Daniel 10

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¹In the third year of the reign of King Cyrus of Persia, Daniel (also known as Belteshazzar) had another vision. He understood that the vision concerned events certain to happen in the future—times of war and great hardship. ✦ ²When this vision came to me, I, Daniel, had been in mourning for three whole weeks. ✦ ³All that time I had eaten no rich food. No meat or wine crossed my lips, and I used no fragrant lotions until those three weeks had passed. ✦ ⁴On April 23, as I was standing on the bank of the great Tigris River, ✦ ⁵I looked up and saw a man dressed in linen clothing, with a belt of pure gold around his waist. ✦ ⁶His body looked like a precious gem. His face flashed like lightning, and his eyes flamed like torches. His arms and feet shone like polished bronze, and his voice roared like a vast multitude of people. ✦ ⁷Only I, Daniel, saw this vision. The men with me saw nothing, but they were suddenly terrified and ran away to hide. ✦ ⁸So I was left there all alone to see this amazing vision. My strength left me, my face grew deathly pale, and I felt very weak. ✦ ⁹Then I heard the man speak, and when I heard the sound of his voice, I fainted and lay there with my face to the ground. ✦ ¹⁰Just then a hand touched me and lifted me, still trembling, to my hands and knees. ✦ ¹¹And the man said to me, “Daniel, you are very precious to God, so listen carefully to what I have to say to you. Stand up, for I have been sent to you.” When he said this to me, I stood up, still trembling. ✦ ¹²Then he said, “Don’t be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day you began to pray for understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your request has been heard in heaven. I have come in answer to your prayer. ✦ ¹³But for twenty-one days the spirit prince of the kingdom of Persia blocked my way. Then Michael, one of the archangels, came to help me, and I left him there with the spirit prince of the kingdom of Persia. ✦ ¹⁴Now I am here to explain what will happen to your people in the future, for this vision concerns a time yet to come.” ✦ ¹⁵While he was speaking to me, I looked down at the ground, unable to say a word. ✦ ¹⁶Then the one who looked like a man touched my lips, and I opened my mouth and began to speak. I said to the one standing in front of me, “I am filled with anguish because of the vision I have seen, my lord, and I am very weak. ✦ ¹⁷How can someone like me, your servant, talk to you, my lord? My strength is gone, and I can hardly breathe.” ✦ ¹⁸Then the one who looked like a man touched me again, and I felt my strength returning. ✦ ¹⁹“Don’t be afraid,” he said, “for you are very precious to God. Peace! Be encouraged! Be strong!” As he spoke these words to me, I suddenly felt stronger and said to him, “Please speak to me, my lord, for you have strengthened me.” ✦ ²⁰He replied, “Do you know why I have come? Soon I must return to fight against the spirit prince of the kingdom of Persia, and after that the spirit prince of the kingdom of Greece will come. ✦ ²¹Meanwhile, I will tell you what is written in the Book of Truth. (No one helps me against these spirit princes except Michael, your spirit prince. ✦

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Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Where this chapter connects

Dan 10 ·20 Dan 8 ·17 Dan 9 ·10 Dan 12 ·9 Rev 1 ·7 Ezek 1 ·6 Luke 1 ·5 Isa 41 ·5

Christ at the center

Daniel sees the stone cut without hands that shatters the kingdoms, and 'one like a son of man' given everlasting dominion — titles and visions Jesus claims as his own.

How Daniel 10 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Resources, by level

Lay

★ Start hereAudioThrough the WordThrough the Word · ~10 min/chapter · Free · evangelical
A clear ~10-minute audio teaching for every one of the Bible's 1,189 chapters — the most systematic free way to study chapter by chapter.

Pastoral

SermonChuck Smith — C2000 SeriesChuck Smith · Free · evangelical
Free verse-by-verse audio through the entire Bible from the founder of Calvary Chapel.

Commentaries & study tools

VideoBibleProject — Daniel videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
VideoWatch teaching on Daniel 10YouTube · Lay · Free
Sermons and chapter teaching from across YouTube.
CommentaryEnduring Word — Daniel 10David Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical
Readable, verse-by-verse exposition of the whole chapter.
CommentaryMatthew Henry on DanielMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
ReferenceBlue Letter Bible — Daniel 10Blue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free
Interlinear, lexicon, and study tools across the chapter.

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