Sunday Evening Bible Study
Daniel 11:1-35
Introduction
Last week we read of an incredible visit that Daniel had by an angelic visitor.
Daniel had been on a partial fast, when an awesome being appeared.
Though he looked like Jesus in Revelation, we felt that he was probably just a heavy-duty, three-star-general class of angel.
He talked to Daniel about how he had been sent in response to
Daniel's prayers, but had been hindered by an angel known as "the prince
of
We will now continue on with the message that the angel is going to give to Daniel, concerning "his people", the Jews.
The angel ended chapter ten with saying,
»Daniel 10:21-AV But I will shew thee that which is noted in the scripture of truth: and [there is] none that holdeth with me in these things, but Michael your prince.
:1-4
:1 Also I ...
Keep in mind, it is the angel who is still speaking with Daniel.
:1 in the first year of Darius the Mede
Darius is a person we've already seen in the book of Daniel.
He is the one who took over ruling the city of
:1 I, stood to confirm and to strengthen him
This is the whole episode of Daniel being thrown into the lion's den.
It started with:
»Daniel 5:30-6:3 AV In that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain. 31 And Darius the Median took the kingdom, [being] about threescore and two years old. 1 It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom an hundred and twenty princes, which should be over the whole kingdom; 2 And over these three presidents; of whom Daniel [was] first: that the princes might give accounts unto them, and the king should have no damage. 3 Then this Daniel was preferred above the presidents and princes, because an excellent spirit [was] in him; and the king thought to set him over the whole realm.
We didn't even think twice about this when we first read of it, thinking that Daniel was just simply such a great guy that Darius had to advance at the court.
But what was going on behind the scenes, was that an angel was moving to influence things, and to strengthen Darius.
I imagine that Daniel might be wondering about now, "If this guy was around with Darius, how come I ended up in the lions' den?"
On the other hand, Daniel did admit:
»Daniel 6:22-AV My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions' mouths, that they have not hurt me: forasmuch as before him innocency was found in me; and also before thee, O king, have I done no hurt.
Lesson:
When you're walking with God, you're safer than you think.
Now, don't get cocky on me, and go play basketball on the freeway to see if this is true.
But when you're doing the things that God wants you to do, and you're in the places God wants you to be in, there is no safer place in the world.
If God needs to, He'll just send a big old angel to keep the lions' mouths shut.
Illustration:
In one of the German
art galleries a painting called "
How tempted we are to run in despair when clouds of trials and temptations come our way. If we would look closely at our situation through the eyes of faith, we would also see God's angels of mercy coming to our aid.
:2 now I will shew thee the truth
Keep in mind, Daniel has received this revelation in the third year of Cyrus the Persian (10:1), which is 536 b.c.
Daniel is in his late eighties.
The minute detail with which Daniel presents us with, though in actuality testifying to the accuracy and reliability of the Bible, have also brought great criticism, causing some "scholars" to even claim that the book wasn't written until 165 BC.
Porphyry (third century AD), after studying vs.1-35 with history, came to the conclusion that no one could possibly have made a prophecy this detailed. He decided it must have been written in 165 BC. Jerome, the church scholar then wrote a commentary on Daniel, defending it as legitimate prophecy.
Either this is a dishonest attempt at portraying history, or this is indeed the most incredibly detailed prophecy ever given.
:2
yet three kings in
These are kings after Darius (550-530 BC):
Cambyses - 529-522 BC
Pseudo-Smerdis - 522-521 BC
Darius I Hystaspes - 521-486 BC (Ezra 5,6)
:2 the fourth shall be far richer ... against ... Grecia
Xerxes I - 486-465 BC (Ezra 4:6)
Xerxes used his great riches and gathered an army of hundreds of thousands.
In 480 BC, he attacked
Xerxes could be the Ahasuerus of the book of Esther. The disaster in
:3 a mighty king shall stand up
This is Alexander the Great.
In conquering the world, he also conquered
Historians tell us that he did it to repay Xerxes for attacking
Alexander died at the age of 32 in 323 BC.
His two sons, Hercules and Young Alexander, were both murdered, leaving the empire to be divided among his four generals.
:4 divided toward the four winds of heaven
Cassander ruled
Lysimacus ruled
Seleucus took
Ptolemy ruled
Keep in mind, this is being prophesied two hundred years before it happens!
:5-35
:5-9 Ptolemies and Seleucids
Warning: It can get kind of confusing in here.
There are lots of similar names, ie Antiochus, Antiochus II, Ptolemy, Ptolemy II, etc.
:5 the king of the South shall be strong
Here, the South is
Also, the "king of the South" or "North" will not stay consistent, in that this prophecy will cover from here to vs.35 about 150 years, with several generations of kings on both sides.
Here, the king of the South is Ptolemy I Soter (323-285 BC) who
ruled
When Alexander died, he was appointed as a "governor"
or "satrap" of
In 304 BC he made himself king.
:5 princes; and he shall be strong above him
In 321 BC, a lesser general named Seleucus Nicator (312-281 BC)
was appointed satrap over
He was then overthrown by another general, Antigonus, and he
fled to Ptolemy in
Together, they defeated Antigonus at
He grew in power, adding Media and
:6 join themselves together ...
The king of the South, Ptolemy II Philadelphus (285-246 BC) had a daughter Bernice.
For the sake of alliance, Bernice was to wed Antiochus II Theos (261-246 BC), but only after he divorced his other wife (Laodiceia).
:6 she shall not retain the power
Things didn't work out too well. In a few years, papa Ptolemy died and Antiochus II took back his first wife, Laodice.
:6 neither shall he stand ... she shall be given up
Laodice wasn't too happy about what had happened.
She had Bernice killed, as well as her children.
Then she turned around and poisoned her husband, Antiochus II, and had her son (Seleucus II Callinicus) made king (246-227 b.c.)
:6 he that begat her
Ptolemy II - who died
:6 he that strengthened her
He who supported her - Antiochus II
:7-8 out of the branch of her roots ...
The "her" is Bernice.
signifies the same lineage as Bernice.
This is Ptolemy III Euergetes who succeeded in prevailing militarily against the king of the North, Seleucus Callinicus (247-226 BC)
Jerome:
He came up with a great army and advanced into the province of
the king of the North, that is Seleucus Callinicus, who together with his
mother Laodice was ruling in Syria, and abused them, and not only did he seize
Syria, but also took Cilicia and the remoter regions beyond the Euphrates and
nearly all of Asia as well. And them,
when he heard that a rebellion was afoot in Egypt, he ravaged the kingdom of
Seleucus and carried off as booty forty thousand talents of silver, and also
precious vessels and images of the gods to the amount of two and a half
thousand. Among them were the same images which Cambyses had brought to
:9 So the king of the south ...
Better translated: "Then he (the king of the north) will come into the kingdom of the king of the south ..."
Several years later, Seleucus Callinicus mounted a return
attack on
:10-19 Antiochus III the Great
:10 his sons shall be stirred up
Seleucus Callinicus was unsuccessful, but his sons weren't.
Seleucus III (226-223 BC) died early in a battle in
Antiochus III the Great (223-187) did much (vs.10 - "one of them")
:10 one shall certainly come
Antiochus III the Great (223-187 BC)
He mounted several campaigns against
:11 the king of the south shall be moved with choler
NASB: the king of the South will become enraged
This is Ptolemy IV Philopator (221-204 b.c.)
The northern, Syrian armies got so close that the Egyptian ruler Ptolemy Philopater (221-203) became mad.
:11 he shall set forth a great multitude
He raised a huge army and they fought at the Palestinian border at Raphia in 217 BC. The army was led by Ptolemy and his sister-wife Arsinoe.
Ptolemy's army had 70,000 infantry, 5,000 cavalry, and 73 elephants.
Antiochus had 62,000 infantry, 6,000 cavalry, and 102 elephants.
:11 the multitude shall be given into his hand
The Syrians lost nearly their entire army and Antiochus was almost captured as he fled into the desert.
Antiochus lost 10,000 infantry, 300 cavalry, 5 elephants, and had 4,000 taken prisoner.
:12 he shall cast down many ten thousands ... not be strengthened
Though the Egyptians won a great victory, Antiochus did escape, and the Egyptians were too lazy to pursue the Syrians, so they didn't completely win and a peace had to be arranged.
:13 king of the north ... a multitude greater
Meanwhile, Antiochus turns to conquering the east, and being
successful, he gathers wealth and power.
From 212 to 204, he advances as far east as
In 201 BC, Antiochus had raised another huge army, and begins
to attack
:14 many stand up against the king of the south
Philip V of
In
:14 the robbers (or, the violent ones) of thy people
Who is "thy people" for Daniel? It's the Jews.
There were Jews who formed an alliance with Antiochus III
against
:14 to establish the vision; but they shall fall
Perhaps they hoped to gain independance from both the Egyptians and the Syrians by joining in the battle.
It didn't work.
:15 cast up a mount
NASB: siege mound
But the Egyptian armies, led by Scopas, were defeated at Paneas
(near the headwaters of the
:15 south shall not withstand
Three Egyptian leaders, Eropas, Menacles, and Damoyenus tried
to rescue Scopas at
:16 he that cometh against
Namely, Antiochus III against
:16 stand in the glorious land
Antiochus would establish his control over
Antiochus was able to occupy much of
:16 which by his hand shall be consumed
He would bring much destruction in
:17 he shall give him the daughter of women
Under pressure from
:17 corrupting her ... she shall not stand
To corrupt
His plan was to have his daughter side with him against Ptolemy, yet it backfired because she constantly sided with her husband.
Who was this gal?
Cleopatra.
But apparently this isn't the same one in the movie.
:18 turn his face unto the isles
Or, coastlands.
He then turns to face
:18 a prince for his own ...
At a meeting with the Roman ambassador named Scipio in Lysimachia, Antiochus spoke bad of him, saying that he did not have to listen to anything they had to say.
When attempting to conquer
A Roman general was dispatched, since he was now coming against
the
Antiochus was defeated at Thermoplylae north of
:19 toward the fort of his own land
He left
:19 stumble and fall ...
He died while trying to plunder a temple in
:20 a raiser of taxes ... shall be destroyed
Antiochus III had a son, named Seleucus IV Philopater (187-175 BC) .
He was forced to pay tribute to the Romans of 100,000 talents annually.
In order to raise this money, he heavily taxed the people.
He sent a man named Heliodorus to collect from the Jews.
Heliodorus plundered the temple, and soon after he was sent to do so, Seleucus Philopator was suddenly and mysteriously removed, possibly by poison from Heliodorus.
Q. Come to think of it...why has God given this revelation to Daniel?
When these two kingdoms fight, where are all their battles?
They always seem to end up doing most of their fighting in
"North" and "South" are relative to
Lesson:
You are in the middle of God's plans
This may look like nothing but a history lesson tonight.
But it's eventually going to get very intimate and personal with God's people.
God is showing them that He is in control, and that He knows what's going on.
It's all going to eventually wind up with Jesus coming back, and the establishment of His kingdom.
God has purposes to His plans
You may not see what's happening yet, but hang on, wait until the end of the story.
Illustration:
My computers keep breaking down - but the story isn't over.
:21-35 Antiochus IV Epiphanes
:21 a vile person
NASB: a despicable person
This is Antiochus IV Epiphanes.
He was, historically, a rather insignificant Syrian ruler.
But he prophetically plays an important role in Scripture due to his treatment of God's chosen people, the Jews.
He will also become a rather compelling picture of another future ruler, the antichrist.
They have more than a few similarities.
It's even possible that some of these verses may contain a double-prophecy, one in which there is a partial fulfillment with Antiochus Epiphanes, and another fulfillment with the antichrist.
When Seleucus IV died, there were several possible candidates for the throne:
Demetrius, the eldest son of Seleucus, was being held prisoner
in
Antiochus, an infant son of Seleucus, was in
Antiochus IV, a brother to Seleucus, was in
When Antiochus IV heard of his brother's death, he posed as the guardian of young Antiochus and through various intrigues, secured the throne.
Meanwhile, young Antiochus was murdered by Andronicus, who was then put to death by Antiochus IV, who probably hatched the whole plot.
Hence, he was not rightfully the king.
Antiochus called himself "Epiphanes", which means "glorious", while God calls him "despicable".
:22 the arms of a flood
NASB: "the overflowing forces"
z@rowa` - arm, forearm, shoulder, strength; forces (political and military)
sheteph - flood, downpour
Antiochus mounted several military campaigns, at which he was successful.
Note:
This concept of a flood is picked up somewhere else in Scripture:
»Revelation 12:15-AV And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.
This is when the devil is cast down to the earth, and is trying
to destroy the nation of
Perhaps this flood is also an army?
:22 the prince of the covenant
Refers to the high priest, who at that time was the head of the Jews at that time.
In 172 BC, Antiochus ordered the murder of the high priest Onias III, and put his brother Menelaus there instead.
:23 league ... deceitfully ... become strong with a small people
One of Antiochus' main traits was deception.
There was a struggle for power in
Antiochus sided with Ptolemy Philometor, but for his own gain.
He ended up warring against him.
:24 scatter among them the prey (spoil)
He used his money to buy people off rather than horde it for himself.
:25-26 against the king of the South
In 170 BC Antiochus came against
He brought a great army, and was met with a great army.
At Pelusium, just north of the
:27-28 evil...lies...at the same table
When Ptolemy Philometor lost to Antiochus, he was taken captive by his uncle.
The foes sat down at a table to discuss peace, but were lying to each other through their teeth.
The people of
Antiochus began treating his captive nephew nice and made plans
to capture
When Antiochus came back again, he captured
Meanwhile, Philometor and his brother started making plans together.
:28 his heart shall be against the holy covenant
Against the people of
He won't like them very much.
:29 at the time appointed
Such a godless man, yet God had a timetable for even him.
In 168 BC he invaded
Gaius demanded that he leave or be attacked by
Supposedly Gaius drew a circle around Antiochus and told him he had to decide what to do before stepping out of the circle.
Antiochus left.
:30 the ships of Chittim
Literally, the ships of
The Roman fleet of Laenas sailed to
:30 indignation against the holy covenant
Antiochus was extremely mad that he had marched all the way to
In his atrocities, Antiochus killed tens of thousands of Jews.
Torture.
:30 have intelligence with them that forsake the holy covenant
NASB: "show regard for those who forsake the holy covenant"
He gets in tight with people who don't like God.
:31 arms shall stand on his part
His armies shall get to action.
:31 pollute the sanctuary of strength ... abomination that maketh desolate
Antiochus offered a sow upon the altar in the temple and forbade the continuance of the daily sacrifices.
He also gave orders to stop worshipping God and set up an idol, probably Zeus, in the temple.
This gives us a picture of what the antichrist will be doing when he commits his own desolation.
Jesus said:
»Matthew 24:15-16 AV When ye therefore shall see the
abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy
place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) 16 Then let them which be in
Keep in mind, Jesus wasn't talking about Antiochus, because Antiochus Epiphanes already had done his thing 165 years earlier.
Jesus was looking forward to yet another desolation. It will be similar to that of Antiochus.
Jesus was referring to the abomination of:
»Daniel 9:27-AV And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make [it] desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.
Paul writes:
»2Thessalonians 2:3-4 AV Let no man deceive you by any means: for [that day shall not come], except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; 4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.
Antiochus for us is a picture of what the antichrist will be like.
:32-33 the people that do know their God ...
There were Jews who refused to give in to Antiochus' atrocities.
Among them, Mattathias Maccabeus, father of five sons, refused to offer sacrifice in the Grecian way; but instead he slew the king's representative, who would have compelled him.
Then he and his sons, with others who chose to join them, fled to the mountains and began the famed Maccabean revolt.
Many of them died, but the revolt lasted some time.
:34 holpen ... cleave to them with flatteries ...
»Daniel 11:34-NAS "Now when they fall they will be granted a little help, and many will join with them in hypocrisy.
Even with the Maccabean rebellion, there were people in the group of rebels that weren't there for the right reasons.
:35 shall fall, to try them ...
It a historic truth that when people are persecuted, they become purified. All the junk gets cleaned out.
Illustration
There's a story of the church meeting underground in
They commanded all those who didn't believe to get out, and the rest would be killed.
Some left, but some stayed.
After those that were leaving were gone, the soldiers let down their weapons and said, "Praise the Lord brothers!" "We too are Christians." "It is dangerous for soldiers to be Christians, and we had to be sure that when we fellowshipped, we were with true believers!"
The guns came out - the junky Christians left.
The early church in Acts
The early church under Roman persecution
The church in communist countries
Lesson:
Tough Times purify us.
It's hard not to get discouraged, but going through the fire makes us purer people.
»1Peter 1:6-7 AV Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations: 7 That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ: