Daniel 10:17, commentary and pictures

Daniel answers as a servant that he cannot speak with his lord, with his face set toward the ground and himself dumb, his sorrows turned upon him by the vision, with no strength remaining in him and no breath left in him. The vision and the angel's visit came in answer to earnest prayer, with fasting and confession and mourning and humiliation and chastening of himself before God, and his prayer had not been in vain. Holy angels are sent to work out such prayers for the advancement of God's cause. The loss of breath belongs to the physical experience of vision, in which speaking occurs without breathing, followed by a deep inhalation as normal breathing returns.

One in the appearance of a man touched his lips and then touched him again to strengthen him, bidding him be strengthened. The messenger revealed himself as a man in human form so Daniel could hear and answer the message, and divine power thus strengthened him to hear and receive it. In this way God honors the one who has humbled himself with contrition of heart and confession of sin, strengthening him to stand upright, to speak, and to receive peace and courage and forgiveness, with skill and understanding. Daniel's response shows how little he exalted himself when God condescended to communicate with him.

Though a man greatly beloved of God, he humbled himself and chastened himself before God with fear and trembling, mourning and confessing sin, working out his own salvation. His humility before heavenly purity reflects no claim to be sinless. Human beings lose all natural power in the presence of holy angels and divine glory and must be strengthened by heaven before they can speak and receive instruction. Even Daniel, called beloved, could not bear heavenly glory in his mortal condition, which illustrates the reality and power of heavenly beings.

Each angel holds his particular post of duty and does not leave it, lest the powers of darkness gain advantage while heaven works out the prayers. The verse reveals a wonderful connection between the universe of heaven and this fallen world. It belongs to the light received direct from God especially for the last days by the banks of the Ulai and the Hiddekel, the great rivers of Shinar. What was revealed to Daniel is afterward complemented by the revelation given to John on Patmos, the book of Daniel being unsealed in the Revelation to carry forward to the last scenes of this earth's history and the proclamation of the first angel's message. All the events foretold in these visions are now in process of fulfillment and will soon come to pass.

The verse proves that fallen humanity cannot endure heavenly power and glory. Therefore God in wisdom did not send Christ with power and arms or even in the light of an angel, but humbled Him below the angels by clothing divinity with humanity so that humanity could touch humanity. He came as a man, the Prince of Life, to dispute the power of the prince of darkness and to break every yoke and preach the gospel to the poor.