Daniel Ch11

Daniel 11:1

The first thing we need to realise as we begin this chapter is that chapter breaks are man’s invention, they we’re not in the original. Some of the chapter breaks in the Bible are in unfortunate places because they actually serve to confuse rather than help us.

At first glance it is easy to make the assumption that as we move in to chapter 11, we are starting something fresh and it is Daniel speaking; however verse 1 of chapter 11 is just a continuation of chapter 10 verses 20-21. Thus we find, it is the angel who had been sent to Daniel that is speaking to him here.

135 Fulfilled Prophecies in just 34 verses!

Daniel 11:2

As Daniel is writing this, Cyrus is the king of Persia (it is presumed that Darius has by now died). Daniel is told that from this point there will stand up another three kings, followed by a forth who will be far richer than his predecessors, and that this forth king will ‘awaken’ the Greek empire. From history we know that after Cyrus, Cambyses (Cyrus’ son) became king, reigning until 521 B.C. Cambyses discovered that an impostor (by the name of Guamata), pretending to be his own younger brother Smerdis (also called Artaxerxes), was claiming the kingdom for himself.

‘Smerdis’ announced a three-year exemption from taxes and won the hearts of the people, at which point Cambyses, realising that he was defeated, committed suicide. This psudo-Smerdis then reigned for a short period before Darius the Great eventually took control of the Persian Empire. It was in the 2nd year of Darius the Great (518 B.C.) that Darius signed a decree to allow the rebuilding of the Temple and thus ending the ‘Desolations of Jerusalem’. (See Ezra 4:24 / Ezra 6:8-12 / Haggai 1:1, 15 & 2:18). These then were the three kings that followed Cyrus. However, after Darius the Great came Xerxes, also know as Ahasuerus. In the book of Esther we are told that his kingdom spread from India to Ethiopia, covering 127 provinces (Esther 1:1). According to historians, Xerxes fielded two and a half million men, the logistics of which is staggering even by today’s standards. Not being content with the vast empire already in his hands, he led his army against Greece. The Greek historian Herodotus records that in around 482 B.C., Xerxes had two bridges built across the width of the Hellespont in order that his huge army could cross from Persia into Greece. These bridges were then destroyed by a storm that so enraged Xerxes, that he beat the sea 300 times with a belt! Eventually he did cross and subdued much of Greece starting a bitter rivalry that would later become the source of Alexander the Great’s obsession with conquering the Persian Empire.

(Map showing the Hellespont that was eventually crossed by Xerxes on his way to invade Greece.)

Thus, just as Daniel was told by the angel, Cyrus was succeed by three other kings (Cambyses, psudo-Smerdis and Darius the Great), and then came a forth, Xerxes, who was indeed far richer than his predecessors and through his military strength he started a war with Greece that would ultimately lead to the downfall of the Persian Empire.

• Cyrus II, the Great, son of Cambyses I, ruled from c.550–530 BC (ruler of Anshan c. 559 BC – conquered Media 550 BC)
• Cambyses II, son of Cyrus the Great, ruled 529–522 BC
• Smerdis (Bardiya), alleged son of Cyrus the Great, ruled 522-521 BC (possibly a usurper)
• Darius I, the Great, brother-in-law of Smerdis and grandson of Arsames, ruled 520–486 BC
• Xerxes I, son of Darius I, ruled 485–465 BC
• Artaxerxes I Longimanus, son of Xerxes I, ruled 465–424 BC
• Xerxes II, son of Artaxerxes I, ruled 424 BC
• Sogdianus, half-brother and rival of Xerxes II, ruled 424–423 BC
• Darius II Nothus, half-brother and rival of Xerxes II, ruled 423–405 BC
• Artaxerxes II Mnemon, son of Darius II, ruled 404–359 BC (see also Xenophon)
• Artaxerxes III Ochus, son of Artaxerxes II, ruled 358–338 BC
• Artaxerxes IV Arses, son of Artaxerxes III, ruled 338–336 BC
• Darius III Codomannus, great-grandson of Darius II, ruled 336–330 BC defeated by Alexander

Daniel 11:3-4

4 And when he shall stand up, his kingdom shall be broken, and shall be divided toward the four winds of heaven; and not to his posterity, nor according to his dominion which he ruled: for his kingdom shall be plucked up, even for others beside those.

Here we are again introduced to Alexander the Great, who, as we have already noted in chapter 7 & 8, was ‘broken’ (died) at a young age and his kingdom divided between his four generals. Note once again the precision of scripture, the kingdom was not given to Alexander’s posterity (children), nor did it have the stature that it had done under him. Of the four divisions of the empire, our primary focus in the following verses will be on Seleucus (who took what we know today as Syria), and Ptolemy (who took Egypt). What we find, when we look at a map of this area, is that Israel falls smack bang in the middle of these two competing factions of Alexander’s empire.

Back in Daniel 10:14 the angel said to Daniel: “Now I am come to make thee understand what shall befall thy people in the latter days: for yet the vision is for many days.” Thus the vision is concerning Israel, and hence the nations that directly effect her.

Daniel 11:5

Daniel 11:6

Daniel 11:7

Daniel 11:8

The spoils that Euergates took back to Egypt included 2500 idols (gods), 4000 talents of gold and 40,000 talents of sliver. He reigned for 24 years, surpassing that of his rival (Seleucus II Callinicus) who reigned for 20 years.

Daniel 11:9

Daniel 11:10-12

11 And the king of the south shall be moved with choler, and shall come forth and fight with him, even with the king of the north : and he shall set forth a great multitude; but the multitude shall be given into his [i.e Ptolemy IV Philopator’s] hand.

12 And when he hath taken away the multitude, his heart shall be lifted up; and he shall cast down many ten thousands: but he shall not be strengthened by it.

Seleucus II’s sons were Seleucus III Soter, who was murdered during a campaign in Aisa Minor (Turkey), and Antiochus III, also known as Antiochus the Great (who reigned until approx. 187 B.C.). He recovered much of the territory that had been conquered by Euergates and resumed war against Egypt. Antiochus also ‘passed through’ Judea attacking much of what had been held by Egypt. Because of this, in about 221 B.C. a multitude (large army) was assembled by Ptolemy IV, (Euergates’ son). His army marched through Judea and was met in Lebanon by Antiochus. This led, in the spring of 219 B.C., to the battle of Raffia (about 20 miles south of modern day Gaza)

Daniel 11:13-16

14 And in those times there shall many stand up against the king of the south [i.e. Ptolemy V Epiphanes]: also the robbers of thy people [i.e. Egyptians under Ptolemy V] shall exalt themselves to establish the vision; but they shall fall.

15 So the king of the north [i.e. Antiochus III the Great] shall come, and cast up a mount, and take the most fenced cities: and the arms of the south shall not withstand, neither his chosen people, neither shall there be any strength to withstand.

16 But he that cometh against him shall do according to his own will, and none shall stand before him: and he shall stand in the glorious land , which by his hand shall be consumed .

Daniel 11:17

Daniel 11:18

Daniel 11:19

Daniel 11:20

Antiochus was succeeded by his son, Seleucus IV Philopator. Seleucus inherited his father’s great debt and as a result brought in heavy tax increases, which surprisingly did not go down well with the people! In fact, so unpopular was this move that Seleucus was assassinated by his minister, Heliodorus. So as the angel foretold to Daniel, Seleucus died ‘neither in anger nor battle’, but as a result of a political issue.

Daniel 11:21

We now come to Antiochus IV Epiphanes, who we first met back in chapter 8; and as we noted there, he is a type (or model) of the Antichrist who is yet to come. It is interesting to note that the Greek name for Antiochus Epiphanes is translated as ‘the shining one’; which is the same as the Hebrew word ‘nachash’, first used in Genesis 3:1 referring to the Serpent.

When Seleucus IV Philopator was assassinated, his eldest son, Demetrius, should have succeeded him; however Demetrius was being held hostage in Rome. Antiochus Epiphanes had himself been a hostage in Rome but had recently been exchanged for his elder brother. According to Dake’s Bible commentary: “Antiochus Epiphanes was on his way back from Rome when his father, Seleucus IV died. Heliodorus who poisoned the king had already declared himself king, as had several others, but Antiochus came home peaceably (not in war) and using flattery obtained the kingdom. He flattered Eumenes, king of Pergamos, and Attalus his brother, and got their assistance. He flattered the Romans, and sent ambassadors to court their favour, paying them tribute which was in arrears. He flattered the Syrians, gained their favour, and took the throne with their backing.”

Daniel 11:22

Daniel 11:23

Jason did not hold the office of High Priest for very long, for a Benjaminite called Menelaus, who was on his way to pay Antiochus money from Jason, used Jason’s money to bribe Antiochus to give him the title instead.

Daniel 11:24

Antiochus proceeded to move to subdue Lebanon, Phoenicia and Judea, and he appointed rulers over these areas whom he supplied with the spoils of war that he had gained, thus effectively bribing them to ensure their loyalty to him.

Daniel 11:25-26

26 Yea, they that feed of the portion of his meat shall destroy him, and his army shall overflow: and many shall fall down slain

Eventually, Antiochus marched against Egypt with a large army capturing Ptolemy VI Philometor; whom he then let stay on the throne as a vassal king, firstly, so as not to alarm Rome who had a watchful eye on proceedings, but also because Philometor was actually Antiochus’ cousin (i.e. the son of his father’s sister’s who had been given to Ptolemy V by Antiochus III the Great).

Daniel 11:27

Daniel 11:28

Daniel 11:29-30

30 For the ships of Chittim shall come against him: therefore he shall be grieved, and return, and have indignation against the holy covenant: so shall he do; he shall even return, and have intelligence with them that forsake the holy covenant.

A short time later, Antiochus once again invaded Egypt, but it was not nearly so successful a campaign as his first attempt at Pelusium (former), or his second invasion that led to his conquering all of Egypt (except Alexandra), when he made Ptolemy VI Philometor his vassal (latter).

Whilst this was taking place, Antiochus’ fleet had captured Cyprus, but this had awakened the concerns or Rome. Shortly after, Antiochus was met near Alexandra, in Egypt, by the Roman Consul, Gaius Popillius Laenas, who told him that he must immediately withdraw from both Cyprus and Egypt. Antiochus replied that he would like time to think. Gaius consented to his wish by drawing a circle around him and telling him that he could take as long as he wanted to reach a decision, but that he must have decided by the time he left the circle! In other words, Antiochus either had to withdraw, or he would be at war with Rome.

Having been publicly humiliated, Antiochus wanted to vent his anger and frustration, and what better place to do it than upon the people he already despised – the Jews.

Daniel 11:31

Daniel 11:32-34

33 And they that understand among the people shall instruct many: yet they shall fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil, many days.

34 Now when they shall fall, they shall be holpen with a little help: but many shall cleave to them with flatteries.

Daniel 11:35

The Law of Double Reference:

In the following verses we will now begin to see the one of whom Antiochus IV Epiphanes is a type; a.k.a. Antichrist. Whilst some of the following details are applicable to Antiochus, the scope of the following prophecies goes far beyond anything that has happened thus far in history, and therefore the following verses are awaiting fulfilment during Daniel’s 70th week.

Daniel 11:36

cf Rev 13 / Daniel 7:8, 24-25

It is from this verse that Antichrist gets the title ‘The Wilful King’. As we noted in our study of Revelation 13, Antichrist has a mouth full of blasphemes, and he will exalt himself above all god. This includes the God of the Christians and Jews, as well as Allah, Buddha, ‘mother-earth’ etc. In order for Antichrist to get away with this all the world’s religions will need to be moulded into one prior to this time. Right before out eyes we are witnessing the beginning of this process as the Roman Catholic Church is joining hands with the Mormons, Muslims, Buddhists etc. and amazingly, protestants and evangelical churches are joining in too! The desire for unity is far outweighing the concern for Biblical truth.

Daniel 11:37

Some have mistakenly thought that this implies that Antichrist will not be interested in women. However we are told that he will not regard the desire of women, i.e. he will not regard that which women desire. The question is then asked, what was it that, in Daniel’s day, women desired? Answer: to be the one who gave birth to the Messiah. Right from Genesis 3 it had been prophesied that the Saviour would be the Seed of the Women; thus for Jewish women, the highest honour, their greatest desire (and hence the reason that barrenness was so despised) was to bring forth the One who would save the people from their sins.

So not only will Antichrist not regard God, he will not acknowledge Jesus either. In John’s first letter he tells us:

Daniel 11:38

Daniel 11:39

Daniel 11:40-44

41 He shall enter also into the glorious land, and many countries shall be overthrown: but these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon.

42 He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape.

43 But he shall have power over the treasures of gold and of silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt: and the Libyans and the Ethiopians shall be at his steps.

44 But tidings out of the east and out of the north shall trouble him: therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to make away many.

On this side of the prophetic divide we can only speculate at these references to the king of the south and king of the north (verse 40). What is clear from this verse is that we are not talking about the Seleucid and Ptolemaic dynasties, for earlier in this chapter the Seleucid empire was referred to as the king of the north; and yet now, Antichrist, who has picked up the mantle of Antiochus Epiphanes is being attacked from a king from presumably further north of Israel than Syria is. Scholars propose that the king of the south may be a united Africa with the king of the north being the Russians. Whoever they prove to be, they will march against Antichrist, passing through and trampling over the land of Israel (much like the earlier conflicts had done). We also find the tidings from the east will trouble Antichrist (verse 44); east of Israel is Asia, including China.

So in this scenario we have the north (Russia?), the south (Egyptian led Africa?) and the east (China etc.?), and yet we find that Antichrist will subdue all of them. What makes this particularly interesting is that, in Daniel 7:24, we were told that Antichrist will subdue three of the ten kings. Could these be the three that will be subdued, and their marching against Antichrist be the reason he needs to subdue them in the first place?

It is also interesting to note that modern day Jordan (Edom, Moab & Ammon) will escape out of Antichrist’s hands. In Revelation 12 we find that it will be during this time that Israel will flee to the wilderness – which many commentators believe will be Petra, in Jordan.

Daniel 11:45

Antichrist will set up camp in Israel, between the Dead Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, yet he will be defeated at the appointed time, and no one will even be able to help him. cf. 2 Thes 2:8 / Dan 7:26 / Dan 8:25 /

May you be blessed and encouraged by this study!