Dan 10:1-11:1
Key Verse 12 Then he continued, “Do not be afraid, Daniel.
Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble
yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to
them.
Introduction: This is the last vision that God gave to
Daniel (ch 7, 8, 9, 10-12). These visions are concluded in this vision.
About two years before, the year that King Cyrus (Ezr 1:1)
issued a decree his people return to their land from Babylon, Daniel had a
dream (1 Yr of King Darius, the Mede). Two years after this decree (536/535BC),
Daniel started the year with prayer. Most likely he sought God’s mercy concerning
on the two matters. One about
the last vision that ended with the prophecy; 24 "Seventy 'sevens' are
decreed for your people and your holy city to finish the transgression, to put an
end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, and
until this would be fulfilled War will continue until the end, and desolations
have been decreed. Second one
concerns the same matter but in particular to how his people would fare through
this terrible time, the time to finish transgression (10:1b). God has set His
purpose for His chosen people to inherit the kingdom forever. But first thing
must happen first. That is that they were to pay off or to finish their
transgression. Only then, the time of God’s glory would come to them. We all
eagerly hope for this time. But at the same time, we concern and worry about
what we must go through from now and till then; terrible sufferings under the
little horn or antichrist. This fear cannot be easily done away with; it
matters because there will be intense sufferings under a beast-like king who
would not have any regard either to the Lord or to His law. It would be far
worse than he had thought.
As these concerns overwhelmed Daniel’s heart, he sought
God’s mercy is something very special way.
God responded to his prayer by sending a man dressed in white linen. He
enlightened, energized, and empowered Daniel so as for him to be able to
confront the challenges lying ahead.
Today’s passage is the first part of the last vision that covers
ch 10-12. This vision is the last of the four visions that Daniel received. Ch
10, today’s passage, is a preparation of Daniel so that he might be able to
handle the most vivid picture of the horn, that would cause great damage to
the holy people.
A.
Daniel’s
prayer (1-3)
The last prayer (ch 9) was driven by Daniel’s conscious
recognition of the time of the return of his people back to their country
(9:1). That was an anticipation of the restoration of his people back to his
country as it was before. He expected a full restoration of the Kingdom Israel
under YHWH’s blessing. But the answer given
through the angel Michael was totally contrary to his expectation.
For the full restoration of his people and his kingdom, God had decreed for his
people to go through suffering under the fierce power of the world kingdom for a
period of seventy sevens. This would include wars and abomination on the temple
that would incur utter destruction under God’s judgment. About this time 536 (535?), the foundation of
the temple was laid. Though Daniel knew that eventually, God would establish His
kingdom on earth through his people, that hope did not ease on the fear of such
terrible sufferings. Because of this, as soon as the year 535 BC hit, he set
his heart to seek God’s mercy and answer how to get through this time, the time
decreed by the Lord for His people Israel to go through to make them pure and
spotless before the Lord.
Two years before when Daniel prayed for forgiveness (ch 9)
and there was no mention of a specific day. But at this time, two years later,
he began his prayer at the beginning of the year, the first day of the first
month of the year 535BC. He prayed for three weeks. The last week of these
three weeks fell on the period of the feast of Unleavened Bread if it were in
his country. In other words, he began fasting-prayer from day one of the
year and ended as the feast of the Unleavened bread was finished. The feast of
Unleavened bread (15-21) was to commemorate the delivery of Israel from the
slavery in Egypt. Before this feast was the Passover (1/14), the time the angel
of death passed over Israel while killing all the first-borns of Egyptians. It
is likely that Daniel asked the Lord in prayer remembering what God did for His
people at the first Passover. Daniel wanted and needed another Passover-like
grace from what was decreed for his people. He needed strength, power, and
assurance that he as well as his people might be able to Passover over the most
treacherous time, to pay for their sins. Keeping this in mind, he prayed to the
Lord.
During this time, he mourned and was filled with deep sorrow
over the suffering of his people and over God’s temple, which was yet to be built. When and how could the glory of his people
with the temple of the Lord be restored? As long as the temple is not restored
and as long as his people would not serve the Lord in the temple, then the
suffering would continue and God’s name will remain dishonored because of his
people’s sin. So he sought God’s mercy and His answer.
B.
A man dressed
in linen (Rev 15:6; Lev 6:10) visits Daniel (4-9)
On the twenty-fourth day, three days after finishing his
prayer, he and his companions went and stood on the bank of the River Tigris.
Since there is no mention of a dream, it happened in real life. Suddenly he saw a man dressed in linen with a belt of fine
gold from Uphaz around his waist. 6 His body was like topaz, his face like
lightning, his eyes like flaming torches, his arms and legs like the gleam of
burnished bronze, and his voice like the sound of a multitude. At a glance, it
was obvious that he was not one of an ordinary man but a heavenly figure. Ezekiel
saw a similar figure in heaven.
Ezek 1:26 Above the vault over their heads
was what looked like a throne of lapis lazuli, and high
above on the throne was a figure
like that of a man. 27 I saw that from what appeared to be his waist up he
looked like glowing metal, as if full of fire, and that from there down he looked like fire; and brilliant light surrounded him.
28 Like the appearance of a rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was
the radiance around him. This was the appearance
of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. When I saw it, I fell
facedown, and I heard the voice of one speaking.
The heavenly figure came down like a man but with the glory of
God. Daniel saw him but his companions did not. In other words, it was a vision
for Daniel but this vision was hidden from the eyes of his companions. That is to
say that it happened in real life in a real location, the bank of the Tigris River.
Though they did not see the vision, his companions were so much overwhelmed by
fear, they hid themselves. This speaks of a real presence at this place. Also,
how much more fear for Daniel who saw the glory of this man?
8b I had no strength left, my face
turned deathly pale and I was helpless.
No strength, deathly pale and helpless; all these describe
one thing, fear of his glory. It was the same kind of fear that Israel had at
the foot of Mt Horeb as the Lord came down on the top of the Mountain and spoke
the Ten Commandments; They said as the Lord finished the ten commandments;
18 When the people saw the thunder
and lightning and heard the trumpet and saw the mountain in smoke, they
trembled with fear. They stayed at a distance 19 and said to Moses, "Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not
have God speak to us or we will die." (Exo 20:1 NIV)
As he began to speak, he fell into a deep sleep with his
face to the ground. Simply in fear he went into shock, totally cataleptic
situation. Daniel prayed for three weeks, for one thing, to hear and know the word of God concerning the wellbeing and restoration
of his people and the temple of the Lord. But when a man came
from heaven, he was so overwhelmed by fear of death, he was totally knocked
out.
Here we are to think about two things; first, a man in sin,
i.e., Daniel, cannot face the full glory of heaven. Though he kept himself pure
and was respected by kings, and was saved from the mouth of a lion because he was
found
22 My God sent his angel, and he
shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me, because I was found innocent in his sight. Nor have I ever done any wrong before you,
Your Majesty." (Dan 6:1 NIV)
Yet, he was not sinless; he could not face the glory of the
Lord; Here is a big dilemma; A man of God came to Daniel in response to his
prayer, he could not withstand the one who would give him the answer he was
looking for.
24 "Seventy 'sevens' are
decreed for your people and your holy city to finish the transgression, to put an
end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to
seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the Most Holy Place.
If they were to be restored to God’s kingdom, they must go
through God’s decree of 70-sevens. At the end of seven, the people of the ruler
who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a
flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed. Can
Daniel bear this? Can his people Israel bear this treacherous time? Since God
has decreed, they had no choice but to go through these times. Then, how could
they? Daniel, the one who fasted and prayed was totally knocked out. Unless some miracle happens, it was impossible for Daniel
to know and to hear and even to go through this ‘horrific’ period of trial.
C.
The man in
linen helped Daniel (10-20)
The man dressed in
linen helped Daniel. For easiness of our understanding, it is divided into five
steps;
First:
10 A hand touched me and set me trembling on my hands and knees. (10 But
a hand touched me and shook me on to my knees and the palms of my hands.; 10 And
look, a hand touched me and it roused me to my knees and the palms of my hands--LEB)
As he was totally knocked out, this man by touching he tried to wake up Daniel.
He laid down on the ground in a comatose state. His legs and arm were laid
flaccid. This man shook him hard and woke up Daniel from a deep sleep. Also, this forced his arms and legs not to go sleep
but to be energized. This man empowered Daniel’s body and spirit.
First, Daniel had to wake up from
deadness! When our body is shaken, this is the time to wake up from our
slumber, spiritual vacation, insensitive to the spirit that came and talked to
us. Jesus said to the church of Sardis, “Wake up! Strengthen what remains and
is about to die, for I have found your deeds unfinished in the sight of my God.”
(Rev 3:2 NIV)
Second, 11 He said, “Daniel, you who are highly
esteemed, consider carefully the words I am about to speak to you and stand up, for I have now been sent to
you.” And when he said this to me, I stood up trembling.
As he woke up with consciousness,
he accepted and encouraged that Daniel was highly esteemed. Daniel needed this
word of encouragement for he was overcome with anguish. Before the glory of
this man, he was all too unworthy and sinful. He had no strength to look
straightly at him in his glory. As his
companions felt, a terror overwhelmed him as he gazed at this man of the glory of
God. he would not endure and fell upon
his face and was totally knocked out. This was a fear of a sinful man before
the glory of God. Could he endure or survive from this man of glory? In this
aspect, it was so important for him to count him worthy. Simply to this man,
Daniel was worthy of his coming and care. As he was able to hear, the man in linen
commanded Daniel to stand up. He must withstand the man in glory and must
accord with this man to listen and to follow. He wanted Daniel to stand up for
he had to do something, i.e., going through the time of trials that God had
decreed for his people. Lastly, he had to stand up so that he may be able to
listen carefully to his word and to act in strength.
Third: 12 Then he continued, “Do not be afraid, Daniel.
Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble
yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to
them. 13 But the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days.
Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me because I was detained
there with the king of Persia. 14 Now I have come to explain to you what will
happen to your people in the future, for the vision concerns a time yet to
come.”
It is possible that the appearance
of the man was taken as punishment/judgment of God—which sparked an extreme
fear in Daniel. The man in linen did not come to judge but to help; so Do not be afraid! Though he was a sinner
as his people were, his coming was not to judge but to strengthen; the very
proof, as soon as you began to pray from the first day of this month, more than
3 weeks before, ‘I have come’; I was delayed because the prince of the
Persian kingdom resisted him for three weeks! This speaks of the power of the
world kingdoms. Though he was delayed in
coming, he was not too late to come for the last and final period of trial of
life. He came in the middle of the fourth week. Jesus fasted and
tempted for 40 days. So was Moses in the Mt Horeb forty days. Four weeks are
made of one-week, a complete unit of time in God’s perspective. Forty days are
made of four 10 days. Ten days is a unit of time that represents the
comprehensive time of the world. So,
four weeks is a replacement of forty days that Moses and Jesus had to go
through as Daniel and his people were to make perfect in the eyes of the
Lord. After all, four weeks of fasting
and prayer were unbearable, especially since his heart was focused on the suffering of
his people and the defamation of God’s temple. As the seal of judgment was about to
open, there was the outcry of all the saints, “They called out in a loud
voice, "How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the
inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?" (Rev 6:10 NIV). Long before the final hour of the judgment of
the world comes, so many of the holy and godly people would shed their blood by
the hands of the ungodly. Nevertheless, the Lord will surely come to aid his
chosen before the time set for the final hours of judgment on the world, that
is time, times, and half a time. This seems to be the second half of the fourth
week of Daniel’s search of God’s answer. Though time, times and half a time was
yet to come in the future, Daniel, a man of God, was going through all the
pains and anguishes of his people that would suffer in the actual period of time,
times and half a time. Time, times, and half a time represent a particular unit
of time. It could be an hour, day, week, or year. This man appeared on 24th
of the first month, the month of the salvation of God’s people Israel. After
three weeks of fasting in prayer, Daniel did not see the resolution of this trouble
for him and for his people. He almost gave it up, not see the victory that God
gave to his people Israel at the beginning of the nation. But just in the
middle of the fourth week (24th of the first month; three days after
21st ), this man showed up not only to give Daniel an answer but also
began to revive him to hear and understand God’s decree set for his people.
In other words, it seems
that what happens at this time between this man in linen and Daniel is a picture
of what the Lord will do for His people at the actual time of the period of
time, times and half a time.
The war here on earth is closely tied up with the war in
heaven. 1) the world forces have
one goal to defeat God’s people. To do so, they hold up the coming of the
Lord’s help. So how long… the righteous, the highly esteemed persevere through
all hardships in patience and endurance. But eventually, their strength will be
gone, and give up hope…. This is the primary goal for the evil forces of this
world! 2) nevertheless, the help will surely come before the coming of the
worst, the antichrist, the final hours or three and half a year; since he came
at 24th in the middle of the week! 3) what happens on earth is not
irrelevant to what happens in heaven. As much as the evils of the world are of
Satanic forces, so is our belief and standing in the Lord counted in heaven, in
the eyes of God himself. Our suffering and hardship are not unknown to the
Lord. Rather the Lord is keenly aware of it and works hard to help us get
through and earn the victory.
There is an idea
that Daniel was knocked out because he was exhausted in anguish as he was
waiting for God’s help or His answer.
The delay was caused
by a war in heaven; the prince of the Persian kingdom against the man in linen. If
he delayed more, then he would have been totally collapsed and no hope for
returning back to normal.
At this time, the most important thing is ‘do not be afraid’ for he would surely go through not
by his own strength but by the help of the man in linen, as he fought for him
last three weeks, so he would fight against the prince of Greek, the final
hours of trial, the seventieth week that was decreed. It is about 3 weeks plus
three days(24th) It was right in the middle of the week.
15
While he was saying this to me, I bowed with my face toward the ground and was
speechless.
Fourth: 16 Then one who
looked like a man touched my lips,
and I opened my mouth and began to speak. His inability to speak is a
reflection of a great derangement in his heart and his spirit. What was it?
I
said to the one standing before me, “I am overcome with anguish because of the
vision, my lord, and I feel very weak. 17 How can I, your servant, talk with
you, my lord? My strength is gone and I can hardly breathe.”
His heart and mind,
as well as his spirit, were overcome with anguish! Anguish might have come from
the load of pain and suffering that God decreed for his people! That anguish
was impounded by the glory that overwhelmed Daniel as he was ‘gazing at this great vision’ (8a). Jesus spoke of this suffering as he was
about to face the cross.
Then
he said to them, "My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of
death. Stay here and keep watch with me." (Mat 26:38 NIV)
When our heart and
mind is anchored on the needs of the flesh, anguish overwhelms us as we face
suffering. But Jesus overcame this in this way;
He
went away a second time and prayed, "My Father, if it is not possible for
this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done." (Mat
26:42 NIV)
God had decreed that
men must pay for their sins before being accepted to the kingdom of God, just
as God decreed His chosen people of 70-sevens. Here Jesus was willing to take what
God decreed for the people of the world. What went through the minds of the eleven
disciples as Jesus was being crucified? Suffering in love brings as much pain
for those who are loved. Daniel shared the suffering of his people as Jesus’ disciples
were received the love of Jesus as he was going through such a terrible time of
suffering under God’s decree. Even at
this time, Daniel was to communicate with the one that came to help. Likewise, we
are also to communicate with the Lord as we go through these trials. We shall
not lie dead like Daniel (v9). Ultimately, we will find relief and resolution
of this by accepting God’s will who decreed suffering. In other words, an undoing
of the anguish in the dept of our heart shall come when we conform our heart
with the will of the Father as Jesus did at Gethsemane. This will must be
uttered with our mouth in prayer to the Lord. Speak to the Lord!!
Fifth: 18 Again the one who looked like a man touched me and gave
me strength. 19 “Do not be afraid, you who are highly esteemed,” he said. “Peace! Be strong now; be strong.”
He could hardly
breathe and hardly speak. But by the strength given by the man in linen, he
spoke and expressed his readiness to listen!
When
he spoke to me, I was strengthened and said, “Speak, my lord, since you have
given me strength.”
From this point on,
Daniel shall go along with the word given through this man. He will lead Daniel
all the way to the end of this trial until he sees the coming of the prince of
the princes and he establishes his kingdom, the everlasting kingdom. So what
was his final encouragement; they are three; 1) do not be afraid, 2) you are
highly esteemed; though he was not perfect and holy, yet the Lord accepted his
fear of the Lord and counted him to be his people. You must believe and accept
this; He is all for you! 3) Peace! You must not be perturbed; instead, you must
be unperturbed despite of all these trials and hardships. Instead, you must be
strong now, be strong!
Jesus lived among
men so as to teach and reveal that He is the way, the life, and the truth. His
life itself was the truth, the life, and the way. More exactly, Jesus lived the
truth in order to reveal the truth so that his followers may follow the truth
in life.
This part is a drama
in real life that speaks the truth on how Jesus will help His people go through
the most trenchant time of life. In other words, this is a dramatized life how
Jesus would help. What the man in linen was doing for Daniel to get through the
last period of ‘troubled time’ time, times, and a half time was well parallel to
what Jesus did for his disciples.
As we will discuss,
the man in linen was Jesus. His visit of Daniel on 24th, just the
middle of the fourth/last week of the first month was proactive teaching in
life as Daniel and his people were to go through the final event that would
come at the end of the age. The truth is anchored in history; what the man linen
was written as history, happened at a particular place and particular time with
particular people as what Jesus will do for his followers was set in this event
in history as he helped out Daniel.
This was well
illustrated in what King nebuchadnezzar saw in the furnace.
3:25
He said, “Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and
unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.”
In this way, what
King Nebuchadnezzar saw was illustrated in its essence through Ch. 10.
D.
First, I will
tell you what is written in the Book of truth (10:20-11:1)
When Daniel became ready to listen and understand when he
had a will to go through the time of trials, he gave the details for the
prophecy of the last week of the trials that his people must go through.
20 So he said, “Do you know why I
have come to you? Soon I will return to fight against the prince of Persia, and
when I go, the prince of Greece will come; 21 but first I will tell you what is
written in the Book of Truth.
He made a similar statement before.
14 Now I have come to explain to you what will happen
to your people in the future, for the vision concerns a time yet to come.”
At that time, Daniel did not have the strength to talk and was
looking down on the ground. He was not quite ready to hear and understand what
he was going to say. Despite that he was held up by the Prince of Persia, he came because he heard Daniel’s prayer and he knew that
Daniel needed to hear. He was looking backward. Simply, he was
saying that he came to help Daniel.
But now he said the same thing. At this time, he was given
the reason why he came in respect to the events that were forthcoming.
1)
He had to fight
against the prince of Persia as
soon as he gets back to heaven. The king of Persia will flex his muscles hardly on God’s people. In order to protect and to sustain their faith, this man had
to fight against the prince of the kingdom Persia. His fight on behalf of
Daniel and his people are on-going; he fought against the prince of Persia, and
next, he had to fight the prince of Greece.
2)
He would fight on behalf of his chosen to the
end until they finish the war against the kingdoms of the world.
3)
Before all these, the first thing must come first,
that is that Daniel and His chosen people must know what is in the book of
truth. This book is God’s plan on how to control the world back to him, this
includes also how he would protect and preserve his chosen until the time of
full restoration of His kingdom. Revelation speaks about this:
Then
I saw in the right hand of him who sat on the
throne a scroll with writing on both sides and sealed with seven seals.(Rev
5:1)
It is the Book of Truth because it is from God and God is
the truth. In it is how He would implement the truth, and in regard to this
truth, how He will handle all ungodliness and evils of the world. Ch 11-12 are
out of this Book of Truth. We will come to learn next week.
Why did he have to tell what is in the book of Truth to
Daniel? This is the same question to ourselves, why should we know what is in
the book of Truth? Simply why do we have to know the prophecies about the end
time events, such as the book of Daniel and the book of Revelation? The answer
to this question will be answered more precisely in the next lesson. But for
now, I would mention two passages that address the necessity for us to know.
1)
Because God wanted us to know this: The
revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must
soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John (Rev
1:1). As God decreed His people to go through suffering for the period of 70-sevens,
three is no way to bypass or get by without suffering if anyone wants to join
in His kingdom. God’s primary purpose was for His people to join in His
kingdom; the essential part of this process is a will to suffer and go through
suffering, with the hope of God’s glory.
2)
Daniel was eager to know because he concerned
his people and God’s glory. If we share the same concern, then our hearts must
come along with the concern that is like what Daniel had for his people and for
the Lord.
3)
This revelation is not just for our personal
wellbeing but also for God’s chosen as a whole and we are to concern about all
whom that God chose for we are to walk along together. Also at the same time,
our concern must be set also on the glory of the Lord and the restoration of
His glory on this earth. These two concerns compelled Daniel to pray for three
weeks!
E.
The man in
linen
The man in linen bears enormous importance in three folds.
First, he fought for the holy people. Actually,
he fought and was fighting and will fight for Daniel and his people Israel. Second, he gave the help that Daniel needed.
Daniel was almost as good as dead when he saw the man because of fear. But this
man revived him enough to be ready to go through the trials that God decreed
for his people to go through. Third, he fought against the prince of
Persia and then the prince of Greece. In his fights, he won and was able to
give help directly to Daniel. Fourth, his help was strong and good enough
to impart the strength that Daniel needed.
Then who is
the man in linen?
First, he had
all features of glory of God (7:13a; 10:8; ref. Ezek 1:26-27). He was greater
than God’s angels (12:6), Michael, while sharing God’s glory equally with God
the father.
8:13 Then I heard a holy one speaking, and another holy
one said to him.
12:6 One of them said to the man clothed in linen,
who was above the waters of the river, “How long will it be before these
astonishing things are fulfilled?” (One of them is an angel, and the man
clothed in linen is different from angels(or those who came with the angels)
As we will see, this figure is in all four visions. This
leads us to understand his identity, the unity of his role and place.
Second, he looked
like a man (7:13a; 8:15; 10:5; 12:7) and accompanied man.
3:25 He said, “Look! I see four men
walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a
son of the gods.”
7:13 "In my vision at night I looked, and there before
me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven.
8:15 While I, Daniel, was watching the vision and trying
to understand it, there before me stood one who looked like a man.
10:5 I looked up and there before me was a man dressed in
linen, with a belt of fine gold from Uphaz around his waist.
12:7 The man clothed in linen, who was above the waters
of the river, lifted his right hand and his left hand toward heaven, and I
heard him swear by him who lives forever, saying, “It will be for a time, times
and half a time.
He was the
holder and dispenser of God’s decree
8: 13 Then I heard a holy one speaking, and another holy
one said to him, "How long will it take for the vision to be
fulfilled--the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, the rebellion that causes
desolation, the surrender of the sanctuary, and the trampling underfoot of the
LORD's people?"
12:7 The man clothed in linen, who was above the
waters of the river lifted his right hand and his left hand toward heaven, and
I heard him swear by him who lives forever, saying, “It will be for a time,
times and half a time.
He appeared/mentioned
five times in four visions.
Daniel 3:25 He said, “Look! I see four men walking
around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of
the gods.”
Also 7:13; 8:13; 10:5; 12:7.
Who would
this man in linen be? Though Jesus was born of God, he called himself a son of
man. His life and mission were all for the salvation of those who came to seek
the Lord of heaven. No figures or no men or no angels fit to meet all these
characters of the man in linen. It is Jesus before his incarnation.
The most
powerful demonstration of his care for his chosen is demonstrated in today’s
passage. Jesus said to his followers; As he was to ascend to heaven, Jesus said
this to his followers
and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded
you. And surely I am with you always,
to the very end of the age." (Mat 28:20 NIV)
Long before
he came in flesh among men of sin, he demonstrated his care for his chosen most
powerfully and most vividly. He is still living and with us in power and in
spirit. he will be with us to the end of ages. So, must we not fear but be
strong and courageous!
F.
Jesus, the
Son of God, will go through with His people through the time of trials
First, Daniel could not face
God’s holiness in sinful flesh; ‘fear of death’ crushed him and he was
overcome with anguish. This rendered him to be like a dead person (deathly
pale) with no power, no spirit, and no hope at all through the time of trouble.
It is almost impossible for any man to or no one can sustain his or her will or
physical strength to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for
wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness. (Ref 12:7b). Here we are to
understand why he came to help Daniel. First, he prayed twice. In the first
one, he prayed in repentance and asked for forgiveness (ch 9:4-19). In the
second one (10:2-3), Daniel prayed in abstinence. If the first one is spiritual,
then, the second one is physical in an effort to conform to the will of God and
His decree. One cannot be separated from the other and, as a whole, what it
means to come back to the Lord as the law of God looking forward (Lev 26:40-41).
These were looked upon in favor of the Lord. A more specific reason was given
in 12b “Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and
to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard” The man in linen
spoke the words of comfort twice (‘you are highly esteemed’—11, 19; ‘do not be
afraid’—12, 19). In other words, he was
not worthy of God’s righteousness. And yet he
was valuable in His eyes because
he came to the Lord in repentance and he would help Daniel get through this
with all of his power.
Second, the Son of God, Jesus
knows this and comes to help his people. His help entailed three
things; 1) He gave Daniel his physical strength:
Daniel was deathly pale, sleeping with face to the ground; unable to hear,
unable to stand, and unable to speak. But he helped Daniel to stand up and be
able to stand and to speak and to hear/understand the message. He did this by
touching his body with his hand, his lips and his body again (10, 16, 18).
Physical strength is important to sustain our spirit to the end. 2) He
gave Daniel spiritual strength:
he alleviated Daniel’s fear of judgment and death; he repeated twice, “you are
highly esteemed” at the beginning of his resuscitation (11) and at the end
(19). 3) He knew what was yet to come to
Daniel and his people and he was fighting and
would fight on the coming struggle for Daniel and his people. He is able
to do this because He was and is in charge of carrying out the will of the
Father. In Rev 6, Jesus opened the scroll in which the last judgment that will
come on the world is written. In other words, he is the one who will embark on the
stages of God’s judgment on the earth. This is also confirmed in the
conversation between the man in linen and an angel (ch 12: 7) Also Jesus will
be the judge of the living and the dead when he comes back.
Third, He wants his people to
go through this time of trial by faith in him because it is decreed by the Lord and no one can escape if he
or she wants to join in the time of God’s glory. God decreed this. Jesus is the
one who will decide when and how it will be carried out. Jesus did not give
Daniel a lip service of false hope. He did not mention anything about how
Daniel could get by a terrible time. In the eyes of the Lord, this is a must
for His people to do away with their transgression!
Lastly, what do all these tell us? What does God want to
convey to Daniel through this experience? God is with us, or the Son of God is
with us. Daniel or his life itself is a demonstration of God’s presence in the
world; he is living and is with those who fear him. He wants to shine himself
through us as we go through suffering to victory.
What should Daniel do? What must we do?
We must not fear, instead get up and listen to Him, what he
says;
19 “Do not be afraid, you who are highly esteemed,” he said.
“Peace! Be strong now; be strong.”
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