Daniel 11

And I myself, in the first year of Darius the Mede, stood up to support him and make him strong.

1Also I in the first year of Darius the Mede, even I, stood to confirm and to strengthen him.

NoteThe speaker is the heavenly messenger who has been talking with Daniel since chapter 10; "him" is the angelic figure named in 10:13, 21. Darius the Mede appears in this book as the ruler who takes over Babylon after its fall (Daniel 5:31); no king of that name is known from other records of the period, and who he was meant to be is disputed.

2Now I will tell you the truth. Three more kings will rise up in Persia, and then a fourth, who will be far richer than all of them. Using the power his riches give him, he will stir everyone up against the kingdom of Greece.

2And now will I shew thee the truth. Behold, there shall stand up yet three kings in Persia; and the fourth shall be far richer than they all: and by his strength through his riches he shall stir up all against the realm of Grecia.

NotePersia was the empire that ruled Judea in Daniel's setting, having taken over from Babylon. "Grecia" is Greece. Counting kings this way (three, then a fourth) is a standard way of marking off a stretch of history without giving names.

3Then a mighty king will rise up. He will rule with great power and do whatever he wants.

3And a mighty king shall stand up, that shall rule with great dominion, and do according to his will.

NoteAncient and modern readers alike have taken this "mighty king" to be Alexander the Great, whose empire reached from Greece to India and who died young without an heir who could hold it.

4But once he is established, his kingdom will be broken apart and divided toward the four winds of the sky. It will not go to his own children, and it will not have the power he ruled with, because his kingdom will be uprooted and given to others besides them.

4And when he shall stand up, his kingdom shall be broken, and shall be divided toward the four winds of heaven; and not to his posterity, nor according to his dominion which he ruled: for his kingdom shall be plucked up, even for others beside those.

Note"The four winds of heaven" means the four points of the compass, the whole kingdom pulled apart in every direction. The point of "not to his posterity" is that none of his own descendants inherited it; his generals divided it among themselves.

5The king of the south will grow strong. But one of his commanders will grow stronger than he is and will rule a kingdom of his own, and his rule will be a great one.

5And the king of the south shall be strong, and one of his princes; and he shall be strong above him, and have dominion; his dominion shall be a great dominion.

Note"Prince" in the King James Version usually means a leading man (a commander, governor or nobleman), not a king's son. The two rival powers that dominate the rest of this chapter are the kingdom based in Egypt ("the south") and the kingdom based in Syria ("the north"), so named from the point of view of someone standing in Judea between them.

6After some years they will join together as allies. The daughter of the king of the south will come to the king of the north to seal the agreement. But she will not keep her position of power, and neither he nor his power will last. She will be handed over, along with those who brought her, and her father, and the man who supported her at that time.

6And in the end of 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 the power of the arm; neither shall he stand, nor his arm: but she shall be given up, and they that brought her, and he that begat her, and he that strengthened her in these times.

NoteMarrying a daughter to a rival king was normal treaty-making between ancient kingdoms: the marriage was the signature on the agreement, and it collapsed when either court changed hands. "Arm" throughout this chapter is a Hebrew figure for strength, especially military force, "the power of the arm" means a position backed by armed support.

7But someone from her own family line will rise up in his place. He will come with an army, enter the fortress of the king of the north, fight against them, and win.

7But out of a branch of her roots shall one stand up in his estate, which shall come with an army, and shall enter into the fortress of the king of the north, and shall deal against them, and shall prevail:

Note"A branch of her roots" means someone from the same family tree, in the Hebrew idiom, a shoot growing from the same stock.

8He will also carry off to Egypt their gods, their metal idols, and their valuable objects of silver and gold. Then for some years he will leave the king of the north alone.

8And shall also carry captives into Egypt their gods, with their princes, and with their precious vessels of silver and of gold; and he shall continue more years than the king of the north.

NoteCarrying off the statues of a defeated nation's gods was a standard act of conquest in the ancient Near East. It proved the enemy's gods could not protect them, and returning such statues later was a famous gesture of goodwill.

9The king of the north will invade the kingdom of the king of the south, but then he will go back to his own land.

9So the king of the south shall come into his kingdom, and shall return into his own land.

10But his sons will stir up war and gather a huge army. It will keep coming on, sweeping through like a flood. Then he will come back again and carry the fighting all the way to the enemy's fortress.

10But his sons shall be stirred up, and shall assemble a multitude of great forces: and one shall certainly come, and overflow, and pass through: then shall he return, and be stirred up, even to his fortress.

11The king of the south will be furious. He will march out and fight the king of the north, who will raise a large army, but that army will be handed over to his enemy.

11And the king of the south shall be moved with choler, and shall come forth and fight with him, even with the king of the north: and he shall set forth a great multitude; but the multitude shall be given into his hand.

12When the army has been carried off, the king of the south will grow proud, and he will strike down tens of thousands. But he will not stay strong because of it.

12And when he hath 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.

13For the king of the north will come back and raise an army larger than the first one. After some years he will certainly advance with a great army and plenty of supplies.

13For the king of the north shall return, and shall set forth a multitude greater than the former, and shall certainly come after certain years with a great army and with much riches.

14In those times many will rise up against the king of the south. Violent men among your own people will lift themselves up, so that the vision comes true, but they will fail.

14And in those times there shall many stand up against the king of the south: also the robbers of thy people shall exalt themselves to establish the vision; but they shall fall.

Note"The robbers of thy people", literally "the violent sons of your people", means a faction within the Jewish community itself, not foreign raiders. "To establish the vision" means their actions serve to bring the vision's contents about, whatever their own motives.

15So the king of the north will come, build up a ramp of earth against the wall, and capture the strongest fortified cities. The forces of the south will not hold, and even their best troops will have no strength to resist.

15So the king of the north shall come, and cast up a mount, and take the most fenced cities: and the arms of the south shall not withstand, neither his chosen people, neither shall there be any strength to withstand.

Note"Cast up a mount" describes the standard method of taking a walled city: soldiers piled a great ramp of earth and rubble against the wall so troops and siege engines could be pushed up to the top.

16The one who comes against him will do whatever he wants, and no one will be able to stand up to him. He will take his stand in the beautiful land, and destruction will be in his hand.

16But he that cometh against him shall do according to his own will, and none shall stand before him: and he shall stand in the glorious land, which by his hand shall be consumed.

Note"The glorious land" (also "the beautiful land") is a title for the land of Israel, and here specifically Judea, lying on the road between Egypt and Syria and so fought over by both.

17He will also set his mind on coming with the full strength of his kingdom, and he will make terms with the other king. He will give him a daughter in marriage, meaning to ruin the kingdom, but she will not stand with him or work for him.

17He shall also set his face to enter with the strength of his whole kingdom, and upright ones with him; thus shall he do: and he shall give him the daughter of women, corrupting her: but she shall not stand on his side, neither be for him.

Note"The daughter of women" is simply a way of saying "a woman," here a princess handed over in a marriage alliance. "Corrupting her" means using the marriage to undermine the other kingdom from inside, the bride is meant to work for her father's interests, and does not.

18After that he will turn toward the coastlands and capture many of them. But a commander will put a stop to the insults he hands out and turn that scorn back on him, without being disgraced himself.

18After this shall he turn his face unto the isles, and shall take many: but a prince for his own behalf shall cause the reproach offered by him to cease; without his own reproach he shall cause it to turn upon him.

Note"The isles" translates a word covering both islands and the coastlands around them, in practice the Mediterranean coasts of Asia Minor and Greece. "Reproach" here means public insult or humiliation, the kind a conquering king inflicts by his arrogance.

19Then he will turn back toward the fortresses of his own land. But he will stumble and fall, and he will not be found again.

19Then he shall turn his face toward the fort of his own land: but he shall stumble and fall, and not be found.

20In his place there will rise up a ruler who sends out a tax collector to keep up the splendor of the kingdom. But within a few days he will be destroyed, and not in anger and not in battle.

20Then shall stand up in his estate a raiser of taxes in the glory of the kingdom: but within few days he shall be destroyed, neither in anger, nor in battle.

NoteTaxation in these empires largely meant tribute squeezed out of subject territories, including temple treasuries, to pay debts and fund the court. "Neither in anger, nor in battle" is a way of saying he died neither in a public uprising nor on campaign, by some quieter means.

21In his place there will rise up a contemptible man, one who was never given the honor of kingship. He will come in when things are peaceful and take hold of the kingdom by scheming and smooth talk.

21And in his estate shall stand up a vile person, to whom they shall not give the honour of the kingdom: but he shall come in peaceably, and obtain the kingdom by flatteries.

Note"He shall come in peaceably" does not mean he came in peace; it means he took power in a time when no war was expected, catching the kingdom unguarded. "Flatteries" is the King James word for smooth, deceiving talk and political intrigue.

22Armies will be swept away like a flood in front of him and shattered, and so will a leader of the covenant.

22And with the arms of a flood shall they be overflown from before him, and shall be broken; yea, also the prince of the covenant.

NoteA "covenant" is a binding agreement. "The prince of the covenant" is ambiguous in the Hebrew: it may mean a leader of the covenant people, the Jewish high priest, or a partner in a treaty with the king, and readers have argued for both.

23After an alliance is made with him, he will act deceitfully. He will rise up and grow strong with only a few people behind him.

23And after the league made with him he shall work deceitfully: for he shall come up, and shall become strong with a small people.

24When things are peaceful he will come into the richest parts of the province, and he will do what his fathers and their fathers never did. He will hand out plunder, loot, and wealth to his followers. He will make plans against the fortresses, but only for a time.

24He shall enter peaceably even upon the fattest places of the province; and he shall do that which his fathers have not done, nor his fathers’ fathers; he shall scatter among them the prey, and spoil, and riches: yea, and he shall forecast his devices against the strong holds, even for a time.

25He will stir up his strength and his courage against the king of the south with a great army. The king of the south will go to war with a very large and powerful army, but he will not hold, because plots will be made against him.

25And he shall stir up his power and his courage against the king of the south with a great army; and the king of the south shall be stirred up to battle with a very great and mighty army; but he shall not stand: for they shall forecast devices against him.

26The very men who eat the food from his table will bring him down. His army will be swept away, and many will fall dead.

26Yea, they that feed of the portion of his meat shall destroy him, and his army shall overflow: and many shall fall down slain.

NoteEating at a king's table was not just a meal but a formal bond: those fed from the royal provisions were his sworn dependants. The line's force is that his own inner circle turns on him.

27Both of these kings will have evil in their hearts. They will sit at the same table and tell each other lies, but it will get them nowhere, because the end will still come at the appointed time.

27And both these kings’ hearts shall be to do mischief, and they shall speak lies at one table; but it shall not prosper: for yet the end shall be at the time appointed.

28Then he will go back to his own land with great wealth, and his heart will be set against the holy covenant. He will act against it, and then return to his own land.

28Then shall he return into his land with great riches; and his heart shall be against the holy covenant; and he shall do exploits, and return to his own land.

Note"The holy covenant" is the agreement between God and Israel, and by extension everything that went with it, the law, the temple and its worship, and the community that kept them. Acting "against" it here means attacking Jewish religious practice, not merely disliking it.

29At the appointed time he will come back and move against the south again, but this time will not go like the first or the last.

29At the time appointed he shall return, and come toward the south; but it shall not be as the former, or as the latter.

30For ships from Chittim will come against him, and he will lose heart. He will turn back and rage against the holy covenant, and act on that rage. He will go back and show favor to those who abandon the holy covenant.

30For the ships of Chittim shall come against him: therefore he shall be grieved, and return, and have indignation against the holy covenant: so shall he do; he shall even return, and have intelligence with them that forsake the holy covenant.

Note"Chittim" (Kittim) originally meant Cyprus, then came to be used loosely for lands and fleets from the far side of the Mediterranean; by the time this book circulated it was applied to Rome.

31Forces sent by him will rise up and make the temple fortress unclean. They will stop the daily sacrifice and set up the abomination that causes desolation, the offensive thing that leaves the temple deserted.

31And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate.

Note"The sanctuary of strength" is the Jerusalem temple with its fortified precinct. The "daily sacrifice" was the burnt offering made in the temple every morning and evening without fail; stopping it shut down public worship at its center. "The abomination that maketh desolate" translates a phrase for something so offensive in a holy place that worshipers abandon it, most likely a pagan altar or image set up on the temple's own altar. The Hebrew wording may also be a deliberate distortion of the name of a foreign god.

32With smooth talk he will corrupt those who break the covenant, but the people who know their God will stand firm and take action.

32And such as do wickedly against the covenant shall he corrupt by flatteries: but the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits.

33Those among the people who understand will teach many others. Yet for a long time they will be killed by the sword and by fire, or taken prisoner, or robbed of what they own.

33And they that understand among the people shall instruct many: yet they shall fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil, many days.

Note"They that understand" renders a Hebrew word for those with insight who pass it on, teachers of the community. They appear again in verse 35 and in chapter 12.

34When they fall, they will be given a little help, but many will join them without meaning it.

34Now when they shall fall, they shall be holpen with a little help: but many shall cleave to them with flatteries.

35Some of those who understand will fall, so that they may be tested, refined, and made clean, right up to the time of the end. For the appointed time is still to come.

35And some of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and to purge, and to make them white, even to the time of the end: because it is yet for a time appointed.

NoteThe images are from metalworking: ore is heated so the impurities can be skimmed off and the metal comes out clean. The suffering is being described as that kind of process, not as punishment.

36The king will do whatever he wants. He will lift himself up and make himself greater than every god, and he will say outrageous things against the God of gods. He will succeed until the time of wrath is finished, because what has been decided will be done.

36And the king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be done.

Note"The indignation" means a fixed period of divine anger whose length has already been set, a standard prophetic term for a measured span of disaster, after which it ends.

37He will pay no attention to the gods of his fathers, or to the one desired by women, or to any god at all, because he will make himself greater than them all.

37Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all.

Note"The God of his fathers" means his ancestral, national god. "The desire of women" is genuinely unclear: it may name a particular god popular with women (the dying-and-rising Tammuz was mourned by women) or it may mean ordinary desire for women, marriage and family. The Hebrew supports either.

38Instead he will honor a god of fortresses. He will honor a god his fathers never knew, with gold and silver and precious stones and costly gifts.

38But in his estate shall he honour the God of forces: and a god whom his fathers knew not shall he honour with gold, and silver, and with precious stones, and pleasant things.

Note"The God of forces" means a god of fortresses or strongholds, a war god honored with plunder and building projects rather than an inherited family religion.

39He will attack the strongest fortresses with the help of a foreign god. Those who accept him he will load with honor, putting them in charge of many people and handing out land as payment.

39Thus shall he do in the most strong holds with a strange god, whom he shall acknowledge and increase with glory: and he shall cause them to rule over many, and shall divide the land for gain.

NoteHanding out land "for gain" describes a real administrative practice: parcelling out conquered territory to loyal supporters in return for money or service, rather than by ancestral right.

40At the time of the end the king of the south will attack him. The king of the north will storm against him with chariots, horsemen, and many ships. He will invade country after country, sweeping through like a flood.

40And at the time of the end shall the king of the south push at him: and the king of the north shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over.

41He will also enter the beautiful land, and many countries will be brought down. But these will escape from his hand: Edom, Moab, and the leaders of the Ammonites.

41He shall enter also into the glorious land, and many countries shall be overthrown: but these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon.

NoteEdom, Moab and Ammon were the peoples east and south-east of Judea, across the Jordan and the Dead Sea, in what is now Jordan. They stand here for territory off the main invasion route along the coast.

42He will reach out his hand against many countries, and the land of Egypt will not escape.

42He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape.

43He will gain control of the treasures of gold and silver and all the riches of Egypt. The Libyans and the Cushites will follow at his heels.

43But he shall have power over the treasures of gold and of silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt: and the Libyans and the Ethiopians shall be at his steps.

Note"The Ethiopians" translates Cush, the region up the Nile south of Egypt, roughly modern Sudan, not the modern country of Ethiopia. "At his steps" means in his train, as subject troops or servants.

44But news from the east and from the north will alarm him. So he will march out in great fury to destroy many people and wipe them out completely.

44But tidings out of the east and out of the north shall trouble him: therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to make away many.

Note"Utterly to make away many" renders a Hebrew term for destruction as a formal act, putting a population under a ban that leaves nothing to be taken as spoil.

45He will pitch his royal tents between the seas and the beautiful holy mountain. Yet he will come to his end, and no one will help him.

45And he shall plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him.

Note"The tabernacles of his palace" are the great tents a king lived in on campaign, a portable court. "Between the seas" most likely means between the Mediterranean and the Dead Sea; "the glorious holy mountain" is the temple mount in Jerusalem. He camps in the land itself, and dies there.