July 29, 2026
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The Power of Wisdom and Understanding
“Then he said to me, “Do not be afraid, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart on understanding this and on humbling yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to your words. But the prince of the kingdom of Persia was standing in my way for twenty-one days; then behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left there with the kings of Persia. Now I have come to explain to you what will happen to your people in the latter days, because the vision pertains to the days still future.” Daniel 10:12-14 (NASB)
Daniel was alive and serving King Cyrus of Persia during the 16-year delay to the restoration of the Temple, which was no doubt orchestrated by the “Prince of Persia.” I spoke of this in detail in a recent post, highlighting how God used the cooperation of civil and spiritual leadership to overcome the setback. This same principality, who seems to excel at causing delays, orchestrated the 21-day delay Daniel experienced in the passage above. The delay Daniel experienced was related–not to the Temple’s restoration–but to receiving a message from God through an angel.
Don’t miss that–the 21 days of warfare in the spiritual realm were over revelation! Insight and information from heaven were being opposed. In the previous chapter, the archangel Gabriel was also sent to Daniel with a message, which he described as bringing Daniel “insight with understanding” (9:22 NASB). What a phrase! Satan decided, “Enough of that!” and was now attempting to thwart this message. He wants to cut us off from heaven’s insight and understanding.
Why? Because the word of the Lord produces faith (Romans 10:17), strategy for current situations (Isaiah 30:21 and many other refs), direction for the future (Acts 16:6-9 and others), wisdom (Proverbs 1:1-2), and life (Proverbs 4:20-22).
It is impossible for believers to be 100% effective for the Lord without receiving God’s instructions. In Ephesians 1:17, Paul spoke of it as “wisdom and revelation.” We must be led by Him. Therefore, satan will do anything possible to hinder our hearing from God, whether that be busyness on our part, circumstantial distractions, or demonic opposition, as it was in Daniel. Hearing His words and instructions to us is so important that in Amos 8.11-12, God refers to a discontinuation of Him speaking to a people as judgment. Amos called it a “famine…of the words of the Lord!”
Enough theology–let me cut to the chase: we must listen for and receive Holy Spirit’s wisdom and strategies in order to defeat the spiritual forces ruling Iran/Persia. We must receive His leading as we pray, and our national leaders must receive and implement heaven’s strategies as they operate in the natural realm.
I am NOT suggesting that Trump and our generals should sit in a circle, hold hands, and pray until someone gets “a word” on when and where to strike. I’m certainly all for them praying individually and as a team, and God absolutely gives dreams and visions to government officials, but I’m not implying that our leaders should war with subjective “words” they believe God might be speaking. But they do need His guidance.
In situations where Scripture doesn’t give specific answers, God typically leads people by guiding their thoughts and providing wise counsel. “Leaning not to our own understanding” (Proverbs 3:5) doesn’t mean we aren’t to use our intellectual abilities; it means that as we acknowledge Him, He will direct our paths (v. 6) by infusing His wisdom into our thinking. We can ask God to do this for our leaders, guiding their decisions regarding Iran. We should be praying that they “hear” clearly. We can also ask Him to keep them from being deceived in every situation and decision, and that spiritual forces not be able to interfere with His messages.
We can also pray that they are continually reminded of their great need for God’s strength and direction. Pray for humility. The Psalmist said in Psalms 20:7: “Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the Lord our God.”
Without intending to be critical, I’m sometimes concerned when I hear President Trump boast of how incredible our military is and how powerless Iran is against us. Our military is incredible, and it is appropriate to encourage and appreciate them, and to assure Americans that we have all the resources we need militarily. But I’m concerned that at times, the President’s words indicate that his ultimate trust is in America’s own strength, not God. Israel made this mistake against the small and insignificant town of Ai, resulting in a horrible defeat (Joshua 7).
America and modern Israel quickly decimated Iran’s military, only to become frustrated and hampered by the situation in the Strait of Hormuz. I’m not suggesting our military or government leaders made mistakes that created this problem. I’m saying that in the first phase of the war, we overcame the Iranian regime with our incredible military might; this current phase is now demanding extraordinary levels of wisdom and understanding (revelation). Our prayers can unlock these two provisions, and the awareness of how greatly the Lord’s help is needed–humility.
I believe our President has done a remarkable job in the first year and a half of this term. I believe that the war in Iran was necessary, while also believing Trump when he says he doesn’t intend to allow it to become a long, drawn-out war.
Let’s do our part to make certain this doesn’t happen. Let’s persevere in prayer, just as Daniel did, until the Lord sends the archangel Michael–or whichever one He chooses–to deal with the “prince of Persia.” Let’s pray until the Middle East is ablaze with the fires of revival, and the fire spreads to Europe, Asia, and Africa.
Pray with me:
Father, it is clear just how threatening it is to satan when we hear and pay heed to Your words. Jesus said the difference between doing so and not doing so was like building a house on rock, as opposed to doing so on sand. Without doubt, he fights to keep us from hearing Your counsel, just as he did Daniel. We declare our faith today that as we persevere, his efforts will fail, just as they did when Daniel persevered. We will hear, and keep our eyes on the prize.
Today we pray for President Trump and his team. They are wise in principles of war, and our military is well equipped. But a sinister force of darkness, whose greatest weapon is subtlety, is not susceptible to human weapons. And his greatest opening is human pride. Keep our leaders reminded of this. Impress this on them so heavily - especially on our President–that not a day goes by that they don’t ask You for wisdom and guidance. And don’t let a day go by that the Ekklesia, the praying church, doesn’t ask for this on their behalf.
And lastly, we move now in the authority You gave us and bind, forbid, disallow the powers of darkness from continuing their hold on Iran and the Middle East. We declare that they will not orchestrate a victory for Iran’s evil regime, and they will not continue to blind the minds of unbelievers there in mass, keeping them from seeing the truth of the gospel and the glory of Christ (2 Corinthians 4:2-4). Their hold is weakening and will continue to do so. We unsheathe Your mighty sword, Lord, and declare, “Let God arise, and His enemies be scattered” (Psalm 68:1). “As smoke is driven away, so the enemies of God are being driven away; as wax melts before fire, the hold of the wicked is perishing at the presence of God in that entire region” (verse 2). In Jesus’ name, we declare these things, amen.
Our decree:
We decree that the Kingdom of God is coming to Iran and the Middle East, and His will is being done.