Daniel 10.4-Daniel Was By the Tigris River on the Twenty-Fourth Day of the First Month When He Received Revelation From God
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Tuesday February 11, 2014
Daniel: Daniel 10:4-Daniel Was By the Tigris River on the Twenty-Fourth Day of the First Month When He Received Revelation From God
Lesson # 299
Please turn in your Bibles to Daniel 10:1.
Daniel 10:1 During Cyrus’s third year, king over Persia, a message was revealed to Daniel who was called by his name Belteshazzar. Specifically this message was truth and concerning a great conflict because he understood this message, yes he possessed understanding concerning this revelation. (Author’s translation)
Daniel 10:1 marks a transition from the account of the revelation Daniel received during the first year of Darius the Mede’s reign as king over the Babylonians to the account of the revelation he received during the third year of Cyrus the Persian.
The former appears in Daniel chapter nine.
This would indicate that Daniel received this revelation from God through an elect angel in 536 B.C. since this was the third year of the reign of Cyrus king of Persia.
In Daniel 11:2-12:13, in 536 B.C. Daniel receives his fourth and final prophetic revelation, which concerns itself with the future of the nation of Israel during the Times of the Gentiles.
This was the year that the Jewish exiles in Babylon were returning from Babylon and had begun rebuilding the temple.
Thus, Israel’s captivity in Babylon had come to an end when Daniel received this revelation from God.
He was approximately eighty-four years of age at this time.
Daniel tells the reader that he received a message, which he describes as “truth” which refers to truth in an objective sense as revelation of God’s will in relation to Israel, which is concerning the future of Israel from Daniel’s perspective in the sixth century B.C.
The prophecy recorded in Daniel 11:2-12:13 is truth in the sense that it is prophetic revelation from God regarding His prophetic program for the nation of Israel.
This revelation makes clear that Israel will be at war or engaged in armed conflicts until the Second Advent of Jesus Christ, which terminates the seventy weeks.
The revelation that is presented to the reader in Daniel 11-12 concerns itself with war up to the end of the seventy weeks which culminates in the Second Advent of Jesus Christ.
These last two chapters in the book of Daniel reveal that there will be great conflict in the future for Israel during the Times of the Gentiles extending up to the Second Advent of Jesus Christ.
Daniel was able to tell the reader that this prophetic revelation from God was concerning a great war because this was clear to him from the message which was communicated to him by the unidentified elect angel.
Therefore, Daniel understood from this revelation which appears in chapters 11 and 12 that Israel would have no peace but would constantly be at war until the seventy weeks had come to an end.
She would have no peace until the millennial reign of Jesus Christ.
Daniel 10:2 During those days, I myself, Daniel caused myself to enter the state of mourning for three weeks. (Author’s translation)
In Daniel 10:2, Daniel transitions from employing the third person in the narrative as he did in Daniel 10:1 to using the first person emphasizing that this is his personal account of what he saw and heard when he received this fourth and final prophetic revelation from God concerning the future of the nation of Israel.
He says that he caused himself to enter the state of mourning.
In Daniel 10:3, he tells the reader that he expressed his sorrow by fasting and by not putting on any ointment for three weeks.
The obvious question is why was Daniel causing himself to enter into the state of mourning?
As we noted in our study of Daniel 10:1, the Jewish exiles were returning from Babylon to Israel and had begun rebuilding the temple.
One reason why he could have been mourning is because many of the Jewish exiles continued to stay in Babylon even though they were free to return to the land of Israel.
Another reason why Daniel could have been mourning was that he heard of the enemies of the Jews opposing them (cf. Ezra 4:4-5).
On the anniversary of Israel’s exodus from Egypt, a new exodus had begun during the first year of Cyrus the Persian, namely the Jewish exiles exodus from Babylon to Israel (Ezra 1).
However, it met with great discouragement early on (cf. Ezra 3:12-4:5).
The work of rebuilding the temple came to a complete stop because of Israel’s enemies (cf. Ezra 4:24).
It would take another two decades before the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem would be completed (Zechariah 4:7).
Daniel 10:3 I never ate expensive choice food or meat. Also, wine never entered into my mouth likewise I never anointed myself with oil until the end of the three weeks. (Author’s translation)
Daniel explains what he means in verse 2 that he was mourning.
He expressed this mourning by never eating choice expensive food or meat, which of course was ceremonially clean according to the dietary laws of the Mosaic Law.
He also never drank wine, which was also clean in that it was not dedicated to idols.
Lastly, he says he never anointed himself with oil.
All of these actions expressed Daniel’s grief.
Daniel 10:4 On the twenty-fourth day of the first month, while I was by the bank of the great river, that is, the Tigris. (NASB95)
Daniel 10:4 Then, on the twenty-fourth day of the first month while I myself was beside that great river, namely the Tigris. (My translation)
This verse presents the next event that took place after the events recorded in verses 2 and 3, which record Daniel telling the reader that he entered into a state of mourning for three weeks.
Daniel continues to describe his circumstances when he received his fourth and final prophetic revelation from God concerning the future of the nation of Israel during the Times of the Gentiles.
He informs the reader that he was by the banks of the Tigris river, which is located in eastern modern Iraq on the twenty-fourth day of the first month when he received this final revelation from God.
“The first month” is a reference to the first month in the Jewish calendar, namely Nisan. Its early name was “Abib.”
This month was known as the month of flowers (Nehemiah 2:1) and is the first month of the Jewish sacred year, which corresponds to March and April.
The Passover took place on the fourteenth day of this month (Exodus 12:1-11; Leviticus 23:5) and of course, Jesus Christ was crucified on the Passover.
Also the Feast of Unleavened Bread took place from the fifteenth day of this month to the twentieth day of this month (Leviticus 23:6-8).
On the twenty-first day of this month, Israel observed the Feast of Firstfruits (Leviticus 23:9-14).
So Daniel informs the reader of the exact day in which he received this fourth and final prophetic revelation from God.
He does this in order to signify to the reader the significance and importance of this revelation.
Daniel might have chosen the month of Nisan as a time for prayer and fasting because Passover, which occurs during this month, was the time of Israel’s deliverance from Egypt.
Thus, Daniel may have associated Israel’s deliverance from Egypt with the present deliverance of the Jewish exiles from Babylon occurring in his day.
Daniel says that he was by the banks of the Tigris river, which is located in modern eastern Iraq.
The question arises as to why Daniel did not return to Israel with the Jewish exiles from Babylon?
He did not return because quite simply he was serving in the city of Babylon under Darius the Mede.
If you recall, in Daniel 6:2, Darius established one hundred twenty satraps over the Babylonian kingdom he was ruling in order that they would be in authority over the entire kingdom.
Also, out from these men, he appointed three supervisors over the hundred seventeen and Daniel was one of these three.
Daniel 6:4 says that Daniel was distinguishing himself above the supervisors as well as satraps because an extraordinary spirit was in him.
Consequently, the king intended to establish him over the entire kingdom.
Of course Daniel’s fellow satraps conspired to kill him but God delivered him from death.
Their conspiracy against Daniel was exposed and the king executed them, thus, Daniel became the ruler of the satraps.
So he remained in Babylon because of his duties, thus, he mentions his Babylonian name here in Daniel 10:1 as an indication as to where he was located.