Unlocking the Prophecies of Daniel 11

Daniel 11

1 Also I in the first year of Darius the Mede, even I, stood to confirm and to strengthen him.

2 And now will I show you 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.

3 And a mighty king shall stand up, that shall rule with great dominion, and do according to his will.

4 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 beside those.

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.

6 And in the end of years they shall join themselves together; for the king’s daughter of the south shall come to the king of the north to make an agreement: but she shall not retain the power of the arm; neither shall he stand, nor his arm: but she shall be given up, and they that brought her, and he that begat her, and he that strengthened her in these times.

7 But out of a branch of her roots shall one stand up in his estate, which shall come with an army, and shall enter into the fortress of the king of the north, and shall deal against them, and shall prevail:

8 And shall also carry captives into Egypt their gods, with their princes, and with their precious vessels of silver and of gold; and he shall continue more years than the king of the north.

9 So the king of the south shall come into his kingdom, and shall return into his own land.

10 But his sons shall be stirred up, and shall assemble a multitude of great forces: and one shall certainly come, and overflow, and pass through: then shall he return, and be stirred up, even to his fortress.

11 And the king of the south shall be moved with choler, and shall come forth and fight with him, even with the king of the north: and he shall set forth a great multitude; but the multitude shall be given into his hand.

12 And when he has taken away the multitude, his heart shall be lifted up; and he shall cast down many ten thousands: but he shall not be strengthened by it.

13 For the king of the north shall return, and shall set forth a multitude greater than the former, and shall certainly come after certain years with a great army and with much riches.

14 And in those times there shall many stand up against the king of the south: also the robbers of your people shall exalt themselves to establish the vision; but they shall fall.

15 So the king of the north shall come, and cast up a mount, and take the most fenced cities: and the arms of the south shall not withstand, neither his chosen people, neither shall there be any strength to withstand.

16 But he that comes against him shall do according to his own will, and none shall stand before him: and he shall stand in the glorious land, which by his hand shall be consumed.

17 He shall also set his face to enter with the strength of his whole kingdom, and upright ones with him; thus shall he do: and he shall give him the daughter of women, corrupting her: but she shall not stand on his side, neither be for him.

18 After this shall he turn his face to the isles, and shall take many: but a prince for his own behalf shall cause the reproach offered by him to cease; without his own reproach he shall cause it to turn on him.

19 Then he shall turn his face toward the fort of his own land: but he shall stumble and fall, and not be found.

20 Then shall stand up in his estate a raiser of taxes in the glory of the kingdom: but within few days he shall be destroyed, neither in anger, nor in battle.

21 And in his estate shall stand up a vile person, to whom they shall not give the honor of the kingdom: but he shall come in peaceably, and obtain the kingdom by flatteries.

22 And with the arms of a flood shall they be overflowed from before him, and shall be broken; yes, also the prince of the covenant.

23 And after the league made with him he shall work deceitfully: for he shall come up, and shall become strong with a small people.

24 He shall enter peaceably even on the fattest places of the province; and he shall do that which his fathers have not done, nor his fathers’ fathers; he shall scatter among them the prey, and spoil, and riches: yes, and he shall forecast his devices against the strong holds, even for a time.

25 And 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 be stirred up to battle with a very great and mighty army; but he shall not stand: for they shall forecast devices against him.

26 Yes, they that feed of the portion of his meat shall destroy him, and his army shall overflow: and many shall fall down slain.

27 And both of these kings’ 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.

28 Then shall he return into his land with great riches; and his heart shall be against the holy covenant; and he shall do exploits, and return to his own land.

29 At the time appointed he shall return, and come toward the south; but it shall not be as the former, or as the latter.

30 For the ships of Chittim shall come against him: therefore he shall be grieved, and return, and have indignation against the holy covenant: so shall he do; he shall even return, and have intelligence with them that forsake the holy covenant.

31 And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that makes desolate.

32 And such as do wickedly against the covenant shall he corrupt by flatteries: but the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits.

33 And they that understand among the people shall instruct many: yet they shall fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil, many days.

34 Now when they shall fall, they shall be helped with a little help: but many shall join to them with flatteries.

35 And some of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and to purge, and to make them white, even to the time of the end: because it is yet for a time appointed.

36 And the king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvelous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be done.

37 Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all.

38 But in his estate shall he honor the God of forces: and a god whom his fathers knew not shall he honor with gold, and silver, and with precious stones, and pleasant things.

39 Thus shall he do in the most strong holds with a strange god, whom he shall acknowledge and increase with glory: and he shall cause them to rule over many, and shall divide the land for gain.

40 And at the time of the end shall the king of the south push at him: and the king of the north shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over.

41 He shall enter also into the glorious land, and many countries shall be overthrown: but these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon.

42 He shall stretch forth his hand also on the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape.

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.

44 But tidings out of the east and out of the north shall trouble him: therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to make away many.

45 And he shall plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him.

The Prophetic Framework of Daniel 11

The eleventh chapter of Daniel provides a comprehensive outline of the history of world powers from the time of the Medo-Persian Empire until the final delivery of God’s peopleAMS February 21, 1895, page 57.6+1. This vision, given to Daniel in the third year of Cyrus, serves to confirm and strengthen the transition of authority and the specific conflicts that would shape the landscape for the people of God Daniel 11:1ARSH May 31, 1898, page 349.1. The prophecy is noted for its literal accuracy, with historians often using language nearly identical to the angelic revelation to describe the same eventsESH 20.4.

The Succession of Empires: Persia to Greece

The narrative begins by identifying four kings who would stand up in Persia after Cyrus, the fourth of whom would be far richer than the others and would stir up all against the realm of Grecia Daniel 11:2ARSH May 31, 1898, page 349.1+1. This was fulfilled when Xerxes invaded Greece in 480 B.C. with an army of over a million menSDP 106.1. Despite this strength, the prophecy foretold the rise of a "mighty king" from Greece who would rule with great dominion Daniel 11:3ARSH May 31, 1898, page 349.1. This refers to Alexander the Great, whose kingdom was later broken and divided toward the four winds of heaven—not to his own posterity, but to four of his leading generals Daniel 11:4MON 30.2+2. These four divisions eventually merged into two dominant powers: the king of the North and the king of the SouthMON 30.2+2.

The Conflict of the Kings of the North and South

In the prophetic geography of Daniel 11 the "king of the South" is consistently identified as Egypt Daniel 11:5MON 30.2+2. The "king of the North" refers to the power occupying the territory of which Constantinople is the center, originally the Greco-Syriac division held by Lysimachus and SeleucusMON 30.2+2. The history of these two powers is a record of perpetual warfare and strategic intermarriagesPTUK April 1, 1897, page 194.2+1.

• The Failed Alliance: An attempt at peace was made when the daughter of the king of the South, Berenice, was given in marriage to the king of the North, Antiochus Theos Daniel 11:6SDP 193.1+1. However, she did not retain the power of the arm; she, her child, and her supporters were murdered due to the jealousy of Antiochus’s former wife, Laodice Daniel 11:6SDP 193.1+1.

• The Vengeance of the South: A "branch of her roots," her brother Ptolemy Euergetes, stood up in his estate and invaded the fortress of the king of the North Daniel 11:7DAR1909 251.4+1. He carried 2,500 idols and precious vessels as captives back to Egypt and continued more years than the king of the North Daniel 11:8DAR1909 251.4+2.

• Syrian Resurgence: Later, the sons of the king of the North, specifically Antiochus Magnus, assembled great forces to reclaim their territory Daniel 11:10SDP 195.3+1. This led to the Battle of Raphia (near Gaza), where the king of the South was moved with choler and defeated the great multitude of the North, though he was not strengthened by the victory due to his own vices Daniel 11:11-12GEP 211.4+1.

The Introduction of Rome and the Papacy

As the Greek divisions weakened, a new power entered the field: the "children of robbers," representing the Roman power Daniel 11:14MON 30.2+2. Rome stood in the "glorious land" (Palestine) and eventually transitioned from a pagan empire to a papal one Daniel 11:16APEC 90.1+1.

• Augustus and Tiberius: The "raiser of taxes" mentioned in the prophecy was Augustus Caesar, the first Roman emperor who issued the decree for the world to be taxed Daniel 11:20+1APEC 90.1. He was followed by a "vile person," Tiberius Caesar, under whose reign the "Prince of the covenant," Jesus Christ, was broken at the crucifixion Daniel 11:21-22APEC 90.1+1.

• The Abomination of Desolation: The prophecy describes the taking away of the "daily" to set up the "abomination that maketh desolate" Daniel 11:31APEC 81.2+1. The "daily" represents paganism, which was "taken out of the way" to allow the papacy to rise as a world-power 2 Thessalonians 2:7BDOC 25.15+2. This power polluted the sanctuary and persecuted the "people that do know their God," who remained strong and did exploits during the dark ages of papal rule Daniel 11:31-32APEC 94.1+1.

The Time of the End

The "time of the end" is a specific period beginning in 1798 with the downfall of the papal dominion Daniel 11:35APEC 97.2+2. At this time, the king of the South (Egypt) pushed at "him"—the atheistical government of France—and the king of the North (the Turkish Empire) came against him like a whirlwind Daniel 11:40MON 30.2+2. Napoleon’s campaign in Egypt and Syria was a direct fulfillment of these verses, as he entered many countries and overflowed them Daniel 11:40APEC 97.2+2.

The prophecy concludes with the king of the North planting the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain, yet coming to his end with none to help him Daniel 11:45MON 30.2+1. This final collapse of earthly power precedes the standing up of Michael, the great Prince, which signals a time of trouble followed by the deliverance of God's people and the resurrection of the dead Daniel 12:1-2ARSH May 31, 1898, page 349.1.

Conclusion

Daniel 11 stands as an absolute demonstration of God's foreknowledge, tracing the rise and fall of nations from ancient Persia to the end of timeAMS February 21, 1895, page 57.6+2. It warns of the "mystery of iniquity" and the "abomination of desolation," while promising that those whose names are found written in the book will be delivered Daniel 12:1+1TM 36.2+2. Through the study of these predictions, believers are encouraged to stand firm in the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus Revelation 14:12TSA 61.2+1.