Grace and Peace to you from God our Father and from our Lord, Jesus Christ.
You are most welcome here. Today, we’re in Daniel 11 and this week, we’re in the AMP again. So please open that whether you have one on hand or need to see it on Biblegateway. It’s going to help tremendously as we look at these words from the angel to Daniel.
First, let’s pray
Lord Jesus, thank You for the extra explanations we find in the AMP, yet alone with them I am still in need of Your help to explain what You want understood. Lord, I ask for You to lead. In Your holy name and all for your glory.
Before we get to chapter 11, let’s review, because we’re kind of in the middle of a statement with verse 1 here. This is NIV, chapter ten verses 20-21.
So he said, “Do you know why I have come to you? Soon I will return to fight against the prince of Persia, and when I go, the prince of Greece will come; but first I will tell you what is written in the Book of Truth. (No one supports me against them except Michael, your prince.)
Read Daniel 11:1
Conflicts to Come
Does that mean that Darius was a believer? No. Our God works in mysterious ways and His thoughts are higher than ours. He sent the angel to encourage (support) and Protect this new king of Babylon for reasons we can’t really see, but oh how I am grateful to have the encouragement Scripture provides and the protection of being under God’s shield with Him completely surrounding and protecting me. So you see, greater gifts come with faith.
Read Daniel 11:2-3
The fourth king, according to the footnotes is “Xerxes I who is also known as Ahasuerus in the Book of Esther.”
The mighty king will be Alexander.
Kingdoms spoken of so far: Babylon & Greece.
King of Babylon at this time: Darius. At that time: Xerxes I.
King of Greece: Phillip II. At the time of Xerxes I: Alexander (the Great) is Phillip II’s son who would assume the throne in 336BC.
If you can remember back a couple weeks in our reading, Daniel was told that he would not live to see these things happen, so they’re not happening yet in the story, they’re coming though, in the future of the area. Though we don’t know the date this vision was given, we do know that Darius died in 486BC at which time his son Xerxes I took the throne.
Read Daniel 11:4
Alexander dies at 32 years old and the empire is split between his four generals. We looked at that during a previous vision, but to refresh our memories, the footnote takes us back to chapter 8 verse 22…
The four generals who divided the empire established by Alexander were: Seleucus (the north—Syria, Israel, Mesopotamia); Ptolemy (the south—Egypt, parts of Asia Minor); Lysimachus (the east—Thrace, parts of Asia Minor); and Cassander (the west—Greece, Macedonia).
Read Daniel 11:5
Over Egypt we have Ptolemy from 305-282 BC.
The Ptolemaic dynasty which he founded ruled Egypt for nearly three hundred years. It was a Hellenistic kingdom known for its capital Alexandria, which became a center of Greek culture. Ptolemaic rule ended with the death of Cleopatra VII in 30 BC (wikiPedia).
Read Daniel 11:6-8
Footnote: King Antiochus II Theos of Syria.
Daniel 11:6 King Antiochus II, Berenice and their baby were later murdered by the divorced wife of Antiochus II.
Ptolemy III Euergetes I was the third pharaoh of the Ptolemaic dynasty in Egypt from 246 to 222 BC. The Ptolemaic Kingdom reached the height of its military and economic power during his kingship, as initiated by his father Ptolemy II Philadelphus. (wikiPedia)
Read Daniel 11:9-12
Footnote: Seleucus II Callinicus, successor to Antiochus II Theos.
He was a ruler of the Hellenistic Seleucid Empire, who reigned from 246 BC to 225 BC. Faced with multiple enemies on various fronts, and not always successful militarily, his reign was a time of great turmoil and fragmentation for the Seleucid empire, before its eventual restoration under his second son and eventual successor, Antiochus III. (wikiPedia)
Read Daniel 11:13-19
Antiochus III reigned from 222 to 187 BC.
Read Daniel 11:20-21
In 175 BC, Seleucus was assassinated by Heliodorus, one of his leading bureaucrats, who was then replaced by Antiochus IV with support from Pergamon, which was concerned about Rome following recent disputes (wikiPedia)
Footnote: This contemptible conqueror is identified as Antiochus IV Epiphanes, the younger son of Antiochus III the Great, king of Syria, and is a type of the final Antichrist referred to in Dan 11:36; 2 Thess 2:3-12; 1 John 4:3; 2 John 7; and Rev 13:5-8. Antiochus IV Epiphanes attempted to destroy the worship of the true God by robbing the temple of its gold and silver treasures related to worship and setting up a statue of Jupiter in the Holy of Holies. He also breached the walls of Jerusalem, ordered a daily sacrifice of pig, forbade circumcision and destroyed all the sacred scrolls he could find (footnote from 8:10 The near fulfillment of the prophecy most likely pertains to Antiochus IV Epiphanes, who came out of one of the four dynasties (the Seleucid Empire) into which Alexander’s empire was divided, and became a great conqueror, ruling from 175-164 b.c. Hating God, he profaned the temple, persecuted God’s people, the Jews (represented in this passage by “host” and “stars”) and attempted to destroy the Jewish faith.
Read Daniel 11:22-23
Footnote: Onias III, the high priest at Jerusalem, was murdered by his brother Menelaus, who supported Antiochus IV Epiphanes. Antiochus IV later named Menelaus as high priest.
Read Daniel 11:24-28
In a time of tranquility…
Egyptian king: Ptolemy VI; Syrian King: Antiochus IV Epiphanes
27 And as for both of these kings, their hearts will be set on doing evil; they will speak lies over the same table, but it will not succeed, for the end is yet to come at the appointed time.
Footnotes for 23 and 27: Antiochus IV allied himself with Ptolemy VI Philometer, in opposition to Ptolemy VII Euergetes II, as a deceptive way to plunder and conquer much of Egypt.
Daniel 11:27 Ptolemy VI who was designated to rule at Memphis, and Ptolemy VII who was designated to rule at Alexandria, lied to Antiochus IV Epiphanes, and established a joint rule.
Their hearts will be set…
Watch over your heart with all diligence,
For from it flow the springs of life. Proverbs 4:23
Philippians 4:4-7
4 Rejoice in the Lord always [delight, take pleasure in Him]; again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentle spirit [your graciousness, unselfishness, mercy, tolerance, and patience] be known to all people. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious or worried about anything, but in everything [every circumstance and situation] by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, continue to make your [specific] requests known to God. And the peace of God [that peace which reassures the heart, that peace] which transcends all understanding, [that peace which] stands guard over your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus [is yours].
Read Daniel 11:29-32
…but the people who [are spiritually mature and] know their God will display strength and take action [to resist].
To resist. Resist means to exert oneself so as to counteract or defeat or to withstand the force or effect of.
Read Daniel 11:33-35
hypocrisy: a feigning to be what one is not or to believe what one does not : behavior that contradicts what one claims to believe or feel
They who are wise and have spiritual insight will instruct many and help them understand. Yes, these times are covered in the apocryphal books of the Maccabees.
Antiochus IV Epiphanes reigned 175 BC until his death in 164 BC.
Read Daniel 11:36-45
Footnote: The Antichrist is the subject from this point in the prophecy to the end of the chapter.
For that which is determined [by God] will be done.
It’s prophesied, it’s true. It is God’s plan after all. The war in the spiritual realm effects things happening on earth and the things we pray effect things in heaven. So pray.
His Kingdom is a growing and insurgent kingdom and will be the only Kingdom you will want to be a member of, which you can do now before it’s too late. Put your trust in Him and hand him your every minute.
Lord Jesus, we thank You for being the One who is over all and You hold our very lives in Your hand. Thank You for the assurance that Your words are true and we can put all our Trust in You. Thank You for leading us and wooing us and always being right here with us. I praise Your Name. Amen.