4And in the day of twenty and
fourth to the month of the first, and I was upon the side of the river
the great – it [is] the Hidekel/Tigris. 5And I lifted up my eyes and
I looked and, behold, a certain man clothed in linen and His thighs wrapped in
the gold of Uphaz. 6And His body [was] like beryl and His face like
an appearance of lightning and His eyes like torches of fire and His arms and
His feet like sight of polished bronze, and the sound of His words like a sound
of a multitude.
It was certainly a thrill to study through these verses. The similarities to John’s description in Revelation are undeniable. Commentators are very divided over whether this is actually Jesus or merely a great angel. On the one hand, I personally am persuaded this is, in fact, a pre-incarnate appearance of Jesus Himself, but on the other hand, I have to admit, both here and in Revelation, there remains an element of mystery.
More on that later. First of all, I notice Daniel is back on the bank of a major watercourse – in this case the Tigris River, which is about 35 miles from Babylon at its closest approach. Back in 8:2, he was beside the Ulai Canal, which was actually in Elam, near the city of Susa, more like 350 miles from Babylon. If we can believe ancient timelines, that would have been about 550 BC and this “third year of Cyrus” (10:1) would now be about 536, so 14 years later. As I said back under chapter 8, I’m not surprised to see Daniel beside a watercourse. The text doesn’t tell us why he was there, but, as I noted there, watercourses were extremely important in that dry ancient world to provide irrigation for the farming and orchards.
One of the fearsome powers the kings held over their people was the authority to open and close gates along the water courses. He could keep a gate open and grant you abundant crops or he could order your gate shut and ruin you (Prov. 21:1). It doesn’t surprise me, then, to find Daniel, a man high in government, beside a watercourse. He is probably on some kind of mission from the king, perhaps checking which gates are opened or closed.
Other commentators note that people back then liked to maintain places of prayer next to rivers (Acts 16:13) and that could be why Daniel is there. I personally doubt that just because of the distance, the 35 miles. That may not be far for us, but, back then it would have been a considerable journey for our near 90-year old Daniel. The Euphrates River flows right through Babylon. If Daniel was just going to one of these “places of prayer,” you’d think he’d just go to one right there on the Euphrates. Rivers were all about power, so it’s not surprising to find Daniel there or to have the Lord appear to him “beside a water course.”
As I mentioned above, the vision Daniel relates here is almost identical to what John saw in the book of Revelation. Here is the chain of verses in Revelation that I think would lead us unmistakably to conclude this is none other than Jesus Himself:
“‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’ says the Lord
God, ‘who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.’” (1:8).
“And among the lampstands
was someone like a son of man, dressed in a robe reaching down to His feet and
with a golden sash around His chest. His head and hair were white like wool, as
white as snow, and His eyes were like blazing fire. His feet were like bronze
glowing in a furnace, and His voice was like the sound of rushing waters…His
face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance…and He said, ‘I am the First
and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever
and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades’” (1:13-18).
“I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End…I, Jesus, have sent My angel to give you this testimony for the churches” (22:13,16).
In 1:8, the speaker is “the Lord God Almighty” who tells us He is “the Alpha and the Omega.” In 1:13-18, the person in the vision tells John He is “the first and the last…I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever!” Then later in 22:13,16, Jesus tells John, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and Last.” Clearly, the person in the vision is Jesus, who “was dead and is alive forever and ever” – the Lord God Almighty, and, as John’s and Daniel’s visions are so obviously identical, I am persuaded to conclude this is in fact Jesus Himself, appearing to Daniel in His eternal, pre-incarnate self.
As I mentioned above, however, there yet remains an element of mystery. In all of these accounts, there are things that happen and things that are said which are hard to assign to Jesus. As one reads, there are times where it would be much easier to conclude this is not actually Jesus, but some mighty angel representing Him. That is why many commentators conclude the vision is not Jesus. Personally, I think, based on the chain of verses above, it is almost impossible for me to come to any other conclusion. With all due respect to those who differ with me, I would suggest the mystery itself is there precisely because it is in fact Jesus.
What do I mean? Is there not always an element of mystery any time we consider God Himself? For instance, although we are all very comfortable with the Trinity, is that not an endless mystery to us? How can One be Three? I cannot understand that with my finite mind, yet it is so obvious from cover to cover of the Bible, I know it is true. I will gladly say that I know God, and yet, even as I say that, I also know I do not. I can understand the things He has revealed to me, yet it’s like drawing a teaspoon from the ocean. There is so much more I am keenly aware I don’t understand. “‘My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor My ways your ways,’ says the Lord. ‘As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My thoughts above your thoughts, and My ways above your ways.’” (Isa. 55:8,9). “His ways are past finding out” (Rom. 11:33).
What I’m suggesting is that simply to “know” God is to also live in mystery. Especially when it comes to Jesus, the God-man, it’s no surprise anytime He specifically appears in the Bible, there is an element of mystery that surrounds Him. And I would also suggest that is good for us. He is God, the infinite, eternal One who lives above time and space and matter, and in fact created those things for us to live in. Just like angels, we are eternally created and finite beings. He is and was and always will be infinite. There is a humility in us to worship our God in what we do know of Him, then to accept the mystery that will also always surround Him.
And what of this vision? This is our mighty Jesus! We think of Him as the man Jesus, the suffering servant, yet let Daniel remind us when He was here on earth He had “made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant” – the Great Kenosis or “emptying” of our Savior (Phil. 2:7). He is even now back in heaven, seated at the right hand of the Father, glorified, and once again this “man” whose face is “like lightning” and His eyes “like flaming torches.” Daniel saw Him before His “emptying,” John saw Him afterward – and note: He hadn’t changed. We see He is in fact, “the Great I Am!” Our Jesus! The One of whom John says, “Out of His mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations” (Rev. 19:15).
It does us good – as it did both Daniel and John -- to pause occasionally and remember that our humble Jesus who went to the Cross for us is the glorified King of kings and Lord of lords. He’s no one to mess with! And yet He remains our gentle Savior. Is that not in itself yet a mystery? Personally, I’m glad I can’t understand all of who He is. I need Him to be both – a God of flaming justice and yet a Savior of grace and kindness – and the fact that He is beyond my feeble understanding is just one more reason to worship Him!
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