Articles
Daniel 11
Daniel 11
In this chapter we have God foretelling what would happen in the years after the Media/Persian Empire. It is, with very rare exception, understood as the history of the two great dynasties that arose following the death of Alexander the Great. When he died in 323, his kingdom was split into four parts. Daniel's vision deals with the king of the North (Syria and the Seleucid family) and the king of the south (Egypt and the Ptolemy family). You can consult almost any commentary or study bible and get the names of the various kings for each verse. There were many kings, many wars, marriage alliances, and treachery.
Such unanimity of thought continues until you get to verse 36. Then we find an interesting problem. The events are difficult (most think impossible) to line up with the king of the north (Antiochus Epiphanes) of the verses immediately before this. Some try to force things to match, but it doesn't fit. Most commentators understand then that we have a different king / kingdom from here on out. Identifying which king is the subject of much debate.
Many modern scholars, who have been persuaded by the millennial viewpoints, argue that this is the so-called Antichrist that would arise. They thus skip from the period of Antiochus in 164 BC clear over all the events of Jesus and the church, and end up at the 2nd coming. Simply put, this is just a lot of speculation and wishful thinking.
A very few think that this new 'king of the north' is Herod the great. He did wear the title 'king' by permission of the Roman senate. He did usher in 'the last days' (cp. Hebrews 1:1; 9:26; 1Pet. 1:20, etc.), that is, the church age under the Messiah. Yet, like with Antiochus, the actual facts are difficult to fit with what we know of his life and death.
Others, such as Brother Hailey, see this as shifting to speak of the Romans and their dealings with the Jews and Christians leading up to fall of Jerusalem. The time of 'the end' is the end of the Jewish nation (not the Jewish people, they would continue, but the government and temple religion). The Romans came and conquered. They did as they wanted over the entire Mediterranean region, including Jerusalem. As with all the other nations, God had appointed that Rome too would come to an end and there would be none to help.
That this applies to the Romans is the most consistent with the history and the facts. We have several times been introduced to this fourth kingdom and the end time before the coming of the Kingdom of God. In the vision of chapter 9 we have the first division of the 69 'weeks' that cover the period from Cyrus until the rebuilding of Jerusalem and the temple. The second period is covered here. Chapter 9 spoke of the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple by a coming prince and now we see how this prince (the Romans) came to be. Although the vision of chapter 9 dealt with some of the events of the final 'week', we will return and read more of such in chapter 12.
Hugh DeLong
