Daniel 10
English Standard Version
Daniel's Terrifying Vision of a Man
10 (A)In the third year of Cyrus king of Persia a word was revealed to Daniel, (B)who was named Belteshazzar. And (C)the word was true, and it was a great conflict.[a] And (D)he understood the word and (E)had understanding of the vision.
2 In those days I, Daniel, was mourning for (F)three weeks. 3 I ate no delicacies, no meat or wine entered my mouth, nor did I (G)anoint myself at all, for (H)the full three weeks. 4 On the twenty-fourth day of the first month, as I was standing (I)on the bank of the great river ((J)that is, the Tigris) 5 (K)I lifted up my eyes and looked, and behold, (L)a man clothed in linen, (M)with a belt of fine (N)gold from Uphaz around his waist. 6 His body was like (O)beryl, his face (P)like the appearance of lightning, (Q)his eyes like flaming torches, his arms and (R)legs like the gleam of burnished bronze, and (S)the sound of his words like the sound of a multitude. 7 (T)And I, Daniel, alone saw the vision, for the men who were with me did not see the vision, but a great trembling fell upon them, and they fled to hide themselves. 8 So I was left alone and saw this great vision, and (U)no strength was left in me. My radiant appearance was fearfully changed,[b] (V)and I retained no strength. 9 Then I heard the sound of his words, (W)and as I heard the sound of his words, I fell on my face in deep sleep (X)with my face to the ground.
10 And behold, (Y)a hand touched me and set me trembling on my hands and knees. 11 And he said to me, “O Daniel, (Z)man greatly loved, (AA)understand the words that I speak to you, and (AB)stand upright, for (AC)now I have been sent to you.” And when he had spoken this word to me, I stood up trembling. 12 Then he said to me, (AD)“Fear not, Daniel, for from the first day that you (AE)set your heart to understand and (AF)humbled yourself before your God, (AG)your words have been heard, (AH)and I have come because of your words. 13 (AI)The prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me (AJ)twenty-one days, but (AK)Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I was left there with the kings of Persia, 14 (AL)and came to make you understand what is to happen to your people (AM)in the latter days. For (AN)the vision is for days yet to come.”
15 When he had spoken to me according to these words, (AO)I turned my face toward the ground (AP)and was mute. 16 And behold, (AQ)one in the likeness of the children of man (AR)touched my lips. Then I opened my mouth and spoke. I said to him who stood before me, “O my lord, by reason of the vision pains have come upon me, and (AS)I retain no strength. 17 How can my lord's servant talk with my lord? For now no strength remains in me, and no breath is left in me.”
18 Again (AT)one having the appearance of a man (AU)touched me and strengthened me. 19 And he said, (AV)“O man greatly loved, (AW)fear not, peace be with you; be strong and of good courage.” And as he spoke to me, I was strengthened and said, “Let my lord speak, for you have strengthened me.” 20 Then he said, “Do you know why I have come to you? But now I will return to fight against the (AX)prince of Persia; and when I go out, behold, the prince of (AY)Greece will come. 21 But I will tell you (AZ)what is inscribed in the book of truth: there is none who contends by my side against these except (BA)Michael, your prince.
Footnotes
- Daniel 10:1 Or and it was about a great conflict
- Daniel 10:8 Hebrew My splendor was changed to ruin
Daniel 10
New American Standard Bible
Daniel Is Terrified by a Vision
10 In the third year of (A)Cyrus king of Persia, a [a]message was revealed to (B)Daniel, who was named Belteshazzar; and the [b](C)message was true and it concerned great [c]conflict, but he understood the [d]message and had an (D)understanding of the vision.
2 In those days, I, Daniel, had been (E)mourning for three [e]entire weeks. 3 I (F)did not eat any [f]tasty food, nor did meat or wine enter my mouth, nor did I use any ointment at all until the entire three weeks were completed. 4 On the twenty-fourth day of the first month, while I was by the bank of the great (G)river, that is, the [g]Tigris, 5 I raised my eyes and looked, and behold, there was a man (H)dressed in linen, whose waist (I)had a belt of pure (J)gold of Uphaz. 6 His body also was like topaz, his face [h]had the appearance of lightning, (K)his eyes were like flaming torches, his arms and feet like the gleam of polished bronze, and the sound of his words like the sound of a multitude. 7 Now I, Daniel, (L)alone saw the vision, while the (M)men who were with me did not see the vision; nevertheless, a great (N)fear fell on them, and they ran away to hide themselves. 8 So I was (O)left alone and saw this great vision; yet (P)no strength was left in me, for my complexion turned to [i]a deathly pallor, and I retained no strength. 9 But I heard the sound of his words; and as soon as I heard the sound of his words, I (Q)fell into a deep sleep on my face, with my face to the ground.
Daniel Comforted
10 Then behold, a hand (R)touched me and shook me on my [j]hands and knees. 11 And he said to me, “(S)Daniel, [k]you who are treasured, (T)understand the words that I am about to tell you and (U)stand at your place, for I have now been sent to you.” And when he had spoken this word to me, I stood up (V)trembling. 12 Then he said to me, “(W)Do not be afraid, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart on understanding this and on (X)humbling yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come (Y)in response to your words. 13 But the prince of the kingdom of Persia was standing [l]in my way for twenty-one days; then behold, (Z)Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left there with the kings of Persia. 14 Now I have come to (AA)explain to you what will happen to your people in the [m](AB)latter days, because the vision pertains to (AC)the days still future.”
15 When he had spoken to me according to these words, I [n]turned my face toward the ground and became (AD)speechless. 16 And behold, [o](AE)one who resembled a human was (AF)touching my lips. Then I opened my mouth and spoke and said to him who was standing before me, “My lord, due to the vision [p](AG)anguish has come upon me, and I have retained no strength. 17 For (AH)how can such a servant of my lord talk with such as my lord? As for me, there remains just now (AI)no strength in me, nor has any breath been left in me.”
18 Then this one with human appearance touched me again and (AJ)strengthened me. 19 And he said, “[q]You who are treasured, (AK)do not be afraid. Peace be to you; take (AL)courage and be courageous!” Now as soon as he spoke to me, I felt strengthened and said, “May my lord speak, for you have (AM)strengthened me.” 20 Then he said, “Do you [r]understand why I came to you? But I shall now return to fight against the prince of Persia; so I am leaving, and behold, the (AN)prince of [s]Greece is about to come. 21 However, I will tell you what is recorded in the writing of (AO)truth. Yet there is no one who [t]stands firmly with me against these forces except (AP)Michael your prince.
Footnotes
- Daniel 10:1 Lit word
- Daniel 10:1 Lit word
- Daniel 10:1 Or warfare
- Daniel 10:1 Lit word
- Daniel 10:2 Lit weeks of days
- Daniel 10:3 Lit delicate
- Daniel 10:4 Heb Hiddekel
- Daniel 10:6 Lit like
- Daniel 10:8 Lit destruction
- Daniel 10:10 Lit knees and the palms of my hands
- Daniel 10:11 Lit man of treasure
- Daniel 10:13 Lit opposite me
- Daniel 10:14 Lit end of the days
- Daniel 10:15 Lit gave
- Daniel 10:16 Lit as a likeness of sons of mankind
- Daniel 10:16 Lit my pains have
- Daniel 10:19 Lit man of treasure
- Daniel 10:20 Lit know
- Daniel 10:20 Heb Javan
- Daniel 10:21 Lit shows himself courageous
Daniel 10
Contemporary English Version
Daniel's Vision beside the Tigris River
10 In the third year[a] of Cyrus the king of Persia, a message came to Daniel[b] from God, and it was explained in a vision. The message was about a dreadful war, and it was true. 2 Daniel wrote:
For three weeks I was in sorrow. 3 I ate no fancy food or meat, I drank no wine, and I put no olive oil on my face or hair.[c] 4 Then, on the twenty-fourth day of the first month,[d] I was standing on the banks of the great Tigris River, 5 (A) when I looked up and saw someone dressed in linen and wearing a solid gold belt.[e] 6 His body was like a precious stone,[f] his face like lightning, his eyes like flaming fires, his arms and legs like polished bronze, and his voice like the roar of a crowd. 7 (B) Although the people who were with me did not see the vision, they became so frightened that they scattered and hid. 8 Only I saw this great vision. I became weak and pale, 9 and at the sound of his voice, I fell facedown in a deep sleep.
10 He raised me to my hands and knees 11 and then said, “Daniel, your God thinks highly of you, and he has sent me. So stand up and pay close attention.” I stood trembling, while the angel said:
12 Daniel, don't be afraid! God has listened to your prayers since the first day you humbly asked for understanding, and he has sent me here. 13 (C) But the guardian angel[g] of Persia opposed me for 21 days. Then Michael, who is one of the strongest guardian angels,[h] came to rescue me from the kings of Persia.[i] 14 Now I have come here to give you another vision about what will happen to your people in the future.
15 While this angel was speaking to me, I stared at the ground, speechless. 16 Then he appeared in human form and touched my lips. I said, “Sir, this vision has brought me great pain and has drained my strength. 17 I am merely your servant. How can I possibly speak with someone so powerful, when I am almost too weak to get my breath?”
18-19 The angel touched me a second time and said, “Don't be frightened! God thinks highly of you, and he intends this for your good, so be brave and strong.”
At this, I regained my strength and replied, “Please speak! You have already made me feel much better.”
20 Then the angel said:
Now do you understand why I have come? Soon I must leave to fight against the guardian angel of Persia. Then after I have defeated him, the guardian angel of Greece will attack me. 21 I will tell you what is written in The Book of Truth. But first, you must realize that no one except Michael, the guardian angel of Israel, is on my side.
Footnotes
- 10.1 third year: 536 b.c.
- 10.1 Daniel: See the note at 2.26.
- 10.3 olive oil … hair: On special occasions, it was the custom to put olive oil on one's face and hair.
- 10.4 first month: Nisan (also known as Abib), the first month of the Hebrew calendar, from about mid-March to mid-April.
- 10.5 solid gold belt: Hebrew “belt of gold from Uphaz.”
- 10.6 a precious stone: The Hebrew text has “beryl,” which is green or bluish-green.
- 10.13 guardian angel: Hebrew “prince.”
- 10.13 one of the strongest guardian angels: Hebrew “chief prince.”
- 10.13 came … Persia: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
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