Deeper Commentary
Dan. 11:1 As for me, in the first year of Darius the Mede, I stood up to confirm and strengthen him- See on Dan. 10:13. This is the Angel of Dan. 10 speaking. "Darius the Mede" took the Kingdom from the Babylonians in fulfilment of the prophecies of Dan. 2 and Dan. 7, that Babylonian was to be succeeded in dominating the earth / land promised to Abraham. The Angel 'stood' to do this, and the desire of Darius was confirmed by the Angel who strengthened him to achieve this. And the Spirit works in our lives in the same way, confirm and strengthening us in our desires to do God's will. Multiple times David uses the same word in describing God as his 'strength' or 'strengthener'. The word occurs several times in this chapter (Dan. 11:7,10,19,31,38,39); clearly the idea is that the apparent strength of human leaders, armies and kingdoms is from God, as His hand moves in human history. There is a strong possibility that this "Darius the Mede" was in fact the Cyrus who made the decree for the Jews to return; there is no such figure as "Darius the Mede" in history, nor is there anyone between Belshazzar and Cyrus. In this case the reference here would be to the Angelic confirmation and strengthening of Cyrus to make the decree, after the three weeks struggle with him discussed on Dan. 10:12, and also overcoming the opposition from the rest of the Persian rulership, called "the princes of Persia" in Dan. 10. "Confirm" is the Hebrew word used of Angelic strengthening of Lot to leave Sodom (Gen. 19:16), and of the hardening of Pharaoh's heart (Ex. 4:21). But such strengthening has to be accepted, and therefore those involved with the restoration are asked to "let your hands be strengthened" (Zech. 8:9,13 s.w.), Zerubbabel and Joshua were to "be strong" (s.w. Hag. 2:4), and Daniel himself was an example of accepting this Angelic strengthening (s.w. Dan. 10:18,19).
Dan.
11:2 Now will I show you the truth- As noted on Dan. 10:21, the
Angel is allowing Daniel to hear what is written in God's planned history.
The material is presented as historical statements of fact, and is not
shrouded in vision, apocalyptic and imagery as is found in the other
prophecies. This is an unusual genre within the Biblical record. The
higher critics cannot accept that God can predict history in advance and
so they claim that such a detailed outline of the history of the kings of
north and south simply could not have been written in advance. To
disbelieve God's word is a basic human tendency, the record of Adam and
Eve's sin opens the Bible by making this point. The higher critical
approach has merely made this lack of faith intellectually respectable.
But as often, the critics have failed to do their homework. As I will
demonstrate throughout the commentary on Dan. 11, the fit between the
history and the prophetic word is not that good. There are indeed outline
similarities and points at which the correspondence, or fit, is indeed
very tight. But not consistently. I explain this by stating that Daniel 11
just like Daniel 2 and Daniel 7 describes a situation specifically
existing in the last days, which will be the perfect fit. There were hazy
hints of continuous historical fulfilments, but they were but incipient,
primary fulfilments. This situation is also due to the way that much
Biblical prophecy is conditional; as explained on Dan. 2, there were
potential fulfilments, scenarios which could have come true, and led to
the appearance of a Messiah figure and the re-establishment of Israel's
Kingdom as God's Kingdom on earth. But Israel's lack of repentance
precluded them. And so we are left with an apparently messy scene in the
aftermath- bits of prophecy which had partial fulfilments, at times very
clear, at times not at all clear. But God's word shall ultimately come
true in the situation of the last days.
This prophecy has many hints that it will all come true in the last days, "at the end of years" (:6). We can therefore expect intrigue and strife between two entities who both seek to dominate the eretz promised to Abraham, the latter day kings of north and south. The reference could be to Shia and Sunni Islamic extremists, the two groups of Israel's latter day abusers represented by the two feet / legs of the image of Dan. 2. All Bible prophecy has its final fulfilment in the last days. The image of Dan. 2 stands complete; the final abuser of God's land and people will include elements of all the previous entities who have done this, headed up by a Nebuchadnezzar type 'head' or individual, the antiChrist. The events of Daniel 11 are an expansion upon those of Daniel 8, where we learn of how the Persians were replaced by the Greeks. But the historical fulfilments we can discern in Dan. 11 are only partial; the situation could have resulted in a charismatic king of the north appearing, and being crushed by the appearance of a Messiah. But that didn't happen; but the detailed historical fulfilment of the predictions in Dan. 11 came true up until that point. The detail of the predictions and the exactness of their fulfilment serves as a guarantee that the final fulfilment shall also come. All these historical aspects of the various recorded dominations of the land shall be repeated in essence in the last days; there will again be kings of north and south who at times unite to dominate the eretz, at times fight each other, with the king of the north coming out as dominant and then an individual figure arises who seeks to dominate the land; and he is brought to his end by the return of the Lord Jesus and the full re-establishment of Israel's Kingdom as that of God.
Behold, there shall stand up yet three kings in Persia- Cambyses, Smerdis and Darius I.
And the fourth- Xerxes. The fourth who is the third could also be a way of saying that the third king would be the most significant and final king.
Shall be far richer than they all: and when he has grown strong through his riches, he shall stir up all against the realm of Greece- Xerxes is the Ahaseureus of Esther, proud of his riches (Esther 1:4,6,7). Xerxes raised an army of 5 million men to invade Greece. But the original could also mean that he would stir up all the realm of Greece.
I suggested on Dan. 2 that Daniel's prophecies had potential fulfilments which never came about; there is also a discernible although inconsistent and vague fulfilment of some elements of the visions throughout history; and the main fulfilment is in the last days, when the image stands complete, all the beasts of Dan. 7 are incorporated into the final beast which is to be destroyed, and likewise Daniel 11 may come true in a way we cannot yet imagine, in our last days. The initial possibility of the image prophecy was that there would arise a sequence of kings immediately after Nebuchadnezzar, which would climax in the appearance of Messiah and the re-establishment of God's Kingdom. And here again we have a sequence of four kings arising after Babylon.
Dan 11:3 A mighty king shall stand up, who shall rule with great power- This king is Alexander the Great of Greece (:4). The focus shifts from Persia in :2 to Greece here in :3, against whom the Persians came with a huge army but were unable to dominate. "Great power" is better "great dominion", in reference to how Alexander ruled the largest ever known empire on earth until that time.
And do according to his will- The language of Dan 8:4 about the ram. Yet the language is allusive to how Yahweh rules with the greatest dominion and does according to His will (Dan. 4:35). The various kings and kingdoms of men are all portrayed as playing God, as being fake Messiah figures, and will all have their summation in the final antiChrist figure of the last days.
Dan 11:4 When he has arisen- As soon as Alexander had arisen to
power, he suddenly died. We can look to the arising of a latter day
individual or entity which appears to dominate the eretz promised
to Abraham, but this will fall and be divided, resulting in two power
blocs struggling for dominance of the eretz.
His kingdom shall be broken, and shall be divided toward the four winds of the sky, but not to his posterity- There was an attempt to keep the Kingdom intact under the rulership of Alexander's half brother and then in the name of his son who was born after his death, but these attempts failed. The four winds are the four generals of Alexander, the four heads of the leopard (Dan. 7:6) and the four horns of the goat in Dan. 8:8,22.
Nor according to his power with which he ruled; for his kingdom shall be plucked up, even for others besides these- The kingdom was divided between Alexander's four generals. But the focus of Bible prophecy is upon the powers which dominate the eretz promised to Abraham, and so only two of them are now spoken of; the king of the north, the Syrian [Seleucid] kingdom, and that of the south, referring to the Egyptian [Ptolemaic] kingdom, the division taken by Alexander's general Ptolemy Soter.
Dan 11:5 The king of the south shall be strong- Ptolemy Soter
defeated the other generals and established a strong kingdom dominating
the land of Israel. His 'strength' again is in relation to dominance of
the land of Israel, which is the earth / land which the powers of the
image in Daniel 2 reigned over.
And also one of his princes; and he shall be strong above him, and have dominion; his dominion shall be a great dominion- The reference is to Seleucus Nicator. He was driven out of the northern kingdom and took refuge with Ptolemy, but then returned and became the king of the North, ruling the Seleucid section of the Greek empire.
Dan 11:6 At the end of years- This could simply mean 'in the
future' or 'after a period of years', but that is surely axiomatic. The
marriage between the leadership of the two groups happened 35 years after
the death of Seleucus. This is one of the many reasons to think that the
ultimate fulfilment of these prophecies will be "at the end of years", in
the last days, before the Lord's return. See on :2.
They shall join themselves together- There were attempts at unity between the kings of north and south, the two parts of the Greek empire which sought to dominate Israel. Likewise the two groups of Israel's enemies may unite together in the last days in their common hatred of Israel, but as explained throughout this chapter, they will not remain together and will bitterly fight each other. This is the iron and clay of the feet of the image not mixing together. The joining in view here is the marriage of the grandson of Seleucus, the first leader of the northern Greek empire ["Syria"], and the daughter of Ptolemy, the leader of the southern Greek empire in Egypt.
And the daughter of the king of the south shall come to the king of the north to make an agreement: but she shall not retain the strength of her arm; neither shall he stand, nor his arm; but she shall be given up, and those who brought her, and he who became the father of her, and he who strengthened her in those times- The marriage between the leading families of the kings of north and south came to an end when the wife poisoned her husband. "His arm" can also be rendered "his seed"; the idea of a joint offspring uniting the two groups came to nothing. But the language here is detailed, and will have its fuller fulfilment in events of the last days which are yet to unfold. "Those who brought her" would refer to the Egyptian courtiers who came with the wife, who were also murdered. "He who became the father of her" is AVmg. "whom she brought forth"; the offspring of the marriage was also killed.
The "king of the North" throughout Daniel 11 refers to
the King of Syria- so the latter day King of the North who attacks Israel
and is destroyed at Christ's return, as detailed at the end of Daniel 11
and the start of Daniel 12, must refer to an individual based upon a King
of Syria. Such an individual could easily be the leader of a jihadist entity like
ISIS, who took power in Syria.
Dan 11:8 Also their gods, with their molten images, and with their
attractive vessels of silver and of gold, shall he carry captive into
Egypt; and he shall refrain some years from the king of the north-
Or, "And he shall continue more years than the king of the north". The
king of the south at this point was Ptolemy Euergetes, who lived and
reigned longer than the king of the north, Seleucus Callinicus. The latter
day application of this may be in that the king of the south is to be
extremist Islamic, who wishes to destroy all images and perceived idols.
Dan 11:9 He shall come into the realm of the king of the south, but he
shall return into his own land- If we read as AV "So the king of the
south shall come into his kingdom, and shall return into his own land",
this would then appear to be a summary of the events of :8. But why the
repetition? The alternative reading would refer to an unsuccessful attack
on Egypt by the king of the north about 240 BC. However, :29 states there
have been three attacks on Egypt by the king of the north, and so here in
:9 we read at least of an attack only upon "the realm" of the southern
kingdom, i.e. Palestine.
Dan 11:10 His sons shall war, and shall assemble a multitude of great
forces, which shall come on, and overflow, and pass through; and they
shall return and war, even to his fortress- The focus of Bible
prophecy is upon the land of Israel. The various conflicts between the
kings of north and south, the Syrian and Egyptian wings of the Greek
empire, are recorded only insofar as they affected Israel. This confirms
my view that the "earth" ruled over by the metals of Dan. 2 and beasts of
Dan. 7 is the land promised to Abraham. The two sons of the king of the
north, Antiochus, attacked Palestine in order to retake it from the king
of the south, Egypt. He passed through Palestine up to the border of Egypt
but with Winter approaching (BC218), he 'returned' to his fortress in
Ptolemais and then in the spring of BC217 returned towards Egypt. The king
of the south [Egypt] counterattacked and drove him back to the Ptolemais
fortress.
Dan 11:11 The king of the south shall be moved with anger, and shall
come forth and fight with him, even with the king of the north; and he
shall set forth a great multitude, and the multitude shall be given into
his hand- This refers to the great battle fought at Raphia, near
Gaza, which was won by Ptolemy Philopator, the king of the south.
Dan 11:12 The multitude shall be lifted up, and his heart shall be
exalted; and he shall cast down tens of thousands, but he shall not
prevail- The great victory at Raphia wasn't followed up on. Ptolemy
wished to enter the inner sanctuary of the temple, but was refused by the
priests. He therefore threatened the whole nation of the Jews with
destruction, and murdered thousands of them. In Alexandria, 40,000-60,000
Jews were slain. Again we note that the prophecy focuses upon history as
it affects God's people and land.
Dan 11:13 The king of the north shall return, and shall set forth a
multitude greater than the former; and he shall come on at the end of the
times, even of years, with a great army and with much substance-
Antiochus III invaded Palestine again in 201 BC. Again we note that the
prophecy focuses entirely upon the relationships between the kings of the
north and south insofar as it affects God's land and people. "At the end
of times" again suggests that whatever historical application this clearly
had, it points ahead to the major fulfilment in the last days. If the idea
was simply 'after a period of time', then this would have been expressed
differently. The idea of 'after a period of time' would refer to the 16
year gap between the battle at Raphia (see on :11) and this second
campaign against the king of the south.
Dan 11:14 In those times there shall many stand up against the king of
the south: also the children of the violent among your people shall lift
themselves up to establish the vision; but they shall fall- From this
verse onwards, commentators are divided between those who see the prophecy
continuing to describe the conflicts between the northern and southern
parts of the Greek empire; and those who see the focus now upon the Roman
empire, which according to some interpretations of Daniel 2, was the next
power to take over dominating the land promised to Abraham. Both lines of
interpretation have some undeniably valid connections between the
prophetic words and history. But unlike the preceding verses, the match is
not so precise as from :4-13. I suggest again that it is the conditional
nature of Bible prophecy which explains this. A path of events could have
been followed but it was not, because Israel did not fully repent; and so
God tried again, and again. Therefore these same prophetic words have some limited application to both
the Greek kingdoms and the Roman empire. I suggest this is understandable
if we accept that the main fulfilment of the entire chapter is in the
future; the latter day entity which dominates the land and people of
Israel will have elements of both Greek and Roman empires, just as the
image stands complete in the last days, and the last terrible beast of
Dan. 7 and Revelation is a composite of all the previous beasts.
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Dan 11:15 So the king of the north shall come, and cast up a mound,
and take a well-fortified city: and the forces of the south shall not
stand, neither his chosen people, neither shall there be any strength to
stand- This can apply to both the siege of the Romans in AD70
[although there would be a large gap in the prophecy in this case] or to
Antiochus. The Antiochus interpretation fits better with the forces of the
south not standing, and the ones chosen by Ptolemy of Egypt failing to
resist Antiochus. As noted on :14,
Dan 11:16 But he who comes against him shall do according to his own
will, and none shall stand before him; and he shall stand in the glorious
land, and in his hand shall be destruction- This refers to the
actions of Antiochus and the Syrians in Palestine at this time, and the
inability of Ptolemy and Scopus, the leaders of the "king of the south",
to resist. The language is similar to that about God in Dan. 4:35. This is
a major theme of Daniel- that the apparently invincible armies of men are
brought to nothing before God. Those who appear so invincible are merely
playing God and will be judged by He who is ultimately invincible, and
whose will triumphs over human will. And that is the simple takeaway
lesson for us to this day.
Dan 11:17 He shall set his face to come with the strength of his whole
kingdom-
Dan 11:18 After this shall he turn his face to the islands, and shall
take many-
Dan 11:19 Then he shall turn his face toward the fortresses of his own
land; but he shall stumble and fall, and shall not be found- After
the defeat at Magnesia, the Romans demanded a tribute of 15,000 talents.
Antiochus tried to raise this by breaking into temple citadels
["fortresses"] of various gods. Whilst plundering the temple of Jupiter
Belus in Elymais, Antiochus was killed.
Dan 11:20 Then shall stand up in his place one who shall cause a tax
collector to pass through the kingdom to maintain its glory- As
noted on :19, the Romans had laid a huge tribute upon Antiochus and the
northern Seleucid kingdom. His successor, Seleucus Philopator, tried to
raise the tax / tribute by plundering temples, including that in
Jerusalem. The tax was particularly levied upon Judah, "the kingdom" and
land which is the focus of the prophecies.
But within a few days-
He shall be destroyed, neither in anger, nor in battle-
Dan 11:21 In his place shall arise a contemptible person, to whom they
had not given the honour of the kingdom- The reference appears to be
to Heliodorus who poisoned Seleucus Philopator. But he was unpopular and
"not given the honour".
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Dan 11:22 The overwhelming forces shall be overwhelmed from before
him, and shall be broken; even the prince of the covenant- The idea
may be that Antiochus took control of Syria and overcame some "prince" who
opposed him, possibly Onias III, according to 2 Macc. 4. Or it could be
that another invasion of Egypt is described, although this is hard to find
historically at this time; and we ask why "the prince of the covenant"
should be mentioned in this connection. Here as mentioned earlier, there
seems a gap between the prophetic words and the possible historical
fulfilment. The main fulfilment is yet future. "Shall be broken" recalls
how the iron legs of Dan. 2 and the fourth beast of Dan. 7 are to "break"
others, and yet then be broken by the Lord's return. This king of the
north again acts as a fake Messiah, an antiChrist. "The prince of the
covenant" refers most comfortably to the Lord Jesus; "even" is elsewhere
translated "in like manner as". Perhaps we are to understand that his
'breaking' is just as the little stone, Messiah, the prince of the
covenant, will in turn break him. He is thereby presented as an imitation
Christ, who shall be destroyed by the real Christ, in the latter day
manifestation of these things.
Dan 11:23 After the treaty made with him he shall work deceitfully;
for he shall come up, and shall become strong with a small people-
This seems to speak of the treaty between Antiochus as king of the north
and Ptolemy Philometor as king of the south, who was then but a child and
was deceived. Under the guise of assisting Ptolemy Philometor to rule over
all Egypt, Antiochus came with a small army and grabbed much of Egypt. We
can likewise imagine the latter day king of the north arising from a
position of weakness; rather than being the leader of an already large
people such as Russia.
Dan 11:24 Without warning he shall come into the richest parts of the
province-
Dan 11:25 He shall stir up his power and his courage against the king
of the south with a great army; and the king of the south shall war in
battle with an exceeding great and mighty army; but he shall not stand-
This mighty army of Antiochus is described in 1 Macc. 1 as quoted on :24.
Ptolemy likewise raised a mighty army to drive Antiochus out of Egypt. But
again the chronology seems slightly "out"; this great invasion ought to
have been described before the events of :24 it was to apply totally to
Antiochus. The difficulties in correspondence are again a reminder that
Antiochus was only a primary fulfilment of the greater which was to come.
According to :29, there were three invasions of the king of the south by
the king of the north, and this was the first and greatest of them.
Dan 11:26 Yes, they who eat of his dainties shall destroy him, and his
army shall overflow; and many shall fall down slain- 1 Macc. 1:18
describes how "Many fell wounded to death". His army was "swept away"
(NIV, RSV). Ptolemy Philometor was betrayed by those who ate "at his
table" (LXX). To eat together was a sign of mutual trust and fellowship,
and our breaking of bread at the table of the Lord Jesus speaks of His
acceptance of us. All we have to do is to accept it; and we should
therefore never deny another presence at His table.
Dan 11:27 As for both these kings, their hearts shall be to do
mischief, and they shall speak lies at one table: but it shall not
prosper; for yet the end shall be at the time appointed- This again
is a hint that the entire situation here is intended for ultimate
fulfilment in the last day and not in a continuous historical sense,
although there clearly are elements of primary fulfilment in history. All
the power and device of human politics and military might will not
prosper, because it is God's intention that things shall come to "the end"
at the "time appointed" by Him. And this is a wider comfort in human life
and experience. Antiochus sat at Ptolemy's table, pretending to be just
merely supporting him, when he was lying to him. And yet again, the
historical fit isn't exact, because this deceit was really before the
massive invasion of :25. The fulfilment is vague and inexact- because it
was but a primary fulfilment, and we look to the last days for the exact
fit.
Dan 11:28 Then shall he return into his land with great riches; and
his heart shall be against the holy covenant; and he shall do his
pleasure, and return to his own land- Antiochus took the riches of
Egypt and returned northward. He heard that Jerusalem was in festivity
because of a false report about his death, and so he decided to stop there
on the march homewards and punish them. His heart was not simply against
the Jews but against their holy covenant. In the latter day scenario, it
is "the holy [Abrahamic] covenant" which is the root source of bitterness
between Islam and Judaism, and between Israel and her neighbours.
Antiochus sought to replace Jewish culture with Greek [Hellenic] culture,
introducing Greek games on the temple mount, such as naked wrestling and
discus throwing. He killed 40,000 Jews there at this time according to
Josephus, and desecrated the temple. There will be something similar done
by the latter day king of the north.
Dan 11:29 At the time appointed he shall return, and come into the
south; but it shall not be in the latter time as it was in the former-
The evil planned against Judea and Jerusalem was "at the time appointed";
those who thought they were indulging their own plans were in fact under
Divine control. This is the consistent comfort of the prophecies.
Antiochus made a second attack upon the king of the south, but not as
successful as that of :26-28; and his third attack upon Egypt in :42,43
was likewise not so successful as the first one.
Dan 11:30 For ships of Kittim shall come against him- A reference
to Roman forces and envoys arriving in Egypt, which they saw as their
protectorate, forcing Antiochus to back off and return homeward.
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Dan 11:31 Forces from him shall appear, and they shall profane the
sanctuary, even the fortress, and shall take away the continual burnt
offering, and they shall set up the abomination that makes desolate-
This is the language of Dan. 9:27 about what the Romans did in AD70, and
it is understood by the Lord to refer to both the Roman actions in AD70
and more fully, the situation immediately before His return (see on Mt.
24:15). But that is not to preclude a reference to the blasphemies of
Antiochus, who dedicated the Jerusalem temple to Zeus and placed a statue
of Zeus on the altar (2 Macc. 6:2). Lk. 21:20 alludes to the same idea but
connects this with Dan. 9:27, seeing the desolator as the Roman armies of
AD70 and the armies of the latter day invader. However, the "he" here can
have application to John of Gischala, the Jewish zealot leader, who was
actually the one who made the sacrifices to cease, and with whom Josephus
records he pleaded to re-instate them. Josephus saw John as the fulfilment
of this prophecy. And yet in the context it clearly also refers to what
was done by Antiochus (1 Macc 1:45, 54, 59; 4:52–53). And so we again see
that the prophecies have various historical fulfilments, all of them not a
perfect fit with the actual prophetic words; but they will have their full
and seamless, perfect fit fulfilment at the time of the Lord's return.
Just as the metals of the image and the various beasts had their
historical fulfilments but will all exist at the Lord's return, when the
image of Dan. 2 stands complete. The final abuse of God's land and people
will contain all the elements of the previous abusers; in this case, by
the likes of Antiochus and John of Gischala.
Dan 11:32 Such as do wickedly against the covenant shall he pervert by
flatteries- Antiochus got the apostate Jews on his side. Alcimus and
other apostate high priests were used by Antiochus to enforce the Greek
culture over the Hebrew. There is a strong theme in all the fulfilments,
that apostate Jews enabled the desolation of the temple. And we are to
expect this in the greater, final fulfilment of the last days.
Dan 11:33 Those who are wise among the people shall instruct many; yet
they shall fall by the sword and by flame, by captivity and by spoil, many
days- The revolt against the Hellenization of Antiochus and the
apostate Jews was intellectual as well as in terms of military rebellion
and massacres of garrisons etc. This revival of attention to the Mosaic
law by the hasidim (see on :32) spawned the movements such as the
Pharisees which were so opposed to the Lord Jesus when He came.
Dan 11:34 Now when they shall fall, they shall be helped with a little
help- The Maccabees won amazing victories, but as noted on :33, they
were generally far from Biblical spirituality. This was reflected in God
giving them a "little help". They of course claimed, as did subsequent
Judaism, that their amazing victories against "the king of the north" were
due to God being with them. But the record here distinctly downplays that.
And there is the statement here that the "little help" would be received
at the time of their "fall". Again, the victories of the Maccabees doesn't
exactly fit with the Biblical prediction, and we are to look to a latter
day fulfilment for the perfect fit.
Dan 11:35 Some of those who are wise shall stumble, to refine them,
and to purify, and to make them white, until the time of the end; because
it is yet for the time appointed- The situations at the time of
Antiochus and AD70 could have led to the ultimate "time of the end". But
that potential wasn't realized; Israel did not repent, and instead focused
upon nationalism and the hope of a political Kingdom of God. And therefore
and thereby these words of Daniel 11 concern the situation in the ultimate
"time of the end", the same "end" foreseen in Dan. 9. The LXX gives: "And
some of those of understanding shall consider to purify themselves both to
be chosen and to be purified to the time of the end, for the season is for
hours". It could be that for the sake of the faithful minority, those who
were "wise", the time of the end was but hours away; but that "end" still
didn't come. The potential was not reached fully. The 'stumbling' of
"those who are wise" could refer to their 'falling' by the sword as in
:33,34. But the Hebrew for "stumble" is very often used about spiritual
stumbling (Is. 8:15; 28:13; 59:10,14; Jer. 6:21; 18:15; Mal. 2:8 etc.).
The idea seems to be that some of the wise spiritually stumbled. The
Hebrew, followed by AVmg., suggests that it is the fall of some of the
wise, either physically or spiritually, which will be the refining and
purifying of the truly faithful. And yet even their experience of
stumbling, physically and / or spiritually, was part of the Divine effort
to purge them so that they might be acceptable at the time of the end, the
day of final judgment. The latter day application is imaginable; some of
the wise fall in the persecutions of :33,34, some spiritually stumble, but
those who are purified by these experiences are those of Dan. 12:3 who
shall be resurrected to especial glory. But the text clearly requires that
this group who are purged by the sufferings of some of the wise, or even
their stumbling in faith, will endure until the time of the end; the time
when "Michael" stands up for God's people and the dead are resurrected
(Dan. 12:1-3). Clearly the language demands a latter day application for
its main fulfilment. Any attempt to apply this language to the time of
Antiochus or AD70 is weak and patchy, and at best but an incipient
fulfilment of the final, greater one. This focus upon the faithful Jewish
remnant of the last days is found at several points in the visions of
Revelation, not least those of the 144,000. The ultimate 'making white' is
through accepting the cleansing of the Lord's blood (Rev. 7:9).
Dan 11:36 The king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt
himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous
things against the God of gods- John Thomas and others see this
"king" as the Romans.
Dan. 11:36,37 are clearly given a latter day application by Paul's allusion to them as descriptive of the latter day antichrist figure who will be enthroned and destroyed by the Lord's second coming (2 Thess. 2:3-8). And yet Paul writes as if that person or entity was alive in his time; "the mystery of lawlessness" was already at work, he wrote; although the man of lawlessness was alive but restrained at the time of writing. But again, that was only a primary fulfilment; the main and essential fulfilment is in an individual or entity at the time of the Lord's return.
The references to Rome are however significant. Dan. 11 began with the Persians taking over from Babylon, then talks about the Greek domination of the land, and now we have Rome, then the breakup of Rome, and finally the coming of Messiah to destroy them and establish God's Kingdom. This is exactly the sequence of rulership we have in the visions of Dan. 2 and Dan. 7. And yet the entire image, all the beasts, and the scenario of Dan. 11, all exist together in the very last days when the Lord returns. The value of appreciating any historical fulfilments are only in that they provide assistance to us in imagining how the final scenario will work out.
Dan 11:37 Neither shall he regard the gods of his fathers, nor the
desire of women, nor regard any god; for he shall magnify himself above
all- In the AD70 context, Josephus says of John of Gischala: "But now
John, aspiring to despotic power, began to disdain the position of mere
equality in honours with his peers, and, gradually gathering round him a
group of the more depraved, broke away from the coalition. Invariably
disregarding the decisions of the rest, and issuing imperious orders of
his own, he was evidently laying claim to absolute sovereignty. Some
yielded to him through fear, others from devotion (for he was an expert in
gaining supporters by fraud and rhetoric); a large number thought that it
would conduce to their own safety that the blame for their daring crimes
should henceforth rest upon one individual rather than upon many; while
his energy both of body and mind procured him not a few retainers. On the
other hand, he was abandoned by a large section of antagonists, partly
influenced by envy—they scorned subjection to a former equal—but mainly
deterred by dread of monarchial rule; for they could not expect easily to
depose him when once in power, and thought that they would have an excuse
for themselves if they opposed him at the outset. Anyhow, each man
preferred war, whatever sufferings it might entail, to voluntary servitude
and being killed off like slaves".
T
Dan 11:38 But instead he shall honour the god of fortresses-
But the LXX "And to his place he shall move" reflects the difficulty of the Hebrew here. The future antiChrist will "move" to Jerusalem and enthrone himself there, in a way which none of the previous fulfilments have done. The Peshitta offers: "The mighty god he shall honour in his possession, and a god whom his fathers have not known shall he honour". How can this latter day individual honour "the mighty god" and yet also honour a god whom his fathers have not honoured? The cry of radical Islam is Allah Akhbar, Allah above all; and this insistence upon the supremacy of Allah is taken to an extent unknown to previous more moderate Muslims. The idea that Allah is above all leads to the total destruction of anyone and anything outside their group and religion.
"Fortresses" could be an intensive plural referring to the God of the one great fortress, Zion. This is its reference in :31, the fortress of the temple sanctuary (Ez. 24:25). And Zion is often described like this by contemporary writers. Perhaps the latter day antiChrist will claim to worship the God of Zion. But as suggested on :40, actually they come against this one true God in the final fury which leads to their destruction.
Dan 11:39 He shall deal with the strongest fortresses by the help of a
foreign god: whoever acknowledges him he will increase with glory; and he
shall cause them to rule over many, and shall divide the land for a price-
This can be seen as partially true for Antiochus as well as the AD70 situation.
Antiochus well rewarded the Jews in Jerusalem who accepted him as king.
His division of the land for a price would refer to his annulling of the
law of Jubilee, and selling the land at cheap prices to the Jews who
supported him, or giving it to his mercenaries in lieu of wages. The
strong fortresses would then refer to the towns he built throughout
Palestine, inhabited by Syrian mercenaries, who pushed their foreign gods
as part of the process of Hellenization. But again, this seems an
imperfect fit; we look to the last days for the fulfilment in detail. The
purpose of prophecy is not to predict the future in advance, but so that
when things happen, then we perceive the fulfilment of prophecy. The
primary fulfilments (in this case, in Antiochus and the AD70 situation)
serve to direct us towards some imagination of how the final fulfilment
may materialize.
Dan 11:40 At the time of the end shall the king of the south contend
with him; and the king of the north shall come against him like a
whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen- I have suggested that
Daniel's prophecies have an element of conditionality to them. There were
various potential paths of historical fulfilment which Israel's lack of
repentance precluded. And yet the prophecies will all come wonderfully
true in the events of the last days. Hence it has been commented: "Whereas the events leading up to the sacking of the Temple in 167 and
the immediate aftermath are remarkably accurate (chapter 11:21–29), the
predicted war between the Syrians and the Egyptians (11:40–43) never took
place, and the prophecy that Antiochus would die in Palestine (11:44–45) was
inaccurate (he died in Persia)". Even if we read this as meaning that the
king of the south pushes at the king of the north, there is little
historical evidence that Egypt pushed at the king of the north after the
third invasion of Egypt by Antiochus which is apparently in view. The
correspondence with the historical situation breaks down- because it will
be finally fulfilled in the last days.
"The time of the end" naturally suggests the time of the Lord's return. But "the end" in Daniel's context would be an allusion to Dan. 9:26, the end of the 70 weeks prophecy: "[Jerusalem’s] end will come with a flood, and until the end will be war”. That prophecy could have been fulfilled in the re-establishment of Israel's Kingdom as God's Kingdom in AD70, but they did not repent, and so the Lord's 'coming' then was in judgment and not salvation. The 'overflowing' spoken of in Dan. 9:26 is repeated here, where the king of the north is likened to an overflowing river, after the pattern of the earlier Assyrian invasion of Judah. A primary fulfilment would have been in the invasion of Vespasian and Titus against John of Gischala, the self proclaimed "king" in Jerusalem. The king of the south in the AD70 context would have been Tiberius Julius Alexander who was the prefect of Egypt and second in command to Titus, and the king of the north would have been Vespasian, who had just defeated Syria and replaced "the king of the north" in its Greek manifestation. He attacked Jerusalem as commander of the Syrian Legion [X Fretensis]. But this interpretation runs into various problems; it doesn't fit all the details. This is because it was but a primary fulfilment, looking forward to the main fulfilment at the Lord's return.
The "him" in view may be a third party, against whom both kings of north and south unite to attack. It could be the Lord Jesus, then enthroned in Jerusalem and attacked by His enemies (as outlined in Psalm 2 and Ez. 38). Historically, it could have referred to John of Gischala who commanded the zealots within Jerusalem in AD70.
But if the "him" is the king of the south, then the Antiochus fulfilment would be in that it is claimed that he attacked Egypt, the king of the south; this would be the third and final attack upon Egypt mentioned in :29. The events of :40-45 have some relevance to both Antiochus the Great and to Antiochus Epiphanes. All these various but not incomplete historical fulfilments were because in each one, there was the potential for the end to come. But it didn't, and God sought other opportunities to bring about "the end"; and that end shall finally come in the last day. But the historical evidence for this third attack upon Egypt by Antiochus is lacking; and the "many ships" would have been largely unfulfilled. Again we are to understand that this is but a primary fulfilment, and the main fulfilment is yet to come.
The "him" in terms of grammar and context most comfortably refers to "the God of the great fortress / citadel" of :38. The two power blocs in the land of the last days, the kings of north and south, would then each come against this God. Thus would be fulfilled the scenario of Psalm 2 and 2 Thess. 2- the united fury of the various neighbouring enemies of Israel and the Lord Jesus being thrown against Him. The king of the north 'pushes' against Him, the idea being of a beast in wild fury goring someone. This again fits in with the evidence elsewhere provided that the king of the north, the antichrist, is the epitome of the final beast.
And with many ships- In the AD70 context, this would refer to the fleet used by Vespasian to ship his soldiers into Judea (Tacitus records this in his Histories 2.4). Any attempt to conquer Palestine and Jerusalem would likely involve shipping in soldiers to the coast, and we shall see this again in the latter day invasion. There were also naval battles on the sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea in AD67/68.
According to some, Antiochus also came with many ships in his campaign against Egypt, so it is claimed. But the problem is that many claims of historical fulfilment are influenced by Jewish sources such as Josephus who wanted to see the fulfilment of this prophecy in Antiochus. And once one commentator picks up on that, the others tend to follow suite, until the claim becomes perceived as hard historical fact. Antiochus was bankrupt, stealing from pagan temples in order to pay his troops; he wouldn't have had the resources to obtain "many ships" at this point.
And he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass through- This appears to be a summary of what we will read in :41-45, which lists "the countries" taken. The LXX gives "the land" for "the countries", perhaps reading the Hebrew as an intensive plural, "the [singular, most significant] country". The overflowing and passing through of the land would then be in the spirit of the Assyrian invasion being described by Isaiah in the same terms. The overflowing flood of Dan. 9:26,27 is likewise against Jerusalem rather than the surrounding lands. Against this is the statement in :41 that he shall enter "the glorious land", but see commentary upon that.
Both the prototype in Hezekiah's time and the descriptions in Dan. 11:40 and Ez. 38 require there to be a personal leader of the northern invasion. Rabshakeh and latter day Sennacherib equate with Daniel's "King (not 'power') of the north", and Ezekiel 38's specific reference to a rosh [mighty one, chief prince] and use of the personal pronoun "thee": "Turn thee back... thy jaws... thine army... be thou prepared... thy company" etc. All this emphasis needs some explanation. If the prototype of latter day Sennacherib / Rabshakeh is to be closely followed, this individual need not be a nation, but a young, headstrong, powerful army commander that mirrors Rabshakeh. To make the clues more exciting, remember that Rabshakeh was probably an apostate Jew (note his references to the covenant name, and evident knowledge of conditions inside Jerusalem). "The man of sin" that is to sit in the temple of God in the last days would seem to have reference back to the "abomination that maketh desolate" and to the planting of the king of the North's tabernacles "between the seas in the glorious holy mountain"- i. e. in the temple area of Jerusalem (Dan. 11:45). This "man of sin" points to an individual.
Daniel 11 speaks of an invasion of Israel by “the king of the north” which results in a time of trouble for Israel such as never was, and the standing up of ‘Michael’ and the resurrection of the dead. The period of history between Dan. 11:39 and :40 is not described because it is irrelevant to the Jews in Israel, just as there is a gap in fulfilment between the iron legs and the feet in the historical outworking of the image in Daniel 2. The section speaking of the last days begins by saying that the king of the north hears “tidings” (Dan. 11:44). The same word is used of Assyria at the time of her invasion of Israel and siege of Jerusalem: " I will send a blast upon him, and he shall hear a rumour, and shall return to his own land" (2 Kings 19:7). Thus at the very time of Assyria's destruction by God, her previous allies turned against her, exemplifying how Arab in-fighting will be one of the means which God will use to finally destroy them (Zech. 14:13, etc.). "A blast" (Heb. 'ruach', a spirit/angel?) being sent upon Sennacherib is the same term used about Pharaoh's destruction (Ex. 15:8) and that of Babylon (Jer. 51:1), both of which are typical of the final Islamic defeat. Babylon also hears 'rumours' at the time of her destruction (Jer. 51:46). It is to these 'rumours' of wars within the land / earth promised to Abraham which Christ may allude in Mt. 24:6, speaking of "rumours of wars" in the very last days. The smaller nations associated with Babylon/Assyria also hear "tidings" (same word translated "rumour") in Jer. 49:23, showing that they meet the same judgment as 'Assyria' to some extent.
Close analysis of Dan. 11:40-44 reveals that it is couched in terms of the Ez. 38 invasion, which is based upon that of Assyria. However, it is also full of direct allusions to the Assyrian invasion:
"The king of the north" (Dan. 11:40) - Assyria (cp. Zeph.2:13).
"Shall come against him like a whirlwind" (Dan. 11:40), as God will against the invaders in response to this (Zech. 9:14; Is. 28:2). God comes up "like a storm... a cloud to cover the land" in a similar way (Ez. 38:9). A whirlwind attacks from all sides. The combined typology of the previous invasions has shown them coming from all points of the compass. The final combined 'Assyrian' invasion will also have this feature, as it did in Hezekiah's time.
"With chariots, and with horsemen" (Dan. 11:40), for which the Assyrians were famous, and Gog likewise (Ez. 38:4).
"He shall enter into the countries" (Dan. 11:40) as Assyria did en route to Israel; "and shall overflow and pass over" (Dan. 11:40), as Assyria under Sennacherib (Is. 8:8; 43:2) and Babylon (Jer. 47:2) are said to have done. The Hebrew root for "overflow" means "to cleanse", occurring in Ez. 16:19 concerning God 'thoroughly washing away' Israel's sins in the last days, as a result of their final tribulations. Thus the 'Assyrian' 'overflowing' of the land in the last days will result in Israel's spiritual cleansing. "The consumption decreed (the final invasion) shall overflow in righteousness" (Is. 10:22). "He shall enter also into the land of delight" (Dan 11:41 A.V. mg.). At the time of Sennacherib's destruction, God termed the land 'delight' (Is. 62:4).
This could indicate that this invasion comes after the return of Christ and the establishment of the Kingdom. The ambiguity is because of the 'variable' timing of Christ's return, seeing this is related to Israel's spiritual reformation - at least it appears this is how God wishes us to see it.
"Many countries shall be overthrown" (Dan. 11:41). 2 Kings 18:34 lists these countries in the Sennacherib context. This confirms that there will be conflict throughout the land / earth immediately prior to the final 'Assyrian' attack on Israel. We are seeing this before our eyes.
"But these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and Moab, and the chief ('rosh') of the children of Ammon (Dan. 11:41). These areas were not meddled with by Sennacherib. There is a triple emphasis on how the other nations fell into his "hand" in 2 Kings 18:33-35.
"He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries” continues this "hand" connection, "and the land of Egypt shall not escape" (Dan. 11:42). There is a possible allusion here to Moses stretching out his hand upon Egypt (Ex. 9:15), which would show that the latter-day "king of the North" will claim that he has received Divine guidance to judge Israel. Assyria's invasion of Egypt was associated with that of Israel, further demonstrating that the invasion of Dan. 11:40-43 is alluding to Sennacherib's battle plan.
"He shall have power over the treasures of gold and silver" (Dan. 11:43). We are seeing the IS fulfil this by taking over oil wealth as well as billions of dollars of gold reserves.
"The Libyans and the Ethiopians shall be at his steps" (Dan. 11:43) may appear to contradict Ethiopia suddenly becoming opposed to Assyria during the final attack on Jerusalem (2 Kings 19:9). This can be reconciled by realizing that Dan. 11 speaks of two phases in this final invasion. Ethiopia is with Assyria during the blitzkrieg towards and through Israel, but is not necessarily with her in the final 'going forth with great fury' against Jerusalem (Dan. 11:44).
There were these same two phases in the Assyrian prototype - the "great fury" of the king of the north is modelled upon Sennacherib's rage of 2 Kings 19:27,28. The fact that Ethiopia is described as being with Gog in the Ezek. 38 invasion may be an indication that this prophecy is not concerning the final push on Jerusalem, but rather the Assyrian/Arab pillaging of the land for "a spoil and a prey... cattle and goods" (Ez. 38:12) after the pattern of the neighbouring peoples raiding the land in the Judges period. Ethiopia being mentioned in tandem with Libya in both Ez. 38:5 and Dan. 11:43 could suggest that the North African Arabs break ranks with those of 'Assyria' during the attack on Jerusalem, as evidently occurred in Hezekiah's time (2 Kings 19:9).
"He shall plant the tabernacles of his palace... in the glorious holy mountain" of Zion (Dan. 11:45) is the language of Is. 14:13,14 concerning both Sennacherib and Nebuchadnezzar desiring to take Jerusalem. Thus Dan. 11:45 is saying that the latter-day Assyria/Babylon will do this, seeing that Jerusalem will be taken by their final invasion (Zech. 14:2). Dan. 12:1 says that it is at this time of the latter-day Assyrian/ "king of the north" being in Jerusalem, that Israel will suffer "a time of trouble such as never was", out of which the righteous remnant will be delivered ("every one that shall be found written in the book") by God's intervention, which will be associated with the resurrection (Dan. 12:2).
I suggested on :40 that the invasion of Israel and Jerusalem specifically has already begun. "The glorious land", the land of glory, is clearly Israel. And "many countries" could be an intensive plural for the country, the land of Israel, forming a parallel with "the glorious land"; see on :40. Perhaps this is repeated in order to emphasize the point; but Israel will then be the land of glory because the Lord Jesus is already enthroned in Zion. This would be the scenario of Psalm 2, 2 Thess. 2 and Ez. 38, all of which picture the surrounding nations furiously attacking the Lord Jesus and His people within Jerusalem, and being destroyed; the invasion described in those passages is therefore unsuccessful.
Dan 11:42 He shall stretch out his hand also on the countries- As
suggested on :40 and :41, "the countries" may be an intensive plural for
the singular country, Israel. It is the Hebrew word eretz.
The same Hebrew for "stretch out his hand" is used of how Haman sought to
'stretch out his hand' upon the Jews (Esther 8:7).
Dan 11:43 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- The AD70 fulfilment was in Vespasian going to Egypt from Palestine in order to take control of grain supplies for the Roman empire. He only left Alexandria in Summer of AD70 after being declared emperor (Josephus, The Jewish War 4.658; 7.21–22; Tacitus Hist. 4.81). Libya and Ethiopia were very supportive of Vespasian being declared emperor.
The Antiochus fulfilment could fit reasonably well at this point; he got support from the Libyans and Ethiopians and sought out the treasures of Egypt for himself. But this was in an earlier invasion of Egypt, not in the final invasion suggested here. So again, the fit may be good in some ways, but is imperfect. I suggested on :40 that both kings of north and south attack Jerusalem and the God of Zion; it could be that the king of the north has dominance over the resources of the latter day "king of the south" and uses their resources in this final onslaught against Jerusalem.
Dan 11:44 But news out of the east and out of the north shall trouble
him; and he shall go forth with great fury to destroy and to devote many
to destruction- As explained on :43, Vespasian left the campaign
against the Jews in the hands of Titus, and went to Alexandria in Egypt,
where he was declared emperor. Exactly North East of Alexandria was
Jerusalem.
In the Antiochus fulfilment, he also turned northwards and entered Palestine as a result of bad news received; he met his end by doing so, at the hand of the Romans. Tacitus [Histories 5.8] attributes his change of plans to being "hindered by [news of] a Parthian war" and also of a revolt in Armenia; again, news from the North East. 1 Macc. 1:24-28 and Josephus, Antiquities 12.5.3 claim that Antiochus was so angry at being thwarted by the Romans in Egypt that he attacked the Jews with all his might as a kind of anger transference. The "tidings" from the North East could simply have been the news of the restoration to some extent of Jewish rule in Jerusalem.
The religious dimension of the latter day invasion is found here, albeit masked by translation, and without any clear precedent in the primary fulfilments. The King of the North will invade eretz Israel "to destroy and utterly to make away many" (AV). The Hebrew word charam translated 'to utterly make away' specifically means to consecrate, NEV "to devote", to make something over to another, specifically their god or religion. And this is the stated motive of the jihadist groups- to sanctify Israel as a spoil of war to Allah and the Prophet. This is the predicted call found in Joel 2, to sanctify war against Israel- the very language of jihad, holy war. We could speculate that the "tidings" the latter day king of the north hears are the news that the Lord Jesus has returned and established Himself King in Zion, and this provokes his final furious attack. The news of Jewish restoration may have been the tidings from the north east which Antiochus heard and which provoked him to attack them.
Dan 11:45 He shall plant the tents of his palace between the sea and
the glorious holy mountain- Or, "seas", referring to the Dead Sea and
Mediterranean. The AD70 interpretation would apply this to Vespasian [in
Alexandria, Egypt] ordering Titus [the commander on the ground] to establish
two encampments on Mount Scopus and the Mount of Olives. The AV
"tabernacle" is more or less correct, so we see here a hint at a religious
dimension to this invasion, which is only going to be fully fulfilled in the
latter day invasion. This invasion unlike those mentioned earlier in this
chapter is not apparently successful; the tabernacle is not planted on mount
Zion, but between there and the "sea". This would then equate with the
unsuccessful attack against the enthroned Jesus in Zion of Ps. 2, 2 Thess. 2
and Ez. 38. There is no very clear historical fulfilment of this by
Antiochus nor Titus, for neither made a tabernacle or encampment between
Mount Zion and the Mediterranean. These events are specifically for the last
days.
Yet he shall come to his end- The end of Antiochus doesn't really fit here. And the AD70 invader did not come to an end after an unsuccessful attack upon Jerusalem. Clearly the fulfilment is yet future. "Holy mountain" is the language of Dan. 9:16,20 about Jerusalem. I suggested on :40 that the "time of the end" is "the end" of Jerusalem as spoken of in the 70 weeks prophecy of Daniel 9; and the same "end" of the invader is in view here. But here the first century, Roman fulfilment ceases to be impressive. The Romans won, not lost. And Dan. 12 goes on to explain that this "end" is at the hand of Messiah's appearance and the resurrection of the dead. Clearly enough, all the primary fulfilments of this chapter which are discernible all come unstuck; because they are no more than shadowy fulfilments, pointing forward to the ultimate fulfilment which is in the last days before the Lord returns. However, it's possible to translate the original here as meaning that it is the "glorious holy mountain" which comes to his end, rather than the king of the north. "The end" refers to the end of the Jerusalem temple in Dan. 9:26; and "the end of these wonders" likewise does in Dan. 12:6,7. This ambiguity in translation is purposeful; because indeed there is a primary fulfilment in the Roman desolation of Jerusalem in AD70, but the main fulfilment is in the destruction of the latter day "king of the north" at the last day. "The end" of Dan. 12:6,7 is in the three and a half year desolation of the temple by the Gentiles, which is repeatedly applied to the very last days in Revelation and the Olivet prophecy. "The end" of the king of the north is "the time of the end" (:40); as Dan. 12 will go on to explain, the "end" of Israel's tribulations at the hand of this "king of the north" will be in Messiah's coming, the resurrection of the dead and the establishment of Israel's Kingdom as God's Kingdom on earth. This never fully happened; the series of invasions of the land by the kings of the north and south are yet to happen, and will be ended by the Lord's return to earth.
And none shall help him- The Romans mocked the Jews for trusting in allies who never came to help them: "Did you rely on... the fidelity of allies? Pray, what nation beyond the limits of our empire would prefer Jews to Romans?” (Josephus, The Jewish War 6.330). This assumes the "him" is the king in Jerusalem. But the more natural interpretation is that the king of the north is destroyed without helpers as a result of attempting to attack the God of Zion, the fortress (see on :40). And that has no clear historical fulfilment; it is for the last days.
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