Here’s my fairly literal translation of these verses:
5And I, Daniel, looked and Behold! – two others standing, one this to the bank of the river and one that to the bank of the river. 6And one said to the Man clothed [in] linens who [was] from above to the waters of the river, “Until when the end of the wonders?” 7And I heard the Man clothed [in] the linens, who was from above the waters of the river, and He lifted His right [hand] and His left toward the heavens and He swore by [the] One living [to] the ages that [it will be] to a time, times, and a half, and when it is completed [and the] hand of [the] people of holiness [is] broken up, the all of these [things] will be completed.
This is a crazy passage to study. I’ve pretty much always read through this quickly and just left it puzzling over its meaning. As is usually the case with Scripture, as I’ve slowed down and really sought to understand it, it is like a bomb going off in my hands. The challenge now is to try to gather up my frazzled brain and record what I believe the Lord has shown me. I will try. In no particular order…
Notice it begins with “I, Daniel…” I underline the “I” because Hebrew tends not to express the first person pronoun. It sounds strange to us, but, for them, the pronoun is a part of the verb itself. Whenever they do express it, it is always for emphasis. So, why does he have to say, “I, Daniel”? It is because, up to this point, it has been the angel speaking. This is the same angel that has been talking to Daniel ever since the beginning to chapter 10, which is, in itself, crazy to think about as you would go back and read – an angel speaking, and Daniel recording for us so we know what the angel said! So, anyway, now it is Daniel speaking (writing), and he obviously wanted to make that clear.
I’ll probably say more about this later, but it still just boggles my mind to really realize what is going on here. Ever since that beginning in chapter 10, Daniel has been standing here by the Tigris River. Above him is this mighty “angel” whom he described as “a Man dressed in linen, with a belt of the finest gold around His waist. His body was like chrysolite, 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.” As you can tell by my capitalization, I’m strongly persuaded this is none other then Jesus Himself, what theologians call a “pre-incarnate appearance of Christ.” Many writers refrain from that bold conclusion and think it best to only go so far as to acknowledge it as an angel. However, I can’t even type it without capitalizing the pronouns. For yourself, try reading Revelation 1:12-18, then come back and tell yourself this is only an angel!
So if I’m right, here is Daniel standing by the river with none other than Jesus, the then coming Christ, the Second Person of the Trinity, standing over Him, and now it is that glorified Christ speaking -- and Daniel is actually hearing His voice! Not only that, but, once again, there are more angels there with him. In this case, there is one on one side of the river and one on the other. These seem to be in addition to the one who has been talking to him since chapter 10. Then he actually gets to hear one of the angels talking to Jesus!
It fascinates me that what the angel speaks to Jesus is actually a question: “How long will it be before these astonishing things are fulfilled?” He, the angel, doesn’t know! He’s curious! Again, I’ll say more about this later, but it still boggles my mind to ponder the thought that, like us, there is much angels don’t know, that they are curious (like us), that they have to learn (like us), that this whole, glorious Plan of Redemption, God’s plan for this Creation we live in, is a mystery to them too!
Daniel is really there, really seeing and hearing all of this!
From here to the end of the chapter, what we will read is definitely what I would call “heaven talk.” Like all prophecy, it would seem, what we read sometimes makes sense (we think) and sometimes is just plain baffling. Especially after all these years working my way through Daniel, it is clear to me that prophecy almost always contains some nuggets of truth the Lord wants us to know, but that He bathes them in revelations that will only make sense when they come to pass. As Jesus told His disciples, “When they are fulfilled, then you will know…” In fact, in my mind, this chapter only gets more cryptic with each verse we read. Someone reading might get tired of me saying, “I don’t know,” but I have to confess even beforehand, there is much I don’t know and probably won’t. If there is much angels don’t know, there is no doubt MUCH you and I won’t decipher at least in this world and until those things are fulfilled!
In answer to the angel’s question, “When?”, Jesus raises both His right and left hand and swears by God Himself. Many other writers note the normal procedure, all through the Bible and seemingly throughout human history, is that one raises their right hand to “solemnly swear.” Here Jesus raises both. It would seem obvious that at least one reason is to add to that solemnity. Another thought that strikes me is, I wonder if Jesus, in that very solemnity, is very aware that the fulfillment of all these things will involve His crucifixion? Before this is all over, He knows those two hands will both be nail-scarred? In a sense, as He raises both hands, He is assuming the position of the Cross itself. I don’t know if that is what’s going on, but it sure fits!
He tells the angel (in Daniel’s hearing) that it will be “for a time, times, and half a time.” We’ve encountered this time frame before in Daniel’s prophecies. Back in 7:25, an angel was answering his questions about the fourth beast which will “devour the whole earth, trampling it down and crushing it,” and “another king” who will “speak against the Most High and oppress His saints and try to change the set times and the laws.” The angel then explains, “The saints will be handed over to him for a time, times, and half a time.”
In my own mind, there is no question this is a period of 3 ½ years. It is also described as 42 months in Rev. 11:2 and 13:5 (which is exactly 3 ½ years), along with 1,260 days in Rev. 11:3 and 12:6. Prophetic years are 360 days (12 months of 30-days each), so 1,260 days is again exactly 3 ½ years and exactly 42 months. On top of all this, it is in the middle of Daniel’s 70th “seven” that the “Abomination of Desolation” is set up in the temple (9:27). I’ve already demonstrated that Daniel’s seventy “sevens” are years, so the “middle” of a “seven” would also be 3 ½ years.
I have tried to be honest where prophecies go cryptic on us and we should humbly admit when things aren’t as “clear” as we would like. However, this compilation of reference after reference of precise years, months, and days would leave me saying, “If this isn’t 3 ½ years, then words mean nothing.” What I suspect is that this horrible period, which is the part we really acknowledge as the “Great Tribulation,” is so bad, and God’s people will suffer so much, that Jesus swears with both hands raised that it will only be for exactly 3 ½ years. That will assure believers of two things: no matter how bad it is, it will end, and the fact that it is “allowed” to go on for only exactly 3 ½ years = 42 months = 1,260 days will assure them that their Lord and Master, the Most High God, is, in fact, in TOTAL control.
Speaking of “cryptic,” the last half of verse 7, is to me almost impossible to translate with confidence. The NIV translates this, “When the power of the holy people has been finally broken, all these things will be completed.” That translation certainly fits the context and I suspect it is the angel’s intended meaning. However, the Hebrew is not at all that clear. If you look above at my “fairly literal” translation, you’ll note that, in verse 7, I have added a lot of [***] words. That is because those words are not in the Hebrew text.
Whenever I do that, I am wanting to acknowledge that I’m adding words which are not there in the Original. As I’ve observed before, compared to English, Hebrew is like a “short-hand” language. In our English-speaking brains, they leave out a LOT. It’s often like we say, “You just had to be there.” Most of the time, their meaning is obvious if we just slow down and think about it. However, sometimes (and especially in prophecies), for us, there simply isn’t enough there to 100% conclude what it means. I am suggesting that is the case with these last words of verse 7.
What I’d prefer to do is simply to be aware of the literal Hebrew itself, leave it at that, and just wait until its fulfillment to be 100% sure what it means. That is precisely what the Lord intends with at least part of His prophecies – “I have told you before so that, when it happens, you will believe.” I’m probably rambling on about this because I believe too many writers seem to think they must provide an absolute explanation for every single verse in the Bible. Rather, we need to acknowledge what our Lord Himself told us – that there may be some things we’ll only understand when they are fulfilled. I personally think the Bible allows us this wonderful confidence of knowing what we can count on our Lord to do and not do, while also containing enough of a cryptic element to keep us asking, searching, and remembering it will always be true, “His ways are not our ways, nor His thoughts our thoughts.” Let us remember the Bible is God’s Word. To know God is to be ever encountering the mysterious.
There is one more thing I see in this angel talk that just floors me, but I think I will close these thoughts here and express it in the next blog.
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