According to the text, Daniel was about 90 years old and lived past the time of the first release of the Jews, which permitted Jews to return to Jerusalem to rebuild both the city and the Temple (Daniel 10:1). The “third year of King Cyrus of Persia” is two years past the time he released the Jews to return to their homeland (Ezra 1:1-4). Nothing is said in the Book of Daniel about the actual release, except for the fact that Daniel prayed to that end in Daniel 9:1-19, and he was answered with a visit from the angel, Gabriel. There, Daniel was told it would take 49 years to rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple, and the actual work would be done during very precarious times (Daniel 9:25). Moreover, he was told that it would take 490 years, from the time the Jews began building the Temple to the end of the matter, that is, before a decision, concerning the Jew’s covenant with the Lord, would be finalized. During that time, the Messiah would come, but something would occur that would prevent him from fulfilling his office as the King of the Jews (Daniel 9:26). Yet, he would respond with a New Covenant, as was prophesied by Jeremiah, the prophet (Jeremiah 31:31; Daniel 9:27).
However, before all these things take place, the tenth chapter of the Book of Daniel highlights the third year of Cyrus, King of Persia. Daniel is in Babylon near the great Tigris River (Daniel 10:4), and we are told that a matter that concerned a great conflict was revealed to him. The vision was true (clear), in that Daniel was able to understand both the words and the vision, but its occurrence was in its appointed time, far into the future (Daniel 10:1).
Just before he received the vision, Daniel had been fasting for three full weeks (Daniel 10:2), and it is implied, because of the actual revelation in chapters 11 & 12, that Daniel was engrossed in the mystery of the “Seventy Weeks Prophecy,” which he was given two years prior (Daniel 9:1, 24-27). He wanted to understand more about what was to occur to the Jews in the latter or last days. Therefore, he “ate no pleasant bread” (Daniel 10:3), meaning he was engaged in a fast of some kind, and he devoted himself to prayer, hoping to understand what would befall his people leading up to the time of the end.
It was during the first month of the calendar, on the 24th of the month, just after the Passover season (the 14th through the 21st of the first month) that Daniel had a vision, as he walked by the Tigris River in Babylon. However, Daniel’s fast (mentioned above) extended backward to at least the 3rd day of the month (Daniel 10:4-5). It seems that the Jews in the land were beginning their third year there (Ezra 1:1, cp. Daniel 10:1), and their thoughts, no doubt, reflected upon their being brought out of Egypt, which was also reflected in the event of their recent release by Cyrus to return to their homeland. This also seems to have been on Daniel’s mind, because it was near the beginning of the first month that he began to participate in a fast and in prayer, seeking for a better understanding of what his people could expect in the coming centuries, 10 jubilees to be exact.
Daniel’s vision was of a man, who was clothed in linen with a belt of fine gold, which seems to be the same as the description of Christ in John’s vision on the isle of Patmos (Revelation 1:13). Daniel saw a man who had a body that resembled the ancient gem, topaz (not the same gem as our topaz), which is greenish in color,[1] and his face was as bright as lightning (Matthew 28:3). His eyes were like lamps of fire (Revelation 1:14), and his legs and arms were like polished bronze, and the sound of his voice was like that of a multitude of people (Daniel 10:5-6), similar to the sound we might hear in a modern sports stadium (cp. Revelation 1:15). Daniel’s vision was of the sight of God, as is understood in the Presence of the Messiah.
There had been some men with Daniel, and, although they didn’t see the vision, itself, it seems to have caused them to shake in fear. The experience may have been like the men in Paul’s vision of Christ, wherein they heard the “sound” but didn’t understand the “words” of the voice (cp. Acts 9:7; 22:9). Daniel’s companions fled, and he was left alone, so only he saw the vision of the Messiah. The experience was so great and overwhelming, however, that Daniel’s physical strength left him, and his face turned deathly pale. He was left utterly helpless (Daniel 10:7-8). Centuries later, when John was on the Isle of Patmos, he also lost all his strength, when he received a vision of the coming of Christ (Revelation 1:17).
On other occasions, sleep or exhaustion seems to accompany certain spiritual events. It may be, although I can’t be certain, that a spiritual experience drains one of his physical strength, and the exhaustion he feels is in proportion to the importance of the spiritual event. For example, previously Daniel had a vision wherein the angel Gabriel appeared to him, and Daniel fell on his face and went into a deep sleep (Daniel 8:16-18). Also, while Christ prayed to the Father in the Garden of Gethsemane, he seemed to ask for a sense of God’s Presence, which he had suddenly lost during the journey from the upper room to the garden (cp. Mark 14:34). Jesus prayed and kept returning to his three disciples who were with him, presumably hoping for a sense of the Presence of God to come through them (cp. Matthew 16:16-17). However, they were overwhelmed with sorrow, so they slept, and simply couldn’t stay awake (Mark 14:40). Consequently, Jesus’ prayer was answered with the coming of the angel (cp. Luke 22:42-44).
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[1] See International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, under “Stones, Precious.”
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