VERSE 1 "In the first year of Darius the Mede, I arose to be an encouragement and a protection for him (Al zA[m'l.W qyzIx]m;l. ydIm.[' ydIM'h; vw<y"r>d'l. tx;a; tn:v.Bi ynIa]w: [waw w/pro.1c.s. ani I + prep beth w/noun f.s.constr. shanah year + adj.f.s.abs. echad one + prep lamedh w/proper noun Darius + art.w/proper noun Mede + qal infin.constr.w/1c.s.suff. amad stand; "arose" + prep lamedh w/hiphil part.m.s.abs. chazaq be(come) strong, strengthen, be courageous; "to be an encouragement" + waw w/prep lamedh w/noun m.s.abs. ma-oz place or means of safety; "protection" + prep lamedh w/3m.s.suff. "for him"]).

ANALYSIS: VERSE 1

1. For some reason not quite clear, the first verse of chapter 11 (as divided by the MT and LXX) has been linked to the predictions of the destines of the world empires (chp. 11), rather than being assigned to the end of chapter 10.
2. But as the Kittle edition of the OT indicates, the true connection is with what precedes.
3. Clearly 11:1 points back to 10:21, which speaks of the angel’s alliance with the archangel, Michael, against the demons of Persia and Greece and specifies the first year of Darius the Mede (539-538 BC) as the time when his contest with Satan’s emissaries began.
4. This suggests that the struggle had already been going on for four or five years (since the episode of chapters 10-12 takes place in the third year of Cyrus as king of Babylon).
5. The occasion for the spiritual warfare was the restoration of the believing remnant of Israel to the Holy Land and their survival there as those living in obedience to the will of God.
6. Knowing that such a development would lead to the ultimate appearance of the Messiah for the redemption of the world, Satan and his angels were determined to thwart the renewal of Israel and the deliverance of the same from destruction.
7. The supreme effort to exterminate them altogether was to take place some fifty-five years later, in the reign of Ahasuerus (Xerxes), when Haman secured his authority to obliterate the entire Jewish race!
8. The second major effort of Satan was to take place under Antiochus Epiphanes, who sought to obliterate the Jewish faith by forbidding its practice on the pain of death.
9. The momentous events of 167-164 BC may well have been profoundly affected by supernatural warfare between the forces of heaven and hell.
10. As with these later events, there was spiritual warfare between Michael’s and Satan’s angels over the restoration of the Jews to their homeland.
11. It was in this very year (539-538) that Daniel had made his breakthrough of the prophecy of Jeremiah of the 70 year Babylonian captivity (see 9:1).
12. It was at this time that Gabriel was assigned to "be and encouragement and a protection" for king Darius.
13. Darius was man who was to see to it that the Jews living in Babylon were supported in their efforts to migrate back to their homeland.
14. He had a mandate from is immediate superior Cyrus the Great.
15. It was Cyrus’s decree that allowed the Jews to return to Israel and rebuild the temple.
16. Darius was the one who had to overcome any political opposition and see that this decree was honored.
17. There were no doubt political and religious parties within the empire that sought to thwart this eventuality.
18. Gabriel had been given by God orders to support, protect and encourage Darius to see to it that the return would take place.
19. We can only speculate has to exactly how Gabriel intervened so Darius would be supported in his leadership role at this time.
20. We know that Darius was a believer (6:24-27) from the words of his proclamation in chapter 6.
21. Daniel’s deliverance from the lion’s den had a profound and salutary effect upon his spiritual outlook.
22. So God used an elect angel of considerable standing in the angelic hierarchy to protect and encourage Darius in this endeavor.
23. In the end, it made a real difference in whether this endeavor would succeed or not.
24. We should not confuse the angelic speaker here with Michael, since the one who was sent to convey this prophetic message to Daniel was Gabriel.
25. Gabriel was the angel assigned to Darius as the conflict over the departure of the Jews heated up.
26. Michael (who corresponds to Satan) in the angelic hierarchy freed Gabriel up so he could fulfill his assignment to Daniel.
27. Perhaps Gabriel corresponds to "the prince of Persia" in relative strength.

VERSE 2 "And now I will tell you the truth (%l' dyGIa; tm,a/ hT'[;w> [waw w/adv attah now + noun f.s.abs. emeth truth + hiphil impf.1c.s. nagadh make know; "tell" + prep lamedh w/2m.s.suff.]).

Behold, three more kings are going to arise in Persia (sr;p'l. ~ydIm.[o ~ykil'm. hv'l{v. dA[-hNEhi [interj hinneh behold + adv odh still, again, besides + adj.m.s.abs. shalosh three + noun m.p.abs. melek king + qal part.m.p.abs. amad stand; "are going to arise" + prep lamedh w/proper noun Persia]).

Then a fourth will gain far more riches than all of them (lKomi lAdG"-rv,[o ryvi[]y: y[iybir>h'w> [waw w/art.w/adj.m.s.abs. rebi-i fourth + hiphil impf.3m.s. ashar be rich, "will gain" + noun m.s.abs. osher riches + adj.m.s.abs. gadol great; "far more" + prep min w/noun m.s.abs. kol all; "than all"]; as soon as he becomes strong through his riches [Arv.['b. Atq'z>x,k.W [waw w/prep kaph w/noun f.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. chezqah strength; translated here as a verb; "as soon as he becomes strong" + prep beth w/noun m.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. osher riches], he will arouse the whole empire against the realm of Greece [!w"y" tWkl.m; tae lKoh; ry[iy" [hiphil impf.3m.s. ur rouse oneself; incite + art.w/noun m.s.abs. kol all; "the whole realm" + d.o. + noun f.s.constr. malkuth kingdom; "realm" + proper noun yawan Greece]).

ANALYSIS: VERSE 2

1. Gabriel is finally ready to dispense the prophecies related to the Persians, the Greeks and the Antichrist.
2. The header for this prophetic-historical treatise is: "And now I will recount the truth."
3. The accuracy of this very detailed message attests to its veracity and divine origin.
4. The entire message covers history from the Persians monarch who followed Cyrus until the reign of Antiochus Epiphanes.
5. Gabriel tells Daniel that there will be four more Persian monarchs after the current and first ruler of the Empire, Cyrus.
6. The first king after Cyrus (560/59-530) was his elder son Cambyses who in the short seven or eight years of his reign managed to conquer Egypt.
7. He ruled from 530 until 522 BC.
8. Number two in the listing here is an imposter named Gaumata or Bardiya, who passed himself off as Cyrus’s younger son Smerdis (the true Smerdis had been murdered by his brother’s agents).
9. Pseudo-Smerdis only reigned one year and he was assassinated by Darius the Persian (522).
10. This third ruler after Cyrus over the Persian Empire was Darius, the son of Hystaspes, and he ruled from 522 until 486 BC.
11. Darius himself was of royal blood since he was a cousin of Cyrus through his father Hystaspes.
12. Darius had made an earlier attempt to conquer Athens in 490 BC, to punish it for aiding the Ionian Greek cities in their abortive attempt to revolt against their Persian overlords.
13. But Darius’s naval expedition came to defeat at the Battle of Marathon.
14. So it was the inherited obligation that the fourth king prophesied here, Xerxes I, Darius’s son, took over on his accession to wreck havoc on Athens.
15. He ruled from 486 to 465.
16. And there was the added factor of the momentum of empire building that would in any event have compelled the Persians to keep pushing westward (see 8:4).
17. Xerxes sustained and even more crushing defeat than his father had.
18. After his army had subdued virtually all of Greece down to the Isthmus of Corinth and the city of Athens had been burned to the ground, Xerxes navy was defeated by the Greeks at the Battle of Salamis in 480 BC.
19. The hundred-thousand man land army he left behind under the command of Mardonius was completely crushed the following year by the Greeks at the Battle of Plataea.
20. Due to the vast fortune he had inherited from his forebears he was encouraged to engage in empire building and this led to a century and a half of conflict with the Greeks.
21. Those who live by empire building die by empire building.
22. His vast wealth prompted him to engage in ill-advised pursuits.
23. Wealth and lots of it tends to change people for the worse and they get involved in all sorts of things that result in ruin down the road.
24. It is not that some cannot handle wealth but most do a poor job.
25. Job stayed focused and so did Abraham.
26. The Persian monarchs suffered from extreme pride and this too was their undoing (8:4).

VERSE 3 "And a mighty king will arise, and he will rule with great authority and do as he pleases (AnAcr>Ki hf'['w> br; lv'm.mi lv;m'W rABGI %l,m, dm;['w> [waw w/qal perf.3m.s. amad stand; "will arise" + noun m.s.abs. melek king + adj.m.s.abs. gibor mighty + waw w/qal perf.3m.s. mashal rule, have dominion + noun m.s.constr. rab great; "great authority" + waw w/qal perf.3m.s. ashah do + prep kaph w/noun m.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. ratson pleasure; here "according to his good pleasure"]).

VERSE 4 "But as soon as he has arisen, his kingdom will be broken up and parceled out toward the four points of the compass, (~yIm'V'h; tAxWr [B;r>a;l. #x'tew> AtWkl.m; rbeV'Ti Adm.['k.W [waw w/prep kaph w/qal infin.constr.w/3m.s.suff. amad stand; "has arisen" + niphal impf.3f.s. shabar break in pieces + noun f.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. malkuth kingdom + waw w/niphal impf.3f.s. chatsah divide; "parceled out" + prep lamedh w/adj.f.s.abs. areba four + noun both p.constr. ruach spirit, wind + art.w/noun m.p.abs. shamyim heaven] though not to his own descendants, nor according to his authority which he wielded [lv'm' rv,a] Alv.m'k. al{w> AtyrIx]a;l. al{w> [waw w/neg lo + prep lamedh w/noun f.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. acharith future, afterwards; "through his own descendents" + waw w/neg. lo "nor" + prep kaph w/noun m.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. mosel dominion; "according to his authority" + rel. asher + qal perf.3m.s. mashal rule; "he wielded"], for his sovereignty will be uprooted and given to others besides them [hL,ae-db;L.mi ~yrIxea]l;w> AtWkl.m; vteN"ti yKi [part ki for + niphal impf.3f.s. nathash root out, pluck up (by the roots); "uprooted" + noun f.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. malkuth "sovereignty"+ waw w/prep lamedh w/adj.m.p.abs. acher another; "to others" + prep min from w/prep lamedh w/noun m.s.abs. bad alone; "besides" + adj.p.abs. elleh these; "them"]).

ANALYSIS: VERSES 3-4

1. Note the prophecy hopscotches over the Persian kings to the time of Alexander the Great.
2. In other words, from Xerxes I the fourth king of verse 2, until the time of the last Persian king, Darius III, there were seven other men who ruled Persia.
3. After Darius I there is Xerxes I whose years are 486 to 465.
4. Next we have Artaxerxes I who ruled from 465 to 424.
5. Next is Xerxes II who only ruled one year: 424.
6. Next is Sogdianos who ruled from one year (424-423).
7. Next is Darius II (Ochus) who ruled from 423 to 405/4.
8. Next is Artaxerxes II (Arsakes) who ruled from 405/2 to 359/58.
9. Next is Artaxerxes III (Ochos) who ruled from 359/58 to 338/37.
10. Next is Artaxerxes IV (Ares) who ruled from 338/37 to 336.
11. This brings us to the king who was defeated by Alexander the Great: Darius III (Kodomannos), who ruled from 336 to 330.
12. These dates are taken from "The Persian Empire" by J. M. Cook.
13. This gives a grand total of thirteen monarchs including the first king, Cyrus the Great, who ruled from 560/59 to 530 BC.
14. We should not assume from the statement in verse 2 that there was going to be a total of just four more kings after Cyrus, although that could easily have been the assumption of anyone reading this prophecy before its fulfillment.
15. The prophecy skips eight kings including the last king to rule, Darius III.
16. To avoid a charge of prophetic inaccuracy at this point it would seem that the intent is to demonstrate that the foreign policy of the Persian rulers, especially prominent in the rule of the fourth king after Cyrus, was to antagonize the kingdom from the west or the Greek peoples.
17. From Xerxes I forward the Persian "ram" provoked the Greek "goat" and the issue was resolved in the person of the first Greek rule, Alexander the Great.
18. Verse 3 moves us forward to the next phase in the world empires of antiquity: the rise of Alexander the Great.
19. Although this verse does not make it explicit that this "mighty king" would inaugurate a new empire at the expense of the Persian one, verse 4 leaves us in no doubt that he was the ruler predicted here.
20. Verse 3 is constructed around three qal perfects: "will arise," "will rule," and "will do."
21. The first verb (amad) looks at his rise to power over the Greek peoples.
22. He became king over the Greek peoples in 336 BC.
23. The second verb (mashal) with the dependant clause, "with great authority/dominion" views his unprecedented and unequalled conquest of the world in a mere eight years.
24. He became master of Asia (Persian Empire) at the Battle of Gaugamela on October 1^st 331 BC.
25. The overthrow of the Persian Empire was accomplished in three engagements.
26. The first was at the river Granicus in May of 334.
27. The second was the Battle of Issus in November of 333.
28. And the final blow came at Gaugamela in 331.
29. From there he marched all the way eastward to Afghanistan and the Indus River and Bahawalpur, beyond the farthest reaches of the Persian conquest.
30. His authority was "great" and he had no creditable rivals.
31. The 3^rd perfect "will do" (ashah) with its dependant clause "according to his will" views him as a personality type that answered to no one.
32. From a cosmic perspective this trait is admired, but from the divine perspective this trait demonstrates his self-will and self-glorification even up to and including his growing god complex.
33. He came to embrace his mother Olympius’s claim that his birth was divine and at the end he required his men to treat him like a divine Persian monarch which offended their Greek upbringing.
34. There at last he was compelled by his weary troops to return westward to Babylon in 327.
35. Thus in about eight years he accomplished the most dazzling military conquest in human history.
36. But he lived only four more years.
37. He died the death of a mortal at age 33 in June 323 (he was born in 356) in Babylon.
38. The cause of his death is contested.
39. The phrase "But as soon as he has arisen" (which might be better translated "As soon as he has appeared", a good rendering of the preposition ke before the infinitive ‘omdo ["his standing up"]) suggests that this mighty conqueror was going to have a comparatively brief career.
40. His demise at after a brief reign is clearly set forth in the prophesy of the breaking of the prominent horn of the Grecian goat in chapter 8.
41. Verse 4 proceeds to foretell the division of Alexander’s domains among four smaller and weaker kingdoms.
42. After a period of imperial regency under Perdiccas (murdered in 321) and Antigonus (who was defeated at the Battle of Ipsus in 310), the domains of Alexander were parceled out into (1) Macedonai-Greece under Antipater and his son Cassander; (2) Thrace-Asia Minor under Lysimachus, who had been the principal general at the Battle of Ipsus; (3) Seleucus Nicator, the ruler over all the rest of Asia except lower Syria and Palestine; and (4) Ptolemy, son of Lagus, the king of Egypt and Palestine.
43. The infant son of Alexander III (the Great) was Alexander IV, born to the Persian princess Roxana.
44. Kept under Cassander’s custody, he was removed by murder in 310.
45. His uncle, Philip Arrhidaeus, who was an illegitimate brother of Alexander’s and mentally deranged, had already been assassinated in 317.
46. Thus there were no descendants or blood relatives to succeed Alexander himself and the prediction "thought not to his own descendants" found exact fulfillment.
47. The four ruthless and powerful generals named above became the "Diadochi" ("Successors") who engineered the partition of the Madeconian Empire into four realms.
48. This is in complete harmony with the vision and its interpretation in chapter 8 (21-22).

VERSE 5 "Then the king of the South will grow strong (bg<N<h;-%l,m, qz:x/y<w> [waw w/qal impf.3m.s. chazaq be(come) strong + noun m.s.abs. melek king + art.w/proper noun Negeb South (Egypt), along with one of his princes who will gain ascendancy over him and obtain dominion [lv'm'W wyl'[' qz:x/y<w> wyr'f'-!miW [waw w/prep min w/noun m.p.constrt/w/3m.s.suff. shar prince; "along with one of his princes" + waw w/qal impf.3m.s. chazaq be(come) strong, prevail; "gain ascendancy" + prep al w/3m.s.suff. "over him" + waw w/qal perf.3m.s. mashal have dominion; "obtain dominion"]; his domain will be a great dominion indeed [ATl.v;m.m, br; lv'm.mi [noun m.s.abs. mimeshal dominion; "dominion" + adj.m.s.abs. rab great + noun f.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. memshalah realm, domain; "his domain"]).

Berenice and Laodice (v.6)

VERSE 6 "After some years they will form an alliance [WrB'x;t.yI ~ynIv' #qel.W [waw w/prep lamedh w/noun m.s.ab.s qets end; "After some" + noun f.p.abs. shanah year + hithpael impf.3m.p. chabar be joined; "will form an alliance"], and the daughter of the king of the South will come to the king of the North to carry out a peaceful arrangement [~yrIv'yme tAf[]l; !ApC'h; %l,m,-la, aAbT' bg<N<h;-%l,m, tb;W [waw w/noun f.s.constr. bath daughter + noun m.s.abs. melek + art.w/proper noun Negeb South + qal impf.3f.s. bo come + prep el to noun m.s.abs. melek + art.w/noun f.s.abs. tsapon north + prep lamedh w/qal infin.constr. ashah "to carry out" + noun m.p.abs. meshar level straightness; "peaceful arrangement"]).

But she will not retain her position of power, nor will he remain with his power, but she will be given up (ayhi !teN"tiw> A[roz>W dmo[]y: al{w> [;ArZ>h; x;AK rco[.t;-al{w> [waw w/neg. lo + qal impf.3f.s. atsar restrain, retain + noun m.s.constr. koach power + art.w/noun f.s.abs. zeroa- arm "position" + waw w/neg. lo "nor" + qal impf.3m.s. amad stand "remain" + waw w/noun f.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. zeroa "his power" + waw w/niphal impf.3f.s. nathan give; "given up" + pro.3f.s. hi she], along with those who brought her in and the one who sired her as well as he who supported her in those times [~yTi[iB' Hq'zIx]m;W Hd'l.YOh;w> h'ya,ybim.W [waw w/hiphil part.m.p.constr.w/3f.s.suff. bo come; "those who brought her in" + waw w/art.w/qal part.m.s.constr.w/3f.s. yaladh bear, beget; "the one who sired her" + waw w/hiphil part.m.s.constr.w/3f.s.suff. chazaq be(come) strong, strengthen; "as well as he who supported her" + prep beth w/art.w.nounf.p.abs. eth time]).

ANALYSIS: VERSES 5-6

1. "The king of the South" (v.5) was to be Ptolemy I (Soter), son of Lagus, whose ambitions extended far beyond the borders of Egypt (over which Alexander had placed him in charge) to Palestine and the rest of Asia Minor.
2. Temporarily his naval forces captured Cyprus and important bases in Asia Minor, and there were even a time when he wielded considerable influence over some of the city-states of the Greek mainland.
3. But the phrase "king of the South" encompasses all the Ptolemies over the 280 year history until the last "king" which was none other than Cleopatra VII who met her end around 30 BC.
4. The domain of the Ptolemies was pretty well restricted to Egypt and Cyprus; they lost Palestine to the Seleucid king Antiochus III shortly before 200 BC.
5. The interpretation of the phrase "along with one of his princes" is none other than Seleucus Nicator of the Seleucid Empire.
6. Originally he had served under Perdiccas and Antigonus in Babylon but had had a falling out with the latter in 316.
7. Thereafter he defected to Ptolemy; and after the defeat of Antigonus, he made his way back to Babylon (where he was well liked) with Ptolemy’s sponsorship in 312, two years after he assumed the title of king, so that 310 became the official starting point for the Seleucid Era.
8. Since Seleucus Nicator secured control of Alexander’s old domains all the way to the Indus on the east and to Syria and Phoenicia on the west, his authority far surpassed that of his sponsor, Ptolemy.
9. The Seleucid dynasty endured till 64 BC, when Pompey delivered the end to a truncated empire that had already lost Babylon and all its eastern dominions to the Parthians.
10. After the death of Ptolemy I ("king of the South" in v.5) in 285, his son Ptolemy II (Philadelphus) continued the contest with the Seleucids till 252, when a treaty of peace was finally arranged with Antiochus II (Theos), under the terms of which Antiochus was to marry Berenice, the daughter of Philadelphus.
11. This furnished a serious complication, however, for Antiochus already had a wife, a powerful and influential woman named Laodice.
12. She did not take kindly to being divorced, despite the obvious political advantages accruing from an alliance with Ptolemaic Egypt (v.6).
13. She therefore organized a successful conspiracy, operating from her place of banishment, where she had been sent after the divorce; and she managed to have both Berenice and her infant son , whom she had borne to Antiochus, assassinated.
14. Not long afterward the king himself was poisoned to death (247 BC), and the pro-Laodice party engineered a coup that put her in power as queen regent during the minority of her son, Selecus II (Callinicus).
15. In this manner, then, the prophecy was fulfilled concerning Berenice that she would be "given up," along with the nobles who supported her in the royal capital of Antioch.
16. The "one who sired her" refers to her father Ptolemy Philadelphus who lost his daughter and grandson and the political peace.
17. Finally, the one "who supported her in those times" refers to her poisoned husband, Antiochus II.

VERSE 7 "But one of the descendants of her line will arise in his place (ANK; h'yv,r'v' rc,NEmi dm;['w> [waw w/qal perf.3m.s. amad stand; "will arise" + prep min w/noun m.s.constr. netser branch; "descendant" + noun m.p.constr.w/3f.s.suff. shoresh root; "of her line" + noun m.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. ken foot, base, place; "in his place"], and he will come against their army and enter the fortress of the king of the North [!ApC'h; %l,m, zA[m'B. aboy"w> lyIx;h;-la, aboy"w> [waw w/qal impf.3m.s. bo come + prep el "against" + art.w/noun m.s.abs. chayil might; "army" + waw w/qal impf.3m.s. bo enter + prep beth w/noun m.s.constr. ma-on fortress + noun m.s.abs. melek king + art.w/noun f.s.abs. tsapon north], and he will deal with them and display great strength [qyzIx/h,w> ~h,b' hf'['w> [waw w/qal perf.3m.s. ashah do; "will deal" + prep beth w/3m.p.suff. "with them" + waw w/hiphil perf.3m.s. chazaq be(come) strong; "display great strength"]).

VERSE 8 "Also their gods with their metal images and their precious vessels of silver and gold he will take into captivity to Egypt (~yIr'c.mi abiy" ybiV.B; bh'z"w> @s,K, ~t'D'm.x, yleK.-~[i ~h,ykesin>-~[i ~h,yhel{a/ ~g:w> [waw w/part gam also + noun m.p.constr.w/3m.s.suff. elohim god + prep im with + noun m.p.constr.w/3m.p.suff. nasik libation (Deut.32:38); molten image (Dan.11:8) + prep im + noun m.p.constr. keli utensil; "vessels" + noun f.s.constr.w/3m.p.suff. chemedah precious + noun m.s.abs. kedeph silver + waw w/noun m.s.abs. zahab gold + prep beth w/noun m.s.abs. shebi captivity + hiphil impf.3m.s. bo bring; "take" + proper noun mitsrayim Egypt], and he on his part will refrain from attacking the king of the North for some years [!ApC'h; %l,M,mi dmo[]y: ~ynIv' aWhw> [waw w/pro.3m.s. hu he; "and he on his part" + noun f.p.abs. shanah year + qal impf.3m.s. amad remain; "will refrain" + prep min w/noun m.s.abs. melek + art.w/noun f.s.abs. tsapon north]).

ANALYSIS: VERSES 7-8

1. Verse 7 sets forth the subsequent reprisal.
2. Ptolemy Philadelphus died in 247 soon after the tragedy that had taken his daughter Berenice’s life.
3. But his capable son Ptolemy III (Euergetes) organized a great expeditionary force against Syria, in order to avenge his sister’s death.
4. This war raged from 246 to 241, in the course of which Ptolemy captured and pillaged the Seleucid capital of Antioch and invaded its eastern domains as far as Bactria.
5. Finally he returned to Egypt laden with spoil, but he did not see fit to add much of the Seleucid territory on a permanent basis.
6. He did, however, shatter the Seleucid navy in the Agean Sea and remained the foremost naval power for the duration of his reign.
7. He succeeded on other fronts as well, for he reunited Cyrenaica (at the western end of Libya) with the Ptolemaic domains, after it had enjoyed twelve years of independence.
8. He also recovered all of his father’s conquests on the coast of Asia Minor and temporarily gained control of some portions of Thrace.
9. Verse 8 predicts the recovery of the long-lost idols and sacred treasures from Persia taken as booty by Cambyses I 524 BC.
10. For this return of their cherished images, the native Egyptian populace received Ptolemy III with adulation as he returned to the Nile laden with spoil.
11. It was for this restoration of their national treasures from the hated Persians that they acclaimed him Euergetes ("Benefactor").
12. The verse concludes: "For some years he will leave the King of the North alone."
13. Because he was much occupied with his Aegean conquests after his reprisals against the King of the North.
14. So vengeance was extracted for the broken treaty of peace that Ptolemy III made with Seleucus II in 240.

VERSE 9 "Then the latter will enter the realm of the king of the South, but will return to his own land (Atm'd>a;-la, bv'w> bg<N<h; %l,m, tWkl.m;B. ab'W [waw w/qal perf.3m.s. bo enter + prep beth w/noun f.s.abs. malekuth realm + noun m.s.abs. melek + art.w/proper non Negeb South + waw w/qal perf.3m.s. shub return + prep el to + noun f.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. adamah country, land]).

VERSE 10 "His sons will mobilize and assemble a multitude of great forces (~yBir; ~yliy"x] !Amh] Wps.a'w> WrG"t.yI Îwyn"b'WÐ ¿Anb.WÀ [waw w/noun m.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. ben son + hithpael impf.3m.p. garah stir up; "mobilize" + waw w/qal perf.3p. asaph assemble + noun m.s.constr. hamon multitude + noun m.p.abs. chayil might; "forces" + adj.m.p.abs. rab great]; and one of them will keep on coming and overflow and pass through, that he may again wage war up to his very fortress [ÎAZ[um'Ð ¿hZ"[um'À-d[; Îhr,G"t.yIw>Ð ¿WrG"t.yIw>À bvoy"w> rb'['w> @j;v'w> aAb ab'W [waw w/qal perf.3m.s. bo come + qal infin.abs. bo come; "keep on coming" + waw w/qal perf.3m.s. shataph overflow + waw w/qal perf.3m.s. abar pass by/through + waw w/qal impf.3m.s. shubh return; "he may again" + waw w/hithpael impf.3m.p. garah stir up, contend; "wage war" + prep ad until; "up to" + noun m.s.constr.w/3f.s.suff. ma-oz place of safety; "fortress"]).

VERSE 11 "The king of the South will be enraged and go forth and fight with the king of the North (!ApC'h; %l,m,-~[i AM[i ~x;l.nIw> ac'y"w> bg<N<h; %l,m, rm;r>m;t.yIw> [waw w/hithpalpel impf.3m.s. marar be bitter, be strong; "will be enraged" + noun m.s.abs. melek + art.w/proper noun Negeb South + waw w/qal perf.3m.s. yatsa go forth + waw w/niphal perf.3m.s. lacham fight + prep im with + noun m.s.abs. melek + art.w/noun f.s.abs. tsapon north])

Then the latter will raise a great multitude, but that multitude will be given into the hand of the former (Ady"B. !Amh'h, !T;nIw> br' !Amh' dymi[/h,w> [waw w/hiphil perf.3m.s. amad stand; "will raise" + noun m.s.abs. hamon abundance, multitude + adj.m.s.abs. rab great + waw w/niphal perf.3m.s. nathan give + art.w/noun m.s.abs. hamon multitude + prep beth w/noun f.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. yad hand]).

VERSE 12 "When the multitude is carried away, his heart will be lifted up (Abb'l. Î~r'w>Ð ¿~Wry"À !Amh'h, aF'nIw> [waw w/niphal perf.3m.s. nasha lift, carry + art.w/noun m.s.abs. hamon multitude + qal impf.3m.s. rum be high; "lifted up" + noun m.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. leb heart], and he will cause tens of thousands to fall; yet he will not prevail [zA[y" al{w> tAaBorI lyPihiw> [waw w/hiphil perf.3m.s. napal fall + noun f.p.abs. ribbon ten thousand + waw w/neg lo + qal impf.3m.s. azaz be strong; "not prevail"]).

VERSE 13 "For the king of the North will again raise a greater multitude than the former (!AvarIh'-!mi br; !Amh' dymi[/h,w> !ApC'h; %l,m, bv'w> [waw w/qal perf.3m.s. shub return; "will again" + noun m.s.abs. melek + art.w/noun f.s.abs. tsapon north + waw w/hiphil perf.3m.s. amad stand "raise"lit.: "will return and raise" + noun m.s.abs. hamon multitude + adj.s.abs. rab great + prep min + art.w/adj.m.s.abs. rishon first; "former"], and after an interval of some years he will press on with a great army and much equipment [br' vWkr>biW lAdG" lyIx;B. aAb aAby" ~ynIv' ~yTi[ih' #qel.W [waw w/prep lamedh w/noun m.s.abs. qets end; "after an interval" + art.w/noun f.p.abs. eth time; "some" + noun f.p.abs. shanah year + qal impf.3m.s. bo go; + qal infin.constr. bo = "he will press on" + prep beth w/noun m.s.abs. chayil might; "army" + adj.m.s.abs. gadol great + waw w/prep beth w/noun m.s.abs. rekush property; supplies; "equipment" + adj.m.s.abs. rab much]).

ANALYSIS: VERSES 9-13

1. Verse 9 records a subsequent foray of Seleucus II into Ptolemaic territory, referring to the successful attempt of the Seleucid forces to regain hold of northern Syria and Phoinicial, probably in the 230s.
2. There is no record of Seleucus II’s attempting an invasion of Egypt proper.
3. Verse 10 foretells an important new development in the struggle between the two kingdoms, with the advent of Antiochus the Great and his conquest of the Holy Land.
4. Seleucus II (Callinicus) died in 226 and was succeeded by his son Seleucus III (Soter), who reigned for only three years.
5. His principal efforts were directed against Asia Minor, where he fought against King Attalus of Pergamum.
6. The second son of Callinicus was Antiochus III; because of his military prowess he received the surname of "the Great" (Megas).
7. Coming to the throne in 223, he first had to suppress a revolt in the eastern provinces.
8. His trusted governor Molon, had turned against him and set himselfl up as an independent king.
9. After defeating Molon in battle (220), Antiochus III next launched an expedition against Phoenicia and Palestine (219-218) that ended in a serious setback at the Battle of Raphia, where he was soundly beaten by the smaller army of Ptolemy IV.
10. Verses 11-12 tell the story: "Then the king of the South will march out in rage and fight against the king of the North, who will raise a large army, but it will be defeated."
11. This refers to that setback administered to the forces of Ptolemy IV at Raphia.
12. Then comes the sequel: "When the army is carried off, the king of the South will be filled with pride and will slaughter many thousands, yet he will not remain triumphant."
13. In the peace that followed, Antiochus III was compelled to cede all Phoenicia and Palestine back to Ptolemy IV and leave him undisturbed possession of them till some more opportune time.
14. During the following years, Antiochus attained his most brilliant successes in subduing and subjugating the rebellious provinces in the Middle East all the way to the Caspian Sea in the north and the Indus River on the east.
15. These invasions absorbed all his energies from 212 to 204.
16. But finally in 203, Antiochus saw his opportunity to strike at Egypt again, since Ptolemy IV had just died and had been succeeded by Ptolemy V (Epiphanes), who was a mere boy of four.
17. Verse 13 tells us that "the king of the North will muster another army, larger than the first, and after several years, he will advance with a huge army fully equipped."
18. In 202 Antiochus advanced once more against Phoenicia and Palestine with his battle-seasoned veterans and pushed all the way to the fortress of Gaza, which fell in 201.

History to Antiochus Epiphanes (vv. 14-20)

VERSE 14 "Now in those times many will rise up against the king of the South (bg<N<h; %l,m,-l[; Wdm.[;y: ~yBir; ~heh' ~yTi[ib'W [waw w/prep beth w/noun f.p.abs. eth time + art.w/pro.3m.p. hem they; "those" + adj.m.p.abs. rab many + qal impf.3m.p. amad stand; "will rise up" + prep al "against" + noun m.s.abs. melek + art.w/proper noun Negeb South]; the violent ones among your people will also lift themselves up in order to fulfill the vision, but they will fall down [Wlv'k.nIw> !Azx' dymi[]h;l. WaF.N:yI ^M.[; yceyrIP' ynEb.W [waw w/noun m.p.constr. ben son + noun m.p.constr. parits violent one; from verb parats to break through + noun m.s.constr.w/2m.s.suff. am people; "your people" + hithpael impf.3m.p. nasha lift + prep lamedh w/hiphil infin.constr. amad stand, endure; "in order to fulfill" is misleading; the translation should be "in fulfillment of the vision" + noun m.s.abs. chazon vision + waw adversative w/niphal perf.3p. kashal stumble; "but they will fall down"]).

Antiochus the Great Defeats Scopas (v.15)

VERSE 15 "Then the king of the North will come, cast up a siege ramp and capture a well-fortified city (tArc'b.mi ry[i dk;l'w> hl'l]As %Pov.yIw> !ApC'h; %l,m, aboy"w> [waw w/qal impf.3m.s. bo come + noun m.s.abs. melek + art.w/noun f.s.abs. tsapon north + waw w/qal impf.3m.s. shaphak pour out; "cast up" + noun f.s.abs. sollah mound; "siege ramp" + waw w/qal perf.3m.s. lakad capture + noun f.s.abs. ir city + noun m.p.abs. mibetsar fortification]; and the forces of the South will not stand their ground [Wdmo[]y: al{ bg<N<h; tA[roz>W [waw w/noun f.p.constr. zero-a arm, strength; "forces" + art.w/proper noun Negeb South + neg. lo + qal impf.3m.p. amad stand], not even their choicest troops, for there will be no strength to make a stand [dmo[]l; x;Ko !yaew> wyr'x'b.mi ~[;w> [waw w/nounm.s.abs. am people; "troops" + noun m.p.constr.w/3m.s.suff. mibechar best + waw w/neg.part. ayin no + noun m.s.abs. koach strength + prep lamedh w/qal infin.constr. amad stand]).

Antiochus Gains Sovereignty over Palestine (v.16)

VERSE 16 "But he who comes against him will do as he pleases, and no one will be able to withstand him (wyn"p'l. dmeA[ !yaew> AnAcr>Ki wyl'ae aB'h; f[;y:w> [waw w/qal impf.3m.s. ashah do; "will do" + art.w/qal part.m.s.abs. bo come + prep el "against" w/3m.s.suff. + prep kaph w/noun m.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. ratson pleasure; literally, "his pleasure" + waw w/neg. part ayin no one + qal part.m.s.abs. amad stand + prep lamedh w/noun both p.constr.w/3m.s.suff. paneh face; "will be able to withstand him" with preceding participle]; he will also stay for a time in the Beautiful Land, with destruction in his hand [Ady"b. hl'k'w> ybiC.h;-#r,a,B. dmo[]y:w> [waw w/qal impf.3m.s. amad stand + prep beth w/noun both s.abs. eretz land + art.w/noun m.s.abs. tsebi beauty; used of the promised land in Ezek.20:6,15; Dan.11:16,41, the temple mount (Dan.11:45); Babylon (Isa.13:19), etc. + waw w/noun f.s.abs. kalah full end; "destruction" + prep beth w/noun f.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. yad hand]).

Antiochus Uses His Daughter Cleopatra (v.17)

VERSE 17 "He will set his face to come with the power of his whole kingdom (AtWkl.m;-lK' @q,toB. aAbl' wyn"P' ~fey"w> [waw w/qal impf.3m.s. sum set + noun both p.constr.w/3m.s.suff. paneh face + prep lamedh w/qal infin.constr. bo come + prep beth w/noun m.s.abs.toqep power; nuance is to prevail against + noun m.s.abs. kol all; "whole" + noun f.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. malkuth kingdom], bringing with him a proposal of peace which he will put into effect [hf'['w> AM[i ~yrIv'ywI [waw w/adj.m.p.abs. yashar (up-) right; "proposal of peace" or "favorable conditions" + prep im w/3m.s.suff. "bringing with him" + waw w/qal perf.3m.s. do; "which he will put into effect"]; he will also give him the daughter of women to ruin it [Ht'yxiv.h;l. Al-!T,yI ~yviN"h; tb;W [waw w/noun f.s.constr. bath daughter + art.w/noun f.p.abs. issah woman + qal impf.3m.s. nathan give + prep lamedh w/3m.s.suff. "him" + prep lamedh w/hiphil infin.constr.w/3f.s.suff. shachath destroy, corrupt]).

But she will not take a stand for him or be on his side (hy<h.ti Al-al{w> dmo[]t; al{w> [waw w/neg lo + qal impf.3f.s. amad stand + waw w/neg lo + prep. lamedh w/3m.s.suff.; "on his side" + qal impf.3f.s. hayah be]).

ANALYSIS: VERSES 14-17

1. Verse 14 continues: "In those times many will rise against the king of the South [i.e., Ptolemy V the boy-king]. The violent men among your own people [i.e., the pro-Seleucid Jews] will rebel in fulfillment of the vision [i.e., this specific prophetic statement], but without success."
2. This refers to the counteroffensive launched by the powerful general Scopas of the Egyptian forces, who was able to punish all the leaders of Jerusalem and Judah who favored Antiochus and were disaffected with the Ptolemaic government.
3. But soon the war came down from the north, and Scopas met a severe loss at the Battle of Panium (near the NT Caesarea Philippi, now called Banias) in 200 BC.
4. From there he retreated to Sidon on the Phoenician coast.
5. This sets the stage for verse 15: "Then the king of the North [i.e., Antiochus III] will come and build up siege ramps and will capture a fortified city [i.e., Sidon]. The forces of the South will be powerless to resist; even their best troops will not have the strength to stand."
6. When Scopas [Egyptian general] finally surrendered to Antiochus III at Sidon, the Holy Land was permanently acquired by the Antioch government, to the exclusion of Egypt.
7. Verse 16 may be more literally translated: "The invader [Antiochus III] will do as he pleases; no one will be able to stand against him. He will establish himself in the Beautiful Land [i.e., Palestine] and will have the power to destroy it."
8. Antiochus III did not pursue a general policy of destruction, once he had secured full possession of the land of Israel; he simply exacted reprisals from the pro-Ptolemaic/Egyptian party leaders.
9. On his entrance into Jerusalem in 198 BC he was welcomed as a deliverer and benefactor.
10. Verse 17 may be more properly translated as follows: "Then he will set his face to come with the power of his kingdom, and equitable conditions shall be with him, and he will accomplish it. And he will give to him [i.e., boy king Ptolemy V] the daughter of women [Antiochus’ daughter Cleopatra] in order to corrupt/destroy it (or) her. But she shall not stand nor be for him [her father Antiochus III]."
11. The 3^rd feminine singular suffix ah appended to the Hiphil infinitive hashith ("corrupt," "destroy") may be a subjective genitive (i.e., "for her to destroy/corrupt"), or else it may be the object and mean "in order to destroy her [or "it"] with no eligible antecedent in sight.
12. Perhaps the implied antecedent would be "the kingdom of the South," but this is debatable.
13. The NASB leaves the ah as the object "it" which is accurate enough but leaves the antecedent completely ambiguous.
14. The objective interpretation would identify the "it" with the land of Egypt.
15. The subjective identification sees the "it" as a "her" referring to Antiochus’ daughter since there is no pronoun for which there is an immediately available antecedent.
16. The clear intention of Antiochus was to bring the boy king Ptolemy V who in 197 was no more than ten years old, under the influence of his daughter, with the expectation of her maintaining a strongly pro-Seleucid agenda in the Egyptian government.
17. Then, of course, Cleopatra should give birth to a son, and that boy would become the legal heir to both crowns.
18. As it turned out, however, after the marriage finally took place in 195, Cleopatra became completely sympathetic to her husband, Ptolemy V, and the Ptolemaic cause, to the chagrin of her father, Antiochus III.
19. Therefore, when she gave birth to a royal heir, who became Ptolemy VI, this gave no advantage or political leverage to her father.
20. When Ptolemy V died in 181, Cleopatra was appointed queen regent by the Egyptian government, because they all loved and admired her loyalty to their interests.
21. But she died not long after, and this meant the end of all possible Seleucid influence on Egyptian affairs.
22. Yet by that time Antiochus III himself, who died in 187, was gone.

VERSE 18 "Then he will turn his face to the coastlands and capture many (~yBir; dk;l'w> ~yYIail. wyn"P' Î~fey"w>Ð ¿bvey"w>À [waw w/qal impf.3m.s. sum set; "turn" + noun both pl.constr.w/3m.s.suff. paneh face + prep lamedh w/noun m.p.abs. i coast + waw w/qal perf.3m.s. lakadh capture + adj.m.p.abs. rab many]).

But a commander will put a stop to his scorn against him; moreover, he will repay him for his scorn (Al byviy" AtP'r>x, yTil.Bi Al AtP'r>x, !yciq' tyBiv.hiw> [waw w/hiphil perf.3m.s. shabath cease; "put a stop" + noun m.s.abs.qatsin chief, ruler (e.g., Judg.11:6; Isa.3:6); "commander" + noun f.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. cherpah reproach; "scorn" or "insolence" + prep lamedh w/3m.s.suff.; "against him" + prep biliti w/prep = "regardless"; here "moreover" + noun f.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. cherepah reproach; "scorn" or "insolence" + hiphil impf.3m.s. shub return; "repay" + prep lamedh w/3m.s.suff.; "him"]).

Death of Antiochus the Great (v.19)

VERSE 19 "So he will turn his face toward the fortresses of his own land, but he will stumble and fall and be found no more (aceM'yI al{w> lp;n"w> lv;k.nIw> Acr>a; yZEW[m'l. wyn"P' bvey"w> [waw w/hiphil impf.3m.s. shub turn + noun both p.constr.w/3m.s.suff. paneh face + prep lamedh w/noun m.p.constr. ma-oz fortress + noun f.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. eretz land + waw w/niphal perf.3m.s. kashal stumble; cf. v.14,33,35,41 + waw w/neg lo + niphal impf.3m.s. matsa find]).

Heliodorus and Seleucus IV (v.20)

VERSE 20 "Then in his place one will arise who will send an oppressor through the Jewel of his kingdom (tWkl.m; rd,h, fgEAn rybi[]m; ANK;-l[; dm;['w> [waw w/qal perf.3m.s. amad stand; "will arise" + prep al + noun m.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. ken place + hiphil part.m.s.abs. abar pass over; "who will send" + qal part.m.s.abs. nagash exact; "oppressor"; the root connotes the exercising oppressive pressure for the payment of labor; here in context of a tax collector + noun m.s.constr. heder splendor; "the Jewel" + noun f.s.abs. malkuth kingdom]; yet within a few days he will be shattered, though not in anger nor in battle [hm'x'l.mib. al{w> ~yIP;a;b. al{w> rbeV'yI ~ydIx'a] ~ymiy"b.W [waw w/prep beth w/noun m.p.abs. yom day + adj.m.p.abs. echad one; "a few" + niphal impf.3m.s. shabar break; "shattered" + waw w/neg lo + prep beth w/noun m. dual abs. aph anger + waw w/neg lo + prep beth w/noun f.s.abs. milechamah battle.]).

ANALYSIS: VERSES 18-20

1. Verse 18 points to an important new development in the career of Antiochus the Great.
2. "Then he will turn his attention to the coastlands and will take captive many of them, but a commander will put an end to his insolence and will turn his insolence back upon him" (alternate translation).
3. Soon after his victory over Scopas at Panium and Sidon, Antiochus the Great (III) became involved in a new war front, against the power principality of Pergamum and the Aegean coastline island of Rhodes.
4. As Antiochus’s forces closed in on them, the Rhodians sent urgent appeals for Rome to come to their aid.
5. Another important development was the arrival of Hannibal from his exile in Macedonia to join the court of Antiochus as a military adviser.
6. It was only natural for the Roman government to resent their offering of asylum to their enemy.
7. But Antiochus was not to be cowed, for he felt that he had the power to cope successfully with the military might of Rome.
8. Therefore in 196 after capturing several cities in Aeolis and Ionia, he crossed the Hellespont and the Aegean with his powerful navy and conquered considerable territory in Thrace.
9. The "coastlands" (literally means "islands") included all areas contiguous to the seacoast, whether or not they were islands.
10. The term was used from earliest times as a term for the Mediterranean with its large islands like Cyprus and Crete and its numerous smaller islands in the Aegean and the West.
11. About this time the west-central Greek confederacy of the Aetolain Leaguee sent a legation to Antiochus, asking for his assistance against Macedon and the Peloponnesians.
12. He sent a modest naval force in 192 to land on the coast of central Greece and to cooperate with the Aetolians.
13. But the endeavor proved to be militarily ineffective, and the Macedonians joined forces with the Achaean League to oppose Antiochus both from the north and from the south.
14. The Romans were only too happy to jump into the fray at this point; so they joined their Greek allies to overwhelm the Seleucid command post at Thermopylaethe historic battle-site of the Persian War in 480 BC.
15. As a result of this setback, Antiochus had to withdraw to Asia Minor in 191, especially since his navy was beaten in several engagements with the Roman fleet.
16. During the winter of 190-189, the Roman troops followed him across to Asia and finally met him in a pitched battle at Magnesia, west of Sardis.
17. Although Antiochus had an army of seventy thousand at his command, the Roman force of thirty thousand defeated him badly.
18. Thus his "insolence" met with disaster.
19. The Roman commander of verse 18b was none other than Lucius Cornelius Scipio Asiaticus, the brother of the Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus, who had brilliantly defeated Hannibal at the Battle of Zama back in 202 BC.
20. After he compelled Antiochus to surrender, the commander dictated sever peace terms, which were included in the Treaty of Apamea, signed in 186.
21. Antiochus was compelled to surrender not only all claims to Europe but also the greater part of Asia Minor as well; his boundary was to be the Taurus Range.
22. Furthermore, he had to surrender his entire elephant brigade, all his navy, and twenty selected hostages.
23. Finally he was obliged to pay an indemnity of twenty thousand talents over a period of several years.
24. Antiochus’ second son, who was named after him, was among the twenty hostages taken to Rome, where he spent the formative years of his life.
25. He later became the dreaded persecutor of the Jews, Antiochus Epiphanes.
26. The end of the career of Antiochus the Great is briefly indicated in v.19: "After this, he will turn back toward the fortresses of his own country, but will stumble and fall, to be seen no more."
27. As a matter of fact, this erstwhile conqueror met an inglorious end in the following year (187).
28. Unable to meet the required indemnity payments out of his exhausted treasury, he resorted to the sacrilege of pillagingthe temple of Bel in Elymais.
29. But the local inhabitants were so incensed that they stormed his modest armed forces with desperate bravery and succeeded in killing him and defending their temple.
30. Verse 20 sums up the uneventful reign of the elder son of Antiochus, Seleucus IV (Philopator).
31. The rendering "His successor will send out a tax collector [noges] to maintain the royal splendor" assumes that the noges is a construct (i.e., in a gentitive relationship) with heder malkut ("of the glory of the kingdom"), which is taken to mean "to maintain the royal splendor."
32. Another attractive possibility is to make heder malkut the second object after the participle ma-bir ("the one who sends out").
33. Then heder malkut would refer to the land of Palestine, as the glorious adornment (from God’s perspective) of the Seleucid Empire.
34. Thus NASB has "one will arise who will send an oppressor (e.g., tax collector) through the Jewel (2^nd Jewish commonwealth) of his kingdom."
35. In any event, the oppressor or tax collector sent out by Seleucus IV was apparently his special fund raiser, Heliodorus.
36. According to 2 Maccabees 3:7-40, a certain traitorous Jew named Simon sent information to the king that the Jerusalem temple contained sufficient treasure to meet all the king’s needs.
37. Impoverished as his treasury was, Seleucus eagerly grasped at the prospect of plundering the temple and sent off Heliodorus to carry out this assignment.
38. It was only because of a frightful vision of mighty angels assaulting and flogging him that Heliodorus desisted from his plunder of the temple of Yahweh and returned home empty-handed.
39. No other details are given in this verse of the twelve-year reign of the rather ineffectual king, except that he did not die in battle or in a mob action as had his father, Antiochus the Great.
40. Yet Seleucus IV met an untimely end through poison administered by Heliodorus.

VERSE 21 "In his place a despicable person will arise (hz<b.nI ANK;-l[; dm;['w> [waw w/qal perf.3m.s. amad stand; "will arise" + prep al + noun m.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. ken place + niphal part.m.s.abs. bazah to despise, hold in contempt; "despicable person"], on whom the honor of kingship has not been conferred [tWkl.m; dAh wyl'[' Wnt.n"-al{w> [waw w/neg lo + qal perf.3m.p. nathan give; "has not been conferred" + prep al w/3m.s.suff. + noun m.s.abs. hod splendor; "honor" + noun f.s.abs. malkuth kingdom; "kingship"], but he will come in a time of tranquility and seize the kingdom by intrigue [tAQl;q.l;x]B; tWkl.m; qyzIx/h,w> hw"l.v;b. ab'W [waw w/qal perf.3m.s. bo come + prep beth w/noun f.s.abs. shalwah quietness, prosperity; "tranquility" + waw w/hiphil perf.3m.s. chazaq be strong; prevail; "seize" + noun f.s.abs.malekuth kingdom + prep beth w/art.w/noun f.p.abs. halaqlaqqot smoothness, flattery; "intrigue"]).

ANALYSIS: VERSE 21

1. Verses 21-35 are devoted to the career of the tyrannical oppressor who did the utmost to blot out Jewish worship and culture altogether.
2. More is devoted to him in this chapter than any other person due to his infamy and place as a type of the final Antichrist.
3. He previously appeared in the prophetic imagery of chapter 8:9-12, 23-25 as the sinister "little horn" who suspended the worship of God in the 2^nd temple.
4. Now he is introduced as the despicable tyrant (hzB nibzeh) who will shed much blood and enjoy power for a time.
5. "And in his place" refers to Seleucus Philopator (cp. v.20a) who held power from 187-175.
6. He was, as we saw, foretold to have placed enormous financial burdens upon his subjects upon inheriting his father’s (Antiochus the Great) huge financial debts.
7. So he dispatched his foster brother and finance minister Heliodorus to pillage the Temple treasury (2Macc.3:1-40).
8. Verse 21 states that his tyrant "has not been given the honor of royalty."
9. The young son of Seleucus IV, Demetrius I, was next in line to receive the crown.
10. But since he was still held as a hostage in Rome, it was deemed best to put his uncle Antiochus IV−the second son of Antiochus the Great−in charge of the government as prince regent.
11. But Antiochus Epiphanes was determined to set aside his nephew’s claims altogether even though he was already in his twenties and quite competent to rule.
12. So Antiochus curried favor with leaders in government and, by promises of promotion and large favors in return for their support, managed to secure approval for succession to the throne vacated by his poisoned brother (older).
13. Fortunately for Demetrius, he was still being held hostage in Rome, so he was safe for the time being from assassination by his uncle’s agents.
14. Later on he was able to make good his claim to the throne, for he left Rome to lead an army against the son of Antiochus Epiphanes, Antiochus V (Eupator), in 162.
15. As for Epiphanes, that "contemptible person who has not been given the honor of royalty," he converted his regency into royalty soon after 175 and launched his own career as an ambitious and vigorous leader.
16. Here we have a man who seized the throne by deceit and intrigue rather than obtaining it more honorably.
17. Meanwhile, Heliodorus, the wily finance minister of the murdered king (v.20), was hatching another conspiracy to seize power under the pretext of acting as regent of the younger son of Seleucus.
18. But as soon as Antiochus Epiphanes heard of Seleucus’ death, he rushed to Antioch and succeeded not only in nullifying the conspiracy but in murdering the puppet king (his young nephew) and by sly machinations he rapidly rose to power.
19. It should be noted that the title "Epiphanes" ("the Illustrious One") also carries the meaning "very evident" or "manifest."
20. From his coins we know that he linked up this Epiphanes with the added title Theos ("God").
21. Thus the two in combination meant "Illustrious God," or else "God Manifest."
22. Bearing this in mind his role as a type of the Antichrist, or Beast of the last days (who appears in chapter 7 as the "little horn," arising from the fourth kingdom/beast, it becomes particularly meaningful to read of the future antitype in 2Thessalonians 2:3-4: "The man of lawlessness….[who] opposes and exalts himself over everything that is called God or is worshipped, and even sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God."
23. Not only did Antiochus Epiphanes enthrone himself for adoration by the Jews as he sat in the court of the desecrated temple in Jerusalem (in 168 BC), but he also claimed divine honors for himself on every major coin that he minted..
24. Many of his detractors, however, referred to him as Epinanes ["madman"] rather than Epiphanes; cf. Polybius 26.1 1.

VERSE 22 "The overflowing forces will be flooded away before him and shattered, and also the prince of the covenant (tyrIB. dygIn> ~g:w> WrbeV'yIw> wyn"p'L.mi Wpj.V'yI @j,V,h; tA[roz>W [waw w/noun f.p.constr. zeroa arm, shoulder, strength; "forces" + art.w/noun m.s.abs. sheteph flood; + "overflowing" + niphal impf.3m.p. shataph wash, rinse, overflow, engulf; "will be flooded" + prep min w/prep lamedh w/noun both p.constr.w/3m.s.suff. paneh face; "away before him; + waw w/niphal impf.3m.p. shabar break in pieces; "shattered" + waw w/conj. gam also + noun m.s.constr. nagidh leader; "prince" + noun f.s.abs. berith covenant]).

VERSE 23 "After an alliance is made with him he will practice deception, and he will go up and gain power with a small force of people (yAG-j[;m.Bi ~c;['w> hl'['w> hm'r>mi hf,[]y: wyl'ae tWrB.x;t.hi-!miW [waw w/prep min w/hithpael infin.constr. chabar be joined; "after an alliance is made with him" + prep el w/3m.s.suff. "with him" + qal impf.3m.s. ashah do; "he will practice" + noun f.s.abs. mirmah deceit, treachery; "deception" + waw w/qal perf.3m.s. alah ascend, go up + waw w/qal perf.3m.s. atsam be small, diminished; "gain power" + prep beth w/adj.m.s.constr. me-at little + noun m.s.abs. goi nation, people]).

VERSE 24 "In a time of tranquility he will enter the richest parts of the realm (aAby" hn"ydIm. yNEm;v.mib.W hw"l.v;B. [prep beth w/noun f.s.abs. shalwah quiet + waw w/prep beth w/noun m.p.constr. mishman fatness; "richest parts" + noun f.s.abs. medina province; "realm" + qal impf.3m.s. bo enter], and he will accomplish what his fathers never did, nor his ancestors [wyt'boa] tAba]w: wyt'boa] Wf['-al{ rv,a] hf'['w> [waw w/qal perf.3m.s. ashah; "accomplish" + rel asher what + neg lo + qal perf.3p. ashah do + noun m.p.constr.w/3m.s.suff. ab father; "his fathers" + waw w/noun m.p.constr. ab father, ancestor + noun m.p.constr.w/3m.s.suff. ab "his ancestors"; w/preceding word = "his fathers’ fathers"]; he will distribute plunder, booty and possessions among them [rAzb.yI ~h,l' vWkr>W ll'v'w> hZ"Bi [noun f.s.abs. bizza spoil, plunder + waw w/noun m.s.abs. shalal plunder; "booty" + waw w/noun m.s.abs. rekush property; "possessions" + prep lamedh w/3m.p.suff.; "among them" + qal impf.3m.s. bazar scatter; "distribute"], and he will devise his schemes against strongholds, but only for a time [t[e-d[;w> wyt'bov.x.m; bVex;y> ~yrIc'b.mi l[;w> [waw w/prep al; "against" + noun m.p.abs. mibtsar fortification + piel impf.3m.s. chashab plan; "devise" + noun f.p.constr.w/3m.s.suff. machashabah device; "schemes" + waw w/prep ad until + noun both s.abs. eth time]).

ANALYSIS: VERSES 22-24

1. Verse 22 introduces us to the brilliantly successful commencement of Antiochus Epiphanes’ reign, as he took up anew the struggle with Ptolemaic Egypt.
2. It was Epiphanes’ modus operandi to throw his intended victims off guard by offering them his friendship and alliance.
3. In verse 22 we have a prediction of the scattering of Heliodorus’s troops and an attack on Egypt, which attempted to deprive him of Phoenicia.
4. Then he would maneuver for an advantageous position till he could catch them by surprise.
5. So it was with Ptolemy VI (Philometor), who has ascended the throne in 181 BC at the age of six.
6. His mother, Cleopatra (daughter of Antiochus the Great), governed as queen regent till her death.
7. But after he (Ptolemy IV) assumed power as king, he determined to recapture the regions of Palestine and Phoenicia that had been lost to Antiochus III.
8. At first Ptolemy VII’s invasion met with considerable success, for he had challenged Antiochus with a large and well-equipped army.
9. But eventually he encountered a serious reversal and became the prisoner of Antiochus Epiphanes.
10. At the turn of events, the Egyptians gave up hope of regaining their king and decided to appoint his young brother Physcon as king in his place.
11. On learning of this, Epiphanes craftily intervened on behalf of Ptolemy Philometor, his royal prisoner, and mounted an expeditionary force against Physcon’s government in order to reestablish Philometor on his throne−now as Antiochus’ ally− rather than as his adversary.
12. So as the price of his help in expelling Physcon, Antiochus made a treaty of friendship and alliance with Philometor aimed at obtaining a foothold in Egypt itself and ultimately uniting the two kingdoms under his own authority.
13. The seriousness of this aim is attested by the issue of coinage (in large and medium-sized bronzes, at least) that bore the same types as the corresponding Ptolemaic coinage (the head of Zeus on the obverse and the Ptolemaic eagle on the reverse) but with the legend "King Antiochus, God Manifest" rather than the usual Egyptian, "Ptolemy the King."
14. Though these Egyptian-style coins were presumably used in the Seleucid territory rather than in Egypt itself, they at least served to suggest his potential claims to the Ptolemaic domains.
15. In point of fact Antiochus had succeeded in penetrating Egypt itself all the way to Memphis, which he managed to capture, along with the person of Philometor himself.
16. Later on, however, Antiochus’ alliance with Philometor wore so thin that his reestablished protégé decided to make peace with Ptolemy Physcon, his defeated brother, because he felt he needed his help in dislodging Antiochus’ troops from the border fortress of Pelusium.
17. Having made Physcon his associate king, Ptolemy Philometor was able to raise a considerable armed force for the expulsion of the Seleucid army.
18. But no sooner did Epiphanes learn of this development than he again marched against Egypt, intending to subdue it once and for all.
19. But this effort was forestalled by the intervention of the Roman fleet, which had been hurriedly dispatched to Alexandria in response to the urgent request of the embattled Ptolemies.
20. The aggressive Roman commander Popilius Laenas met Antiochus marshalling his troops for a siege of Alexandria and informed him that the Roman government directed him to abandon Egypt or face the consequences of war with Rome.
21. Remembering what had happened to his father at the Battle of Magnesia and recalling also his years as a young hostage in Roman captivity, it did not take Antiochus very long to give way before this mandate especially after Popilius drew a circle around him with his staff and ordered him to make his decision before he stepped outside it.
22. It was during this time that he overcame "the prince of the covenant" a reference to the legitimate Jewish high priest, Onias III, whose death was ordered by Antiochus in 172, and who was the head of the Jewish state at this time.
23. The term "covenant" is here employed for the state of Israel.
24. Verses 23-24 describe the developments already set forth above: "After coming to an agreement with him [Philometor], he will act deceitfully, and with only a few people [his initial invasion had been a small force] he will rise to power."
25. The phrase "richest provinces" apparently refers not to Egypt itself, as described above, but also to the eastern provinces all the way to Bactria, where successful campaigns were conducted by Eucratides, Antiochus’ general (v.23).
26. This refers to his "ability in seizing by hook and crook the wealth of the provinces, in advance of attack upon Egypt" (J. A. Montgomery, Daniel, ICC. p. 452).
27. So verse 23 demonstrates his deceitfulness in a prophecy of his alliances with other peoples, especially the Egyptians.
28. In the struggle for control of Egypt between Ptolemy Philometor and Ptolemy Euergetes, Antiochus’s nephews, Antiochus aided the former, but only with cunning, with an eye to his own advantage.
29. "He will accomplish what his fathers have not done" alludes to Antiochus’s extravagant and senseless squandering of plunder upon his cronies (1 Macc.3:20; Josephus Antiquities 12. 7. 2), all the while devising schemes of further plunder of strongholds, which was conduct totally without parallel in his ancestors.
30. But "regardless of his wealth and power, his military prowess and cunning, Antiochus would not exceed the limits allotted him by the Lord of history" (L. M. Hartman and A. A. Di Lella, Daniel, AB, p. 296).
31. The above quote is seen in the phrase "but only for a time" (v.24d).

VERSE 25 "He will stir up his strength and courage against the king of the South with a large army (lAdG" lyIx;B. bg<N<h; %l,m,-l[; Abb'l.W AxKo r[ey"w> [waw w/hiphil impf.3m.s. ur rouse oneself, incite; "stir up" + noun m.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. koach strength + waw w/noun m.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. lebab heart; "courage" + prep al "against" w/noun m.s.abs. melek + art.w/proper noun negeb south + prep beth w/noun m.s.abs. chayil might; "army" + adj.m.s.abs. gadol great; "large"]; so the king of the South will mobilize an extremely large and mighty army for war [daom.-d[; ~Wc['w> lAdG"-lyIx;B. hm'x'l.Mil; hr,G"t.yI bg<N<h; %l,m,W [waw w/noun m.s.abs. melek + art.w/proper noun South + hithpael impf.3m.s. garah stir up; "will mobilize" + prep lamedh w/noun f.s.abs. milhamah war, battle; "for war" + prep beth w/noun m.s.abs. chayil might: "army" + adj.m.s.abs. gadol great; "mighty" + waw w/adj.m.s.abs. atsum mighty, numerous; "large" + prep ad + adv me-od exceedingly; "extremely"]; but he will not stand, for schemes will be devised against him [tAbv'x]m; wyl'[' Wbv.x.y:-yKi dmo[]y: al{w> [waw w/neg lo + qal impf.3m.s. amad stand + part ki for + qal impf.3m.p. chashab think, plan; "will be devised" + prep al w/3m.s.suff. "against him" + noun f.p.abs. machashabah scheme; based on the verb chasab]).

VERSE 26 "Those who eat his choice food will destroy him, and his army will overflow, but many will fall down slain (~yBir; ~ylil'x] Wlp.n"w> @Ajv.yI Alyxew> WhWrB.v.yI AgB'-tp; ylek.aow> [waw w/qal part.m.p.constr. akal eat + noun m.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. pat-bag portion (of food) for kings, delicacies; cf. Dan.1 and here + qal impf.3m.p.w/3m.s.suff. shabar break; "destroy" + waw w/qal perf.3p. naphal fall + noun m.p.abs. chalal slain, fatally wounded; "will fall down slain" + adj.m.p.abs. rab many]).

VERSE 27 "As for both kings, their hearts will be intent on evil (~b'b'l. ~ykil'M.h; ~h,ynEv.W [waw w/adj.m. dual constr.w/3m.p.suff. shenayim two; "both" + art.w/noun m.p.abs. melek + noun m.s.constr.w/3m.p.suff. lebab heart + prep lamedh w/noun m.s.abs. mera- confidential friend; "will be intent on evil"], and they will speak lies to each other at the same table [WrBed;y> bz"K' dx'a, !x'l.vu-l[;w> [waw w/prep al "at" = noun m.s.abs. shulechan table; nuance is a table spread with food + adj.m.s.abs. echad one; "the same" + noun m.s.abs. kazab lie + piel impf.3m.p. dabar speak]; but it will not succeed, for the end is still to come at the appointed time [d[eAMl; #qe dA[-yKi xl'c.ti al{w> [waw w/neg lo + qal impf.3f.s. tsalach rush; "succeed" + prep ki for + adv udh repeat; "is still" + noun m.s.abs. qets end + prep lamedh w/noun m.s.abs. mo-ed appointed (time or place)]).

VERSE 28 "Then he will return to his land with much plunder (lAdG" vWkr>Bi Acr>a; bvoy"w> [waw w/qal impf.3m.s. shub (re)turn + noun f.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. eretz land + prep beth w/noun m.s.abs. rekush property, goods, supplies; "plunder" + adj.m.s.abs. gadol great; "much"]; but his heart will be set against the holy covenant, and he will take action and then return to his own land [Acr>a;l. bv'w> hf'['w> vd,qo tyrIB.-l[; Abb'l.W [waw w/noun m.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. lebab heart + prep al "will be set against" + noun f.s.abs. berith covenant + adj.m.s.abs. qodesh holy + waw w/qal perf.3m.s. ashah do; "take action" + waw w/qal perf.3m.s. shub (re)turn + prep lamedh w/noun f.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. eretz land]).

ANALYSIS: VERSES 25-28

1. Verses 25 and 26 describe in more detail the earlier invasion of Egypt in 170, after Ptolemy had attempted an attack on Palestine.
2. The king of the South’s mighty army, however, did not make him successful because of "schemes devised against him" (v.25) by Antiochus’ agents in Egypt.
3. "Those who eat from the king’s provisions will try to destroy him [i.e., Ptolemy Philometor]" with the result that "many will fall down slain."
4. This probably refers to negotiations by the two victors at the banquet table, apparently after Physcon’s defeat and expulsion from Egypt, with the help of Antiochus’s troops.
5. At this juncture these two ostensibly cordial allies were already plotting against each other.
6. Quite clearly, "the appointed time" (v.27) pertains to the permanent suspension of Antiochus’s campaign to annex Egypt to his domains: It is mentioned in v.28: "The king of the North will return to his own country [i.e., the capital at Antioch] with great wealth [from plundering Physcon’s army], but his heart will be set against the holy covenant. He will take action [against it] and then return to his own country."
7. Antiochus took vast amounts of plunder from the cities of Egypt (1Macc.1:19-20).
8. His reason for leaving Egypt as we saw was Roman intervention (more on that below).
9. Also, there were reports of turmoil in Jerusalem.
10. The "holy covenant" manifestly does not refer to the covenant/treaty between Antiochus and Ptolemy VII.
11. It rather signifies the religious establishment in Jerusalem, or even the monotheistic Jewish population as a whole which was based on the Mosaic Law.
12. It is here that the clash of cultures of the Greeks and the Jews really heats up.
13. The original friction had arisen over the question of the high priesthood.
14. It seems that early in his reign, Antiochus IV had been approached by a younger member of the high priestly family named Jason, who promised the king that if he would depose the current, legitimate high priest Onias III, then he─Jason─would pay the king a handsome bribe for the service.
15. Epiphanes [Antiochus IV] was all too happy to accommodate Jason in his desire.
16. Onias was removed and Jason was installed in his place.
17. But once the precedence of imperial interference, had been set, another brother, Menelaus, offered Antiochus a still larger bribe than Jason’s if he would be installed in the place of Jason.
18. Antiochus, a man devoid of scruples, supplanted on rascal with another.
19. So in 172 Menelaus took Jason’s place and set about selling off some of the votive offerings and golden utensils of the temple to raise the cash necessary for the bribe.
20. At this sacrilege the legitimate high priest Onias, though deposed, vigorously protested and Menelaus had him assassinated.
21. The murder so angered the populace of Jerusalem that they sent a representative to Antioch to accuse Menelaus and his wicked brother Lysimachus.
22. Antiochus did execute Andronicus, the agent of Menelaus who had murdered Onias.
23. Latter a courtier Menelaus had bribed persuaded Antiochus to act against the Jerusalemites.
24. So instead of punishing Menelaus as he deserved, the king had representatives put to death in Tyre, where the whole matter was being adjudicated (cf. 2Macc.4:30-50).
25. Later on Antiochus, following his bitter disappointment in Egypt (Rome’s rebuff), went and encamped against Jerusalem.
26. He had a score to settle with Jason, who had taken the city in an effort to overthrow his brother Menelaus.
27. Acting on a false report that Antiochus had died in Egypt, Jason had organized a regiment of a thousand armed supporters for a coup d’etat.
28. He massacred a large number of citizens and shut Menelaus up in the Jerusalem citadel.
29. Hearing of this, Antiochus decided to suppress the Jewish faith altogether and exact draconian reprisals from those who had taken up arms against his government.
30. So he marched on Jerusalem with overwhelming forces, released Menelaus, and conducted a massacre in which literally eighty thousand men, women, and children were put to the sword (2Macc.5:11-14).
31. Then he profaned the temple, accompanied by the despicable Menelaus, and robbed it of its golden vessels and other holy objects valued at eighteen hundred talents (vv. 15-21).
32. The date of this desecration and pillage of Jerusalem was 16 December 168─a day of special significance, in view of the fact that exactly three years later the patriot leader Judas Maccabaeus rededicated the temple to the worship of Yahweh.
33. The actual suspension of the regular morning and evening sacrifices had taken place 55 or 54 days prior to the desecration of the temple itself (based on our interpretation of Dan.8:14), because three years would total 1,095 or 1,094 days, and the 2,300 "evenings and mornings" (i.e., regular sacrifices) come out to 1,150 days.
34. It seems that during the earlier disturbances between Jason and Menelaus, the regular daily offerings were suspended, since the incumbent high priest was shut up in the Aera (Citadel) by Jason’s troops.
35. This, then, is the fulfillment of the prediction of 11:28 regarding Antiochus’ "action" taken against the holy covenant.
36. Menelaus and his followers were willing to suppress all spiritual scruples rather than cross the will of the tyrant who had put them in power.
37. The forces of darkness were seeking to destroy the 2^nd commonwealth by any means in order to overthrow the prophecies related to the 1^st advent of Messiah.
38. This then fulfills the words in v. 28, "but his heart will be set against the holy covenant, and he will take action."
39. The last phrase "and then return to his own land" is in reference to his return to Antioch where he glorified himself on the tenth anniversary of his rule where he mustered his armies at Daphnae, just outside Antioch─even after his expulsion from Egypt by Popilius Laenus.

VERSE 29 "At the appointed time he will return and come into the South, but this last time it will not turn out the way it did before (hn"rox]a;k'w> hn"voarIk' hy<h.ti-al{w> bg<N<b; ab'W bWvy" d[eAMl; [prep lamedh w/art/noun m.s.abs. mo-ed appointed, designated; or "outcome" + qal impf.3m.s. shub (re)turn + waw w/qal perf.3m.s. bo come + prep beth w/proper noun South + waw w/neg lo + qal impf.3f.s. hayah "it will not turn out" + prep kaph w/adj.f.s.abs. rishon beginning; "the way it did before" + waw w/prep kaph w/adj.f.s.abs. acharon last; "but this last time"]).

VERSE 30 "For ships of Kittim will come against him (~yTiKi ~yYIci Ab Wab'W [waw w/qal perf.3p. bo come + prep beth w/3m.s.suff. "against him" + noun m.p.abs. tsi ship (Egyptian loan word) + proper noun Kittim, Cyprus]; therefore he will be disheartened and will return and become enraged at the holy covenant and take action [vd,Aq-tyrIB.-l[; ~[;z"w> bv'w> ha'k.nIw> [waw w/niphal perf.3m.s. ka-ah be cowed; "disheartned" + waw w/qal perf.3m.s. shub (re)turn + waw w/qal perf.3m.s. za-am be indignant; "become enraged" + prep al against + noun f.s.abs. berith covenant + noun m.s.abs. holiness; "holy" + waw w/qal perf.3m.s. ashad do; "take action"]; so he will come back and show regard for those who forsake the holy covenant [vd,qo tyrIB. ybez>[o-l[; !bey"w> bv'w> [waw w/qal perf.3m.s. shub (re)turn; "come back" + waw w/qal impf.3m.s. bin understand, regard; "show regard" + prep al w/qal part.m.p.constr. azab forsake + noun f.s.abs. covenant + noun m.s.abs. qodesh holiness; "holy"]).

ANALYSIS: VERSES 29-30

1. Additional background information is supplied with respect to Antiochus’s act of desecration.
2. Here we have a prediction regarding the very last time he would enter Egypt in an attempt to annex it.
3. "At the appointed time" (i.e., by the Lord of history) Antioch made his final venture into Egypt.
4. As we saw, while he returned with much plunder, he was frustrated in his prime objective due to the pressure from Rome.
5. The "outcome" (v.29) or "appointed time" was different in this venture into the kingdom of the king of the South because he was compelled by the Roman general Popilius Laenas to withdraw from Egypt altogether or face war with Rome.
6. The expression "at the appointed time" occurs here and in verse 27 referring to this incursion into Egypt by Antiochus.
7. In verse 35 the expression is used of the end times when God’s people will be refined.
8. This expression relates to divine timing and control over human affairs (cp. Gen.18:14; 21:2; Ex.23:15; 34:18; 1Sam.9:24; 13:8; 2Sam.24:15; Jer.46:17; Dan.8:19; 11:27,29,35; Hab.2:3
9. He had helped Ptolemy IV prevail in the civil war in Egypt but things did not turn in Antiochus’s favor as it did earlier as prophesied in verses 22-24.
10. At verse 30 we have the prophecy of Epiphanes rebuff at Alexandria by the Roman government.
11. This event took place as a result of a request on the part of the embattled Ptolemies who sent an urgent request to Rome.
12. Orders were dispatched to the commander of the Roman fleet at Cyprus ("ships of Kittim).
13. The Roman delegation was headed by Gais Popillius Laenas, who delivered the ultimatum that Antiochus and his army leave Egypt.
14. Humiliated and utterly disgruntled at this rebuff and indignant that things were out of control in Jerusalem, the brutal tyrant vented his wrath on the Jews ("return in rage against the holy covenant and take action…").
15. His puppet Menelaus was under siege by the troops of his former puppet Jason.
16. He encamped outside Jerusalem and proceeded to reinstall Menelaus in power in a great slaughter of men, women and children.
17. Menelaus and his followers made no protest as Antiochus removed the holy vessels from the temple.
18. The traitors are referred to here as "those who forsake the holy covenant."

VERSE 31 "Forces from him will arise, desecrate the sanctuary fortress, and do away with the regular sacrifice (dymiT'h; Wrysihew> zA[M'h; vD'q.Mih; WlL.xiw> Wdmo[]y: WNM,mi ~y[iroz>W [waw w/noun f.p.abs. zerua arm; "forces" + prep min w/3m.s.suff. "from him" + qal impf.3m.p. amad stand; "will arise" + waw w/piel perf.3p. chalal pierce, wound, bore through; "desecrated" + art.w/noun m.s.abs. miqedash sanctuary, holy place + art.w/noun m.s.abs. ma-oz fortress + waw w/hiphil perf.3p. sur turn aside; "do away" + art.w/adv tamid used as a substantive for the morning and evening sacrifice prescribed under codex 3 of the Mosaic Law]).

And they will set up the abomination of desolation (Wnt.n"w> ~meAvm. #WQVih; [waw w/qal perf.3p. nathan give; "set up" + art.w/noun m.s.abs. shiquts detestable thing; "abomination" + poel part.m.s.abs. shamem be desolate, appalled; "desolation" or "that makes desolate]).

ANALYSIS: VERSE 31

1. This verse supplies further details about the momentous events surrounding December 168.
2. The desecration was, as already described, the rifling of the sanctuary and temple treasury and the removal of all the sacred vessels.
3. The abolition of the daily sacrifices was now made binding by the erection in the temple of Yahweh of "the abomination the causes desolation."
4. Apparently this was a statue of Zeus Olympius, if we may judge by the reference in 2 Maccabees 6:2 that the temple was renamed the Temple of Zeus Olympius.
5. Pagans invariably installed an image in the inner sanctuary of any temple dedicated to the worship of that deity.
6. Even if the actual statue was not installed in the Jerusalem temple as early as 16 December (25 Chislev) 168 BC, we may be sure that an idolatrous altar was formally consecrated there at that time.
7. Thus the same type of desecration overtook the 2^nd temple as befell the 1^st temple in the evil days of king Ahaz (735-715) and king Manasseh (695-642), when they too had set up an idolatrous altar (by Ahaz─2 Kgs.16:10-16) and images of heathen gods (by Manasseh─2 Kgs.21:3-5).
8. It should be noted that Jesus’ only explicit reference to the "the prophet Daniel" as being the author of the Book of Daniel occurs in the Olivet Discourse (cf. Matt. 24:15//Mk.13:14).
9. There our Lord refers it to "the abomination that causes desolation" (to. bde,lugma th/j evrhmw,sewj)─which is the exact expression of the LXX for this verse.
10. In the context of Jesus’ teaching this tribulational idol set up by the Antichrist with the support of the corrupt Jewish leadership is the sign of the approach of the final siege of Jerusalem at the midpoint of the Tribulation.
11. This expression, incidentally, recurs in chapter 12 verse 11, in an end-time context as siqquts somem (qal participle instead of the polel participle) with essentially the same meaning: "a devastating abomination" or an "abomination of devastation."

VERSE 32 "By smooth words he will turn to godlessness those who act wickedly toward the covenant (tAQl;x]B; @ynIx]y: tyrIb. y[eyvir>m;W [waw w/hiphil part.m.p.constr. rasha act wickedly; "those who act wickedly" + noun f.s.abs. berith + hiphil impf.3m.s. chanep be defiled, profaned; "he will turn to godlessness" or "he will corrupt" + prep beth w/art/w/adj.f.p.abs. chalaq smooth; "smooth words" or perhaps flattery], but the people who know their God will display strength and take action [Wf['w> WqzIx]y: wyh'l{a/ y[ed>yO ~[;w> [waw w/noun m.s.ab.s am people + qal part.m.p.constr. yada know + noun m.p.constr.w/3m.s.suff. elohim, God + hiphil impf.3m.p. chazaq be(come) strong; "will display strength" + waw w/qal perf.3p. ashah do; "take action"; also at 9:19; 11:28,30,32,39]).

ANALYSIS: VERSE 32

1. Verse 32 continues the narrative of Antiochus’ machinations.
2. This tyrant was past master in manipulating Jewish leaders who were divided in their loyalties winning them over to his cause by promises of preferment and reward.
3. As a matter of fact, Antiochus already had as partisans for his cause a considerable number of influential leaders in Jerusalem society and politics who were convinced of the expediency of a pro-Hellenic (Greek) policy.
4. These were doubtless the group referred to in the prophetic statement "those who act wickedly toward the covenant."
5. First Maccabees 1:11-15 describes how certain "transgressors of the law" gathered about them a party of collaborators who were ready to throw off all their Jewish loyalties and commitment to Yahweh in their zeal to be accepted and find approval with their Syrian-Greek overlords.
6. They had built a Hellenic type gymnasium in Jerusalem (which of course, involved their exercising naked, as the Greeks did) and even attempted to ingratiate themselves with Gentile society and please their foreign rulers.
7. This led to serious polarization that compelled the Jews to take definite steps either for or against the collaborationist party, which somewhat resembled the Herodians of Christ’s day.
8. In some ways the defection of the would-be "progressives" among the Jews themselves was an even more serious threat to the survival of Israel as a nation then the tyrannical measures of Antiochus.
9. It was the same kind of large-scale betrayal of their covenant obligations toward the Lord that had made inevitable the former destruction of Jerusalem and the Babylonian captivity in the days of Jeremiah.
10. But the hope of Israel lay with the committed believers who preferred to risk their lives rather than betray their honor.
11. A band of heroic patriots was stirred to action by a certain priest named Mattathias in the town of Modein.
12. He was the father of the valiant Maccabees: Judas, Jonathon, and Simon, each of whom later became nasi yisrael ("prince of Israel") during the victorious guerrilla war of independence against the Seleucid government.
13. These patriots, sparked by the zeal of the Hasidim movement, were the mainstay of the resistance, which opposed the pro-Seleucid compromisers as well as Antiochus and his successors.
14. They fulfilled the prediction of v.32: "The people who know their God will firmly resist him (i.e., Epiphanes]."
15. In their later development, some of the Hasidim ("the godly, pious, loyal ones") became the sect of the Pharisees (perusim, "separated ones") who gave strict observance to obeying every regulation of the Law and every oral interpretation of it that had been handed down through the generations.
16. Later still a smaller group broke off from the same movement and became out-and-out separatists rather than attempting like the Pharisees to reform the religious establishment from within.
17. These were the Essenes, one group of whom made their headquarters at Qumran under the leadership of the unnamed "Teacher of Righteousness" who figured prominently in the Qumran sectarian literature.
18. The Essenes believed in complete separation, abjuring the rationalistic theology of the Sadducees and the materialism of the Pharisees.
19. Such, then, were the offshoots of "the people who know their God."
20. The "display strength and take action" is the record of the war for independence from the Seleucid tyranny.
21. Only the earliest phase of war for independence is described here: therefore, there is no mention of Judas Maccabaeus’s ultimate success in recapturing Jerusalem and cleansing the temple of pagan pollution in 165.
22. Nor is there mention of rededication (Hanukkah) of the cleansed temple.

VERSE 33 "Those who have insight among the people will give understanding to the many (~yBir;l' Wnybiy" ~[' yleyKif.m;W [waw w/hiphil part.m.p.constr. shakal insight; syn with bin but shakal relates to intelligent knowledge; knowledge that involves thinking through a complex arrangement of thoughts; "have insight" + noun m.s.abs. am people + hiphil impf.3m.p. bin understand; "give understanding" + prep lamedh w/art.w/adj.m.p.abs. rab many; "to the many"]; yet they will fall by sword and by flame, by captivity and by plunder for many days [~ymiy" hZ"bib.W ybiv.Bi hb'h'l,b.W br,x,B. Wlv.k.nIw> [waw w/niphal perf.3p. kashal stumble; "fall" + prep beth w/noun f.s.abs. chereb sword + waw w/prep beth w/noun f.s.abs. lehabah flame + prep beth w/noun m.s.abs. shebi captivity + waw w/prep beth w/noun f.s.abs bizzah plunder + noun m.p.abs. yom day; "many days"]).

ANALYSIS: VERSE 33

1. During the persecution by Antiochus, the patriot leaders would preach fearful and intimidated countrymen a message of repentance and commitment to the covenant.
2. They would summon the people to trust in the grace and power of God instead of bowing to the demands of the pagan tyrant.
3. These maskilim (lit., "men who show wisdom") engaged in a ministry of education and action.
4. First, they were to get their lives in line with the Torah and second, to answer the call to take up arms for the liberation of their homeland from the yoke of oppression.
5. Yet these leaders endured much loss and hardship for their faith (+V).
6. Many lost their lives and property, as the tyrant’s troops ravaged the countryside looting and burning crops and homes and villages.
7. The fulfillment of these predictions was in full swing when in 168 the standard of revolt was raised by Mattathias, the leading priest of the town of Modein, located in the hill country of the tribe of Ephraim.
8. After killing the officer of Antiochus who had come to compel the villagers to sacrifice a pig, Mattathias and his five sons (John Gaddis, Simon Thassi, Judas Maccabaeus, Eleazar Avaran, and Jonathon Apphus) led a guerilla band that fled to the hills (1Macc.2:23-28) and attracted many adherents from various towns in the Judean province.
9. A large number of these original patriots died in their first engagement with the king’s troops because they refused to fight in their own defense on the Sabbath, the day they were attacked (1Macc.2:36).
10. But revising their policy after this tragic slaughter, they decided that they would fight even on the Sabbath, if compelled to do so.
11. Then they engaged in vigorous attacks on all their fellow countrymen who were subservient to Antiochus’ ordinance of enforce idolatry.
12. Not long afterward Mattathias died after entrusting the leadership to his sons.
13. Judas Maccabaeus (for he received the title of "Hammer") assumed the military leadership and gained a brilliant victory over the forces of Apollonius, whom he killed in battle.
14. Judas’ second involved routing an even larger army under Seron.
15. A third army of formidable proportions came down from Syria under Lysias, Antiochus’ deputy, equipped with an elephant corps.
16. Judas’ brother Eleazar died in that engagement after an elephant he pierced fell on him, but that army was put to flight as well.
17. So the Maccabees fulfilled the prediction Zech.9:13-17.

VERSE 34 "Now when they fall they will be granted a little help, and many will join with them in hypocrisy (tAQl;q.l;x]B; ~yBir; ~h,yle[] Wwl.nIw> j['m. rz<[e Wrz>['yE ~l'v.K'hib.W [waw w/prep beth w/niphal infin.constr.w/3m.p.suff. kashasl stumble; "when they fall" + niphal impf.3m.p. azar help + noun m.s.abs. ezer help; "they will be granted…" + adj.m.s.abs. me-at little + waw w/niphal perf.3p. lawah be joined + prep al w/3p.suff. + adj.m.p.abs. rab many + prep beth w/noun f.p.abs halaqlaqqoth smoothness, flattery; "hypocrisy"]).

ANALYSIS: VERSE 34

1. This verse speaks in moderate terms of the successes achieved by these valiant warriors.
2. Presumably the "little help" refers to the relatively small numbers of compatriots who joined the Maccabean troops after the early successes of the original band.
3. They saw how they kept on fighting with great courage against overwhelming odds, even though they soon lost Mattathias and many of their first volunteers.
4. Then, because on Seleucid army after another fell before their onslaught, the Maccabean troops were able to intimidate many of their fellow citizens who had previously held back from the conflict.
5. Particularly when the Hasidim began to round up those who collaborated with the Seleucids and put them to death (1 Macc.2:42) and Judas himself hunted out those in various cities who had deserted scriptural standards ("the lawless’ as the Maccabees called them), goodly number of insincere followers attached themselves to the patriot cause, hoping to save their own skins.
6. Such supporters as these, however, proved to be of more help to the enemy than the cause of freedom when later invasions were launched against them by the successors of Antiochus Epiphanes after his death in 164.

VERSE 35 "Some of those who have insight will fall, in order to refine, purge and make them pure until the end time (#qe t[e-d[; !Bel.l;w> rreb'l.W ~h,B' @Arc.li Wlv.K'yI ~yliyKif.M;h;-!miW [waw w/prep min w/art/w/hiphil part.m.p.abs. shakal wise; "those who have insight" + niphal impf.3m.p. kashal stumble; "will fall" + prep lamedh w/qal infin.constr. tsarap refine + prep beth w/3p.suff. "them" + waw w/prep lamedh w/piel infin.constr. barar purge + waw w/prep lamedh w/hiphil infin.constr. laban make white + part ad until + noun both s.abs. eth time + noun m.s.abs. qets end]); because it is still to come at the appointed time [d[eAMl; dA[-yKi [part ki for; "because" + adv od still + prep lamedh w/noun m.s.abs. mo-ed appointed (time)]).

ANALYSIS: VERSE 35

1. The account of the Maccabean uprising concludes with a strong emphasis on the spiritual significance of this heroic struggle for those who risked their lives for the survival of the 2^nd commonwealth.
2. In the first instance, v.35 refers to the terrible reverse that overtook the pitifully outnumbered army of Judas himself at the battle of Mount Azotus in 161.
3. He chose to die bravely in battle rather than save his life through a strategic retreat (1 Macc.9:1-9).
4. After he had won this victory for King Demetrius I in 161, Bacchides followed it up with a systematic search for all Judas’ leaders and supporters and did his best to wipe them out.
5. But it was not long before the tide turned and Jonathon, Judas’ brother, was able to defeat the Syrian forces and compel them to retreat to Antioch.
6. Thus the cause of freedom was maintained through a series of defeats and successes, till finally a strong Jewish kingdom was founded by John Hyrancus, son of Simon Maccabaeus (135-105), and enlarged to its fullest extent by his warlike son Alexander Jannaeus (104-78 BC).
7. As pointed out in the analysis, the prophetic passage in Zech. 9:13 predicted the astonishing victory of the Maccabean heroes over their Greek overlords in terms of divine approbation and appointment.
8. Quite clearly God was promising beforehand to use the Jewish defense forces of a coming era against Hellenic armed might─which happened only during the second century BC.
9. As for Hebrews 11:33-35 the roster of exilic and post-exilic heroes of the faith included these warriors and the people who stood by them in those dark days of Jewish liberation: "became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight."
10. This phrase relates to the Maccabean freedom fighters whose arms God so blessed as they resisted Gentile efforts to stamp out the biblical faith.

VERSE 36 "Then the king will do as he pleases (%l,M,h; AnAcr>ki hf'['w> [waw qal perf.3m.s. ashah do + prep kaph w/noun m.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. ratson pleasure, delight in; "as he pleases" + art.w/noun m.s.abs. melek], and he will exalt and magnify himself above every god [lae-lK'-l[; lDeG:t.yIw> ~meArt.yIw> [waw w/hithpolel impf.3m.s. rum be high; "will exalt" + waw w/hithpael impf.3m.s. gadal become great or important; "magnify himself" + prep al above + noun m.s.constr. kol every + noun m.s.abs. el god] and will speak monstrous things against the God of gods [tAal'p.nI rBed;y> ~yliae lae l[;w> [waw w/prep al against + noun m.s.abs. God + noun m.p.abs. god + piel impf.3m.s. dabar speak + niphal part.f.p.abs. pala be marvelous, wonderful; "monstrous things" or "blasphemies"]; and he will prosper until the indignation is finished [~[;z: hl'K'-d[; x;ylic.hiw> [waw w/hiphil perf.3m.s. tsalach prosper, experience success + prep ad until + qal perf.3m.s kalah go on; " is finished" + noun m.s.abs. za-am indignation; here for the intense anger of God], for that which is decreed will be done [ht'f'[/n< hc'r'x/n< yKi [part ki for + niphal part.f.s.abs. charats decree, decide, determine; "that which is decreed" + niphal perf.3f.s. ashad do, accomplish; "will be done"]).

ANALYSIS: VERSE 36

1. With conclusion of the preceding section at v.35, the predictive material that uncontestably applies to the Hellenistic empires and the contest between the Seleucids and the Jewish patriots ends.
2. Verses 36-39 contains some features that hardly apply to Antiochus IV (Epiphanes), though some of the details could apply to his as well as to his latter-day counterpart (antitype), "the beast."
3. But liberal and conservative scholars agree that all of chapter 11 up to this point contains strikingly accurate predictions of the whole sweep of events from the reign of Cyrus (during which Daniel brought his career to a close) to the unsuccessful effort of Antiochus Epiphanes to stamp out the Jewish faith.
4. But the two schools of thought radically differ in the explanation for this phenomenon.
5. Conservatives (Evangelicals) find this pattern of prediction and fulfillment compelling evidence of the divine inspiration and authority of the Hebrew Scriptures, since only God could possibly foreknow the future and see to it that His pre-announced plan would be precisely fulfilled.
6. To the liberals (rationalists), however, who begin with the premise that there is no personal God and that whatever superior force may govern the affairs of men leaves the human race quite free to manage its own affairs without any supernatural interference, there is no possibility of a genuine fulfillment of prophecy.
7. Therefore all biblical instances of fulfilled prophecy must be accounted for as a pious fraud in which only after the event takes place has the fiction recording its prediction been devised.
8. Since no man can truly foreknow the future, or even be sure of what will happen the next day─to say nothing of event to happen several centuries later─it follows that any and every record of a fulfilled prophecy is spurious.
9. That is what rationalists have to say about all predictive portions of the Bible.
10. For them there can be no such thing as divine revelation of events to come.
11. Otherwise they must surrender their pride and acknowledge the possibility of the supernatural, as demonstrated by detailed fulfillment of events foretold, as here to Daniel, by a prophet of God more than 360 years in advance.
12. As we come to the substance of vv. 36-39, we must recognize a minor difference of opinion among evangelical commentators.
13. Some feel that the Antichrist is the only clear fulfillment of these verses; this follows Jerome (p. 136), who say the king mentioned in v. 36, "We too understand this to refer to the Antichrist."
14. Leupold (p. 511) likewise feels that the fewest difficulties attach to the view that these verses point directly to the Antichrist.
15. But Fausset (JFB, p. 646) feels that this is a transitional prophecy I which the willful king here described is "primarily Antiochus" but "antitypically and mainly Antichrist…of Rev.13."
16. As for these options, observe first of all those features that can be applied to both Antiochus IV and the Antichrist and those that cannot be applied to Antiochus Epiphanes.
17. Verse 36 contains both types of material: "The king will do as he pleases" [cf. 8:4; 11:3, 16─the latter two referring to Alexander the Great and Antiochus Epiphanes respectively!].
18. "He will exalt and magnify himself above every god" is hardly demonstrable of Antiochus IV.
19. "He will say unheard-of things ("monstrous") against the God of gods" applies to both individuals as Antiochus blasphemed Yahweh.
20. "He will be successful ("prosper") until the time of wrath ("the indignation") is completed" presumably refers to the wrath of God, which was decreed during this tribulation as punishment for the sins of the Jewish people.
21. This time refers to the desecration of the temple in 168 and its rededication in 164.
22. Yet as these words stand, they seem equally if not more suited to Christ’s statement in Matt. 24:21-22 predicting the Great Tribulation or the last three and one-half years of the 70^th Week.
23. Some have argued that since Antiochus entitled himself "God Manifest" on his coins, this was tantamount to "magnifying himself above every god."
24. But in point of fact he placed a stone, not of himself, but of Zeus Olympius as the cult image in the Jerusalem temple, just as he represented Zeus as enthroned on the reverse side of his coins, adorned with the title Nikephoros ("Victory-winner").
25. Antiochus was evidently loyal to the Greek religious tradition, which revered the entire Olympian pantheon; and so it is hardly justifiable to accuse him of such impiety as exalting himself above all the gods to whom he offered sacrifice at the altar.
26. The final tyrant, the Antichrist, will not only promote himself as God, but he will absolutely forbid the practice of any faith contrary to his cult (2Thess.2:4: "who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God."
27. The Antichrist seeks to fulfill his satanically inspired objectives, and in the process is highly (but not absolutely) successful, while at the same time, God is fulfilling absolutely His agenda to bring "the indignation" upon all humanity just as He did at the Flood.
28. Antichrist and his depredations are a part of suffering that so characterizes the seven year tribulation.
29. The sufferings of global humanity must be "finished," and the Antichrist is used by God to inflict misery on especially those who are negative and corrupt.
30. For those who turn to the Lord, cursing is turned into blessing.
31. A part of the divine decrees is the resuscitation of Alexander the Great from the abyss (Rev.11:7; 17:8, 10-12) to be the "strong delusion" that God will send to delude negative volition in those days (2Thess.2:11).
32. All of this is under the control of the God of history and all is a part of the divine decrees as Daniel 11:36 indicates.
33. Evil cannot achieve its ultimate objectives but can succeed to a point until the overruling will of God intervenes and shuts it all down.
34. By verse 36 Antiochus fades into the background.

VERSE 37 "He will show no regard for the gods of his fathers or for the desire of women (~yvin" tD;m.x,-l[;w> !ybiy" al{ wyt'boa] yhel{a/-l[;w> [waw w/prep al "for" + noun m.p.constr. elohim gods + noun m.p.constr.w/3m.s.suff. ab father, forefather + neg lo + qal impf.3m.s. bin understand, consider; "show no regard" + noun m.s.constr. chamedah desire + noun m.p.abs. ishshah woman, wife, female; here as a subjective genitive: "that which women love"??], nor will he show regard for any other god [!ybiy" al{ H;Ala/-lK'-l[;w> [waw w/prep al "for" + noun m.s.constr. kol "any" + noun m.s.abs. elohim god + neg lo + qal impf.3m.s. bin understand, consider" nor will he show regard"]; for he will magnify himself above them all [lD'G:t.yI lKo-l[; yKi [part ki for + prep al above + noun m.s.abs. kol all + hithpael impf.3m.s. gadal become great or important; "he will magnify"]).

Worship of Satan (v.38)

VERSE 38 "But instead he will honor a god of fortresses (dBek;y> ANK;-l[; dBek;y> ANK;-l[; ~yZI[um' H;l{a/l,w [waw w/prep lamedh w/art.w/noun m.s.abs. eloah god; comes from elohim + noun m.p.abs. ma-oz fortress; the idea being a place of safety + prep al + noun m.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. ken place; "instead" + piel impf.3m.s. kabed be heavy, hard, glorious; "he will honor"], a god whom his fathers did not know [wyt'boa] Wh[ud'y>-al{ rv,a] H;Ala/l,w> [waw w/prep lamedh w/art.w/noun m.s.abs. eloah god + re lasher whom + neg lo + qal perf.3p.w/3m.s.suff. yada know + noun m.p.constr.w3m.s.suff. ab father, forefather]; he will honor him with gold, silver, costly stones and treasures [tAdmux]b;W hr'q'y> !b,a,b.W @s,k,b.W bh'z"B. dBek;y> [piel impf.3m.s. kabed be heavy; "he will honor" + prep beth w/noun m.s.abs. zahab gold + prep beth w/noun m.s.ab.s kesep silver + waw w/prep beth w/noun f.s.abs. eben stone + adj.f.s.abs. yaqar costly, precious + waw w/prep beth w/art. w/adj.f.p.abs. chamud pleasant things; "treasures"; it is a cognate of the verb chamad ‘to delight in’ something or someone; it is translated in the singular "desire" in v.37b]).

ANALYSIS: VERSES 37-38

1. The opening clause of v. 37— "He will show no regard for the gods of his fathers" — hardly fits Antiochus.
2. On the contrary, his deliberate policy was to compel the Jews to worship the god of his fathers on pain of death.
3. In Antiochus’ quest to promote his own divinity he never compelled men to abandon their pagan deities.
4. The only faith he sought to suppress was that of the Jews.
5. Antichrist, on the other hand follows a new cult— one that suppresses all objects of worship (2Thess.2:4).
6. In fact, he requires universal submission to his cult on the pain of death.
7. That, in part, is what the mark of the beast is all about.
8. During the first half of the tribulation the Antichrist will wipe out the Roman Catholic Church headquartered in Europe (Rev.17:16-18).
9. This will make him popular with some and unpopular with others.
10. He attempts to remake the world along the lines of a single cult with him worshipped as a god of god-man.
11. He truly will be a counterfeit of the Lord Jesus Christ.
12. He will be more like Stalin who began as a candidate for the priesthood in the Russian Orthodox faith before defecting to Marxism.
13. Stalin’s public persona was that of an atheist but in point of fact he was a Satanist.
14. The next words of v. 37— "he will show no regard…for the desire of women" or "for the one desired by women"— are difficult.
15. Some commentators have taken them to be an allusion to Tammuz or Adonis, the object of a special cult practiced by women from the second millennium BC, and continued till the time of Antiochus (Ezek. 18:14).
16. Another view has it that this is a reference to the normal physical passion that men have for women, which would mean that the Antichrist is a homosexual.
17. This is an attractive view since it is well known that the Greeks like Alexander the Great practiced this vice.
18. The most plausible reference, in the light of Daniel’s Jewish background and Antichrist’s persecution against the Jews, is that the reference is to the desire of Hebrew women to become the mother of the promised Messiah (Gen. 3:15; Isa.7:14), making the expression a symbol of Messianic hope in general.
19. The "desire or women" would be a subjective genitive: "that desired by women."
20. What favors this interpretation is the contextual position of the phrase sandwiched between references to "the gods of his fathers" and "any god," suggesting that the Antichrist "would disregard the gods of the past as well as the promised Son of God who is to come from heaven.
21. This interpretation is in line with the repeated idea (cf. v. 36) of self-exaltation of the Antichrist above all (Isa.14:13; 2Thess.2:4), imbued as he will be with the satanic spirit, with the idea that he will actually ape Christ’s resurrection based on his supernatural return from the abyss.
22. So the Antichrist, Alexander the Great, will not serve the gods of his Greek ancestors, he will do much worse.
23. "Instead (ANK;-l[; i.e., of the gods of his ancestors), he will honor a god of fortresses; a god whom his fathers did not know."
24. So the Beast will not exclude all practice of religion.
25. He along with the false prophet will set up a new world religion that requires all men to take a mark of initiation or suffer hunger and death (Rev.13).
26. A chip will be embedded under the skin of either the hand or the forehead.
27. All humanity is warned ahead of time not to take or they are doomed to eternal perdition.
28. While he is promoted as God in the flesh or manifest, he does serve or "honor" a god; one that his fathers did not directly honor.
29. He himself will be united to Satan and be operating under satanic power (Rev.13:2, 4; 16:13).
30. Those worshipping the Antichrist will be worshipping Satan directly (Rev.13:4).
31. That will entail the final world religion of the tribulation, erected upon the attempted complete destruction of all previous faiths (cf. 17:16 for one noteworthy example).
32. Satan at this time seems to be moving ever closer to his objective of securing the open worship of humanity.
33. Satan’s ancient quest is to replace God and be worshipped in His stead (Isa.14).
34. Those who directly serve and worship him are promised things and he has the ability to deliver (cf. Matt.4:8-9).
35. The Antichrist’s success is based in large part on his devotion to Satan’s agenda.
36. His overt devotion to this god that was unknown to his fathers is seen in the words of v. 38: "he will honor with gold, silver, precious stones and treasures."
37. These are votive gifts which sound more like an ancient pagan setting than a modern religious practice.
38. However, men still bring gifts and present them before their idols (flowers, food, etc.).
39. Here we have a remarkable statement that the Antichrist will himself engage in worship before his new god.
40. This is how he will honor the one superior to him in authority.
41. This is the only authority he submits to during his brief career.

VERSE 39 "He will take action against the strongest of fortresses with the help of a foreign god (rk'nE H;Ala/-~[i ~yZI[um' yrec.b.mil. hf'['w> [waw w/qal perf.3m.s. ashad do; "take action" + prep lamedh w/noun m.p.constr. mibetsar fortification; "fortresses" + noun m.p.abs. ma-oz place of security; "strongest" + prep im with + noun m.s.abs. eloah god + noun m.s.abs. nekar foreign, strange]; he will give great honor to those who acknowledge him [dAbk' hB,r>y: ÎryKiy:Ð ¿ryKihiÀ rv,a] [re lasher "to those" + hiphil perf.3m.s. nakar recognize, acknowledge + hiphil impf.3m.s. rabah be(come) great; "he will give…honor" + noun m.s.abs. kabod great; from the root which means ‘heavy’] and will cause them to rule over the many, and will parcel out land for a price [ryxim.Bi qLex;y> hm'd'a]w: ~yBir;B' ~l'yvim.hiw> [waw w/hiphil perf.3m.s.w/3m.p.suff. mashal rule + prep beth w/art.w/adj.m.p.abs. rab many; "over the many" + waw w/noun f.s.abs. adamah land; adam man, mankind, Adam + piel impf.3m.s. chalaq divide; "parcel out" + prep beth w/noun m.s.abs. mechir price, hire; will he institute feudalism?]).

ANALYSIS: VERSE 39

1. Here the prediction has to do with the military conquests of the "little horn" in the tribulation (perhaps in the first half).
2. As the head of a ten nation confederation of European states (RRE) he will lead this confederation into battle with various nations in the area and enjoy phenomenal success.
3. His tactical military exploits will be so spectacular that the peoples will say, "Who is like the beast, and who is able to make war with the beast? (Rev. 13:4).
4. Also, during his early career (first half) he will experience resuscitation from assassination (Rev.13:3: "I saw one of his heads as if it had been slain, and his fatal wound was healed. And the whole earth was amazed and followed after the beast").
5. These factors and others will account for the world-wide mania over this military celebrity.
6. During the first three and one half years of the tribulation the cult of Alexander will be set up and many will take his mark and worship him as a god and the power behind the throne— Satan (Rev.13:2, 4, 12).
7. A major aspect of the propaganda of the promoter of the cult— the false prophet— will be a constant reminder of the Antichrist’s invincibility (Rev. 13:12: "He [false prophet] exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence. And he makes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose fatal wound was healed."; also see v.14).
8. His military exploits here is said to be "against the strongest fortresses" which refers to military successes in the first half of the tribulation.
9. His efforts are aided and abetted with the help of "a foreign god."
10. Here, without the definite article before eloah, this god is the same one mentioned in the previous verse.
11. Satan throws all his support behind this man, and is responsible for much of his success (Rev. 13:1-8, 11-18).
12. Those within the pale of his kingdom who fully support him will be rewarded handsomely with political power and landed properties.
13. "He will give great honor to those who acknowledge him" (i.e. as deity) is the temporal glory heaped on those who support his ideals and endeavors.
14. The two things they are granted is positions within his growing empire and perhaps the institution of a kind of feudal system.
15. A landed estate with feudal serfs working in farms and factories seems to be the thrust of the phrase "and will parcel out the land for a price (or "hire")."
16. Or, this redistribution of wealth could be limited to those Jews who worship this strange god.
17. This would place the fulfillment at the mid-point of the tribulation when the Antichrist makes his covenant with the apostate and opportunistic Jews, who go along with his scheme to replace the ancient temple ritual with the trappings of his sinister cult (Dan. 9:27; 2Thess.2:4).
18. They, then, would be apportioned estates in return for their falsehood.
19. All of this demonstrates the insanity of grasping for temporal advantages, and in the end, losing everything.
20. Here we have a parallel between the dealings of Antiochus and the Jews of his day, and those of the Antichrist when he makes Jerusalem his capital.

VERSE 40 "At the end time the king of the South will collide with him (bg<N<h; %l,m, AM[i xG:n:t.yI #qe t[eb.W [waw w/prep beth w/noun both s.abs. eth time + noun m.s.abs. qets end + hithpael impf.3m.s. nachah push, gore + noun m.s.abs. melek king + art.w/proper noun negeb South], and the king of the North will storm against him with chariots, with horsemen and with many ships [tABr; tAYnIa\b'W ~yvir'p'b.W bk,r,B. !ApC'h; %l,m, wyl'[' r[eT'f.yIw> [waw w/hithpael impf.3m.s. sha-ar sweep away; "will storm" + prep al against w/3m.s.suff. + noun m.s.abs.melek king + art.w/noun f.s.abs. tsapon north + prep beth w/noun m.s.abs. rekeb chariotry + waw w/prep beth w/noun m.p.abs. parash horse, horsemen + waw w/prep beth w/noun f.p.abs. aniyyah ship + adj.f.p.abs. rab many]; and he will enter countries, overflow them and pass through [rb'['w> @j;v'w> tAcr'a]b; ab'W [waw w/qal perf.3m.s. bo enter + prep beth w/art.w/noun f.p.abs. erets land; "countries" + waw w/qal perf.3m.s. shataph wash, rinse, overflow + waw w/qal perf.3m.s. abar pass by/through]).

ANALYSIS: VERSE 40

1. As for this final paragraph, the effort to connect its details into the known career of Antiochus Epiphanes is not possible.
2. At least it is not possible to match up all the details with Antiochus’ times.
3. There are some general associations with the history of Antiochus Epiphanes that will be pointed out in the analyses to follow, but in no way could this be pointed to as exact fulfillment.
4. The primary, if not exclusive focus of verses 40-45 is the future career of the Antichrist "at the time of the end."
5. This expression which opens verse 40 refers specifically to events in the latter half of the tribulation.
6. Proof of this will be duly noted in the verses to follow.
7. Especially take note of the fall of the Antichrist mentioned in verse 45, which is properly recognized to occur in connection with the 2^nd Advent of Jesus Christ on the battlefield of Armageddon.
8. Up to this point in this chapter "the king of the South" refers to the Ptolemaic Empire centered in Egypt.
9. Here, however, we are dealing with a latter days or tribulational entity which no doubt consists of Egypt and probably some other nations in North Africa.
10. The verb "will collide" (hithpael impf. nagach) means literally, ‘to gore at."
11. Egypt and allies no doubt feel quite threatened by the alliance between Israel and the Antichrist, and proceeds to take military action against this king of the west.
12. It is of interest to note that Alexander the Great did not have to forcibly conquer Egypt but was welcomed as liberator from the Persian yoke.
13. We have just seen how Antiochus Epiphanes and his successors were repeatedly at war with the king of the South.
14. The Antichrist, Alexander the Great, will find himself at war with Egypt.
15. This seems to be natural in light of the hatred of modern Egypt for the Jewish state.
16. Antichrist’s pseudo support for the interests of the state of Israel will not go over well with the Arab Islamic community of nations.
17. The seven year treaty guaranteeing Israel’s security will not be well received in Cairo and other Arab capitals.
18. Interestingly, the nations of Europe will be supportive of the Antichrist’s pseudo pro-semitism.
19. Remember, by this point the USA is no more (Rev.18; Jer.50, 51).
20. Another threat to the interests of the king of the west is "the king of the north."
21. Throughout this chapter to this point the king of the north is the Seleucid Greek kingdom (Syria) of Antiochus Epiphanes.
22. But here "the king of the north" is seen "storming against [the king of the west] with land, sea, and air forces.
23. Immediately north of Israel is the modern state of Syria which is one of Israel’s enemies.
24. But, this is not the kingdom of Damascus, but is prophetic of the tribulation invasion of Israel by Russia (Moscow is almost directly north of Jerusalem).
25. The Russian invasion of Israel in the latter days is detailed in Ezekiel chapters 38 and 39.
26. The verb "storm against" (hithpael impf. sha-ar ‘to storm’) is used metaphorically of a very formidable military attack upon Antichrist’s kingdom now centered in the land of Israel.
27. As a result of the treaty with the Antichrist Israel is living in pseudo peace.
28. God’s judgment upon Israel for entering into this pact with the agents of Satan is to bring the Russians and her allies into the Promised Land.
29. The nations aligned with Russia at this time are forecast in Ezek.38:5 and 6 which are currently identified as: "Persia" or modern Iran; "Put" modern Lybia; "Ethiopia" or northern Sudan; "Gomer" or eastern Turkey or Ukraine; and "Beth-togarmah" or modern Turkey near the border of Syria.
30. This invasion will be stopped in its tracks by God with fire out of heaven once it arrives in the land of Israel to the sign for the evangelization of the world.
31. Antichrist will not get the credit for this one.
32. Note that nothing is said specifically about the outcome of the attack of the king of the north against the interests of Antichrist while there is an upcoming statement regarding the subjugation of Egypt in verse 43.
33. The reference to "chariots" and "horsemen" corresponds to modern vehicles of warfare like tanks and aircraft ("ships" requires no prophetic transference).
34. The last part of verse 40 prophesies in general of the military successes of the king of the west during this time: "and he will enter countries, overflow them and pass through."
35. The "pass through" part indicates the king of the west does not find himself in a quagmire.
36. The king of the west will enjoy success like he did when he led the Greek army against the Persians and others.
37. That is the idea behind the verbs "overflow" (like irrepressible flood waters).
38. Like the early success of the Nazi blitzkrieg that Antichrist will quickly and decisively defeat the armed forces of various nations in the Middle East, Africa and Europe.

VERSE 41 "He will also enter the Beautiful Land, and many countries will fall (WlveK'yI tABr;w> ybiC.h; #r,a,B. ab'W [waw w/qal perf.3m.s. bo enter + prep beth w/noun both s.abs. eretz land; "Land" + art.w/noun m.s.abs. tsebi beauty; "beautiful" + waw w/adj.f.p.abs. rab many + niphal impf.3m.p. kashal stumble; "fall"]; but these will be rescued out of his hand [AdY"mi Wjl.M'yI hL,aew> [waw w/adj.p.abs. elleh these + niphal impf.3m.p. malat be deliver, rescue + prep min w/noun f.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. yad hand]: Edom, Moab and the foremost of the sons of Ammon [!AM[; ynEB. tyviarew> ba'AmW ~Ada/ [proper noun Edom; root means ‘red’ + waw proper noun Moab + noun f.s.abs. re-shith best; "foremost" + noun m.p.constr. ben son + proper noun Ammon; Lot’s younger daughter named her son conceived by her father in incest as "a son by my father" Gen.29:30-38)]).

ANALYSIS: VERSE 41

1. The focus here is the last half of the tribulation.
2. The scene here is the Holy Land, which is the focal point for the final terrible conflict with all the nations of the earth (cf. Zech.12:1-9).
3. "The Beautiful Land" is of course a reference to the land of promise promised to the physical descendants of Abraham through Isaac and Jacob as per Gen.13:14-15.
4. This designation for the land of Israel is found only in Daniel at 8:9; 11:16, 41.
5. The designation has to do with the fact that this land enjoys special favor before God.
6. At the end, the land of Israel will be ravaged by Antichrist’s forces, as will many of the surrounding countries.
7. The attack upon Israel will be due to the fact that there will arise an insurgency as in the days of the Maccabees to oppose those who would destroy the true faith of God’s chosen people.
8. This is clearly indicated in the prophecy of Zechariah chapters 12 and 14.
9. Like Antiochus, Alexander the Great will set up his command headquarters outside the city of Jerusalem.
10. Those who attempt to gain access to Israel he will confront and defeat and do God’s work for Him.
11. Areas that the Antichrist will not successfully overrun are specified in this prophecy as the ancient territories east of the Jordan River: "Edom, Moab, and the foremost of the sons of Ammon."
12. Edom, Moab and Ammon today are within the national territory of Jordan.
13. The ancient Edomites were the descendants of Esau the twin brother of Jacob the father of the twelve tribes of Israel.
14. The Moabites and the Ammonites are descendants of Lot, Abraham’s nephew, who begat the original patriarchs by Lot’s two daughters.
15. The reason that the Antichrist is blocked from his objectives in the regions to the east and south of Jerusalem is because of who is residing there.
16. Believing and obedient Jews who are told to flee Israel when the idol is erected in the temple in Jerusalem, and go to mountain strongholds like Petra are only safe there if they wait until the Messiah comes to their places of refuge (Rev.12:6; Matt. 24:15-21).
17. The Antichrist will send forces against them but the earth will open and swallow them up (Rev.12:13-17).
18. The Antichrist will resort to lies to draw believing Jews out of their safe places but they are warned in Scripture not to listen to the public broadcasts (Matt.24:24-28).
19. The peculiar reference to Ammon as "the foremost (or "chiefs" or "prominent people") is not understood at this time.

VERSE 42 "Then he will stretch out his hand against other countries, and the land of Egypt will not escape (hj'ylep.li hy<h.ti al{ ~yIr;c.mi #r,a,w> tAcr'a]B; Ady" xl;v.yIw> [waw w/qal impf.3m.s. shalach extend, stretch out + noun f.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. yad hand + prep beth w/art.w/noun f.p.abs. eretz land; "other countries" + waw w/noun both s.abs. eretz land + proper noun Mitsrayim Egypt; noun is a dual indicating her two basic constituent divisions: Upper Egypt (Southern Egypt) and Lower Egypt (the Delta area). The reason for the equation of the upper with the south and the lower with the north is because of the northward flow of the Nile. The Egyptians themselves referred to their land as t-wy "two lands" or Kemi "Black Land," this latter being a reference to the lush, irrigated soil that ran along the sides of the Nile + neg lo + qal impf.3f.s. hayah to be; "will not" + prep lamedh w/noun f.s.abs. peletah escape]).

VERSE 43 "But he will gain control over the hidden treasures of gold and silver and over all the precious things of Egypt (~yIr'c.mi tAdmux] lkob.W @s,K,h;w> bh'Z"h; yNEm;k.miB. lv;m'W [waw w/qal perf.3m.s. mashal rule; "gain control" + prep beth w/noun m.p.constr. mikman hidden stores; "hidden treasures" + art.w/noun m.s.abs. zahab gold + waw w/art.w/noun m.s.abs. kesep silver + waw w/prep beth a/noun m.s.abs. kol all + adj.f.p.constr. chamud desirable things + proper noun Egypt]; and Libyans and Ethiopians will follow at his heels [wyd'['c.miB. ~yvikuw> ~ybiluw> [waw w/proper noun Lub; Lybians + waw w/proper noun Kush; Ethiopians + prep beth w/noun m.p.constr.w.3m.s.suff. mitse-adh step; "heels"]).

ANALYSIS: VERSES 42-43

1. The king of the west will overcome Egypt for a second time.
2. From his headquarters in the Holy Land he will subjugate Egypt and other countries in the region (v.42).
3. Like his ancient ancestors Alexander will take possession of the wealth of Egypt.
4. They will be plundered of treasures of gold and silver and all precious things.
5. Perhaps Alexander knows where vast hordes of wealth are buried!
6. Their loyal allies , the Libyans to the west and the Nubians (or Ethiopians or Sudanese or both) to the south, will also be subjugated by the king of the west.
7. At last a Greek will triumph over the powerful antagonists to the south but none of this will last very long before he too is annihilated.
8. It is also of interest to note that Egypt will suffer a nuclear attack and her people will be dispersed for forty years (Ezek.29:10-16; but compare Isa.19:16-25).
9. How this all fits in with the Antichrist’s subjugation and plunder of the Egyptian treasures remains to be seen.

VERSE 44 "But rumors from the East and from the North will disturb him (!ApC'miW xr'z>Mimi Whluh]b;y> tA[muv.W [waw w/noun f.p.abs. shemu-ah news; "rumors"; cognate of the verb shama- ‘to hear’ + piel impf.3m.p.w/3m.s.suff. bahal disturb + prep min w/noun m.s.abs. mizerach east from the verb zarach to rise + waw w/prep min w/noun f.s.abs. tsapon north; cognate verb is tsapan ‘to treasure up’], and he will go forth with great wrath to destroy and annihilate many [~yBir; ~yrIx]h;l.W dymiv.h;l. hl'dog> am'xeB. ac'y"w> [waw w/qal perf.3m.s. yatsa go forth + prep beth w/noun f.s.abs. chemah heat; "wrath" + adj.f.s.abs. gadol great + prep lamedh w/hiphil infin.constr. shamad destroy, exterminate; it is used in passages dealing with vengeance + waw w/prep lamedh w/hiphil infin.constr. charam destroy utterly; "annihilate" + adj.m.p.abs. rab many]).

ANALYSIS: VERSE 44

1. His satisfaction over the plunder and subjugation of Egypt will be short-lived because news "from the east and from the north will disturb him."
2. The east refers to what we call the Far East.
3. The Orientals nations will be mobilizing a huge army with intentions of moving into the Middle East (cf. Rev.16:12-14).
4. This is the third beast of Daniel chapter seven (7:6: "…and behold, another one, 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."
5. The north here no doubt refers to Russia and the nations of that part of the world.
6. Even though Russia and allies were annihilated by God Himself, there is yet another mobilization under way that troubles the king of the west.
7. The wicked just do not get any rest!
8. His response to attack various targets with fury.
9. His fury is probably keyed to the fact that he is possessed by Satan who is not in a good mood (cf. Rev.12:17: "So the dragon was enraged against the woman, and went off to make war with the rest of her children [resistance fighters defending Jerusalem], who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus."

VERSE 45 "He will pitch the tents of his royal pavilion between the seas and the beautiful Holy Mountain (vd,qo-ybic.-rh;l. ~yMiy: !yBe And>P;a; yl,h\a' [J;yIw> [waw w/qal impf.3m.s. nata plant; "pitch" + noun m.p.constr. ohel tent + noun m.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. appedden palace; "royal pavilion" + prep bayin between + noun m.p.abs. yam sea; here of the Med and the Dead Sea + prep lamedh w/noun m.s.abs. har mountain + noun m.s.constr. tsibi beauty; "beautiful" + noun m.s.constr. qodesh holiness; from verb qadash be holy, set apart]; yet he will come to his end, and no one will help him [Al rzEA[ !yaew> ACqi-d[; ab'W [waw w/qal perf.3m.s bo come + prep ad to + noun m.s.constr.w/3m.s.suff. qets end + waw w/neg ayin no + qal part.m.s.abs. azar help, support + prep lamedh w/3m.s.suff.]).

ANALYSIS: VERSE 45

1. The prophecy ends with an abrupt obituary: "yet he will come to his end, and no one will help him."
2. All at once crushing disaster overtakes him and his forces, as well as all the armies gathered against the Holy City, when suddenly, out of the heavens, "the LORD will go out [from heaven] and fight against those nations" (Zech.14:3).
3. Similarly, in Rev.19:19-20, the "beast and the kings of the earth" assemble against the Lord to make war against Him and His people [Israel].
4. In the next verse (20) we read: "But the beast is captured, and with him the false prophet…The two of them were thrown alive into the lake of burning sulphur."
5. This comports well with Dan. 7:11: "And I kept looking because of the sound of the boastful words which the horn was speaking; I kept looking until the beast was slain, and its body was destroyed and given to the burning fire."
6. Apparently, the Antichrist, along with all unbelievers who survive the tribulation and the 2^nd advent, will be executed by fire after they are judged, but he and the false prophet will be cast [souls only] into the lake of fire."
7. Also, note 2Thess.2:7-12 and 3:8.
8. When the end comes for him he will be in his command headquarters somewhere between the Mediterranean Sea and the Dead Sea directing his army headed for the "beautiful Holy Mountain."
9. This is the mountain where God will install His Son as ruler of the nations (Ps.2).
10. His forces moving down the Megiddo plain will suffer annihilation according to the prophecy of Zech.14:12-13.
11. Jesus feet will touch down on the Mount of Olives securing a path of retreat for the Jews fighting in Jerusalem (Zech.14:1-7; 14-16).
12. All this is further supported by Rev.14:20 "And the wine press was trodden outside the city, and blood came out from the winepress, up to the horses’ bridles, for a distance of two hundred miles [length of the battlefield]."
13. And supported by Rev.16:16 "And they gathered them together to the place which in the Hebrew is called Har-Magedon [or Armageddon]."
14. Finally, note Isa.62:11-63:4 which agrees with Rev.19:11-21.
15. Such will be the sudden end of the Antichrist of Dan.11:36-45, and it will take place in the Holy Land.
16. This prediction of the location of his end eliminates the figure of Antiochus Epiphanes, who met his end in Persia, after an unsuccessful raid on a temple in Elymais.
17. There is no possibility of explaining this prediction as a concoction after the events of a Maccabean storyteller who wanted to stir up patriotic ardor by a series of spurious prophesies.
18. Therefore the entire case for a rationalistic (e.g., liberal) explanation for the composition of Daniel in the second century after the fulfillment of its predictions is rationally and logically unsupportable.
19. There is no way the details of vv. 40-45 can be fitted into the career of Antiochus Epiphanes.
20. No storyteller who had so accurately related the events of the fourth, third, and second centuries would have so grossly misrepresented Antiochus’s final days.
21. The principal ancient sources of information concerning the history behind these remarkable and detailed prophecies relating to the Seleucid and Ptolemaic Kingdoms are as follows: (1) Polybius of Megalopolis (203-111 BC), who composed the general history in forty volumes, comprising the history of the Roman world from 199-167 BC; (2) Titus Livius of the first century BC, who in his monumental history of Rom (Ab Urbe Condita Libri CLXII) treats of the Roman contacts with the Near East up to the death of Philip V of Macedon in vols. 31-60: (3) Flavius Josephus, the Jewish historian of the late first century AD, whose principal works (Antiquities of the Jews and The Wars of the Jews) were composed in Greek: (4) Appianus Historicus (his other names are not known), who composed most of his works in Greek, although Bella Civilia survives only in Latin. He came originally from Alexandria but transferred to Rome for his adult career during the reigns of Trajan, Hadrian, and Antionius Pius. His Zuriake relates particularly to the Seleucid and Ptolemaic period: (5) Lucius Annaeus Florus, likewise in the time of Trajan (early second cent., AD) composed Epitome de Gestis Romanorum: (6) Marcus Junianus Justinus (of the late second cent., AD) composed a summary of the work of an earlier historian named Trogas. It was entitled Historarum Philippicarum et Totius Mundi Originum…ex trogo Pompeio Excerptarum Libri XLIV and was dedicated to Marcus Aurelius.