Chapter 11
2026 - This verse:
1 "And as for me, in the first year of Darius the Mede, I stood up to confirm and strengthen him. [Dan 11:1 ESV]
This is Daniel, getting out of bed with a purpose. That purpose is to confirm and strengthen the King in the ESV and KJV, to be an encouragement and a protection for the King in the NASB95. The first year of Darius the Mede was 539 BC, and Daniel had been captive in Babylon since about 586 BC. 50 years or so in captivity, a prisoner convicted of no crime. Daniel is not bitter, angry, or seditious. He is instead obeying God's commands as recorded in Jeremiah:
4 "Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: 5 Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. 6 Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. 7 But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare. [Jer 29:4-7 ESV].
Daniel overrides what we would consider the natural reaction to such captivity and instead follows God's command.
What are we to do?
Render unto Caesar...
Obey every ordinance of man...
and all those other NT verses about obedience to the government.
These are God's commandments to us in the church age. Disobedience is not Christian, no matter who is in the white house, who has the majority in congress, who sits on the Supreme Court bench.
We need to steal ourselves for what is coming. The tipping point is past. Enjoy the next three years, because it is going to go horribly wrong after that...and yet we are COMMANDED to obey.
2025 - Hmm...this narrative seems to be the angel we saw in 10 getting around to filling Daniel in about this vision he had in the third year of Cyrus. But the angel goes back a few years to start his narrative, to things that happened when Darius the Mede first began to rule in Babylon. I think.
The angel that is speaking says that he has been supporting Darius the Mede who has shown kindness to Israel as a result.
Ok, so here we go...MSB says 11:2-45 is about to unfold future history from Daniel's time to the tribulation - a time when Michael will aid in fully delivering Israel. MSB says this history is so minute in detail that non-believing scholars absolutely insist that it had to have been written after the fact. MSB says they have no evidence at all that it was written later, but they are "required" to insist on a later date, or to admit that this was true prophecy that could only have come from God.
Then MSB says 11:2-35 will be about the near fulfillment of the Persian kingdom, and the reign of Greece through Antiochus Epiphanes. (I hope I can keep up. My mind is still tired from all the ground covered yesterday. My impression is that what we're getting today will encompass part of yesterday, yet in a still greater level of detail. Today's chapter 11 reading should mesh with at least some of yesterday's chapters 7-9. I very much had the feeling yesterday that I was being prevented from getting through those chapters and understanding them. I expect that was partially successful. Now, tired from that, I worry that I won't get all of what is here today. Praying about that before going on...)
I expect I will need to lean heavily on the MSB footnotes for the historical reality of the prophecy of Daniel.
2022 - I am not even going to try and go deep. My purpose in this year's reading was and is to focus on the NT books that have always been covered to rapidly and in too much volume per day. I have learned so much more from the NT this year by reading those chapters first, and then moving to the OT readings that I have no regrets whatever...even though that means that today, on these two chapters in Daniel that one could probably spend a year on, I will be reading straight through. I have neither the time nor the focus left to do this justice. I am just going to read it.
2024 - Interesting, after reading the above, that this year, I am reading this on my first day back from five days in Galveston. I slept late, I'm tired, and I'm foggy. Almost every year, when I get to these two chapters, I am somehow "handicapped". Just makes me wonder.
2025 - And this year it is Sunday morning when I read. Sunday reading is always rushed.
2023 - In 11:1, the prince who had been speaking to Daniel in 10 continues. He seems to be the prince of Medea or possibly of Babylon...In any case, he is NOT the prince of Persia or Greece or Israel. He is over a fourth "region". This one, who was sent to answer Daniel's questions, begins his explanation.
2024 - So here are four of the seven regions sort of identified. There are three more. It seems reasonable to speculate that one of them is Egypt. That would be five. What about Gog/Magog? That seems a good bet, and makes six. Only thing left is the area in the Middle East that it not Israel. Would include Saudi Arabia, Syria, Ammon, Moab, and so on. That would get us to seven. And the rest of the world plays no part? Or is seven over the rest of the world? This leaves out Rome, but in Daniel's day, Rome was not a contender. And maybe Michael is over Israel and everything around it, but that one is so hotly contested that a lot of the area is in the hands of one of Satan's Seven. Which frees up the seventh of God to be over the rest of the planet. China, Russia for the most part, the EU and UK, and the entire Western Hemisphere, then, will not figure in these prophecies of Daniel, because none of them will figure in the end times. This almost requires that the areas under the seventh prince either fall completely to Satan's forces, or they sink back into third world nobody status before the end times start. You can see why things would be constantly going back and forth in the seventh region, because it is just too much territory to hold all of it, for either side. You might say that today, God's forces are winning in Africa, while ground is lost in the rest of the region.
vs 2 seems to be a lay down to a previous verse...or maybe somehow I got to this one yesterday, or it was in an MSB note...In any case, this does not look like a repeated verse. I will look further another time. It escapes me for now.
The phrase "shall...do as he wills" in vs 3 also seems like a repeat. Moving on...been on these three verses half an hour already...
Four more kings to come in Persia, with the last being very wealthy. Far beyond the others in wealth. This fourth king, I think, will recruit allies and attack Greece.
(((2025 - But I don't know who he is. AEIV comes from the southern Kingdom after Alexander I think. He is not the fourth spoken about here. So who was he? And could some of those earlier references have been about this wealthy powerful King of Babylon and not about AEIV at all? I did a quick query of ChatGPT. The last King of Persia - or at least the one who took on Alexander the Great, was Darius III from 336-330 BC. From CGPT, he was a supremely wealthy King, but his wealth came as sort of an inheritance when he came to power more than something he accumulated in his own right. Remember, this information if from CGPT and can be very wrong. It could be that DIII organized the flow of tax revenue better than his predecessors, or it could be that he pulled the dispersed riches of the empire in close so he could use them directly. What I do think I can depend on entirely in this little query is that Darius III, and NOT AEIV, is the wealthy King spoken about in 11:1. I should go back and see if the previous references to a very powerful King could also have been Darius III. I also looked up AEIV. He did not come to power until 125 years after Darius III. He did come to power through intrigue and maneuvering and opportunism...and murder.)))
Then a great king will arise in Greece. Alexander the Great I believe. It is Alexander who will "do as he wills". His power will be unlimited in his domain. But Alexander will die, and his kingdom divided into four parts. He will have no say in who rules each part (Alexander dies pretty suddenly as I recall). Also, it will not be Alexander's descendants who rule. All that he put together will evaporate and/or be given to others. Just like Ecclesiastes would predict.
Of the four, the one in the south will become great. The Ptolemies in Egypt, I would guess. (Yes, per MSB)
2023 - Easy to follow to this point - through vs 4. We are talking about things future to Daniel and history to us. After 4, things get very specific. I have read in other sources about how accurately this describes events. I thought I had a link to that, but apparently not. In any case, today, I am reading on through verse 35, because MSB says up to there is history to us.
MSB notes go into great detail, as I had hoped. I wish there was a way to cut and paste it all, but there is not. It's like each phrase in these verses corresponds to events now documented as historic fact. I'm going to read these notes, but I will leave the notes where they are. I can always refer to them without having to copy the whole MSB.
There is also this: As MSB said, this chapter is so minute in it's detail of history, so inerrant in it's predictions, that if one wants to be an atheist, one must absolutely, uncompromisingly deny that it is anything but a fake and a forgery, put together after the fact, and passed off as an historic document. The person or persons who put it together had to have been extremely learned for their time to have such an intimate knowledge of the intricacies of so many nations, plots, intrigues, and conquests. This extremely learned person, for some reason, had to decide that introducing a "fake prophecy" into the canon of scripture in order to undermine all scripture, was more worth undertaking than writing a history of the world himself and bringing fame, fortune and accolade to himself. A brilliant person more devoted to undermining scripture than to promoting himself. How likely is this???
To any atheist out there, go and do your homework. Prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Daniel is a fake, written 400 years after it says it was. And you can't just say "Well it obviously has to have been because there's no way these things could be predicted. Only an idiot would believe it." This is a tautology, I believe. It says "I know it's wrong because I know it's wrong, and it's wrong because I know it is."
If you claim to be an atheist, and you don't look into this fairly and deeply, then I don't think you're any better at atheism than you were at Christianity. I think you're the fake in this story. Elevating your own pitiful knowledge above that of all the people who have tried and failed to prove this book a fake. Really? Where is your PhD in history from? How are you qualified to deny this book....But I need to move on...
2023 - Here is an interesting verse:
14 "In those times many shall rise against the king of the south, and the violent among your own people shall lift themselves up in order to fulfill the vision, but they shall fail. [Dan 11:14 ESV]. This appears to say that Israel will raise an army and go and attack Egypt, but fail. And this is after the Babylonian captivity. I did not realize that Israel ever got strong enough militarily for such a campaign...But it clearly says "your own people". This would be a really good point to confirm.
vs 21:
21 In his place shall arise a contemptible person to whom royal majesty has not been given. He shall come in without warning and obtain the kingdom by flatteries. [Dan 11:21 ESV]
This is Antiochus Epiphanes. Per MSB, there was a power vacuum, with the son of the recently dead King of the Seleucids held captive in Rome. Into this "space" came AE. Not a royal descendant, not a legitimate heir. A cruel and ruthless man. Apparently though, he was an awesome military leader.
2023 - In vs 22, see who is referenced as "even the prince of the covenant".
2026 - This seems very important this year:
27 And as for the two kings, their hearts shall be bent on doing evil. They shall speak lies at the same table, but to no avail, for the end is yet to be at the time appointed. [Dan 11:27 ESV].
This may well be saying that the whole AEIV thing, though very similar to the events of the end, was NOT about the events of the end. That time had not yet come, and Daniel is warning us here, long before the Maccabees and AEIV, not to take those events as end times events.
Perhaps this is why we have the AoD set up by AEIV, and the taking away of the sacrifice for some time, and so on. That was all a feint by Satan perhaps to lure the Jews away from Jerusalem, to convince them that they were about to become the light of the world's nations...who knows what Satan was trying to do.
If all this speculation - and it is only speculation - is correct then we have another example of how prophesy will always have a fulfillment in the time when it is offered, as verification that the prophet was from God, but in hindsight, that verification should be taken not as the event but as typology for the ultimate fulfilling event. So AEIV, like whatever child was born in Isaiah's time an came to be called Emmanuel, is a near fulfilment that familiarizes, that characterizes, the look of the far future events that fulfill it in perfection to the original prophecy.
THAT is why the MoL and the things we are told about him in Revelation seem so clearly to mirror AEIV, and so tempts some to claim John is writing history in Revelation and not prophesying.
(Putting this paragraph into AI Research Projects. I need to memorize this explanation since it comes with two very good examples.)
Wars rage. Then this, after AE has put down Egypt, and is on his way back north, through Israel, to Syria:
28 And he shall return to his land with great wealth, but his heart shall be set against the holy covenant. And he shall work his will and return to his own land. [Dan 11:28 ESV]
Here is the MSB note, which I have copied in it's entirety, on vs 28. Because it is so important!
"En route N through Israel to Syria with riches, Antiochus met a revolt, as sources outside Scripture mention. He struck Jerusalem's temple, profaned the sacrificial system, massacred 80,000 men, took 40,000 prisoners, sold 40,000 as slaves, and squelched a Jewish bid to depose his own designated priest, Menelaus."
Find the "outside sources". (2023 - Josephus. I have it marked in that book. This is all as Josephus tells it. Why not just say that, MSB?) See what they really say, word for word, and paste it in here. This certainly seems to make AE a "type" for the final Antichrist.
But it doesn't end here. This was only the first outrage. Antiochus attacks Egypt a third time, but a Roman fleet from Cyprus discourages that attack. AE is unwilling to attack Roman forces directly, so he turns back empty handed. This verse:
31 Forces from him shall appear and profane the temple and fortress, and shall take away the regular burnt offering. And they shall set up the abomination that makes desolate. [Dan 11:31 ESV]
About this verse, MSB says (based on the NASB, which is the translation of my copy of MSB):
"11:31 desecrate the sanctuary. Antiochus' soldiers, no doubt working with apostate Jews, guarded the temple, halting all worship, while others attacked the city on the Sabbath slaughtering men, women, and children. Soldiers desecrated Israel's temple, banned circumcision, and daily sacrifices (1 Macc 1:44-24) and sacrificed a pig on the altar. The Syrians on Chislev (Dec. 15 167 BC) even imposed an idol statue in honor of the Olympian god Zeus into the temple. Jews called it "the abomination of desolation," i.e. denying or ruining for Jewish worship. abomination of desolation. Antiochus' soldiers profaned God's temple by spreading sow's broth on the altar and banning daily sacrifices (cf 8:14 and see note there) as described in 1 Macc 1:44-54. Both Daniel and Jesus said this atrocity was only a preview of the abomination that would happen later under the final Antichrist (9:27, Mt 24:15).
NOTE that this verse says it is "forces from him" that do all this. It is not Antiochus himself, at least not yet.
2023 - I need a copy of Maccabees. Much of this corresponds to Josephus, but there is more information here than that. I would like to read both. I think Josephus uses a phrase something like "abomination of desolation" but not that exactly. Note here though that it was the statue, the idol, and NOT a man that was the abomination of desolation. So far in Daniel 11, there is no mention of how long this continued...
2025 - Daniel 11:31. So. We have direct historical evidence of this particular abomination of desolation. Then, centuries later, we have this: 15 "So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), [Mat 24:15 ESV]. "when you see" is aorist active subjunctive. Subjunctive signifies possibility and potential...not things that are done deals. This mood is often associated with end times events, as it is used for the defeat of Satan at Armageddon. Knowing that this is very solidly historically true of the actions of AEIV, and that Jesus talks about it as a future event, I need to go back and look at earlier references in Daniel and unravel things. As I recall at this moment, that fourth ruler, the one different from all who came before how, who stamps down what is left, I have always thought to be the final kingdom under the MoL. But could it be that it references AEIV, as does this part of Daniel 11, and we don't really learn that there will be another one who does this same stuff, at the end? It will be worthwhile to read again those earlier chapters of Daniel with this possibility in mind.
Vs 32-35 speak of things that go on in Jerusalem during this time. In the face of persecution by the forces of Antiochus, many deny the covenant and turn away. Others, apparently called Hasideans (that explains where that name came from!!!!) remain true to the covenant, teach others the word, and many are martyred, of their own choice, for the stance that they take. There is much pretension on the part of those frightened and unwilling to take a stand for God, and many pretend to be loyal in order to escape being labeled as apostates. Imagine the further intrigue, lies, and traitorous acts these perpetrated against the Hasideans! What an awful time. Neighbor vs neighbor, father vs son...all that was going on at this time. The horror of this time is summed up in this verse:
35 and some of the wise shall stumble, so that they may be refined, purified, and made white, until the time of the end, for it still awaits the appointed time. [Dan 11:35 ESV] Even in this time of fear, of stark choices, of faith on pain of death, God has a purpose. He was preserving His remnant, He was purifying those precious to Him.
2026 - This sequence of events is compelling:
31 Forces from him shall appear and profane the temple and fortress, and shall take away the regular burnt offering. And they shall set up the abomination that makes desolate.
This is 2Thess5 - setting up of the AoD. Looks just like it because it is in fact the ultimate AoD when the time of the end arrives.
32 He shall seduce with flattery those who violate the covenant, but the people who know their God shall stand firm and take action.
Those who know their God. This is about the 144K and is the best explanation we will get about what they do.
33 And the wise among the people shall make many understand, though for some days they shall stumble by sword and flame, by captivity and plunder.
The 144K will preach to the Jews and inform them of the real intent of the MoL. For their trouble they will be martyred - executed, burned at the stake, overrun by the forces of evil.
34 When they stumble, they shall receive a little help. And many shall join themselves to them with flattery,
This is father against son, mother against daughter and so on. This is still to come.
35 and some of the wise shall stumble, so that they may be refined, purified, and made white, until the time of the end, for it still awaits the appointed time. [Dan 11:31-35 ESV].
This is the time when the signs of the AoD will deceive the very elect. This is the time of martyrdom for the 144K. At the end of this martyrdom, as the MoL believes he has annihilated the messengers, they are taken out and appear in heaven as in Rev 14.
2020-Why do we hear so little about AE? Would knowledge of him make ID of AC when he comes easier? Much of what we do know seems to come from Maccabees. Need to read those intertestamentary books for the historical info there.
Again, it seems that the prophecies given to Daniel are confined to info about Israel. History in this sense ends in 70 AD and marks time until the last 7 years. World events during the church age are of no importance. Only the spreading of the gospel matters during this time. The New Covenant is only with those who accept it, as opposed to the Old being with a people, even though they tried to back out. The New Covenant does not operate like the old. It is voluntary. There should be a lot more contrasts between Old and New than I have figured out so far. That would be a huge study, and from it should come a better definition of what the purpose of the church really is.
Then, per MSB, there is a jump forward in time, from AE and the atrocities his soldiers committed, to the final Antichrist. This jump is identified as such by the use in vs 35 of some eschatological phrases - in ESV "the time of the end" and "the appointed time". These terms precede this verse:
36 "And the king shall do as he wills. He shall exalt himself and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak astonishing things against the God of gods. He shall prosper till the indignation is accomplished; for what is decreed shall be done. [Dan 11:36 ESV]
This verse, per MSB, is about the final Antichrist, and his actions when he breaks the "covenant with many for one week".
2023 - In reference to the paragraph above, here is vs 35:
35 and some of the wise shall stumble, so that they may be refined, purified, and made white, until the time of the end, for it still awaits the appointed time. [Dan 11:35 ESV]. Note that this verse is a continuation of a sentence that started before. Looking at the text, we can almost take this all the way back to vs 32 being the beginning of the "last days" description. It is talking about the wise all the way back to 33. It seems to be about how they are taken in at first, but at some point recognize who this is. They will suffer - they will be refined, purified, made white. This is surely tied to several verses in Revelation that I will look up a bit later. But even back to 33 seems like we have jumped ahead. What was the signal for that? I think vs 30 can easily be traced to AE, via what Josephus says. So that keeps us in the past to this point. The events of 31 can also be found in Josephus. This is when AE looted the temple in his greed, breaking the agreement he has made with the Jews who "disguised" their circumcision. Perhaps that phrase "abomination of desolation" is the linchpin that is common both to history and to the future? These verses:
15 "So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), [Mat 24:15 ESV]
14 "But when you see the abomination of desolation standing where he ought not to be (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. [Mar 13:14 ESV].
This seems to be the right way to look at it. From the NT, we know the a of d was still future. But from Josephus, and apparently also from Maccabees, we know it was past. So the way I will look at this is that vs 31 is common to AE and to the MoL. This is also where Daniel 11 jumps from past to future. Vs 32 is all future.
2025 - In vss 31-35, I think we have a description of the continuing faithful remnant of Israel. Those purged and purified during the persecution of AEIV as a preview of what is still to come. Look at that last phrase of 35: "...because it is still to come at the appointed time." This points us from Daniel - as reference - to the MoL. I see no other way of interpreting this. This is what it is. We who watch for the end might do very well to study all we can find on AEIV.
2023 - Vs 36, the mouth uttering blasphemy:
36 "And the king shall do as he wills. He shall exalt himself and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak astonishing things against the God of gods. He shall prosper till the indignation is accomplished; for what is decreed shall be done. [Dan 11:36 ESV]. What in the world will he be saying? There is no doubt now that we are talking about the future. Many references to the words this one will spout. It would be good to compile them and put them in here, so that it is clear what is going on.
2026 - This is the mouth speaking blasphemous things. This verse gives us some chronological insight into when this will happen. It is AFTER desecration of the Temple, it is AFTER the AoD is set up, AFTER the martyrdom of the 144K. These words will be spoken in false triumph as the MoL believes he has won. But look at that las phrase of 36 in NASB...it is still to come at the appointed time. He thinks he's won, but he has certainly not.
Never seen this phrase before:
38 He shall honor the god of fortresses instead of these. A god whom his fathers did not know he shall honor with gold and silver, with precious stones and costly gifts. [Dan 11:38 ESV] God of fortresses? MSB says he will worship only power, and will build armies and conquer territory to gain power. Goes on to say he will "promote" those who acknowledge him, and make them rulers over many. Mark of the beast stuff...promotion because of loyalty, willingness to do anything required, to betray any and all for the sake of self-promotion in the kingdom of Antichrist.
2020-He shall deal with the strongest fortresses with the help of a foreign god. Those who acknowledge him he shall load with honor. He shall make them rulers over many and shall divide the land for a price.
Daniel 11:39 ESV
What are these fortresses? Who is this foreign god that helps? Why have I never heard it mentioned?
So many things here that I have NEVER HEARD!!! Others I never realized were in Daniel and NOT in Revelation. Look at this verse, unknown to me until today:
40 "At the time of the end, the king of the south shall attack him, but the king of the north shall rush upon him like a whirlwind, with chariots and horsemen, and with many ships. And he shall come into countries and shall overflow and pass through. [Dan 11:40 ESV]
Once AC is in power, he will be attacked by armies from both the north and the south. Worldly forces will themselves try to unseat him, to slow him down, to stop him and kill him. This is the kind of power he will have. None will be successful opposing him. This is all going to be happening during the 7 year tribulation period!
This verse:
41 He shall come into the glorious land. And tens of thousands shall fall, but these shall be delivered out of his hand: Edom and Moab and the main part of the Ammonites. [Dan 11:41 ESV]
He is going to conquer Jerusalem/Israel. Many will die. But here the prophecies of the persistence of Edom, Moab, and Ammon are fulfilled. Antichrist will not be able to destroy the Jews. Surely that is his ambition. He wants to destroy them all, but they will find refuge in the land of these ancient enemies.
2023 - Also, from this verse, we see that MoL will NOT be originally based in Jerusalem. That makes it possible for Ezekiel's temple to be built elsewhere, by him, as an enticement to the Jews. He shall come into the glorious land, he will not be based there. So the Temple where he stands and declares himself God...could be a rebuilt Temple in Jerusalem, but look how far back in Dan 11 you have to go for that to be possible.
He will turn to Egypt, and the south, and conquer them all. He will take their treasures and demand their loyalty.
After defeating the south, he will get news that forces from elsewhere are mustering to attack him also. He will retreat, and prepare to face them "between the sea and the glorious holy mountain". This is the battle at the very end of the tribulation period, when the returning Christ will defeat this last Antichrist and all his army, ushering in the Millennial Reign.
And that has to be the most eye-opening, fact filled, "amplification" of the movements and purposes of the final Antichrist that I have ever seen or heard. How could I not know that this was here! Has to be at least the fourth time I've read it, and I think this is my fifth time through the Bible! 2020-No longer sure how much of this I have right. I appreciate MSB pointing out the break between AE and AC. Need to look back through that lens at previous visions. Still glaringly obvious that world event that do not affect Israel are unimportant.
And he shall pitch his palatial tents between the sea and the glorious holy mountain. Yet he shall come to his end, with none to help him.
Daniel 11:45 ESV
https://bible.com/bible/59/dan.11.45.ESV
Isn't this where the prince's portion is located in Ezekiel's allocation of the land? He will be in charge until he breaks the covenant, so maybe he is the prince in Ezekiel?
((((2023 - Have to stop here for now...Bible study later, need a shower before, lunch, and need to print and prep all my notes for today. Will just have to find time for 12 later. It has been a profoundly encouraging morning of study so far!!!)))