“I, Daniel, was troubled in spirit, and the visions that passed through my mind disturbed me. I approached one of those standing there and asked him the meaning of all this. “So he told me and gave me the interpretation of these things. Daniel 7:15-16 (NIV).
One of the sources I read on this verse (https://www.raystedman.org/old-testament/daniel/the-coming-caesar) says that the person with whom Daniel speaks in these verses is an angel. For the first time, we learn about Daniel’s reaction to these mysterious visions. He was “troubled in spirit” and “disturbed” by them.
Can you blame him? I mean, when this is written, Daniel has already lived a long, storied but dangerous life. Most likely, he’s already an old man, certainly by the living standards of 550 BC (in which a life expectancy was measured around 30-40 years). He’s living in the time after Nebuchadnezzar and things are uneasy at best.
Now, he has this fantastic vision and it troubles him, literally pains him. What does he do? In the vision, he approaches one of the people standing in the presence of the one who is like the Son of Man. That means it was an angel. It didn’t upset Daniel to be face to face with the supernatural being. The angel wasn’t terrifying, or imposing, or frightening. Daniel was unafraid to go up to him, sensing that anyone who stood radiant in the presence of the Ancient of Days and Son of Man was surely good. We’ll learn later in Daniel who the angel is.
But the point for us is that we should be unafraid as well. God NEVER brings his people to sin. He never gives us a good option that includes sin. Right now, the world is troubled. A hurricane devastating the Gulf Coast. Fires in California. Surrender, slaughter, and now a resurgent terrorist war in Afghanistan. Covid all across the globe. Tensions in Ukraine, and Taiwan, and in several nations in Africa. Where, o Lord, are Your guardian angels now?
They’re probably busier than ever. One of the songs that resonates with me is an Amy Grant song, “Angels.” “Though I never see with human eyes the hands that lead me home,” was one of the verses. Right on, right on. I’m betting the angels God sends to guard us every day are constantly busy, fighting off evil so that we can simply live our lives peacefully. We can’t see them – until one day we do – but they’re around us. Bank on it.
And if one makes himself known to us? When that happens, we should be unafraid. Daniel felt troubled and disturbed until comforted by the angel. We should feel the same.
For further reading: Job 4:15, Zechariah 1:9, Daniel 7:17
Lord, let Your angels please guard and guide me today. Thank You for them!
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