VERSES 1, 2. Also I in the first year of Darius the Mede, even I, stood to confirm and to strengthen him. And now will I show thee the truth. Behold, there shall stand up yet three kings in Persia; and the fourth shall be far richer than they all; and by his strength through his riches he shall stir up all against the realm of Grecia.
We now enter upon a prophecy of future events, clothed not in figures and symbols, as in the visions of chapters 2, 7, and 8, but given mostly in plain language. Many of the signal events of the world's history, from the days of Daniel to the end of the world, are here brought to view. This prophecy, says Bishop Newton, may not improperly be said to be a comment and explanation of the vision of chapter 8.
The angel, after stating that he stood, in the first year of Darius, to confirm and strengthen him, turns his attention to the future. Three kings shall yet stand up in Persia. To stand up, means to reign; three kings were to reign in Persia; referring doubtless to the immediate successors of Cyrus. These were, 1. Cambyses, son of Cyrus. 2. Smerdis, an imposter. 3. Darius Hystaspes.
The fourth shall be far richer than they all. The fourth king from Cyrus was Xerxes, more famous for his riches than his generalship, and conspicuous in history for the magnificent campaign he organized against Grecia, and his utter failure in that enterprise. He was to stir up all against the realm of Grecia. Never before had there been such a levy of men for warlike purposes; never has there been since. His army according to Herodotus, who lived in that age, consisted of five millions, two hundred and eighty-three thousand, two hundred and twenty nine (5,283,220). And not content with stirring up the East alone, he enlisted the Carthagenians of the West in his service, who took the field with an additional army of three hundred thousand men.
VERSES 3, 4. And a mighty king shall stand up, that shall rule with great dominion, and do according to his will. And when he shall stand up, his kingdom shall be broken, and shall be divided toward the four winds of heaven; and not to his posterity, nor according to his dominion which he ruled; for his kingdom shall be plucked up, even for others besides those.
The facts stated in these verses plainly point to Alexander, and the division of his empire. See on chapter 8:8. Xerxes was the last Persian king who invaded Grecia; the prophecy therefore passes over the nine successors of Xerxes in the Persian Empire, and next introduces Alexander the Great. Having overthrown the Persian Empire, Alexander "became absolute monarch of that empire, to the fullest extent it was ever possessed by any of the Persian kings." Prideaux I, 378. His dominion was great, including "the greater portion of the then known habitable world;" and he did according to his will. His will fortunately led him, B. C. 323, into a drunken debauch, in which he fortunately died; and his vain-glorious and ambitious projects went into sudden, total, and everlasting eclipse The kingdom was divided, but not for his pos terity; it was plucked up for others besides those. Within fifteen years after his death, all his posterity had fallen victims to jealousy and ambition. Not one of the race of Alexander13was left to breathe upon the earth. So short is the transit from the highest pinnacle of earthly glory to oblivion and death. The kingdom was rent into four divisions and taken pos session of by Alexander's four ablest, or perhaps most ambitious and unprincipled generals, Cassander, Lysimachus, Ptolemy, and Seleucus.
Verse 5. And the king of the south shall be strong, and one of his princes; and he shall be strong above him, and have dominion; his dominion shall be a great dominion.
The king of the north and the king of the south are many times referred to in the remain ing portion of this chapter. It becomes there fore essential to an understanding of the prophe cy to clearly identify these powers. When Alexander's empire was divided, it was divided toward the four winds of heaven, east, west, north and south; these divisions of course to be reckoned from the standpoint of Palestine. That division of the empire lying west of Pal estine, would thus constitute the kingdom of the west; that lying east, the kingdom of the east; that lying north, the kingdom of the north; and that lying south, the kingdom of the south. The divisions of Alexander's kingdom, with respect to Palestine, were situated as follows: Cassander had Greece and the adjacent coun tries, which lay to the west; Lysimachus had Thrace, which then included Asia Minor, and the countries lying on the Hellespont and Bos phorus, which lay to the north of Palestine; Ptolemy had Egypt and neighboring countries, which lay to the south; and Seleucus had Syria and Babylon, which lay principally to the east.
During the wars and revolutions which for long ages succeeded, these geographical boun daries were frequently changed or obliterated; old ones were wiped out and new ones instituted. But whatever changes might occur, these first divisions of the empire must determine the names, or we have no standard by which to test the application of the prophecy. That is, whatever power at any time should occupy the territory which at first constituted the kingdom of the north, that power, so long as it occupied that territory, would be the king of the north; and whatever power should occupy that which at first constituted the kingdom of the south, that power would so long be the king of the south. We speak of only these two, because they are the only ones afterward spo ken of in the prophecy, and because in fact, almost the whole of Alexander's empire finally resolved itself into these two divisions.
Cassander was very soon conquered by Lysi machus, and his kingdom, Greece and Macedon, annexed to Thrace. And Lysimachus was in turn conquered by Seleucus, and Macedon and Thrace annexed to Syria.
These facts prepare the way for an applica tion of the text before us. The king of the south, Egypt, shall be strong. Ptolemy an nexed Cyprus, Phoenecia, Caria, Cyrene, and many islands and cities to Egypt. Thus was his kingdom made strong. But another of Alexander's princes is introduced in the expres sion, "one of his princes." The Septuagint translates the verse thus: "And the king of the south shall be strong, and one of his [Alexander's] princes shall be strong above him." This must refer to Seleucus, who, as already stated, having connected Macedon and Thrace to Syria, thus became possessor of three parts out of four of Alexander's dominion, and estab lished a more powerful kingdom than that of Egypt.