If I Were Told the Future - Lesson 19

Daniel 11: The Perfect Portrait

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Daniel 11: The Perfect Portrait

Let's pray together:

Our Father,

As we continue our quest in the fascinating word of Bible prophecy, we are continually amazed at how precisely You have foretold the great upheavals of history, even centuries in advance!

We humbly ask You to guide us once again, as we take up another passage of the precious Word You have given us.

In Jesus Christ we pray.

Amen.

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Daniel 11: The Perfect Portrait

Daniel 10:1	Comments
In the third year of Cyrus king of Persia a message was revealed to Daniel, whose name was called Belteshazzar. The message was true, but the appointed time was long; and he understood the message.	Before taking up the prophecy of Daniel 11, let's look at the context. The year was 536 B.C., 15 years after the vision of Daniel 8. Babylon had fallen into the hands of the Medo-Persian Empire three years before. Having gained the confidence of the new king, Daniel remained counsellor at court. Aged 90, the old prophet received his last vision, the last but not the least!

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Daniel 11: The Perfect Portrait

Daniel, just as John will later, first meets Jesus Christ in vision:

DANIEL 10:5,6 | REVELATION 1:13-16,18
================================|========================================
I lifted my eyes and look- | [I saw] One like the Son of Man,
ed, and behold, a certain man | clothed with a garment down to the feet
clothe d in linen, whose waist | and girded about the chest with a gold-
was girded with gold of Uphaz! | en band. (...) His eyes [were] like a
His body was like beryl, his | flame of fire; His feet were like fine
face like the appearance of | brass, as if refined in a furnace, and
lightning, his eyes like tor- | His voice as the sound of many waters;
ches of fire, his arms and feet | (...) His countenance was like the sun
like burnished bronze in color, | shining in its strength. (...) He said,
and the sound of his words like | ŤI am He who lives, and was dead, and
the voice of a multitude. | behold, I am alive forevermore.ť

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Daniel 10:9,10	Comments
I was in a deep sleep on my face, with my face to the ground. Then, suddenly, a hand touched me, which made me tremble on my knees.	Daniel was stunned before this impressive vision. But, just as previously, the angel Gabriel was sent to give him back his strength.
Daniel 8:16,18
ŤGabriel, make this man understand the vision.ť (...) Now, as he was speaking with me, I was in a deep sleep with my face to the ground; but he touched me, and stood me upright.

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Daniel 10:11,14	Comments
ŤO Daniel, man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak to you. (...) Now I have come to make you understand what will happen to your people in the latter days, for the vision refers to many days yet to come.ť	Gabriel was just about to give Daniel an astonishingly precise vision concerning the kingdoms to come. But let's carefully note that the events revealed concern Ťwhat will happen to your peopleť. So the vision takes an interest only in the nations whose actions will affect the people of God, in one way or another.

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Daniel 10:1; 11:1	Comments
In the third year of Cyrus king of Persia a message was revealed to Daniel. (...) Also in the first year of Darius the Mede, I, even I, stood up to confirm and strengthen him.	In addition to Cyrus II the Great, king of the Medo-Persian Empire, the prophecy makes a reference to Darius the Mede, who was governor of Babylon within this same empire. Daniel was counsellor to Darius, who sadly sent him to the lion's den, a story with a happy ending (please read Daniel chapter 6 for more details).

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Daniel 11: The Perfect Portrait

Daniel 11:2	Comments
And now I will tell you the truth: behold, three more kings will arise in Persia.	As foretold, three more kings arose after Cyrus II the Great: 1. Cambyses II, who reigned from 530 B.C. to 522 B.C.; 2. The False Smerdis, known as Bardiya, brother of Cambyses II. He usurped his throne, but reigned only for six months in 522 B.C.; 3. Darius I, son of Hystapes, who reigned from 522 B.C. to 486 B.C.

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Daniel 11: The Perfect Portrait

Daniel 11:2	Comments
The fourth shall be far richer than them all.	As foretold, the fourth king, Xerxes I, also called Ahasuerus, son of Darius I, was incredibly rich. He reigned from 486 B.C. to 465 B.C.
Esther 1:1,4
In the days of Ahasuerus (this was the Ahasuerus who reigned from India to Ethiopia, over one hundred and twenty-seven provinces) (...). He showed the riches of his glorious kingdom and the splendor of his excellent majesty for many days, one hundred and eighty days in all.

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Daniel 11: The Perfect Portrait

Daniel 11:2

Comments

The fourth [king] shall be far richer than them all; by his strength, through his riches, he shall stir up all against the realm of Greece.

Greece remained the only significant area in the eastern Mediterranean outside the Persian domination.

Xerxes laid plans to conquer it: according to the historian Herodotus, more than 40 nations furnished troops for Xerxes' army.

Two battles were held: in the Bay of Salamis, in 480 B.C., the Greeks sank the Persian fleet; then at Plataea, in 479 B.C., Xerxes was decisively defeated when he lost his land forces.

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Daniel 11:3	Comments
Then a mighty king shall arise, who shall rule with great dominion, and do according to his will.	Then, at the head of the Greek Empire, Alexander the Great overcame the Medo-Persian Empire. As in the prophecy of Daniel chapter 7, the word Ťdominionť is attributed to him.
Daniel 7:6
There was another, like a leopard, which had on its back four wings of a bird. The beast also had four heads, and dominion was given to it.

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Daniel 11:4	Comments
And when he has arisen, his kingdom shall be broken up and divided toward the four winds of heaven.	Alexander died at the age of 32, giving way to his four generals: Lysimachus, Cassander, Ptolemy and Seleucus (see the previous lesson ŤThe Ram and the Goatť).
Daniel 8:8
Therefore the male goat grew very great; but when he became strong, the large horn was broken, and in place of it four notable ones came up toward the four winds of heaven.

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Daniel 11:4	Comments
His kingdom shall be broken up and divided toward the four winds of heaven, but not among his posterity nor according to his dominion with which he ruled; for his kingdom shall be uprooted, even for others besides these.	The parallel with Daniel 8 is perfect: both prophecies notice that the division into four parts would contribute to the weakening of the Greek Empire. Moreover, the prophecy of Daniel chapter 11 specifies that the kingdom of Alexander the Great would not be divided Ťamong his posterityť: in fact, his generals were the ones who inherited the kingdom.
Daniel 8:22
As for the broken horn and the four that stood up in its place, four kingdoms shall arise out of that nation, but not with its power.

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Daniel 11:5

Comments

Then the king of the South shall become strong, as well as one of his princes; and he shall gain power over him and have dominion.

Daniel 11:5-15 then focuses on the wars between the two kingdoms emerging from the Greek Empire.

The two enemy clans were:

- the North, represented by the dynasty of the Seleucids, ruling over Syria;

- and the South, represented by the dynasty of the Ptolemies, ruling over Egypt.

The conflict began with the very generals of Alexander the Great: Ptolemy I Soter dominated first, but afterwards, Seleucus I Nicator became the most powerful.

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Daniel 11:6	Comments
At the end of some years they shall join forces, for the daughter of the king of the South shall go to the king of the North to make an agreement.	To establish peace, Antiochus II Theos, king of Syria (North), grandson of Seleucus I Nicator, repudiated his first wife Laodice, and married Berenice, a daughter of the king of Egypt (South), Ptolemy II Philadelphus, in 252 B.C. But, unfortunately for Berenice, things turned out badly...

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Daniel 11:6	Comments
The daughter of the king of the South shall go to the king of the North to make an agreement. But she shall not retain the power of her authority, and neither he nor his authority shall stand; but she shall be given up, with those who brought her, and with him who begot her, and with him who strengthened her in those times.	Antiochus II and Ptolemy II both died in 246 B.C., making the agreement meaningless. Laodice then came back, and had Berenice and her son murdered, thus giving back the throne to her own son, Seleucus II Callinicus.

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Daniel 11:7,8	Comments
But from a branch of her roots one shall arise in his place, who shall come with an army, enter the fortress of the king of the North, and deal with them and prevail. And he shall also carry their gods captive to Egypt, with their princes and their precious articles of silver and gold; and he shall continue more years than the king of the North.	Ptolemy III Euergetes, brother of Berenice, avenged his sister by overcoming Seleucus II Callinicus in 241 B.C. He also brought back to Egypt some 2500 gold and silver idols.

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Daniel 11:8,9	Comments
Then the king of the North shall come to the kingdom of the king of the South, but shall return to his own land.	Satisfied, Ptolemy III Euergetes (South) never again attacked the Seleucids (North). But the latter did not forget: Seleucus II Callinicus re-established himself in Syria, and tried to attack Egypt in 240 B.C. But he suffered a bitter defeat, as his land forces and his fleet were completely destroyed. Hurt and empty-handed, he Ťreturned to his own landť.

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Daniel 11:10	Comments
However his sons shall stir up strife, and assemble a multitude of great forces; and one shall certainly come and overwhelm and pass through; then he shall return to his fortress and stir up strife.	Seleucus III Ceraunus Soter and Antiochus III the Great, sons of Seleucus II, decided to avenge their father. Antiochus III the Great took the matter in hand. First, he recaptured the port of Antioch. Then, he set out upon a systematic campaign to conquer Palestine from his rival, Ptolemy IV Philopator, during which time he penetrated Transjordan.

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Daniel 11:11,12	Comments
And the king of the South shall be moved with rage, and go out and fight with him, with the king of the North, who shall muster a great multitude; but the multitude shall be given into the hand of his enemy. When he has taken away the multitude, his heart will be lifted up; and he will cast down tens of thousands, but he will not prevail.	Ptolemy IV (South) counter-attacked and defeated Antiochus III (North) at Raphia, in Palestine, in 217 B.C., killing more than 10,000 enemies. But resting on his laurels, he didn't see that a reprisal was being prepared...

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Daniel 11:13	Comments
For the king of the North will return and muster a multitude greater than the former, and shall certainly come at the end of some years with a great army and much equipment.	16 years later, in 201 B.C., Antiochus III the Great (North) took advantage of the weakness of Egypt, ruled at that time by Ptolemy V Epiphanes, a boy under ten years of age. He attacked him and took back Syria and Palestine, pushing on his conquests as far as the limits of India.

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Daniel 11:14	Comments
And in those times many shall rise up against the king of the South; also certain violent men of your people shall exalt themselves in fulfillment of the vision, but they shall fall.	Vulnerable, the young Ptolemy V had to face at the same time Antiochus III and his associate Philip of Macedon, the current successor to Cassander, as well as the Egyptians, who were rebelling against their Greek overlords. Taking advantage of this conflict between Syria and Egypt, some fanatic Jews tried to break free from the foreign dominion, but failed.

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Daniel 11:15	Comments
So the king of the North shall come and build a siege mound, and take a fortified city; and the forces of the South shall not withstand him. Even his choice troops shall have no strength to resist.	Seeing the threat over Ptolemy V Epiphanes, Rome, who had had the guardianship of the young king since he was 5, forbade Antiochus III the Great to come back into Egypt. However, the latter did not take this warning seriously, and seized two fortified cities: Gaza, in 201 B.C., and Sidon, in 198 B.C.

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Daniel 11:16	Comments
But he who comes against him shall do according to his own will, and no one shall stand against him. He shall stand in the Glorious Land with destruction in his power.	But Rome retaliated, and overcame Antiochus III in 191 B.C. Afterwards, Rome, at the battle of Pydna, in 168 B.C., crushed the last traces of independence in the Greek Empire. Then, in 64 B.C., Roman general Pompey invaded Palestine, Ťthe Glorious Landť.
Daniel 8:9
And out of one of them came a little horn which grew exceedingly great (...) toward the Glorious Land.

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Daniel 11:17	Comments
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 to destroy it; but she shall not stand with him, or be for him.	Rome continued its conquests under the command of Julius Caesar. Cleopatra VII, daughter of the king of Egypt Ptolemy XII Auletes Philadelphus, became the mistress of Julius Caesar, but the latter never married her.

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Daniel 11:18,19	Comments
After this he shall turn his face to the coastlands, and shall take many. But a ruler shall bring the reproach against them to an end; and with the reproach removed, he shall turn back on him. Then he shall turn his face toward the fortress of his own land; but he shall stumble and fall, and not be found.	After having conquered many isles of the north coast of Africa and of Asia Minor, Julius Caesar returned to Rome, where he was proclaimed dictator in 46 B.C. But his close relatives, led by Brutus, his adopted son, and Cassius, were plotting against him, and murdered him in 44 B.C.

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Daniel 11:20	Comments
There shall arise in his place one who imposes taxes on the glorious kingdom; but within a few days he shall be destroyed, but not in anger or in battle.	The great-nephew of Julius Caesar, Octavius, succeeded him, thus becoming Caesar Augustus. Under his reign, Rome knew its greatest hours of glory. Just as foretold, he died peacefully in his bed at the age of 76, in A.D. 14, Ťnot in anger or in battleť.

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Daniel 11:20	Comments
There shall arise in his place one who imposes taxes on the glorious kingdom.	Just as foretold, Caesar Augustus was at the origin of a universal tax system. This is why a census was organized at the time of Jesus' birth, as reported in the Gospel according to Luke.
Luke 2:1
And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered.

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Daniel 11:21	Comments
And in his place shall arise a vile person, to whom they will not give the honor of royalty; but he shall come in peaceably, and seize the kingdom by intrigue.	Caesar Augustus founded the official position of Roman emperor. Because of that, the word Ťaugustusť soon became synonymous with Ťemperorť, and every Roman emperor was afterwards known as an ŤAugustusť. This succession of emperors finally gave way to another type of rulers, described here as Ťa vile personť, without Ťthe honor of royaltyť.

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Daniel 11:21	Comments
And in his place shall arise a vile person, to whom they will not give the honor of royalty; but he shall come in peaceably, and seize the kingdom by intrigue.	In fact, from verse 21 to the end of chapter 11, the prophecy looks into the actions of this Ťvile personť, who is also called Ťthe king of the Northť. Who is this king of the North? This will be the subject of a future lesson. But before ending this lesson, let's look at a few extracts of these last verses of Daniel 11.

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Daniel 11:25,40,41,44	Comments
He shall stir up his power and his courage against the king of the South with a great army. (...) The king of the North shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, horsemen, and with many ships. (...) He shall also enter the Glorious Land, and many countries shall be overthrown. (...) He shall go out with great fury to destroy and annihilate many.	The story of the king of the North is marked by the number and the violence of the wars he made against his various enemies.

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Daniel 11:23,32,36,37

Comments

And after the league is made with him he shall act deceitfully, for he shall come up and become strong with a small number of people. (...)

Those who do wickedly against the covenant he shall corrupt with flattery. (...)

He shall exalt and magnify himself above every god, shall speak blasphemies against the God of gods. (...)

[He shall not] regard any god; for he shall magnify himself above them all.

Here are two other main traits of the king of the North: his hypocrisy, by which his power grew, and his great arrogance.

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Daniel 11:28,30-33	Comments
His heart shall be moved against the holy covenant; so he shall do damage. (...) He shall (...) return in rage against the holy covenant, and do damage. (...) And forces shall be mustered by him, and they shall defile the sanctuary fortress. (...) But the people who know their God shall be strong. (...) Yet for many days they shall fall by sword and flame, by captivity and plundering.	And the last major clue: the main target of the attacks of the king of the North is God's people, faithful to His Word and His will.

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Matthew 7:8	Comments
He who seeks finds.	Although the identity of the king of the North will be revealed only in a future lesson, it is possible to seek right now to find who he is. A little research with a good history book will quickly answer this question.

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Daniel 10:1,21	Comments
A message was revealed to Daniel, whose name was called Belteshazzar. The message was true, but the appointed time was long; and he understood the message. (...) ŤI will tell you what is noted in the Scripture of Truth.ť	The truthfulness of the prophecy of Daniel 11 is asserted twice: Ťthe message was true...ť, Ťwhat is noted in the Scripture of Truthť. Until today, this prophecy has been rigorously accurate. What does the future hold for us? Just like Daniel, let's all Ťunderstand the messageť.

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Daniel 11: The Perfect Portrait

Let's end this lesson with a prayer:

Lord, our God,

The prophecy of Daniel 11 greatly amazes us by its astonishing accuracy.

The complete fulfillment in history of the foretold events calls us to give heed to what You announce for today.

Through Your Holy Spirit and Your inspired Word, please help us to properly prepare ourselves for the time of the end and for the return of Your Son Jesus Christ.

In His precious name we pray.

Amen.

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