Hello everyone. 🙂 Today’s blog post will cover the rest of Daniel 10 which we didn’t cover in our last blog post on Daniel 10. Without further ado, let us get into today’s study.
“For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.” Romans 15:4 (KJV) (Note: the word “aforetime” is an Old English way of saying “before time”)
Beautiful. God intends for us to gain patience, comfort, and hope through the scriptures. Daniel 10 is a chapter saturated with all three of these soothers of the soul: patience, comfort, and hope. I invite you to take note of these things as you read the study below.
At the beginning of Daniel 10, we find the prophet Daniel in a distressed emotional state. In my last blog post on Daniel 10, I said that we would eventually discover why Daniel was in a distressed emotional state. The answer to this question isn’t clearly defined, but we can see in Daniel 10:1 that Daniel’s distress has something to do with how long it would take for one of the prophecies to be fulfilled.
“In 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.” Daniel 10:1 (KJV)
Note: Daniel 10:1 states that Daniel understood the visions that had been explained to him by the angel Gabriel in Daniel 8 and Daniel 9. For information on the prophecies in Daniel 8 and Daniel 9, please review the following blog posts (which I wrote out of order): Daniel 8: Bible Prophecy Studies: The 2300 Days Prophecy parts 1-4; Daniel 9: One of the Prophecies About Jesus.
Back to our study of Daniel 10; we find Daniel dealing with strong, troubled emotions. God’s response to Daniel while in this state of strong emotions is such a beautiful portrayal of his wisdom and his caring love for those who are anxious and troubled. In my previous blog post on Daniel 10, we confirmed that the Man who appeared to Daniel in vision was none other than Jesus Himself. Feel free to look at or review this blog post in order to see this.
So, the first thing that God did for Daniel in chapter 10, was to direct his attention to Jesus. In this instance, Jesus appeared to Daniel in a powerful and majestic way. From this, we can learn that when we are feeling troubled, we can remember that Jesus is powerful, He is in control, and He shows up just when we need Him.
The power and glory with which Jesus appeared left Daniel and those near him feeling stunned.
“And I, Daniel, alone saw the vision, for the men who were with me did not see the vision; but a great terror fell upon them, so that they fled to hide themselves.
Therefore I was left alone when I saw this great vision, and no strength remained in me; for my vigor was turned to frailty in me, and I retained no strength.” Daniel 10:7-8 (NKJV)
It’s interesting to note that, even though there were men who were with Daniel when he saw the vision, only Daniel saw it. All the other men perceived was terror and they ran to hide themselves. I have an idea as to why this was.
A very similar situation occurred towards the end of Jesus’ life when He Himself was in need of support. Not everyone there heard God the Father’s affirming answer to His Son’s earnest prayer. To some people, the Father’s words sounded like thunder.
“Now is my soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour: but for this cause came I unto this hour.
Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.
The people therefore, that stood by, and heard it, said that it thundered: others said, An angel spake to him.” John 12:27-29 (KJV)
Interesting. I believe that what determines whether God’s presence and voice are recognized or unrecognized by us is the degree to which we are allowing the Holy Spirit to guide us. This would be a wonderful topic for all of us to study further.
Back to Daniel 10: While Daniel was still stunned after seeing the majestic vision he had of Jesus, an angel came and touched him.
“And, behold, an hand touched me, which set me upon my knees and upon the palms of my hands.
And 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.
Then 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.” Daniel 10:10-12 (KJV).
First, God impressed Daniel with His incredible majesty, and then He sent an angel to soothe, comfort, encourage, and strengthen Him. The angel told Daniel that, since the first day when he had begun pleading with God, God had been listening to him, and now God had sent an angel to speak with him. God is so wise and so good.
Moving on; God seeks to encourage and enlighten people and to cause His wise, loving, and just plans to move forward. Satan, on the other hand, seeks to stand in the way of God’s wise and loving plans and to do whatever he sees fit to do in an effort to disrupt them.
“But 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.” Daniel 10:13 (KJV)
God wants to encourage, strengthen and uphold people in righteousness, and He wants His wise and loving plans for us to go forward. On the other hand, Satan wants to discourage, weaken and shake people out of the path of righteousness. It is unclear to me if “the prince of the kingdom of Persia” was a demon or an actual human prince. What I can clearly see is that this prince was in opposition to God’s plans and it can also be inferred that he was seeking to influence the Persian kings, at the same time that God was also seeking to influence the Persian kings.
It’s a terrible thing when anyone tries to resist God’s plans. God’s plans are the only plans that are laid out with perfect insight, perfect wisdom, and perfect love. God is constantly seeking to cause His plans to prevail. At this time, we need to establish who “Michael, one of the chief princes” (Daniel 10:13) is. In short, Michael the archangel is Jesus. For proof of this, please see the study at the bottom of this blog post.
How wonderful! Jesus is so amazing! He can contend with those who seek to interfere with His loving and wise plans. Satan is no match for Him. We should remember this in our lives; while Satan is seeking to lead us astray, Jesus is seeking to keep us in the narrow way. Matthew 7:13-14 Jesus is powerful and, if we surrender to and cooperate with Him, He will overcome the power of Satan in our lives! Praise God!
Moving on: In Daniel 10:14, the angel who was visiting Daniel told him:
“Now I am come to make thee understand what shall befall thy people in the latter days: for yet the vision is for many days.” Daniel 10:14 (KJV)
Once again, Daniel had heard that there was a lot of time involved in the fulfillment of a prophecy. Again, he was overwhelmed with emotion. Daniel put his face toward the ground and was temporarily unable to speak. (Daniel 10:15)
Again, an individual who was probably the same angel who had been talking with him, touched Daniel and strengthened him. Then Daniel was able to speak and express his feelings. (Daniel 10:16-17)
After Daniel had expressed himself, the angel touched him again and said:
“…O man greatly beloved, fear not: peace be unto thee, be strong, yea, be strong…” Daniel 10:19 (KJV)
After this had happened, Daniel said:
“…Let my lord speak; for thou hast strengthened me.” Daniel 10:19 (KJV)
The angel then proceeded to speak:
“Then 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.
But 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.” Daniel 10:20-21
The angel let Daniel know that he was going to return to his previous battle with the prince of Persia, and maybe the prince of Grecia as well, but before he did, he would explain more of what “is noted in the scripture of truth” to Daniel. He also reminded Daniel of Who was helping him (the angel) in his work: none other than “Michael, your prince”.
Hallelujah! Jesus is the champion of His angels! He is the leader in the warfare against the selfish and self-centered plans and efforts of Satan, his evil angels, and people who are in league with them! We have nothing to fear if we are actively deciding to be on Jesus’ side!
In closing, what the angel was about to share with Daniel at the end of Daniel 10 is recorded in Daniel 11. We will begin to explore Daniel 11 in our next Bible prophecy blog post (there will be one non-Bible prophecy blog post in between this one and the next blog post on Bible prophecy). I hope that you all will stay tuned.
Blessings and courage to all. 🙂 Let’s keep our chins up and remember that we can all decide to be in cooperation with our loving and mighty Jesus.
A Study on Michael the Archangel and Jesus Being the Same Person
“And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.” Revelation 12:7-9 (KJV) https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Revelation-12-9/
- The word “angel” simply means “messenger”.
“My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions’ mouths, that they have not hurt me: forasmuch as before him innocency was found in me; and also before thee, O king, have I done no hurt.” Daniel 6:22 (KJV)
The Hebrew word for “angel” in this verse is “mal’âk”. According to the Strong’s Concordance, mal’âk means; “to dispatch as a deputy; a messenger; spec. of God, i.e. an angel (also a prophet, priest or teacher):-ambassador, angel, king, messenger”.
So, the word “angel” can simply refer to a messenger.
Here is a verse that makes this point more clear.
“And my temptation which was in my flesh ye despised not, nor rejected; but received me as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus.” Galatians 4:14 (KJV) https://www.biblestudytools.com/kjv/galatians/4-14.html
The apostle Paul was a human being, just like we are human beings, but he says that the people in Galatia received him “as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus”. Christ Jesus is the Son of God, but in this verse I get the sense that Paul is recognizing that Jesus was and still is a Messenger to this world.
Here is a verse that shows that God is a Messenger.
“Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.” Malachi 3:1 (KJV) https://www.biblestudytools.com/kjv/malachi/3-1.html
Here is a comparison between “the Lord himself” and “Michael”
” For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.
For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
Wherefore comfort one another with these words.” 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18 (KJV) https://www.biblestudytools.com/kjv/1-thessalonians/4.html
“And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.
And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.
And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.” Daniel 12:1-3 (KJV) https://www.biblestudytools.com/kjv/daniel/12.html
Both “the Lord” and “Michael” are able to resurrect the dead.
(Note: There is a verse below that may be troubling to someone reading this blog post who is struggling to feel forgiven by God. If this is your situation, I want to assure you that, if you have confessed your sins to God, God already HAS fulfilled His promise to forgive you and to cleanse you as He has promised in 1 John 1:9. Hang in there, my friend! God has not forsaken you! You are deeply loved by Him! He shed His blood for you! He WANTS your love and companionship and He is there for you at all times. Courage!)
Here is a comparison between “an Angel” and “the LORD”.
“Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared.
Beware of him, and obey his voice, provoke him not; for he will not pardon your transgressions: for my name is in him.
But if thou shalt indeed obey his voice, and do all that I speak; then I will be an enemy unto thine enemies, and an adversary unto thine adversaries.
For mine Angel shall go before thee, and bring thee in unto the Amorites, and the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites: and I will cut them off.” Exodus 23:20-23 (KJV)
This Angel is able to pardon or not pardon transgressions (sins). God is the one who can forgive sins. 1 John 1:9 https://www.biblestudytools.com/kjv/1-john/1-9.html
“And the LORD said unto Moses, Depart, and go up hence, thou and the people which thou hast brought up out of the land of Egypt, unto the land which I sware unto Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, saying, Unto thy seed will I give it:
And I will send an angel before thee; and I will drive out the Canaanite, the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite:
Unto a land flowing with milk and honey: for I will not go up in the midst of thee; for thou art a stiffnecked people: lest I consume thee in the way.
And when the people heard these evil tidings, they mourned: and no man did put on him his ornaments.
For the LORD had said unto Moses, Say unto the children of Israel, Ye are a stiffnecked people: I will come up into the midst of thee in a moment, and consume thee: therefore now put off thy ornaments from thee, that I may know what to do unto thee.” Exodus 33:1-5 (KJV) https://www.biblestudytools.com/kjv/exodus/passage/?q=exodus+33:1-5https://www.biblestudytools.com/kjv/exodus/passage/?q=exodus+33:1-5
The same interaction that is happening between Moses and the LORD in Exodus 33 continues in Exodus 34.
“And the LORD descended in the cloud, and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the LORD.
And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,
Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children’s children, unto the third and to the fourth generation.
And Moses made haste, and bowed his head toward the earth, and worshipped.
And he said, If now I have found grace in thy sight, O Lord, let my Lord, I pray thee, go among us; for it is a stiffnecked* people; and pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for thine inheritance.
And he said, Behold, I make a covenant: before all thy people I will do marvels, such as have not been done in all the earth, nor in any nation: and all the people among which thou art shall see the work of the LORD: for it is a terrible thing that I will do with thee.
Observe thou that which I command thee this day: behold, I drive out before thee the Amorite, and the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite.
Take heed to thyself, lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land whither thou goest, lest it be for a snare in the midst of thee…” Exodus 34:5-12 (KJV) https://www.biblestudytools.com/kjv/exodus/passage/?q=exodus+34:5-12
Both the LORD and the Angel are able to forgive sins. The Angel, then, must also be the same Person as the LORD.
Now I will share some striking comparisons between Jesus (who is the One talking in John 5) , “The Lord”, who is likened to an archangel in 1 Thessalonians 4, and “Michael”, who is talked about in Daniel 12.
“And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.
And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.
And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.” Daniel 12:1-3 (KJV) https://www.biblestudytools.com/kjv/daniel/12.html
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live.
For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself;
And hath given him authority to execute judgment also, because he is the Son of man.
Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,
And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.
I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.” John 5:25-30 (KJV) https://www.biblestudytools.com/kjv/john/passage/?q=john+5:25-30
Notice that it is “the voice of the Son of God” that resurrects the dead.
” For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.
For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
Wherefore comfort one another with these words.” 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18 (KJV) https://www.biblestudytools.com/kjv/1-thessalonians/4.html
Notice that it is the Lord’s voice which is called “the voice of the archangel” that resurrects the dead. Comparing John 5 and 1 Thessalonians 4, we can see that “Jesus” (the Son of God) and “the archangel” must be the same Person. Is it logical to believe that Michael , in Daniel 12, can also resurrect the dead.
Both Jesus, in Luke 10, and Michael, in Revelation 12, saw Satan fall from heaven.
“And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven.” Luke 10:18 https://www.biblestudytools.com/kjv/luke/10-18.html
“And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,
And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven.
And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.” Revelation 12:7-10 (KJV) https://www.biblestudytools.com/kjv/revelation/12.html
Jesus and Michael must be the same Person.
In Summary: Jesus, Michael, an Angel, and the archangel are all the same Person.
Learn and Grow 4ever 