Daniel 11
McGeeCHAPTER 11THEME: Vision continued; Antiochus Epiphanes identified; vicious and vocal volition of the Man of Sin; victory of the willful king is temporaryChapters 10-12 all deal with the same vision, and therefore chapter 11 is a continuation of the previous chapter. It is a very important chapter because it fills in some of the details of the Seventy Weeks of chapter 9, which specifically concern Daniel’s people, Israel. It also fills in some of the details of the last three of the four nations symbolized in the multimetallic image of chapter 2 and in the beasts of chapter 7. The very importance of this chapter caused Satan to hinder the angel in coming to give Daniel the answer to his prayer, because this prophecy does concern two of the nations which were all-important in relation to Daniel’s people. The two nations were Persia and Greece. A further notable contribution of this chapter is that it bridges prophetically part of the gap between the Old and New Testaments. We speak of the intertestamental period between the Old and New Testaments as being a period of silence, which is not exactly accurate. The intertestamental period was the time of Israel’s greatest travail. They suffered at the hands of both Syria and Egypt. As these two nations warred against each other, Palestine was caught in the middle as the armies of these two nations seesawed back and forth, up and down, across the land of Israel. During the intertestamental period came the rise of Antiochus Epiphanes (who is a type of the Antichrist of the future). He was a member of the Seleucid family, and we will identify him when we come to him in this chapter. He was a persecutor of the Jews, far exceeding any Pharaoh or Haman or Hitler or modern Russia. He has been called the Nero of Jewish history. He has also been called the Great Profaner. There is a remarkable division in the chapter which separates history and prophecythe historical from the eschatological section. Remember, it was all future when it was originally written, but part of it has been fulfilled. This prophecy is rather complicated and goes into prophecy a little deeper than the average person likes to go into it. Most people seem to like the exciting, sensational part of prophecy, but they do not want to dig down into the Word of God to see what it really says. However, if you are one who enjoys a deep and detailed study of prophecy, you will be thrilled by this section of the remarkable Word of God.
Daniel 11:1
VISION CONTINUEDThis prophecy bridges the gap from Media-Persia over to Greece, from Asia to Europe. It tells of the transition of world powers from one continent to another, from the East to the West. Remember that the prophecy concerns the people of Daniel. It was especially important to Israel because they would be caught in a vise between these different powers. It would be a period of great suffering for these people. The speaker here is the angel, and this is a continuation from chapter 10. The angel may have been Gabriel; we are not told his name. Remember that it occurred during the reign of Darius when Daniel was thrown into the den of lions. Darius tried in vain to deliver Daniel, but he was trapped by his own decree. Yet he said to Daniel, “Thy God whom thou servest continually, he will deliver thee” (Dan_6:16). “I stood to confirm and strengthen him.” The angel confirmed and strengthened Darius in his faith. He also comforted and assisted Daniel. And Daniel said, you recall, “My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions’ mouths” (Dan_6:22). So historically this is where the vision fits in, and it bridges the gap between the Old and New Testaments, the intertestamental period.
Daniel 11:2
From here through verse Dan_11:34 is one of the most remarkable examples of prewritten history. This section has caused the destructive critic to demand a late date for the composition of the Book of Daniel. Here are clear-cut statements of prophecy which have been literally fulfilled. The prophecy of this chapter is so detailed and so accurate that the liberal critic will not accept the fact that it was written before it happened. He insists that Daniel’s prophecy was written after it had become history. Personally, I do not like the liberals to be called liberal. To me they are the most narrow-minded people I know anything about. Yet they like to speak of their broad-mindedness and that they don’t have a narrow conception of Scripture. Let me give you an example.
One of them right here in Southern California said to me, “McGee, I listen to you on the radio sometimes.” (He said that in a condescending manner as though I should have been honored.) Then he said, “I notice that you accept prophecy as being reliable,” and he cited this Book of Daniel. So I asked him, “What authority do you have for rejecting the early dating of Daniel and accepting a late date of Daniel?” His reply was this, “Well, it’s very simple. We know that miracles are impossible, that they do not happen. Therefore if this were written beforehand, it would be a miracle; so it must have been written afterward.” Now, my friend, I ask you, is that being narrow-minded, prejudiced, and biased? Obviously, this chapter before us is one of the most remarkable passages of prewritten history in the Word of God, and conservative scholarship can sustain the early date of Daniel. This means that you have a miracle on your hands. When the angel gave this information to Daniel, he knew that Daniel would not live to see it fulfilled. Obviously, it was recorded for the comfort and encouragement of the people of God who would live through the difficult days it describes. Also it was written for all generations as a testimony to the fact that God knows the end from the beginning. The angel told him that there would be four notable kings of Persia to follow Cyrus. We think we can identify them today: (1) Cambyses, 529 B.C. (2) Pseudo-Smerdis, 522 B.C. (3) Darius Hystaspis, 521 B.C. (4) Xerxes who invaded Greece in 480 B.C. He was defeated, and never again did Medo-Persia make a bid for world dominion. Incidentally, I believe that Xerxes is the Ahasuerus of the Book of Esther. He was very rich, as the prophecy here said he would be.
Daniel 11:3
“A mighty king” is Alexander the Great who came to power in 335 B.C. over the Graeco-Macedonian Empire. He put down Persia and assumed world dominion.
Daniel 11:4
Alexander the Great was a world ruler and probably the greatest military strategist the world has ever seen, but he died an alcoholic in 323 B.C. His own posterity did not inherit his vast kingdom. Four of his generals divided the empire into four geographical areas, each ruled by one general. The division was roughly this: Cassander took Macedonia; Lysimachus took Asia Minor (modern Turkey); Seleucus Nicator took Syria and the remainder of the Middle East; and Ptolemy took Egypt. All four families warred among themselves. Eventually they all lost their kingdoms when the Romans marched east.
Daniel 11:5
“The king of the south.” South of what? Directions in the Bible are reckoned from Palestine as the center of the earth. The king of the south is not from south of Los Angeles or Chicago or New York. It is the king from the south of Israel, so this would be the king from Egypt. This king of the south would be one of the Ptolemies.
Daniel 11:6
“The king of the north” refers to the line of the Seleucidae. This verse brings us to about 250 B.C. Although historians differ on some of the minor details, they have recorded some of the manipulations that went on in the courts of that day, which fulfill this prophecy very accurately. To form an alliance between these two warring families, Ptolemy Philadelphus of Egypt gave his daughter Berenice in marriage to Antiochus Theos of Syria. Antiochus was already married to Laodice, whom he divorced. After two years Ptolemy Philadelphus died; so Antiochus Theos put away Berenice with her son and took back his first wife, Laodice.
She, in turn, poisoned Antiochus Theos and ordered the death of Berenice and her son. The Laodice put her own son, Seleucus Callinicus, on the throne. That was some juggling act, and it is interesting how this is covered in the prophecy given to Daniel.
Daniel 11:7
This was Ptolemy Euergetes, brother of Berenice, who came with an army and captured Syria, and he seized the fort which was the port of Antioch in that day.
Daniel 11:8
It is recorded that Ptolemy Euergetes took into Egypt as booty four thousand talents of gold, forty thousand talents of silver, and twenty-five hundred idols. Do you see how this scripture was literally fulfilled?
Daniel 11:10
There was continual warfare between Egypt and Syria. Without going into detail, let me say that during this period Israel seemed repeatedly to make the wrong choice and found herself being made captive first by one, then by the other.
Daniel 11:14
Many in the nation of Israel were slain at this time. They incurred untold suffering from both the king of the north and the king of the south.
Daniel 11:15
“He shall stand in the glorious land.” Now we know why this has been recorded and given to Danielit concerns the “glorious land,” which is Israel, the land that God had vouchsafed to Abraham and to those coming after him. These two verses predict what history now records as the victory of Antiochus the Great over Egypt. It was a decisive victory, and it caused Israel to suffer immeasurably. I am going to pass over some of the secular history of this period. If you care to go into detail, I suggest that you consult one of the larger Bible encyclopedias, such as Hastings’ or the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, and read in detail the secular history covered in this section. You will find that Daniel’s prophecy was fulfilled in a remarkable way. There is a period of 125 years that was fulfilled in detail.
Daniel 11:17
This brings us to about 198 or 195 B.C. when Antiochus the Great made a treaty with Egypt and gave his daughter Cleopatra to Ptolemy Epiphanes in marriage.
Daniel 11:18
“He shall turn his face unto the isles” refers to Greece and all the Greek islands. This is where Antiochus the Great was beginning to move at this timenot only against Ptolemy in the south, but against Lysimachus in the west. “A prince for his own behalf” would refer to another line, that is, Rome, which was beginning to arise in the west and move toward the east. Rome, you see, exacted taxes from the Syrians. The Romans were probably the best tax assessors and tax gatherers in the world until modern America perfected the system. Our system of collecting taxes would put even Rome to shame! As Rome began to rise, she was building a tremendous empire by taxing the people she was capturing. As the Syrians began to fall before Rome, there were many historical details that could be filled in. For further reading I would suggest to you The Prophet Daniel by A. C. Gaebelein and The Coming Prince by Sir Robert Anderson, a former chief of Scotland Yard.
Daniel 11:21
ANTIOCHUS EPIPHANES IDENTIFIEDIntroduced to us now is the vile person, Antiochus Epiphanes, who was king in Syria and is easily identified in history. This is the “little horn” that has already been fulfilled, as we studied back in chapter 8. This prophecy is concerned with one king in the line of the Seleucidae, Antiochus Epiphanes. Most fundamental interpreters of Scripture consider this section to be a direct reference to this man. The prophecy fits the history of Antiochus Epiphanes like a glove. (He is at the same time a type of the Antichrist, thus illustrative and figurative of the Man of Sin who is yet to come. The careers of both are strikingly similar.) Antiochus Epiphanes came to the throne in 175 B.C. He is called vile because of his blasphemies. He came to the throne with a program of peace. (The Antichrist will come to power in the same way. He will introduce the Great Tribulation with three and one half years of peace, and the people of the world will think they are entering the Millennium when they are really entering the Great Tribulation period.) Antiochus was a deceiver and a flatterer. My friend, beware of that type of person. You can find them even in the ministry.
They have hurt the church more than anything. We do not need men who will deceive and butter up folk for their own advantage; we need honest, forthright men who will stand in the pulpit and tell it like it is. Unfortunately, they are getting few and far between, but, thank God, there are still many of them about.
Daniel 11:22
“The prince of the covenant” was probably the high priest, Onias III, who was deposed and murdered at this time by the deceitful devices of Antiochus when he came to power.
Daniel 11:25
These verses describe the campaign of Antiochus and his victory over the king of Egypt, which brought him much riches and prestige. “They shall speak lies at one table” refers to the fact that he was an unreliable liar. It also reveals that the conference tables of that day were very much like the conference tables of our own day, where nations meet and make treaties which become meaningless scraps of paper.
Daniel 11:29
Antiochus made a second campaign against Egypt but was not successful due to the navy of Rome, “the ships of Chittim.” He broke his covenant with Israel, but notice that some of the Jews betrayed their own people"he shall even return, and have intelligence with them that forsake the holy covenant."
Daniel 11:31
Antiochus came against Jerusalem in 170 B.C., at which time over one hundred thousand Jews were slain! He took away the daily sacrifice from the temple, offered the blood and broth of a swine upon the altar, and set up an image of Jupiter to be worshiped in the holy place of the temple of God. This was an “abomination that maketh desolate,” but it was not the abomination to which our Lord Jesus referred which was future when He was on earth and is still future in our day. It is the abomination which Antichrist will set up. Antiochus set up an image of Jupiter in the holy place, and the Antichrist will probably set up an image of himself in the holy place.
Daniel 11:32
There were a few in the nation Israel who played the role of Judas, but there were many who knew God and were strong and did exploits. It was during this time that God raised up the family of the Maccabees. In 166 B.C. Mattathias the priest raised a revolt against the awful blasphemy. The family was called the Maccabees, that is, the hammer. Although they are not recorded in Scripture, I am convinced that they were God’s men for that particular hour.
Daniel 11:33
This period lies between the Testaments and is a saga of suffering. There were many in this time who served God as faithfully and courageously as had Gideon or David or Elijah or Jeremiah or Daniel. If you are not familiar with this period of history, you should look into the apocryphal books of 1 and 2 Maccabees as well as the writings of Josephus.
Daniel 11:35
“The time of the end” leaps forward in prophecy from Antiochus Epiphanes to the Antichrist. We move now from the history of that day into that which is yet in the future. All of this prophecy was in the future when Daniel gave itsome is now history and some is yet future.
Daniel 11:36
VICIOUS AND VOCAL VOLITION OF THE MAN OF SINAt this point history ends and prophecy begins. The text passes from a vile person to a vicious character, moving over a bridge of unmeasured time. Antiochus Epiphanes was certainly a contemptible person, but he could not measure up to the king described in verses Dan_11:36-39. Antiochus was an adumbration of Antichrist, and I believe that this passage of Scripture thus indicates that Antichrist will rise out of the geographical bounds of the ancient Grecian Empire. There will be a political Antichrist, the one who is mentioned here, a Gentile raised out of the Roman Empire. There will also be a religious Antichrist who will pretend to be Christ and who will arise out of the land of Israelhe will be like a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Antichrist is given many names in Scripture. J. Dwight Pentecost, in his book Things to Come (p. 334), gives a list of names compiled by Arthur W. Pink (The Antichrist, pp. 59-75) which are applicable to Antichrist: “The Bloody and Deceitful Man (Psa_5:6), the Wicked One (Psa_10:2-4), the Man of the Earth (Psa_10:18), the Mighty Man (Psa_52:1), the Enemy (Psa_55:3), the Adversary (Psa_74:8-10), the Head of Many Countries (Psa_111:6 [sic]), the Violent Man (Psa_140:1), the Assyrian (Isa_10:5-12), the King of Babylon (Isa_14:2), the Sun [sic] of the Morning (Isa_14:12), the Spoiler (Isa_16:4-5; Jer_6:26), the Nail (Isa_22:25), the Branch of the Terrible Ones (Isa_25:5), the Profane Wicked Prince of Israel (Eze_21:25-27), the Little Horn (Dan_7:8), the Prince that shall come (Dan_9:26), the Vile Person (Dan_11:21), the Willful King (Dan_11:36), the Idol Shepherd (Zec_11:16-17), the Man of Sin (2Th_2:3), the Son of Perdition (2Th_2:3), the Lawless one (2Th_2:8), the Antichrist (1Jn_2:22), the Angels [sic] of the Bottomless Pit (Rev_9:11), the Beast (Rev_11:7; Rev_13:1). To these could be added: the One Coming in His Own Name (Joh_5:43), the King of Fierce Countenance (Dan_8:23), the Abomination of Desolation (Mat_24:15), the Desolator (Dan_9:27).” “The king shall do according to his will.” Antichrist is self-willed. How contrary this is to the Lord Jesus Christ who said, “I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me” (Joh_5:30). “He shall exalt himself.” The little horn (the name given to Antichrist in ch. 7) tries to be a big horn. Again, how unlike the Lord Jesus this is! Paul wrote of Him: “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross” (Php_2:5-8). “And magnify himself above every god.” In 2Th_2:4 Paul wrote of the Antichrist: “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.” And in Rev_13:8 we are also told: “And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.” It is blasphemous rebellion against God which marks the willful king as the final and logical expression of humanism. He is the typical representative of that which is against God and that which is our old nature: “Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God” (Rom_8:7-8). The carnal mind of men will turn to the Antichrist. When men choose their own rulers and leaders, what kind of man do they choose? Generally it is one who is like they are, and that is the reason we are getting such sorry leaders in the world today.
The leadership of the world is frightfulthey are the kind of folk we picked out. God has said right here in the Book of Daniel that He would set over the kingdoms of this world the basest of rulers. “And shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished.” The willful king will be successful at first and for a brief time. God will permit this to come to pass during the last half of Daniel’s Seventieth Week.
Daniel 11:37
“Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers.” It has been assumed from this statement that Antichrist would have to be an Israelite. However, this statement could refer to a Protestant, a Roman Catholic, or a heathen. Wherever he comes from, he will not regard the God of his fathers. We have examples of this in history. Smith, the head of the now defunct organization the American Association for the Advancement of Atheism, was the son of a Methodist minister, and Stalin at one time studied in a theological seminary. As I have stated previously, I believe that it takes two men to fulfill this office, and they are both presented in chapter 13 of Revelation. This first one is a political ruler who comes out of the Roman Empire and probably the Greek section of the Roman Empire. He is the one who doesn’t have to be an Israelite at all. The second beast that arises is a religious leader, and he imitates ChristI assume he will be an Israelite. “Nor the desire of women.” This refers evidently to the desire of Hebrew women to be the mother of the Messiah. Not only will the Lord Jesus Christ be absolutely rejected, He will become the enemy. Antichrist leads a rebellion against God and Christ. As Psalms 2 puts it: “The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying, Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us” (Psa_2:2-3). “Nor regard any god.” That means very plainly that he will oppose all religions and worship, except worship of himself. He is not only a believer in the ecumenical movement, he promotes it; in fact, he is it. One religion for one world will be his motto, and he is that religion. “He shall magnify himself above all” is the final fruition of the self-will of this willful king. His total ambition is self-adulation. This is the frightful prospect of the final days of the Great Tribulation period: “And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name” (Rev_13:15-17). You will not be able to go to a restaurant to eat or buy a ticket on a plane or train without the mark of the Beast. I tell you, that is going to be dictatorship with a vengeance!
Daniel 11:38
“The God of forces” should be more accurately translated “the God of fortresses.” It is true that we are living in a day, as someone has written, in which man is increasingly making gods out of forces, but that is not what Daniel is saying here. I am quoting Dr. Newell: “We know from pagan mythology that both Cybele and Diana are variously represented as crowned with multi-tiered crowns, plainly setting forth the idea of fortification with turrets, battlements, and so forth” (Daniel, The Man Greatly Beloved, and His Prophecies, p. 179). I am sure you have seen pictures of these heathen idols with their multi-tiered crowns with all kinds of fortresses on them which represent the kingdoms of this world. Antichrist will honor the god of fortresses who had the kingdoms of the world. Who is that?
Well, it was Satan who offered to Christ the kingdoms of this world, and our Lord rejected his offer. Apparently, Satan had a right to make that offer. Antichrist will accept the offer and become the world’s dictator. We are told in 2Th_2:4 and Rev_13:4 that Antichrist will accept worship and will have the world worshiping Satan in that day. All the kingdoms of the world will be under his rulership, the first truly worldwide dictatorship.
Daniel 11:39
This is going to be Satan’s hour. He will make the most of it, as he knows his time is short. “Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time” (Rev_12:12). Antichrist will be the pliant tool to completely do the will of Satan in that day. He will rule over many people and dispose of property as he pleases. He is the willful king and the final world dictator.
Daniel 11:40
VICTORY OF THE WILLFUL KING IS TEMPORARYIt is “the time of the end,” not the end of time. It is the end which Daniel has had in mind all through this section, the last days of the nation Israel, which the Lord Jesus labeled the Great Tribulation. “The king of the south” is evidently a ruler of Egypt, but it is impossible for us to identify him. Actually, Egypt has not had a native ruler for years. God has done a pretty good job of putting over that nation the basest of rulers. However, this one who is going to arise at the time of the end will probably unite all of Africa as no leader of Egypt has ever been able to do, and he will come against Antichrist. “The king of the north” is more easily identified. He takes the place of the Seleucidae dynasty, and I believe he is the one who comes out of the north mentioned in Ezekiel 38 and 39. The king of the north is Russia. Russia will open the campaign of Armageddon which will not be just a battle, but an entire war. At the very beginning, the king of the north will be eliminated as God moves in judgment upon that nation.
Daniel 11:41
The entrance of Russia into Palestine precipitates the great crisis and conflict of the Great Tribulation period. When Antichrist enters Palestine, that is, “the glorious land,” he will find that he is going to have trouble with Edom, Moab, and Ammon. That is the territory where the sons of Ishmael, the Arabs, are today. He is going to have trouble with them, for a while at least.
Daniel 11:42
Egypt and the king of the south will yield to the Antichrist.
Daniel 11:43
He will have control of the wealth of this world. He will control the entire money markets of the world at that time. Libya and Ethiopia will surrender to himhe will have control of Africa.
Daniel 11:44
“Tidings out of the east"that means the Orient with its teeming millions. A great army will come from there to the Battle of Armageddon, and this world ruler will be troubled. At that time, there will be no hope for God’s people, except in God Himself.
Daniel 11:45
“The seas” refer to the Mediterranean Sea, and “the glorious holy mountain” is Jerusalem. In other words, at that time Antichrist will establish his headquarters for world conquest between the Mediterranean Sea and Jerusalem. However, instead of ruling from there he will be destroyed by the personal return of the Lord Jesus Christ (Rev_19:17-20). Evil will have taken over, and only in the personal coming of Christ to establish His Kingdom will any on this earth be delivered and saved.