Daniel 10:5 –
I looked up and saw a man dressed in linen clothing, with a belt of pure gold around his waist.
This sounds like the same vision Ezekiel had in Ezekiel 1. The man dressed in linen was the traditional clothing of the time for priests, but in this instance the man represented the “interface” between God and Daniel. John also had a similar vision in Revelation 1, but there the man was Christ. I wonder if Ezekiel and Daniel both saw Christ, but did not know His name. Was Christ always the “interface” between us and God?
As with most “visions” in the Bible the reader often reads in their own experiences and beliefs. Christians today will insist this was Jesus before he came to earth. Others will read Michael the archangel, since he is mentioned often in this chapter. Others will claim it’s just an angel or heavenly being. I cannot claim any of these as truth, but my belief is this man is Christ.
This man or messenger is bringing Daniel news of the near future. If we follow history and this vision, it shows the demise of Babylon and the rise/fall of Greece. Most non-believers will claim this as written “after the fact” or will be just like someone today predicting the fall of the USA. It was something that history showed would happen, so predicting it was inevitable. At the same time predicting who would take over was not inevitable.
Now think about the fall of the USA. Sure today that seems impossible, we are the strongest force on this globe. We have the largest economy in the world, yet we are falling quickly. Our spending habits are out of control and our military is spread too thin. We have lost the roots that made this nation great. Is there a turning point?
Think it’s not possible? Look at England, as we grew as a nation we took their place as the world’s “super power”. At one time the sun never set on English soil. Look at Israel, they are probably the oldest sustained one yet they have risen, fallen and lost their lands so many times, so is that our path? Our lives would be better spent not hoping for the USA to live on, but the Word of God! We will fall eventually and some other nation will take our place, but the only “rock” that has lasted longer than all others is the Word of God!