Daniel
10* In the year three of King Cyrus of Persia a matter was revealed to Daniel who was named Belteshassar; and the word was true, but a great task; but he understood the word and had insight into the apparition.
2 In those days I, Daniel, had been mourning three weeks; 3 I had not eaten palatable bread, and meat and wine had not come into my mouth, and I had not put on any oil, till three weeks were up. 4 And on the twenty-fourth day of the first month, when I was by the side of the great river (that is, the Tigris), 5 I raised my eyes and saw that there was a man there dressed in linen, his waist belted with nugget gold from Uphaz, 6 his body like yellow jasper, his face like the sight of lightning, his eyes like torches of fire, his arms and legs like the luster of burnished bronze, and the sound of his words like the voices of an excited crowd.
7 And I, Daniel, alone saw the apparition, and the men who were with me did not see the apparition; a great panic fell upon them, though, and they went into hiding, 8 and I remained alone and saw this great apparition. And I had no strength left in me, and my good health turned into a breakdown and I retained no strength. And I heard the sound of his words; 9 and as I heard the sound of his words, I being in a trance on my face with my face on the ground, 10 there a hand touched me and got me falteringly up on my hands and knees; 11 and he said to me “Daniel, you favorite man, take in the words I am speaking to you, and stand erect, because I have now been sent to you.” And with his speaking these words I stood up shivering. 12 And he said to me
“Do not be afraid, Daniel, because from the first day when you put your mind to studying and behaving submissively before your God your words were heard, and I came at your words; 13* but the prince of the Persian empire stood in my way twenty-one days. But here has Micael, one of the chief princes, come to help me, and I was superfluous with the kings of Persia 14 and came to expound to you what is to befall your people in future time—for there is yet a vision for the time.”
15 And while he spoke these words with me I had my face toward the ground and was dumb. 16 But there what bore the semblance of humankind touched my lips, and I opened my mouth and spoke, and said to the one that stood in front of me “My lord, at the sight of the apparition my pains came upon me and I retained no strength, 17 and how can this servant of my lord’s talk with this lord of mine, when after this I have no strength standing up in me and there remains no breath in me?”
18 And once more what had the look of a man touched me and put strength into me, 19 and he said “Do not be afraid, you favorite man, you are all right; brace up, brace up!” and as he spoke with me I gathered firmness and said “Let my lord speak, for you have put strength into me.”
20 And he said “Do you know what I have come to you for? and I am going right back to fight the prince of Persia, and when I come out, in comes the prince of Greece. 21 I will inform you, though, of what is inscribed in a record of truth. And there is nobody holding firmly with me against these except your own prince Micael;