Daniel 10:8
in Daniel 10So I was left alone, gazing at this great vision. No strength remained in me; my face grew deathly pale, and I was powerless.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
So I was left alone, and saw this great vision, and there remained no strength in me; for my comeliness was turned in me into corruption, and I retained no strength.
KJV
Therefore I was left alone, and saw this great vision, and there remained no strength in me: for my comeliness was turned in me into corruption, and I retained no strength.
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This verse in Daniel 10
Commentary
7 notes on this verse"And I," he says, "was the only one left and I fell on my face upon the earth, and behold, with the hand of a man he touched me." [Daniel 10:8] He says, "the hand of a man," not yet a man, but indicating the coming of the economy through grace.
This site's exposition
I Daniel alone saw the vision
on Daniel 10:7-9
Daniel alone sees the vision, while the men with him feel only a great quaking and flee to hide themselves, seeing nothing yet sensing everything, the bench noting how fear of an unseen power can fall on those who never perceive its cause. Daniel's own comeliness, his natural color and strength, is turned to corruption at the sight, and he falls into a deep sleep with his face toward the ground even while still hearing the voice. The vision costs him bodily before it teaches him anything, the fear and weakness described in plain physical terms the older writers read as the ordinary human cost of a true encounter with the world beyond sight.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
"I was left alone." The unbelievers do not know Christ and flee, while the faithful will see him, since they are illuminated by him, even as faithful Daniel was.
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
Note, the greatest and best of men cannot bear the immediate discoveries of the divine glory; no man can see it and live; it is next to death to see a glimpse of it, as Daniel here; but glorified saints see Christ as he is and can bear the sight. But, though Daniel was thus dispirited with the vision of Christ, yet he heard the voice of his words and knew what he said.
Therefore I was left alone, and saw this great vision,....
The encouragement that was given him to expect such a discovery of future events as should be satisfactory and useful both to others and to himself, and that he should be enabled both to understand the meaning of this discovery, though difficult, and to bear up under the lustre of it, though dazzling and dreadful,
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
Therefore I was left alone, and saw this great vision - That is, I distinctly saw it, or contemplated it. He perceived, doubtless, that it was a heavenly vision; and as he had often been favored with similar manifestations, he remained to receive the communication which probably he understood was to be made. And there remained no strength in me - He was completely overcome. A similar effect was produced on John when he was in Patmos: “And when I saw him I fell at his feet as dead,” Rev 1:
The words behind it
19 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַאֲנִי֙ | vaani | and I | H589 → | 874 times |
| נִשְׁאַ֣רְתִּי | nisharti | I was left behind | H7604 → | 133 times |
| לְבַדִּ֔י | levadi | to alone me | H905 → | 200 times |
| וָֽאֶרְאֶ֗ה | vaereh | and I saw | H7200 → | 1300 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| הַמַּרְאָ֤ה | hamarah | the vision | H4759 → | 12 times |
| הַגְּדֹלָה֙ | hagedolah | <the> great | H1419 → | 526 times |
| הַזֹּ֔את | hazot | <the> this | H2063 → | |
| וְלֹ֥א | velo' | and not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| נִשְׁאַר־ | nishar- | it remained | H7604 → | 133 times |
| בִּ֖י | bi | in me | ||
| כֹּ֑ח | koch | strength | H3581 → | 126 times |
| וְהוֹדִ֗י | vehodi | and vigor my | H1935 → | |
| נֶהְפַּ֤ךְ | nehpakh | it was changed | H2015 → | |
| עָלַי֙ | ʾalai | on me | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| לְמַשְׁחִ֔ית | lemashchit | into destruction | H4889 → | |
| וְלֹ֥א | velo' | and not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| עָצַ֖רְתִּי | ʾatzarti | I retained | H6113 → | 47 times |
| כֹּֽחַ׃ | koach | strength | H3581 → | 126 times |
וַאֲנִי֙and I
vaaniH589 →874 times
נִשְׁאַ֣רְתִּיI was left behind
nishartiH7604 →133 times
לְבַדִּ֔יto alone me
levadiH905 →200 times
וָֽאֶרְאֶ֗הand I saw
vaerehH7200 →1300 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
הַמַּרְאָ֤הthe vision
hamarahH4759 →12 times
הַגְּדֹלָה֙<the> great
hagedolahH1419 →526 times
הַזֹּ֔את<the> this
hazotH2063 →
וְלֹ֥אand not
velo'H3808 →5168 times
נִשְׁאַר־it remained
nishar-H7604 →133 times
בִּ֖יin me
bi
כֹּ֑חstrength
kochH3581 →126 times
וְהוֹדִ֗יand vigor my
vehodiH1935 →
נֶהְפַּ֤ךְit was changed
nehpakhH2015 →
עָלַי֙on me
ʾalaiH5921 →5755 times
לְמַשְׁחִ֔יתinto destruction
lemashchitH4889 →
וְלֹ֥אand not
velo'H3808 →5168 times
עָצַ֖רְתִּיI retained
ʾatzartiH6113 →47 times
כֹּֽחַ׃strength
koachH3581 →126 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Habakkuk 3:16I heard and trembled within; my lips quivered at the sound. Decay entered my bones; I trembled where I stood. Yet I must wait patiently for the day of distress to come upon the…
it leads to
- Jeremiah 23:9
As for the prophets: My heart is broken within me, and all my bones tremble. I have become like a drunkard, like a man overcome by wine, because of the LORD, because of His…
- Habakkuk 1:5–11
“Look at the nations and observe—be utterly astounded! For I am doing a work in your days that you would never believe even if someone told you.
- Habakkuk 3:2
O LORD, I have heard the report of You; I stand in awe, O LORD, of Your deeds. Revive them in these years; make them known in these years. In Your wrath, remember mercy!
- Psalms 94:12–13
Blessed is the man You discipline, O LORD, and teach from Your law,
- Jeremiah 25:9–11
behold, I will summon all the families of the north, declares the LORD, and I will send for My servant Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, whom I will bring against this land, against its residents,…
- Jeremiah 23:9
Through
Mark 9:6For they were all so terrified that Peter did not know what else to say.
it leads to
- Mark 16:5–8
When they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed.
- Daniel 10:15–19
While he was speaking these words to me, I set my face toward the ground and became speechless.
- Revelation 1:17
When I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man. But He placed His right hand on me and said, “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last,
- Mark 16:5–8
Where this verse is studied
About Daniel
This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Ammonius of Alexandria, FRAGMENTS ON DANIEL 10:8; Hippolytus of Rome, Commentary on Daniel 4.38.4; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.