Game of Thrones: Daniel 11

Daniel 11 is most easily understood as an extended commentary on the lines of prophecy already presented in Daniel 2, 7-9. The Kingdoms we see presented in the previous lines of prophecy are Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome, followed by the eschatological establishment of God’s Kingdom.

Secondarily Daniel 11 is a commentary on God’s faithfulness to His people in spite of their unfaithfulness following their restoration after captivity in Babylon. While they did not return openly practicing the visible idolatry of the surrounding pagan nations, the people of Judah and Jerusalem continued and furthered their course of idolatry of heart and mind. Instead of fulfilling God’s purpose for their nation by revealing God’s character to men, announcing the arrival of the Messiah. and preparing the gentiles to receive His sacrifice, they pursued national greatness and personal prosperity. Being separated from God by their continual sins of self-seeking, they were left to be conquered by other nations. By the time the son of God entered human history as Jesus of Nazareth, the Jews were in subjection to the Roman empire.

Read Desire of Ages, Chapter 2, “God’s Chosen People.”

What we read in Daniel 11 is an interpretation of a message Daniel receive in the “third year of Cyrus” (Daniel 10:1). Babylon has passed off of the world stage, so the explanation begins in Daniel 11:2 with the kingdom of Persia.

Persia: Four Remaining Kings

Daniel 11:2 (MEV)

2 “And now I will tell you the truth. Truly, there shall stand up yet three kings in Persia, and the fourth shall be far richer than all of them; and by his strength, through his riches, he shall stir up all against the realm of Greece.

The rebuilding and restoration of the city of Jerusalem took place during the dominance of the Persian empire.

Daniel 9:25 (MEV)

25 “Know therefore and understand that from the going forth of the command to restore and to rebuild Jerusalem until the Prince Messiah shall be seven weeks, and sixty-two weeks. It shall be built again, with plaza and moat, even in times of trouble.

Ezra 6:14 (MEV)

14 The rebuilding by the elders of the Jews prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they built, and finished it, according to the decree of the God of Israel and according to the decrees of Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes king of Persia.

Three kings stood up in Persia followed by a fourth who was far richer than all of them.

Cambyses (530-522 B.C.)- King during the period of opposition to the building of the second temple when the Jews had returned to the land from captivity. He gave the decree to stop building. He refused to help the Jews (Ezra 4:1-6, Cambyses is called “Ahasuerus” in verse 6).

Pseudo Smerdis (The Impostor, 522 B.C.)- He claimed to be Cambyses’ brother, but he was not. He ruled only a short time before he was assassinated (Called “Artaxerxes” in Ezra 4:7).

Darius Hystaspes (522-486 B.C.)- The Persian king who was receptive to the Jews building their Temple in Jerusalem. His decree put an end to the opposition of building the temple in Jerusalem (Ezra 4:7-6:14).

Xerxes (Esther’s Ahasuerus, 486-465 B.C.)- He did stir up all against the realm of Greece. He attacked Greece but was defeated and the Grecian empire began its dominion as a result.

Greece

Alexander the Great (336-323 B.C.)

Daniel 11:3 (MEV)

3 A mighty king shall stand up who shall rule with great dominion and do according to his will.

Daniel 8:5 (MEV)

5 As I was considering this, suddenly a male goat came from the west across the face of the whole earth and did not touch the ground. And the goat had a notable horn between his eyes.

Daniel 8:21 (MEV)

21 The rough goat is the king of Greece, and the great horn that is between his eyes is the first king.

The Grecian Empire Divided: Alexander’s Four Generals

Alexander the Great died at the young age of 32 from alcohol poisoning, a theory that Ellen White supports.

Testimonies for the Church, Volume 4 Number Twenty-Eight—Testimony for the Church

Many falter and fall because of the indulgence of a perverse temper. Alexander and Caesar found it much easier to subdue a kingdom than to rule their own spirits. After conquering nations, the world’s so-called great men fell, one of them through the indulgence of appetite, a victim of intemperance, the other through presumption and mad ambition.

Daniel 11:4 (MEV)

4 When he shall stand up, his kingdom shall be broken and shall be divided toward the four winds of heaven, but not to his posterity, nor according to his dominion which he ruled. For his kingdom shall be plucked up, even for others besides them.

Daniel 7:6 (MEV)

6 After this I looked and there was another, like a leopard, which had on its back four wings of a fowl. The beast also had four heads. And dominion was given to it.

Daniel 8:8 (MEV)

8 Therefore the male goat grew very great. And when he was strong, the great horn was broken, and four conspicuous horns came up in its place toward the four winds of heaven.

Daniel 8:22 (MEV)

22 Now the broken horn and the four horns that stood up in its place are four kingdoms that shall stand up out of his nation, but not with his power.

Alexander the Great died at the young age of 32 from alcohol poisoning, a theory that Ellen White supports.

Testimonies, vol. 4, pg. 348

Testimonies for the Church, Volume 4 Number Twenty-Eight—Testimony for the Church

Many falter and fall because of the indulgence of a perverse temper. Alexander and Caesar found it much easier to subdue a kingdom than to rule their own spirits. After conquering nations, the world’s so-called great men fell, one of them through the indulgence of appetite, a victim of intemperance, the other through presumption and mad ambition.

Alexander’s heir and next of kin were murdered. His most capable general, Antigonus, attempted to rule over the united empire of Greece, but was taken down by an alliance of four of Alexander’s other generals. Thus Alexander’s kingdom was divided toward the four winds of heaven, or the four points of the compass, but not to his posterity.

Lysimachus in Thrace in the North

Seleucus in Syria in the East

Ptolemy in Egypt in the South

Cassander in Macedon in the West

These four generals did not rule according to [Alexander’s] dominion which he ruled. Alexander’s united kingdom was plucked up, even for others besides them.

The Kings of the North and the South: Syria (The Seleucid Empire) and Egypt (The Ptolemaic Empire)

Syria and Egypt Introduced: Ptolemy I Soter (305-282 B.C.) and Seleucus Nicator (312-280 B.C.)

Daniel 11:5 (MEV)

5 “The king of the South shall be strong, as well as one of his officials who shall be strong above him and have dominion. His dominion shall be a great dominion.

Ptolemy I Soter was the king of the South who was strong. He annexed many islands and cities to Egypt. One of his officials, Seleucus I Nicator would eventually be strong above Ptolemy and have dominion. The successors of Cassander were conquered by Lysimachus and his territory was annexed to Thrace. Lysimachus was in turn conquered by Seleucus and his territory was annexed to Syria. In this way, Seleucus obtained a great dominion.

The rest of Daniel 11 is the history of the efforts of various rulers to secure control of Palestine and Jerusalem. The first contestants would be Ptolemy and Seleucus, with Ptolemy in Egypt to the south and Seleucus in Syria to the north.

God had established His people Israel in a strategic location. From its original position in Palestine it was to grow until it became a great World state. Jerusalem was to be its capital, and there God would have His earthly throne. But Satan wanted to defeat God’s purpose and make God’s city his own capital for the control of the world. Jerusalem at the crossroads of the world and on the heights of Zion offered military and commercial advantages.

Christ’s Object Lessons, pg. 290

Christ’s Object Lessons Chapter 23—The Lord’s Vineyard

The children of Israel were to occupy all the territory which God appointed them. Those nations that rejected the worship and service of the true God were to be dispossessed. But it was God’s purpose that by the revelation of His character through Israel men should be drawn unto Him. To all the world the gospel invitation was to be given. Through the teaching of the sacrificial service Christ was to be uplifted before the nations, and all who would look unto Him should live. All who, like Rahab the Canaanite, and Ruth the Moabitess, turned from idolatry to the worship of the true God, were to unite themselves with His chosen people. As the numbers of Israel increased they were to enlarge their borders, until their kingdom should embrace the world.

Stephen Haskell in Story of Daniel the Prophet gives us background insight into Israel’s involvement in the Greek empire.

All Israel had once been miraculously delivered from physical bondage in Egypt. They had been warned against fleeing to Egypt for protection in the days of Nebuchadnezzar at the siege of Jerusalem. They may have escaped the bondage of those earlier times, but they were captured by the learning of the Greeks. In the days of Ptolemy Soter, many Jews flocked into Egypt, and those who remained in Jerusalem and Palestine imbibed many of the ideas of the Greeks. SDP 190.1

It has been stated that the history of Greece fills the time between the prophecy of Malachi and John the Baptist. We are now ready to appreciate the reason why Israel was so long without the sound of the prophet’s voice. God gave Israel a system of education, separate and distinct from the system of all other nations; a system which, if followed, would forever make it impossible for the people to go into captivity. But Israel often gave up her God-given system for the teaching of heathen nations. Margin When the Jews returned from Babylon, they were strongly tinctured with Babylonian ideas of education and religion. This prepared them to accept with readiness the teachings of the Greeks. The rabbis of Jerusalem mingled the principles of Greek philosophy so thoroughly with the statutes of Jehovah, which they were commanded to teach the children, that from the death of Malachi to the birth of John the Baptist, there was not a family in Judah to whom the education of a prophet could be intrusted. SDP 190.2

The Greek games were performed in Jerusalem itself, and Jewish youth, dressed only in the scarf and broad hat in imitation of the god Hermes, wrestled like the Athenian athletes. It is stated by Dr. Mears that the priests, when the signal was given for the sports, left their work in the temple to watch the games. Greek names replaced the Jewish in many instances, and even priests intermarried with the Greeks. It is no wonder that Gabriel gave specific instruction concerning the name to be given the babe of Zacharias and Elizabeth, for although there was once a time when every child in Israel was named under the inspiration of the Spirit, the Israelites had now chosen Greece in place of God. SDP 191.1

The whole Jewish teaching was Hellenized; and when John the Baptist was born, his mother and father were commanded to leave the city of Jerusalem, and educate the child in the desert, away from the influence of the schools and society of the Jews. Christ himself never entered the schools of his day because of the mixture of the truth of God with heathen philosophy. Greek teaching exalted nature; but the Son of God could not hear the voice of the Father in Margin the teachings of the schools, and he wandered through the woods alone, or in company with his mother. Then it was that nature, the great object lesson of the Creator, was opened to his expanding mind. Other Jewish youth sat at the feet of the rabbis, learning what the spirit of the Greeks taught, and they crucified the Lord of life. SDP 191.2

The Syrian/Egyptian Wars

1st and 2nd Wars, Ptolemy II Philadelphus vs. Antiochus I Soter & Antiochus II Theos (276-271 B.C. & 261-252 B.C)

Daniel 11:6 (MEV)

6 In the end of some years they shall join themselves together. For the king’s daughter of the South shall come to the king of the North to make an agreement. But she shall not retain her position of power, and neither he nor his power shall stand. But she shall be given up with those who brought her and with him who fathered her and with him who strengthened her in those times.

Syria and Egypt would join themselves together when they agreed to make peace on the condition that Antiochus would divorce his wife, Laodice, remove her two sons from the court, and marry Berenice, the king’s daughter of the South.

Berenice did not retain her position of power. When Ptolemy died two years after the agreement, Antiochus brought Laodice and her children back to his court.

However, Antiochus did not stand. Laodice murdered Berenice along with those who brought her, her attendants. Ptolemy who fathered Berenice had already died and Antiochus who strengthened her in those times was poisoned by Laodice.

3rd War, Ptolemy III Euergetes Invades Syria in the days of Seleucus II Callinicus (246-240 B.C.)

Daniel 11:7 (MEV)

7 “But out of a branch of her roots shall one stand up in his place, who shall come with an army and shall enter the fortress of the king of the North and shall deal against them and shall prevail.

Out of a branch of Berenice’s roots, her brother Ptolemy III Euergetes would stand up in his place. He would come with and army and enter the fortress of the king of the north, invading Syria to avenge his sister’s death.

Daniel 11:8–9 (MEV)

8 And he shall also carry captive into Egypt their gods, with their officials, and with their precious vessels of silver and of gold. And he shall continue more years than the king of the North,

9 who will enter the kingdom of the king of the South, but shall return to his own land.

There is a strange tendency in human nature to worship the gods of conquered enemies. So, after invading Syria, Ptolemy carried captive into Egypt their gods, with their officials, and with their precious vessels of silver and gold. Ptolemy did indeed continue more years than the king of the North. He outlived Seleucus Callinicus about four or five years.

4th War, Antiochus III Magnus wages war on Egypt in the days of Ptolemy IV Philopater (219-217 B.C.)

Daniel 11:10 (MEV)

10 His sons shall wage war and assemble a multitude of armed forces. One shall advance like a flood and pass through, and again shall wage the war as far as his fortress.

The sons of Seleucus Callinicus would wage war and assemble a multitude of armed forces. Antiochus III Magnus would advance like a flood and pass through and wage the war on Egypt in the year 218 B.C.

Daniel 11:11 (MEV)

11 “The king of the South shall be moved with rage, and shall go out and fight with him, with the king of the North, who shall raise a great multitude; but that multitude shall be given into his enemy’s hand.

Ptolemy IV Philopater was moved with rage because of the losses he sustained and the danger facing him. He went out to fight with Antiochus III Magnus, the king of the North, who would raise a great multitude in response to Ptolemy’s advance. In the Battle of Raphia, that multitude raised by Antiochus was given into his enemy’s hand.

Daniel 11:12 (MEV)

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

After he had taken away the multitude, Ptolemy’s heart was lifted up by his success. He held a great victory procession into Jerusalem where he blasphemously offered sacrifices in the temple and even dared to attempt to enter the Most Holy Place. It is said that God struck him down with such confusion of mind that he was carried out of the Jerusalem temple half-dead.

From that moment on, Ptolemy burned with a relentless anger towards the Jews and their nation. He began to persecute God’s people in an attempt to force them to renounce the worship of Yahweh. In 213 B.C. he murdered 40,000 Jews according to church historian, Eusebius, 60,000 according to Jerome. Even though he had cast down many ten thousands, he would not be strengthened by it. Egypt began to decline rapidly. 9 brief years later, Ptolemy died and the age of 37, leaving a crumbling kingdom to his five-year old heir, Ptolemy V Epiphanes. The remainder of Philopater’s years were spent drowning his sorrows in drinking and fornication after he was compelled by his insurrectionist subjects to revoke his decrees against the Jews and restore them to their former privileges.

5th War, Antiochus III Magnus takes advantage of Ptolemy V Epiphanes (202-199 B.C.)

Daniel 11:13 (MEV)

13 For the king of the North shall return and shall raise a multitude greater than the former, and shall certainly come after certain years with a great army and with much equipment.

The king of the North, Antiochus III Magnus, would return and raise a multitude greater than the former to take advantage of the youthful king in the South and avenge his defeat at the Battle of Raphia. This happened after certain years, namely fourteen years of peace between Syria and Egypt following the Battle of Raphia (217-202 B.C.). The young Ptolemy displayed wisdom beyond his years when he responded to Antiochus by dispatching his army under the leadership of and Aetolian commander named Scopas. Scopas was initially successful in capturing southern Syria, Gaza, and Palestine. However, Antiochus came with a great army and with much equipment to the point that the Battle of Panium (near the Jordan River in the region later named Caesarea Philippi) would serve as the major turning point in the history of the Syrian/Egyptian wars. Antiochus defeated Scopas so decisively that Ptolemaic control of Syria ended once and for all. The Jews, glad to be released from Egyptian persecution, welcomed the Syrian reign of Palestine.

Daniel 11:14 (MEV)

14 “In those times many shall stand up against the king of the South…

In those times following the defeat of Egypt in the Battle of Panium, Antiochus III Magnus and Philip V of Macedon formed and alliance against Egypt. The young Ptolemy appealed to Rome for help. Rome would pretend to unselfishly protect Egypt. Antiochus was succeeded by His son, Seleucus IV Philopater in 187 B.C. In two years he was murdered and the notorious Antiochus IV Epiphanes ascended to the throne. While Rome was engaged in a war with with Macedonia, Antiochus IV Epiphanes attempted to seize Egypt as his father had done. Even the Egyptians themselves, who hated the reign of the Ptolemies, revolted. Thus many would stand up against the king of the South.

Interlude, The Maccabean Revolt

Daniel 11:14 (MEV)

14 … Also the robbers of your people shall exalt themselves to fulfill the vision, but they shall fall.

“Robbers, or ‘sons of violence’ as the Hebrew literally reads, from your people, Daniel, will exalt themselves to fulfill the vision” proclaimed the angel Gabriel as he broke the fourth wall to address the prophet personally. To whom did Gabriel refer when he spoke of “robbers”?

The vision is the same Hebrew chazon (חָז֔וֹן) used used in reference to the restoration of the sanctuary at the end of 2300 days. We know that 2300 days is correctly understood in its prophetic context as years because the vision refers to many days in the future.

Daniel 8:13–14 (MEV)

13 Then I heard one saint speaking, and another saint said to that certain saint which spoke, “How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice and the transgression of desolation, the giving of both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot?”

14 And he said to me, “For two thousand three hundred evenings and mornings. Then the sanctuary shall be cleansed properly.”

Daniel 8:26 (MEV)

26 “And the vision of the evenings and the mornings, which was told, is true. Therefore shut up the vision, for it deals with many days in the future.”

Daniel 10:14 (MEV)

14 Now I have come to make you understand what shall befall your people in the latter days. For the vision is yet for many days.”

It is apparent that the Jews living in the centuries before the Messiah understood the vision of the 2300 days to refer to the deliverance of God’s people from Gentile oppression. In these times, violent and powerful leaders arose among the Jews attempting to bring about a premature deliverance of Israel from foreign rule.

During the reign of Antiochus IV Epiphanes, Syrian control of Palestine grew more oppressive, even more than the persecution of the Jews under Ptolemy V Epiphanes in Egypt. Antiochus persecuted the Jews with such fury that they were threatened with genocide. Antiochus robbed and polluted the temple, installed a profane and wicked person in the high-priestly office, and cut down by the thousands those who resisted his blasphemy.

A prominent Jewish family who we know today as the house of Maccabees lead the Jews in resistance against Syria. Mattathias, the father, and his five sons swore that they would resist the Syrians unto blood. Mattathias died within a year of mounting resistance against the Syrians, but one named Judas continued to lead the Maccabees into battle. The Jews fought furiously for national survival and cast the Syrians out of their country. In the year 165 B.C., Judas removed the pagan emblems from the temple and after rededicating it, resumed the normal services which had been cancelled for three years. It was in 161 B.C. that Judas sent ambassadors to Rome and entered into a league of friendship and protection with them. This league instead of fulfilling the vision of the deliverance of God’s people and the restoration of His sanctuary ultimately led the Jews to commit the desolating abomination of crucifying their Messiah for political advantage.

John 11:49–50 (MEV)

49 Then one of them named Caiaphas, who was the high priest that year, said to them, “You know nothing at all,

50 nor do you consider that it is expedient for us that one man should die for the people, that the whole nation should not perish.”

John 19:12–15 (MEV)

12 From then on, Pilate tried to release Him. But the Jews cried out, “If you release this Man, you are not Caesar’s friend. Whoever makes himself a king speaks against Caesar!”

13 When Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judgment seat at a place called The Pavement (which in Hebrew is Gabbatha).

14 It was the Day of Preparation of the Passover and about the sixth hour. He said to the Jews, “Here is your King!”

15 But they shouted, “Away with Him! Away with Him! Crucify Him!” Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar!”

The house of Maccabees did indeed fall. The measure of national independence gained under the leadership of the Maccabeans was short-lived. Rome soon put an end to their ill-timed efforts to become both the civil and religious rulers of God’s people.

6th War, Antiochus IV Epiphanes vs. Ptolemy VI Philometer (170-168 B.C.)

Daniel 11:15 (MEV)

15 Then the king of the North shall come and set up a siege mound and capture a fortified city. And the forces of the South shall not withstand him; neither shall his chosen best troops have strength to resist.

Ptolemy VI Philometer ascended to the Egyptian throne at a young age and was under the guardian ship of two minsters of state, Eulaeus and Lenaeus. These two men began to plan another invasion of Syria to get revenge for the defeat of Egypt in the Battle of Panium.

Despite a recent warning from Rome, Antiochus IV Epiphanes, the king of the North, would come and set up a siege mound and capture a fortified city, thus launching a first strike to defeat the plans of Eulaeus and Lenaeus. Antiochus acted so fast that he met the Egyptian army before they even crossed the desert into southern Syria.

The forces of the south could not withstand Antiochus’ advance. He crushed the Egyptian army so convincingly that he marched unopposed into Egypt and occupied the city of Memphis. The Jews, God’s chosen best troops, would not have strength to resist Syrian rule in Judea.

Both the Syrian and Egyptian Empires Fell

Daniel 8:23 (MEV)

23 “In the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors have reached their limit, a king will arise, having a fierce countenance, skilled in intrigue.

The transgressors reached their limit. Ptolemy’s persecution of the Jews led to the downfall of Egypt. Antiochus IV Epiphanes’ attempted genocide of the Jewish nation filled up the cup of iniquity for the Syrians.

Daniel 9:24 (MEV)

24 “Seventy weeks have been determined for your people and upon your holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make atonement for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the Most Holy Place.

Matthew 18:21–22 (MEV)

21 Then Peter came to Him and said, “Lord, how often shall I forgive my brother who sins against me? Up to seven times?”

22 Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.

God’s mercy lingered for His chosen people. He protected them. It was not yet time for the Jews to be utterly destroyed by a pagan nation. They had an opportunity to repent of their sins and surrender to God by faith in the Messiah to come. They had to be delivered from the oppressive reign of sin within before they would ever be delivered from the oppression of foreign nations without. They still had opportunity to change their course and cooperate with God in announcing the first arrival of the Messiah and the sacrifice He would make to take away the sins of the world.

We will either finish our transgressions or our transgressions will finish us. We will either make an end of sins or our sins will make an end of us. Now is the time to bring everlasting righteousness into your life by receiving the Jesus as Lord and Savior.

Rome

Pagan Rome

Papal Rome

Papal Rome’s Deadly Wound Healed

God’s Kingdom