God’s Word for You
Daniel 8:18-21 I fainted and fell face down
by Pastor Timothy Smith on Monday, December 8, 2025
18 As he was speaking to me, I fainted and fell face down on the ground. Then he touched me and stood me on my feet. 19 He said, “Listen: I will tell you what will happen in the last part of the wrath, because for the appointed time there is an end. 20 The ram that you saw, the two horned male, those horns are the kings of Media and Persia. 21 The male goat is the king of Greece, and the large horn between its eyes is the first king.
As the angel spoke, Daniel collapsed. I have translated the verb with “fainted,” since while it usually means “fell asleep,” that would hardly be the case here. In Judges 4:21, a deep sleep comes over Sisera on account of extreme fatigue after a battle and a long chase. In Psalm 76:6, “horse and chariot lie still,” stunned, silent, and obviously dead. In Proverbs 10:5, the word is used for a lazy man who sleeps through the harvest. With such a variety of possibilities, “fainted” or “fainted dead away” seems likely. The prophet fell face down which is common enough in fainting spells (one does not choose the direction of a faint). The reason for the collapse is the news that overcomes the man. As Queen Elizabeth said, “I swoon with this dead-killing news!” Since the message was not just about Daniel himself, but about the future of God’s people, Daniel collapsed with terror, grief, and other emotions all charging frantically pell-mell through his mind and heart.
Gabriel stooped and touched the fallen prophet. The word can also mean “struck” (which we see another angel do to wake Peter in Acts 12:7) but here there is no need for haste. In the Greek translation, the Greek verb here is identical to the word in Matthew 17:7, when Jesus “touched” his disciples to wake them after they fell facedown, just as Daniel did, during the transfiguration. Since the LXX was translated before the birth of Christ, the imagery and parallel language is truly remarkable.
The service of angels is both to God and to man. To God, angels praise (Isaiah 6:1-4) and minister to him (Psalm 103:20-21). To men, the wise Gerson says, “The angel stands near, shines, knocks, cries out to arise; he releases, guides, and leaves free.” Angels appear to have great powers for strengthening human beings. Gabriel touches Daniel to rouse him and helps him to his feet to hear and understand the rest of what he has to say. Why? For the simple yet crucial reason that God commanded him to “make this man understand the vision” (verse 16).
Gabriel identifies the vision as being about “the last part of the wrath.” The “wrath” that Israel was under was the Babylonian captivity. Belshazzar, the present king or viceroy when Daniel saw this vision, would be the final king of Babylon. So this vision is about the immediate future. There would be an upheaval, sudden, violent, and a complete change for the people of Israel. Yet “for the appointed time there is an end.” That is to say, this time of violent change would not go on for long; it would come to an end.
Then the angel explains that the vision is about the next two regimes in the region. First, Persia, or Media and Persia. Then the Persians would be replaced by the Greeks, and especially the first Greek king, who would be Alexander the Great. So the angel Gabriel has now given the identification we have been using all along in this chapter.
So far, the message has explained the two animals that Daniel saw, the ram and the charging goat. The Hebrew term sometimes translated “shaggy” (NIV) or “rough” (KJV) is a word that can also simply mean a male.
Gabriel has more to say, but it is good to be able to identify these first elements so that we know we’re on the right track when we identify the parts that are coming in the next verses. When Scripture interprets Scripture we lay aside every single doubt and praise God for his grace and goodness.
Faith receives all of God’s blessings like a throat receiving a cold drink of water. God’s word creates and strengthens our faith. Luther’s explanation of the Second Petition of the Lord’s Prayer teaches us how faith works, and what the result of faith should be in eternity and also in this lifetime: “God’s kingdom comes when our heavenly Father gives his Holy Spirit, so that by his grace we believe his holy Word and lead a godly life now on earth and forever in heaven.”
In Christ,
Pastor Timothy Smith
Pastor Smith serves St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in New Ulm, Minnesota. To receive God’s Word for You via e-mail, please visit the St. Paul’s Lutheran Church website.