Daniel 3:¹² (The angel 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.” 

What gets my attention here is the mention of the “prince of the kingdom of Persia”. Later in the chapter there is mention of “prince of Greece”. These refer to spiritual powers of these two nations, apparently powers of darkness given that God’s archangel Michael is battles both on behalf of Israel. Gabriel is the angel speaking to Daniel in this passage, which is the same angel that later announced John the Baptist (Luke 1:11) and Jesus himself (Luke 1:26).

The apostle Paul writes about principalities, powers, and forces of evil in the heavenly realm in Ephesians chapter 6. And since there’s no indication these spiritual battles have ceased it’s fair to expect these kinds of spiritual battles are happening today. I wonder what sort of spiritual principality or power is present in the United States? Is it a power of God or the evil one – or both? Interesting to think about.

Lord I pray this morning that your warring angels continue to battle on behalf of your people – in the United States and around the world. I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.