Daniel 10:12 He said to me, 'Do
not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to
understand, and to fast before your G-d, your words have been heard, and I
came because of your words. 13 But the heavenly prince of the Persian kingdom
stood opposed to me for twenty-one days, when, behold! Michael, one of the
foremost heavenly princes, came to help me, and I remained there beside the
kings of Persia.
13. But the heavenly
prince of the Persian kingdom. [I.e., the angel appointed as caretaker of the
affairs of Persia.]
Stood opposed to me
[lit. was standing against me.] The heavenly prince of the Persian kingdom
had been petitioning for additional longevity for his proteges throughout
these 21 days and I have been fighting his petition (Rashi).
[It stands to reason
that these 21 days, are identical with the 21 days of Daniel's mourning
(above vs. 2). It follows that here, too, years are meant. Hence, this
vision took place not in the third year of Cyrus, but during the rule of
Darius the Persian (see above vs. 2). The angel was imparting to Daniel that
these 21 years (the fall of Babylon, the start of reconstruction of the Temple
in the first year of Cyrus's reign, the subsequent revocation of Cyrus's
edict, and the renewed construction of the Temple at the time the angel was
speaking) were due to the relative position of the angels assigned to the
respective nations, not to the apparent political causes.]
Of the foremost
heavenly princes. I.e., one of the most eminent of the angels (Rashi).
[In the heavenly
tribunal, Michael is prince of Yisrael, as seen in vs. 21 (Michael your
heavenly prince). Ramban (VaYikra 18:28), however, differentiates between
Michael and the other angels cast in the position of heavenly princes.
Whereas the other angelic princes actually have hegemony over their charges,
Yisrael's prince is different because
"Hashem's portion is His People"
(Devarim 32:9), unlike the other nations who are under the guidance and rule
of their heavenly prince. This is what Moshe means when he admonishes
Yisrael: "Take heed unto yourselves...lest you lift up
your eyes, and see...all the host of heaven...which Hashem your G-d has
allotted unto all the peoples under the whole heaven. You, however, Hashem
has taken" (Devarim 4:15-20) Therefore,
Michael's role is only that of an advocate for his People, which role he
filled perfectly, as seen in this verse.]
And I remained
there. To counteract the petitions of the heavenly prince of the
Persian
kingdom (Rashi).
[This is a
recapitulation of what the angel has told Dani'el up to now.]
Malbim sees this as
prophetic symbolism representing the welfare of the Jews from that time on in
the Persian empire. I remained - i.e., my influence is now
acknowledged by the heavenly prince of the Persian kingdom.
[Artscroll Tanach Series - Daniel]