Daniel 10:10 But then (as Daniel was about to receive a vision from God and fell to the ground) a hand touched me and roused me to my hands and knees. 11 He said to me, “Daniel, greatly beloved, pay attention to the words that I am going to speak to you. Stand on your feet, for I have now been sent to you.” So while he was speaking this word to me, I stood up trembling. 12 He said to me, “Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words have been heard, and I have come because of your words. 13 But the prince of the kingdom of Persia opposed me twenty-one days. So Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, and I left him there with the prince of the kingdom of Persia, 14 and have come to help you understand what is to happen to your people at the end of days. For there is a further vision for those days.” 

Every once in a while the bible attempts to help pull back the curtain on the spiritual realities we cannot see. In this case God reveals to Daniel that he has heard Daniel’s request to “gain understanding” but that understanding was delayed. How was it delayed?

“But the prince of the kingdom of Persia opposed me (God) twenty-one days.”

The prince of the kingdom of Persia wasn’t a person but a demonic power seeking to prevent Daniel from receiving the revelation from God. God eventually sent Michael (the archangel) to deal with that situation. Interesting huh? Reminds me of some of the teaching of the apostle Paul in Ephesians chapter 6.

I don’t pretend to have a comprehensive understanding of the heavenly realm and how forces of good and evil do battle, but I know the battle takes place – then and now. I know it’s a continuous battle that will not come to an end until Jesus returns to defeat the power of evil for good. In the meantime, passages like this one remind me of this spiritual reality and how important it is to seek the resources of heaven made available to all believers in Jesus’ name.

Lord, let it be so. Amen.