Daniel 8:16
in Daniel 8And I heard the voice of a man calling from between the banks of the Ulai: “Gabriel, explain the vision to this man.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And I heard a man’s voice between the banks of the Ulai, which called, and said, Gabriel, make this man to understand the vision.
KJV
And I heard a man’s voice between the banks of Ulai, which called, and said, Gabriel, make this man to understand the vision.
⋯
This verse in Daniel 8
Commentary
9 notes on this verseVerses 16, 17. "And I heard the voice of a man in the midst of the Ulai, and he cried out and said: 'Gabriel, make this vision intelligible (Vulgate: make this man to understand the vision).' And he came and stood near to where I was standing." The Jews claim that this man who directed Gabriel to explain the vision to Daniel was Michael.
This site's exposition
sought for the meaning
on Daniel 8:15-19
Daniel seeks the vision's meaning and one with the appearance of a man stands before him, then a voice between the banks of Ulai names him: Gabriel, make this man to understand. This is the first time any angel is named in Scripture, a distinction verified against the floor, Gabriel appearing again at 9:21 and then at Luke 1:19 and 1:26 to announce the births of John and Jesus. Daniel is addressed as son of man, a title the bench is careful to distinguish from the Son of man of chapter seven, here simply the messenger's address to a mortal, and Daniel falls on his face and is set upright to hear that the vision belongs to the time of the end.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers3 voices
I heard someone else as well using a human voice and bidding the one standing near me, whom he called Gabriel, to interpret the riddle of the revelation to me. It is possible from what was said to come to the conclusion that the one …
That these things are true, just as has been said, Daniel himself testifies. For he spoke in this way, "And it happened when I saw the vision and I sought to understand, and behold, there stood before me an appearance of a man, and I heard the voice of a man above the midst of the Ubal, and he called and he said, 'Gabriel cause him to understand that vision.' And he came and stood holding me, and when he came, I was astounded and fell upon my face and he said to me, 'Understand son of man. For the vision is for the end of time.' And while he spoke with me I was astounded and I fell upon my face upon the ground and he touched me and stood me on my feet and he said, 'Behold, I myself make known to you what will be at the end of wrath. For the vision is of the end of time. The ram which you saw, who had horns, he is the king of the Persians and Medes. And the male goat is king of the Greeks. And the great horn which was above the midst of his eyes, he is the first king. And after he is shattered, four horns stood up after him, four kings from his nation shall arise and not in his strength. And at the end of their kingdom, when their sins are full, a king, shameless in countenance, shall arise, and who understands riddles. And his rule shall be strong and not in his own strength and he shall destroy wonderful things and he shall prosper and he shall practice and he shall destroy the mighty and the holy people, and the yoke of his chain shall prosper. Cunning is in his hand and in his heart he shall be magnified and in cunning he shall destroy many and he shall stand for the destruction of many and he shall shatter people as eggs in a hand. And the vision of evening and morning which was said is true. […]
The guardian angel of Daniel, who never parted from him, asked the angel Gabriel, who was now by him, now by all the other saints in everything concerning visions, to explain to Daniel his dream.
The Medieval Church1 voice
A commentator
BonaventureCollationes de Septem Donis, Collation 8 · Written in the 13th century.
proposed
"Now it came to pass, when I, Daniel, saw the vision and sought understanding: behold, there stood before me as it were the appearance of a man; and he cried out and said: Gabriel, make this one understand the vision." This illumination is aided through …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
11 Yea, he magnified himself even to the prince of the host, and by him the daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place of his sanctuary was cast down. 12 And a host was given him against the daily sacrifice by reason of transgression, and it cast down the truth to the ground; and it practised, and prospered.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — scripture-overlap:98%@v11-12
2 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
And I heard a man's voice between the banks of Ulai,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
And I heard a man’s voice between the banks of Ulai - See the notes at Dan 8:2. The voice seemed to come from the river, as if it were that of the Genius of the river, and to address Gabriel, who stood near to Daniel on the shore. This was doubtless the voice of God. The speaker was invisible, and this method of explaining the vision was adopted, probably to make the whole scene more impressive. Which called, and said, Gabriel - Gabriel is mentioned in the Scriptures only in Dan 8:16; Dan 9:21; Luk 1:19, Luk 1:
The words behind it
12 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וָאֶשְׁמַ֥ע | vaeshma' | and I heard | H8085 → | 1159 times |
| קוֹל־ | kol- | [the] voice of | H6963 → | 506 times |
| אָדָ֖ם | ʾadam | a person | H120 → | 551 times |
| בֵּ֣ין | bein | between | H996 → | 407 times |
| אוּלָ֑י | ʾulai | Ulai | H195 → | |
| וַיִּקְרָא֙ | vaiyikra' | and he called | H7121 → | 733 times |
| וַיֹּאמַ֔ר | vaiyomar | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| גַּבְרִיאֵ֕ל | gavriel | O Gabriel | H1403 → | |
| הָבֵ֥ן | haven | explain | H995 → | 170 times |
| לְהַלָּ֖ז | lehalaz | to this [one] | H1975 → | |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| הַמַּרְאֶֽה׃ | hamareh | the vision | H4758 → | 103 times |
וָאֶשְׁמַ֥עand I heard
vaeshma'H8085 →1159 times
קוֹל־[the] voice of
kol-H6963 →506 times
אָדָ֖םa person
ʾadamH120 →551 times
בֵּ֣יןbetween
beinH996 →407 times
אוּלָ֑יUlai
ʾulaiH195 →
וַיִּקְרָא֙and he called
vaiyikra'H7121 →733 times
וַיֹּאמַ֔רand he said
vaiyomarH559 →5305 times
גַּבְרִיאֵ֕לO Gabriel
gavrielH1403 →
הָבֵ֥ןexplain
havenH995 →170 times
לְהַלָּ֖זto this [one]
lehalazH1975 →
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
הַמַּרְאֶֽה׃the vision
hamarehH4758 →103 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
Revelation 22:16“I, Jesus, have sent My angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the bright Morning Star.”
it leads to
- Revelation 5:5
Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed to open the scroll and its seven seals.”
- 2 Peter 1:19
We also have the word of the prophets as confirmed beyond doubt. And you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day…
- Isaiah 11:1
Then a shoot will spring up from the stump of Jesse, and a Branch from his roots will bear fruit.
- Romans 1:3–4
regarding His Son, who was a descendant of David according to the flesh,
- Revelation 1:4
John, To the seven churches in the province of Asia: Grace and peace to you from Him who is and was and is to come, and from the seven Spirits before His throne,
- Revelation 5:5
Through
Luke 1:26In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to a town in Galilee called Nazareth,
it leads to
- Matthew 2:23
and he went and lived in a town called Nazareth. So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophets: “He will be called a Nazarene.”
- Luke 1:19
“I am Gabriel,” replied the angel. “I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news.
- Matthew 2:23
Through
Luke 1:19“I am Gabriel,” replied the angel. “I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news.
it leads to
- Luke 1:26
In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to a town in Galilee called Nazareth,
- Luke 1:26
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies7
About Daniel
This page draws on 10 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Bonaventure, Collationes de Septem Donis, Collation 8; Carl Friedrich Keil, Biblical Commentary on the Book of Daniel; Ephrem the Syrian, COMMENTARY ON DANIEL 8:15; Hippolytus of Rome, Commentary on Daniel 4.27.1-2; Jerome, St. Jerome, Commentary on Daniel, CHAPTER EIGHT; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Theodoret of Cyrus, COMMENTARY ON DANIEL 8:16.