daniel 10:2, where the prophet mourns for "three full weeks" (margin, Hebrew: weeks of days). But Daniel 9:24 does not use this definite expression, "a week of days." There our English Bibles read "seventy weeks." In the Hebrew original that expression stands for "seventy sevens." It does not say whether these are days, years, or any other period of time. The context must decide that.
So the plain reading stands: twenty-one literal days. The ESV reads "three weeks"; older versions keep the Hebrew idiom, "three full weeks."
The timing makes this striking. The door out of Babylon stood open, and Daniel had every comfort at his command. He mourned instead.
Daniel was not among these. He was not now expecting only bright visions of immediate glory. Instead he is still found, more than ever, humbling himself before God.
There were two ways to see the partial return. Daniel did not take the popular one.
Human nature might have seen the partial return as a revival among God's people. It looked like a fresh start in their spiritual history, one that called for celebration, feasting and rejoicing. The man of God, however, feels the sorrowful past of God's people. He feels their present weakness, even though they are free to return to the land. Above all he foresees the further sorrows that await them before their final deliverance. Among those who returned, the younger generation "shouted with a great shout," but the old men "wept with a loud voice" (Ezra 3:12).
Daniel never states his reason. Where should a reader look for it?
The subject of his sorrow and fasting is not stated. But the chapter before shows that the condition of his people and of the holy city weighed on his heart. So we may well conclude that his mourning here was over the same thing. We can be all the surer of it, because his mourning led to a revelation of the future deliverance of his people.
Another writer points to the gap between what had happened and what God had promised.
The people were not in the state that the prophetic Spirit in Daniel could recognise as the promised blessings fulfilled... God's Spirit had taken Daniel over the whole period of the Gentiles. So he understood well what had happened. There had been a kind of deliverance — some relief through the goodness of God, a little refreshment from above. But none of God's promises had really come true.
The three weeks look like heaven ignoring him. Verse 12 says otherwise. That matters for anyone praying with no reply.
What is worth noting is this: the answer to Daniel's cry left the throne of God at the very start of his seeking, as we read in Daniel 10:12... "But" — how marvellous and mysterious this is! — "the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days."
The reason for the delay shows us more than the future.
When the reason for this long fast comes out, we are let into the link between the world we see and the world we do not see. All prophecy lifts the veil from the future, and this vision does more. It shows, in an interesting light, what is around us now, but unseen.
Two lessons follow from Daniel's mourning.
The one who most completely identifies himself with the sorrows of God's people is most in fellowship with the heart of God for them. And if we want God to share His mind with us, our soul must be in a state to receive it. What greater mistake could we make than to think we can enter God's secrets without a heart made ready? Or to think that hearing or reading alone can teach us divine things?
- Days, not years. The Hebrew reads "weeks of days." That sets these three weeks apart from the "seventy sevens" of chapter 9. Daniel fasted twenty-one literal days.
- Sorrow. The exile had ended and some Jews were home. Daniel mourned instead of celebrating: a partial recovery is not the promised deliverance.
- Silence. The answer left God's throne on day one. The twenty-one days were opposition on the way, not silence at the source.
- Unseen. The reason for the delay lifts the veil not only on the future but on the invisible powers at work around us right now.
- Readiness. God's secrets follow a prepared heart. Daniel's fasting was not a bargaining chip. It was the state of soul that could receive the vision.
I ate no pleasant bread, neither came flesh nor wine into my mouth, neither did I anoint myself at all, till three full weeks were fulfilled.
In the third year of Cyrus, the aged Daniel mourns for three weeks in the land of exile. The verse names what he gave up: rich food, meat, wine, even oil on his skin. It never says why. Commentators ask what could hold a man back from every pleasure for twenty-one days.
The chapter never names the cause of his grief. Writers read it from the chapter before, where Jerusalem and its people weighed on him.
The subject of his sorrow and fasting is not stated. But we know from the previous chapter that the state of his people and of the holy city lay heavily on his heart. So we may well conclude that his mourning here had the same cause. We are the more sure of it because it led to a revelation of the future deliverance of his people.
The timing is striking. The return home had already begun.
Though Daniel remained in the land of captivity, he was in no way indifferent to the condition of God's people. The state of his soul shows it clearly… Nature might have seen in the partial return a revival among God's people, a fresh start that called for celebration, feasting and rejoicing. The man of God, however, feels the sorrowful past of God's people. He feels their present weakness, even though they are free to return to the land. Above all, he foresees the further sorrows waiting for them before they reach their final deliverance… It would be well for God's people if every gracious revival among them became an occasion for confession and mourning. Remember that there will be no full and final deliverance until Christ comes.
Daniel could have had anything he wanted. Kelly notes that he did the opposite of what human nature does when good news arrives.
He was not enjoying himself in a foreign land, but mourning and fasting — and this in circumstances where he had everything at his command… The moment was near for the little remnant to leave Babylon and return to the land of their fathers. We can all understand why he humbled his own soul before God then, and reviewed the sin that had brought such a terrible chastening on the people from the Lord. Even then he was doing the exact opposite of what the flesh would have wanted. For when some great outward mercy is granted, that is the very time when a man naturally tends to give free rein to his enjoyment. Daniel did the reverse. He took the place of confession, confessing not only Israel's sins but his own. Only a holy man could have so deep a sense of sin.
What does fasting express? One writer answers, calling our natural self "the first man".
Prayer is the expression of complete dependence on God. Fasting shows the absolute refusal of ourselves and all human gratifications. In practice the first man is completely set aside, and we walk in simple dependence on God alone. This will mean death to myself as a man here, in every way. Faith connects our souls with another scene altogether, where the first man has no place.
The three weeks are not just background to the vision. They prepared Daniel to receive it.
First, the one who most fully identifies himself with the sorrows of God's people is most in fellowship with the heart of God for them… Second, if we want God to make His mind known to us, our soul must be in a state to receive it. What greater mistake could we make than to think we can enter God's secrets without a moral readiness of heart? Can we understand divine things merely by hearing or reading, or because we have gathered around certain leaders of God's people and eagerly upheld their teachings?
God did not delay the answer. Later verses in the chapter explain the twenty-one days.
One thing is especially worth noting. God sent the answer to Daniel's cry from His throne at the very beginning of his exercise. We read in Daniel 10:12: "Fear not, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand and humbled yourself before your God, your words have been heard, and I have come because of your words." But — how marvellous and mysterious this is! — "The prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days, but Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me."
- Burden. The verse never names his grief. The chapter before does: his people and their city lay heavily on his heart.
- Timing. The mourning comes after the good news of return. Where nature would celebrate, Daniel humbled himself.
- Fasting. Refusing food, wine and oil is the refusal of self. It sets the first man aside and ties the soul to an unseen scene.
- Fitness. The one who shares the sorrows of God's people stands nearest to God's heart. A prepared heart receives God's mind; reading and loyalty to teachers do not.
- Answer. The reply left the throne on day one. The twenty-one days were opposition, not silence.
And on the four-and-twentieth day of the first month, I was by the side of the great river, which is Hiddekel
Daniel's last and longest vision carries a precise stamp: a day, a month, and a riverbank in the land of exile. Those details show where Daniel stood, how he had lived for three weeks, and why God's message reached him there.
The chapter first tells us how Daniel had been living, then anchors what follows to a moment in the calendar and a spot on the map.
More details about time and place are added: "And in the twenty-fourth day of the first month, as I was by the side of the great river, which is Hiddekel; then I lifted up my eyes, and looked," and so on (vv. 4, 5). At this date, then, and at this place, the vision of "a certain man" is granted to him.
Older translations call this river Hiddekel. The ESV gives the name we know today, and commentators explain why.
Scripture names this river in only one other place (Genesis 2:14). Most identify it with the Tigris, on grounds of both geography and word history. If that is right, Daniel would have had to cross it on his journeys from Babylon to Shushan (Daniel 8:2).
That one earlier mention matters. The same river runs through the Bible's opening pages, and now past the man who is about to hear how history ends.
Daniel's closing revelations of chapters 10 – 12 came to him "by the side of the great river, which is Hiddekel" (10:4). That carries us back in thought to Eden. Genesis 2 is where we first read of this important river. These revelations are remarkable. They take us down to the time of the end, to the time when "many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt" (Dan. 12:2)... By the Spirit of God we can now grasp the revelations God gave Daniel by the rivers of Babylon. So we may take a calm path towards the end, waiting and watching for the coming of the Lord.
For an Israelite, the Tigris was not neutral ground.
In Genesis we find that there were four rivers. We know little or nothing of the first two. But it is clear that the last two, the Euphrates and Hiddekel or Tigris, were tied to some of the most painful passages in the later history of God's earthly people. The two most famous cities of the ancient world were built on them: Nineveh on the Tigris, and Babylon on the Euphrates... These two rivers came to stand for the powers that would ruin Israel and Judah. Rivers first connected with Paradise later represented the human powers God used to punish His guilty people.
By this time the exiles were free to go home.
Daniel had not taken advantage of the decree of Cyrus. It had gone out two years before, leaving the Israelites free to return to their own land, as prophecy had said. Daniel was still in the place of the Jews' captivity. But there is more. The Spirit of God draws attention to the state of the prophet's soul. He was not enjoying himself in a foreign land. He was mourning and fasting — and this in circumstances where he had everything at his command.
The three weeks of fasting were not a side note. They left Daniel ready for what came next.
Daniel is in a right condition of soul to receive communications from God. So he has a wonderful vision of a glorious angelic being, through whom God will make His mind known. He sees the angel not in some simple clothing put on to appear to man, but in his own angelic glory, showing his majesty, holiness and power as a divine messenger.
Commentators differ over who this messenger is. One writer sets the likeness to John's vision beside what the speaker says about himself.
At this date and at this place, the vision of a man comes to him... Who, then, was this heavenly visitor? Anyone can see at once the many resemblances to the one like the Son of Man whom John saw on Patmos. But there are differences too, and some of the most striking features John records are missing. So it is by no means certain that this is a divine person. Indeed, if the same speaker runs through the whole chapter, it could not be, since he speaks of being hindered in his mission by "the prince of Persia" for twenty-one days.
- The date — The vision comes on a named day of a named month. God sets prophecy about the far future inside dated, real history.
- The place — The great river Hiddekel is usually identified as the Tigris. Scripture names it in only one other place: Genesis 2:14, a river of Eden.
- The memory — That link carries the reader back to the garden. The revelations that follow run forward to the awakening of Daniel 12:2 — Eden at one end, the time of the end at the other.
- The man — Cyrus had set the exiles free to go home. Daniel stayed, mourning and fasting when he could have been feasting.
- The preparation — Daniel stood by the river in a right condition of soul, and that is why he could receive what God had to say.
and I lifted up mine eyes and looked, and behold, a certain man clothed in linen, and his loins were girded with pure gold of Uphaz;
Daniel is in grief before his God. He lifts his eyes and sees a man clothed in linen, wearing a belt of fine gold. Who is this figure? And what do the linen and the gold say about Him?
The description is too great for an ordinary messenger, and one reading takes the figure to be the Lord Himself, appearing in human form to a servant He feels for.
Besides these angels, another appears on the scene: "a man clothed in linen, with a belt of fine gold from Uphaz around his waist." Verse 6 gives us a magnificent description of Him, and Daniel alone sees Him. He does not appear to have been a mere angel. He may have shown some features of angelic glory. But I take this to be One who often appears in both New and Old Testament history — the Lord of glory Himself. He appears now as a man — as One who had the deepest sympathy with His servant on the earth.
Commentators differ. The difference turns on what the speaker says about himself later in this chapter.
Who, then, was this heavenly visitor? We see at once many likenesses to the appearance of the one "like the Son of man," whom John saw on the island of Patmos. But there are also differences, and some of the most striking features that John records are missing. So it is by no means certain that this is a divine person. Indeed, if the same speaker talks all through this chapter, it could not be. He says that "the prince of Persia" hindered his mission for twenty-one days... Some have supposed that it is a divine person in verses 5-9, and an angel from verse 10. Nothing, however, depends on the interpretation, and the question may be left undecided.
The Hebrew word behind the clothing points to linen, and linen is white. Scripture puts that whiteness to use.
The Hebrew word 'bad' (which at root means separated into parts, or to be alone) means thread, and then linen. Linen is white, so it may often stand for purity... Further, in Ezekiel 9 and Daniel 10, we find it used for an angel appearing as a man.
Uphaz is a place name, and the record about it is thin.
Some place from which gold was brought. Jer. 10:9; Dan. 10:5; supposed, according to some ancient versions, to be the same as Ophir.
The metal and the belt each carry their own sense: one tells us what God is, the other what fits a servant to act.
Gold is the emblem of the perfect righteousness, the justice, of God. The belt is the sign of activity in service. It is also the sign of that self-control and power over ourselves which would make us fit to act, and by its very character to carry out this righteousness.
Where the belt sits matters. John's vision in Revelation places it higher, and the contrast with Daniel's verse is deliberate.
A belt worn across the chest instead of round the waist (Dan. 10:5) would suggest calm rest. The belt itself stands for righteousness and faithfulness, qualities that always marked the Lord in all His ways (Isa. 11:5).
Daniel was not looking for a vision. He was in grief, and God took note of it.
God also notices this, for the man clothed in linen says to him, "Fear not, Daniel," and so on (v. 12). Daniel's position was that of affliction in the presence of his God.
Daniel had no equal in moral quality. Yet this sight left him in ruins.
As to moral qualities, perhaps no one in the Old Testament surpasses Daniel. Yet in the presence of "a man ... with a belt of fine gold from Uphaz," he has to say that his beauty was turned in him into corruption (Daniel 10:5-8). However fine a man may be, when he comes into the presence of Him who is altogether lovely, he feels his most excellent qualities to be debased and impure.
- Sorrow first. Daniel's position was affliction in the presence of his God, and God noticed it.
- A man, seen alone. Daniel alone sees Him. Kelly takes Him for the Lord of glory, in deepest sympathy with His servant. Dennett says this is by no means certain, since the prince of Persia hindered the speaker for twenty-one days.
- Linen means purity. The Hebrew word means linen, and linen is white. Scripture uses it for purity, and for an angel appearing as a man.
- Gold means righteousness. Gold is the emblem of God's perfect justice. The belt marks activity in service — the power to carry that righteousness out.
- Belt at the waist. In Revelation the belt sits across the chest and suggests calm rest. Here it is at the waist, ready for action. And the man who saw it lost all his beauty in that presence.
and his body was like a chrysolite, and his face as the appearance of lightning, and his eyes as torches of fire, and his arms and his feet as the look of burnished brass, and the voice of his words like the voice of a multitude.
After three weeks of mourning and fasting, Daniel looked up by the great river and saw a man blazing with light. Who is he, and why does the sight of him leave the most faithful man of his day flat on the ground?
Some writers read this shining man as the Lord Himself, not a created messenger:
Verse 6 describes him magnificently, and Daniel alone sees him. He does not appear to have been a mere angel. He may have been seen with some features of angelic glory. But I take this to be One who often appears in both New and Old Testament history — the Lord of glory Himself. He appears now as a man, as One who had the deepest sympathy with His servant on the earth.
Commentators differ. Others compare this figure with the vision John saw on Patmos and hesitate:
Who, then, was this heavenly visitor? Many resemblances to the one "like a son of man," whom John saw on Patmos, stand out at once. But there are also differences, and some of the most striking features John records are missing. So it is by no means certain that this is a divine person. Indeed, if the same speaker continues through this chapter, it could not be. He says "the prince of Persia" hindered him in his mission for twenty-one days. Nothing depends on the interpretation, though, and the question may be left undecided.
The word behind "beryl" is tarshish. It shows up in some striking places:
There is no certainty as to what stone the word tarshish means. The Greek translation renders it by different words. Ezekiel 1:16 and 10:9 compare the wheels to its colour, but do not say what that colour was. Some suppose it was the golden topaz; others that it was the chrysolite. It was the first stone in the fourth row of the high priest's breastpiece. It also appears in the foundation of the heavenly Jerusalem.
The eyes and the gleaming limbs work as a pair. Writers explaining the same imagery elsewhere show how:
His eyes as "a flame of fire" refer to His moral intolerance of evil. He will search out sin and discover it, however hidden. Who or what can escape those eyes like a flame of fire? "His feet like burnished bronze." What His eyes discover, His feet shall tread upon. The feet of burnished bronze stand for unbending judgement, justice that never gives way.
The men beside Daniel were there, but the vision was not for them. Scripture shows the same thing happening elsewhere:
Horses and chariots filled the mountain. But the prophet's servant had to have his eye opened before he could see them. Daniel saw a glorious stranger and heard his voice like the voice of a multitude. But the men who stood with him saw nothing — only a terror fell on them.
Daniel's record is hard to fault. That is what makes his collapse worth watching:
In moral qualities there is perhaps no one in the Old Testament to excel Daniel. Yet in the presence of "a certain man… girded with fine gold of Uphaz," he has to say, "my radiant appearance was fearfully changed." However fine a man may be, he feels his most excellent qualities to be debased and impure when he comes before the One who is altogether lovely.
The vision does not end with Daniel face down in the dust. What happens next has a purpose:
Left alone with the angel, Daniel is overcome with fear. He falls to the ground and finds relief in deep sleep. In this position the hand of the angel touches him and sets him on his knees and the palms of his hands. The angel then speaks. He assures Daniel that he is greatly beloved, and makes him stand upright, though trembling. So Daniel stands free in the presence of this heavenly being, to hear what God has to say.
- Seen — a shining man by the river. Commentators differ on whether this is the Lord Himself or a messenger, and one writer says nothing depends on settling it.
- Searched — eyes like flaming torches find evil however well hidden; limbs like burnished bronze tread down what the eyes find.
- Selective — the glory was real, but only Daniel saw it; his companions felt terror and ran.
- Stripped — the finest man of his day lost his strength and his radiance in that presence. Next to perfection, even excellence feels impure.
- Steadied — a hand set him on his knees, a word called him beloved, and the angel raised him upright for one purpose: to hear what God had to say.
And I Daniel alone saw the vision; and the men that were with me saw not the vision, but a great quaking fell on them, and they fled to hide themselves.
Daniel had been mourning and fasting when a man clothed in linen appeared to him. The men beside him saw nothing, yet terror drove them into hiding — so who was this visitor, and why did Daniel alone see him?
Commentators differ over who this visitor was. One reading finds the description in verse 6 too glorious for a mere angel, and sees in His coming the sympathy of the Lord for His servant.
Verse 6 gives us such a magnificent description of him, and Daniel alone sees him. He does not appear to have been a mere angel. He may have appeared with some features of angelic glory. But I take it that this is One who often appears in both New and Old Testament history — the Lord of glory Himself. He appears now as a man — as One who had the deepest sympathy with His servant on the earth. All the others had fled to hide themselves; Daniel stayed. Even so, no strength was left in him.
Others compare that description with what John saw on the island of Patmos, and stay more cautious.
Who, then, was this heavenly visitor? There are many likenesses to the one "like the Son of man" whom John saw on Patmos. But there are also differences, and some of the most striking features John records are missing. It is by no means certain, therefore, that this is a divine person. Indeed, if it is the same speaker all through this chapter, it could not be. He says that "the prince of Persia" held him up in his mission for twenty-one days. Some have supposed that it is a divine person in verses 5-9, and an angel from verse 10. This seems a little forced, though verses 5-9 do have traits suggesting more than an angel. Nothing, however, depends on the interpretation, so the question may be left undecided.
The verse does not tell us who these men were. One writer offers a likely answer.
This seems to point to the conclusion that Daniel was on a journey at this time, and that the men were his personal attendants.
The men saw no vision, yet something reached them. One writer sets this beside the conversion of Saul of Tarsus, where his companions also caught only part of what happened.
There is also a resemblance between this scene and what took place at the conversion of Saul of Tarsus. Then his companions saw the light. They heard the sound, but they did not hear the words spoken. Here the men with him saw nothing, but they were filled with trembling and fled to hide themselves. Fallen man cannot stand in the presence of God. Even a saint — whether Daniel in the Old Testament or John in the New — falls down "in a deep sleep" or "as one dead". We know God as our Father, but we must never forget His supreme majesty as God.
One writer traces the same split forward to the day the Lord comes back for His people.
When our blessed Lord was on earth, a voice came to Him from heaven. Some of the bystanders thought it thundered. Others said, "An angel has spoken to him" (John 12:28-29). So also at the conversion of Saul, his companions heard a voice — that is, the sound of a voice (Acts 9:7). But they "did not understand the voice of the one who was speaking to me" (Acts 22:9); they did not catch its meaning. Compare Daniel 10:7. So it will be when the Lord Himself descends from heaven. All His own will hear and understand what the shout means; but if others hear it, it will only seem like the roll of distant thunder.
Standing alone was not new for Daniel. The pattern runs from the first chapter of his book to the last, and it ends in a promise.
How beautiful it is to see Daniel alone in the first chapter, and Daniel alone in the last chapter of his book. All the glory of this world passes before us, but the man who stands for God alone at the beginning is the man who will be alone at the end. "But go your way till the end. And you shall rest and shall stand in your allotted place at the end of the days." The world is triumphing now, in this brief day of man. But those who are separate to God now will stand alone in that day of blessing.
- Alone in seeing. Only Daniel saw the vision. His companions — most likely his personal attendants on a journey — saw nothing.
- Alone in staying. The others fled and hid, because fallen man cannot stand in the presence of God. Daniel stayed.
- Alone with whom. Commentators differ. Some hold this is the Lord of glory Himself, appearing as a man. Others point to the missing features and to the speaker's own words, and leave the question open.
- Alone in hearing. Saul's companions caught the sound but not the message. So it will be when the Lord descends: only His own will know what His shout means.
- Alone at the end. The man who stands for God alone at the start of the book still stands alone at its close. He will stand in his allotted place in the day of blessing.
And I was left alone, and saw this great vision, and there remained no strength in me; and my comeliness was turned in me into corruption, and I retained no strength.
Daniel's companions ran and hid, and he was left alone with a vision that took all his strength. Why does one of the most faithful men in Scripture collapse like this, and what is the change he describes?
The quotes below use an older wording: "my comeliness was turned in me into corruption." The ESV has "My radiant appearance was fearfully changed."
One writer sets this scene beside two others in Scripture. The men with Daniel react like Paul's companions; Daniel himself reacts like John.
Daniel's companions, like those of Paul, were afraid. The quaking that fell on them was so great that they fled to hide themselves. Daniel himself, like John, fell down as dead before the heavenly messenger... Scripture gives many instances of this. It would seem impossible for man in his natural state to talk with heavenly beings when they are surrounded by the majesty and excellence that belong to their existence.
The collapse was not physical illness. One writer reads it as the work of conscience — the glory told Daniel something about himself.
The prophet tells us that when the glory appeared to him, his "comeliness was turned into corruption." This was conscience, not disease. The glory, or the divine presence, let Daniel know that he was a sinner; and the sense of that was intolerable.
One writer identifies the person Daniel saw. He then draws a lesson from what that sight did to an old and faithful man.
The one whom Daniel alone sees does not appear to have been a mere angel. He may have shown some features of angelic glory, but I take Him to be One who often appears in both New and Old Testament history — the Lord of glory Himself. He appears now as a man, as One who had the deepest sympathy with His servant on the earth. All the others had fled to hide themselves; Daniel stayed. Even so, there remained no strength in him — his comeliness was turned into corruption. Even a beloved man and faithful saint of God must prove that all his past wisdom was of no use. He was now a very aged man, and he had been faithful to the Lord as few have been... However much value there may be in what a saint has learnt, the past alone does not enable us to understand the new lesson of God. God Himself is necessary for this — not merely what we have learnt already.
Daniel's reaction was not unique. One writer lines up the same confession from name after name in Scripture.
This spirit of self-judgment is worked in all who really have to do with God. Examples of it fill Scripture. When Abraham found himself in the presence of God, he said, I "am but dust and ashes" (Gen. 18:27). Isaiah said, "I am undone" (Isa. 6:5); and Daniel, "my comeliness was turned in me into corruption" (Dan. 10:8). So Peter, "I am a sinful man, O Lord" (Luke 5:8), and Paul, "sinners, of whom I am chief" (1 Tim 1:15). And all these were saints who stood out in their day. They would not have stood out if they had not had such an experience. Have we had it?
The collapse had a purpose. One writer calls it the preparation a man needs before he can enter into God's thoughts.
Daniel said, when he saw "the great vision," "And my comeliness was turned in me into corruption, and I retained no strength" (Dan. 10:8). This is a necessary preparation for receiving prophetic information, so that a man can enter into the thoughts of God. That is why the angel comforted Daniel: "Fear not, man greatly beloved; peace be to you, be strong, yes, be strong" (Dan. 10:19).
Commentators differ on who Daniel saw. This writer speaks of an angel, and follows what that angel does next.
Daniel, left alone in the presence of the angel, is overcome with fear, and falls to the ground, finding relief in deep sleep. In this position the hand of the angel touches him and sets him on his knees and the palms of his hands. The angel then speaks. He assures Daniel that he is greatly beloved, and makes him stand upright, though trembling. So Daniel is free, in the presence of this heavenly being, to hear what God has to say.
There is a day coming when the sight that flattened Daniel will be bearable.
When Daniel saw the heavenly vision, his strength left him, and his comeliness was turned into corruption. When John saw Christ in glory, he too fell lifeless, until revived by the gracious word and touch of his Redeemer. But when they are awakened in His likeness, they will find themselves given strength to bear the very sight of God. All others who share their hope will find the same.
- Alone. The others fled and hid. Daniel alone saw the vision, and he faced it without them.
- Exposed. The change in him was conscience, not sickness — the divine presence let him know he was a sinner.
- Levelled. Age, faithfulness and years of learning God's ways left him no more able to stand. Past learning does not equip a man for a new lesson from God.
- Shared. Abraham, Isaiah, Peter and Paul each said the same thing about themselves. The writer asks whether we have said it too.
- Restored. Emptied first, then touched, told he is greatly beloved, and set upright — that is how God prepares a man to hear Him.
And I heard the voice of his words; and when I heard the voice of his words, I fell into a deep stupor on my face, and my face to the ground.
Daniel has been mourning and fasting when a glorious figure appears and speaks. The sound of the voice leaves the aged prophet face down on the ground. Why does a man God loves collapse like this? And what has to happen before God can speak to him?
The sight had already drained his strength (v. 8). Then the voice finished the work. One writer sets Daniel's collapse beside Paul's and John's.
Daniel himself, like John, fell down as dead before the heavenly messenger... From many examples in Scripture, it seems impossible for man in his natural state to talk with heavenly beings. Such beings are clothed in the majesty and excellence that belong to their existence. So a man must be like Paul, who did not know whether he was in the body or out of it, or like John, who was "in the Spirit," carried outside his ordinary way of being. Only then can he receive heavenly secrets.
Daniel was not reacting to guilt over one particular failure. Isaiah and Ezekiel had met the same glory, and all three learned the same thing.
Is this not all very striking? Each of these servants of God — Isaiah, Ezekiel, Daniel — declared his own unfitness, and felt it, in the presence of the glory of God. Let me draw special attention to one point. With each of them it was never a question of what they had done, but of what they were. The glory of God told them this about themselves.
Commentators differ on who this figure was. Some read the description in verse 6 as too great for a created being.
Verse 6 gives us such a magnificent description of him, and Daniel alone sees him. He does not appear to have been a mere angel. He may have shown some features of angelic glory. But I consider this is One who often appears in both New and Old Testament history — the Lord of glory Himself. He appears now as a man — as One who had the deepest sympathy with His servant on the earth.
Others see an angel shown without disguise, sent to a man whose heart was already ready.
Daniel's soul is in the right condition to receive communications from God. So he has a wonderful vision of a glorious angelic being, through whom God will communicate His mind. He sees the angel in his own angelic glory, not in some plain dress put on to appear to man. That glory shows his majesty, holiness and power as a divine messenger.
Daniel was old, faithful, and had already received visions.
Even a beloved man and faithful saint of God must prove that all his past wisdom was useless... What a saint has learned has real value. But the past alone does not enable us to understand the new lesson of God. God Himself is necessary for this — not merely what we have learned already... He must lean on God alone for power to stand up and take in what the Lord was about to make known to him.
The deep sleep is not where the chapter leaves him. Three things come first, in order, before the message.
Three things were given to Daniel before the angel went on with his communication. First, a hand touched him and set him on his knees and on the palms of his hands, giving him divine strength. Second, he receives the assurance that he was "a man greatly beloved," an object of the divine affections. With that assurance, and in its power, the angel tells him to understand the words spoken to him and to stand upright... Then, last, he is set free.
Daniel was strengthened when a hand touched him. One writer draws from that the one thing which keeps anyone standing before such glory.
Nothing will strengthen us to stand with assurance in the presence of the glory except the knowledge of the humiliation of Christ... His humiliation is the only ground of fellowship with that excellent glory — but it is a sure and most blessed ground. It assures us of this: everything the glory would otherwise have found in us to judge and consume has already been judged and put away in Him who bore all our shame... So the prophet's beauty turned into corruption, and he kept no strength in the presence of the same majesty. But when the hand of one who looked like a man touched him, he knew in himself that he was strengthened.
- Voice. The sound of the words, not just the sight, put Daniel down. In his natural state a man cannot talk with heaven in its full majesty.
- Exposed. The glory showed him not what he had done, but what he was. Isaiah and Ezekiel learned the same lesson.
- Emptied. Age, faithfulness and earlier visions gave him nothing to stand on. The past alone cannot take in God's new lesson; only God Himself can teach it.
- Touched. Strength came by a hand, assurance by the words "greatly beloved," and only then liberty to hear the message.
- Standing. Knowing the humiliation of Christ is what steadies anyone before the glory. In Him, all that the glory would judge has already been put away.
And behold, a hand touched me, which set me upon my knees and the palms of my hands.
Daniel has just seen a vision that drained his strength and left him face-down on the ground. A hand reaches him there, and three questions follow: whose hand it is, what the touch gives him, and what it says about receiving God's mind.
The touch belongs to a chain of events. Daniel falls, sleeps, feels the hand, rises by stages, and only then can listen.
Daniel is left alone in the presence of the angel. He is overcome with fear and falls on the ground, finding relief in deep sleep. In this position the hand of the angel touches him and he is set on his knees and the palms of his hands. The angel then speaks, assuring Daniel that he is greatly beloved. Daniel is raised to stand upright, though trembling. So he is set free, in the presence of this heavenly being, to hear communications from God.
Another writer links Daniel's collapse to a later one.
Evidently the vision, as in the case of Saul of Tarsus at a later date, had struck him to the ground.
Daniel's long record with God gave him nothing to stand on here.
Love rested on him. He knew God's ways well, and God had shown him favour in earlier visions. Yet Daniel is made fully conscious of his own utter weakness. All his strength crumbled into dust before the Lord of glory. And this has a lesson for us of no little importance. However great the value of what a saint has learnt, the past alone does not enable us to understand the new lesson of God. God Himself is necessary for this — not just what we have learnt already… He depends on God alone for power to stand up and enter into what the Lord was about to make known to him.
Commentators differ over who the glorious figure earlier in the chapter is. So they differ over whose hand touches Daniel. One reads him as more than an angel:
The one described so magnificently in verse 6, whom Daniel alone sees, does not appear to have been a mere angel. He may have been seen with some features of angelic glory. But I take this to be One who often appears in both New and Old Testament history — the Lord of glory Himself. He appears now as a man — as One who had the deepest sympathy with His servant on the earth.
Another reads the same figure as an angel in his own glory, not in ordinary human dress:
He does not see the angel wearing some plain dress put on to appear to man. He sees him in his own angelic glory, showing his majesty, holiness and power as a divine messenger.
The touch did more than change his posture. One writer counts three things that came before a single word of the message.
Daniel received three things before the angel went on with his message. First, "a hand touched me, which set me on my knees and on the palms of my hands." This gave him divine strength. Second, he receives the assurance that he was "a man greatly beloved," an object of the divine affections. Along with this, and in the power of it, he is commanded to understand the words spoken to him and to stand upright… Last, he is set at liberty.
Those quoted words follow an older translation of this verse.
The order matters. Daniel is steadied first and taught second. The same order holds for anyone reading prophecy.
People cannot profit from prophecy until they are firmly established in peace, and until their hearts know the real source of strength. Here we find Daniel set on his feet, his mouth opened, his fears hushed, before the Lord can open out the future to him… Anxiety of spirit and the lack of settled peace hold people back more than they think. They explain much of the little progress people make in understanding many parts of God's word.
- Collapse first. Daniel is overcome, falls to the ground, and finds relief in deep sleep. The vision struck him down, as it later struck down Saul of Tarsus.
- Touch next. The hand reaches him where he lies. His own strength has crumbled; the strength that raises him is divine, and it comes with the touch.
- Strength, then love. First divine strength, then the assurance that he was greatly beloved, then the command to understand and stand upright.
- Past learning fails. All Daniel's earlier favour and knowledge crumbled here. The past alone does not teach anyone God's new lesson. God Himself is necessary.
- Peace before prophecy. Set on his feet, mouth opened, fears hushed — only then could the Lord open the future to him. Unsettled hearts still make little progress in God's word.
And he said unto me, O Daniel, man greatly beloved, understand the words which I speak unto thee, and stand upright; for unto thee am I now sent. And as he spoke this word unto me, I stood trembling.
Daniel lies face-down and drained. A heavenly visitor has come, and Daniel is left alone with him. The first words he hears are not the prophecy he had prayed for. They are a name: he is a man greatly loved. Only then comes the command to "stand upright, for now I have been sent to you."
Daniel had heard these words once before, years earlier. Now they come back twice in one chapter. (The ESV reads "man greatly loved"; the writers quote an older wording, "greatly beloved.")
In the first year of Darius, Daniel was addressed as a man 'greatly beloved', as we saw in the last chapter. We have now come to the third year of Cyrus, and again he is addressed this way twice. He had not lost the earlier description. And why was that, when believers so often fall away and do not keep up a godly life?
Scripture elsewhere sets Daniel beside other men God speaks well of.
God sets great store by a character like Daniel's. You can see it in Ezekiel 14:14-20, where God speaks of three men — Noah, Daniel, and Job — who by their righteousness could deliver only their own souls. Noah was a just man, who found grace in the eyes of the Lord. Daniel was greatly beloved. He was a man whose outward character was spotless. And Job spoke the thing that was right about God.
The words come at Daniel's lowest point, while he is face-down on the ground.
How near the Lord comes to him, as He says to him, "O Daniel, a man greatly beloved!" What a touching address. He entered into the sense of how deeply the Lord loved him. The sense of the love of God is deep joy to the soul.
God's favour did not spare Daniel this collapse.
This was Daniel's practical way into the wonders that the Spirit of God was about to bring before him, and how he was made a fit witness of them. So whatever favour he stood in — and he was "a man greatly beloved" — his soul still had to pass through death.
Scripture shows the same thing with Paul and with John.
Many examples in Scripture point the same way. A man in his natural state seems unable to talk with heavenly beings while they are surrounded by the majesty and excellence that belong to them. So he must be like Paul, who did not know whether he was in the body or out of the body, or like John, who was "in the Spirit," carried outside his ordinary way of being. That is what it takes to receive heavenly secrets.
Daniel does not get up on his own. He is raised in stages.
Daniel is left alone with the angel. Fear overcomes him, and he falls to the ground, finding relief in deep sleep. There the angel's hand touches him and sets him on his knees and the palms of his hands. Then the angel speaks. He assures Daniel that he is greatly beloved, and Daniel is made to stand upright, though trembling. So he is set free, in the presence of this heavenly being, to hear what God has to say.
The angel's errand answers what Daniel had been going through. It has three parts.
In answer to all this, God had sent the angel to assure Daniel that he is greatly beloved, to comfort him in his sorrow, and to teach him the mind of God.
The angel tells him to understand the words spoken to him. Even a man God calls greatly loved did not reach understanding on his own.
Daniel was a man "greatly beloved." God gave him great understanding and wisdom, and made wonderful revelations to him. Yet God's ways with him teach us this: what we can learn by studying His Word in the prophetic writings, we cannot expect to receive in any other way. God has put on record the things He wants His people to know and understand. And He has given us the Holy Spirit. The Spirit inspired His servants to write these things down, and He is the power by which we come to know them.
- Emptied. Daniel's strength fails first. Commentators see this as needed preparation: a man in his natural state cannot talk with heavenly beings.
- Named. Into that weakness comes the word "greatly beloved." Daniel had heard it years before, and he had not lost it.
- Raised. The angel touches him, sets him on hands and knees, then stands him upright, trembling — free now to listen.
- Taught. Being greatly loved did not by itself give Daniel understanding. He still had to be taught, and we still depend on the written Word and the Spirit who gave it.
- Sent. The angel's errand covers all of it: to assure Daniel he is loved, to comfort his sorrow, and to teach him the mind of God.
And he said 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 because of thy words.
Daniel had spent three weeks mourning and fasting when a heavenly messenger told him God heard his prayer on day one. So the verse raises two questions: which heart does God answer, and why did an answer sent at once take twenty-one days to arrive?
One writer points to the state of Daniel's soul as the thing God noticed:
We shall find, dear friends, some instructive circumstances at the beginning, in the position of Daniel and in the state of his soul. God notices this, for the man clothed in linen says to him, "Fear not, Daniel." Daniel's position was one of affliction before his God.
The verse names two things about Daniel. The first is what he wanted:
In the first place he had set his heart to understand. How often is this lacking among us today! Is it our strong desire to understand what God has revealed, not with the head only, but with the heart? Daniel loved his God, and loved his people, so that what God made known deeply affected him. If our love were stronger, we would be setting our hearts to understand the truth made known to us.
The second thing runs alongside the first. Where older translations say "chastened," the ESV says "humbled."
In the second place he "chastened", or "humbled" himself before God, while he sought the understanding. Here again we have to challenge ourselves. It is dangerously easy to want a large understanding of divine truth. Such knowledge gives the person who has it a certain prominence and importance. In reality all truth, if grasped in the heart, humbles us... If we chastened ourselves more truly before God, we would soon understand more of His truth.
Daniel's fasting was not a trick to pull secrets out of God. It was how he came to receive them.
Can we enter into God's secrets without a heart that is morally ready? Can we understand divine things just by hearing or reading, or because we have gathered around certain leaders of God's people and eagerly upheld their teachings? No mistake could be greater. Humiliation and fasting were Daniel's means of receiving these revelations.
There is a warning here for anyone whose prayers are about other people's faults:
We may fret against others, and speak out against their evil, but if our prayers are to be effective we need, like Daniel, to chasten ourselves in the presence of God.
Daniel's prayer brought the messenger. What the messenger brings is light on Scripture.
Go to God in prayer for a key to unlock the mysteries of His word. It is not the plodding but the praying soul that will get this treasure of Scripture knowledge. God often brings a truth to the Christian's hand as an answer to prayer, which he had long hunted for in vain with much labour and study... "I have come because of your words"; that is, because of your prayer. And what was this heavenly messenger's errand to Daniel but to open the Scripture to him more fully?
So why the delay? One writer sets the two facts side by side:
All this was good for Daniel. There was deep blessing in the searching of heart that God called this beloved and honoured servant to pass through during those three weeks. And what is especially worth noting is this: God had sent out the answer to Daniel's cry from His throne at the very start of that searching... "But" — how marvellous and mysterious this is! — "the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days."
Another writer draws the line to our own praying, and marks two kinds of answer:
The same thing that kept Daniel from a visible answer to his prayer may keep us from the answer of circumstances. The answer of faith we ought always to count on at once. The answer of circumstances, which God governs so as to bring out a visible answer, we may have to wait for. Daniel had to wait, and we are told why. From verse 13 we learn that the prince of the kingdom of Persia resisted for twenty-one days — exactly the time Daniel was kept in mourning and fasting before God.
- Heart — God answers a heart set to understand, not just a curious mind. Daniel loved God and loved his people, so what God made known mattered to him.
- Humbling — Real understanding lowers a person. Humbling himself was how Daniel came to receive what God showed him.
- Heard — The answer left the throne on day one. Silence is not proof of being unheard.
- Hindered — A hostile power held the messenger up for twenty-one days. The delay did not start with God.
- Held — The waiting carried deep blessing of its own. Those three weeks searched the heart of the man who would receive the vision.