Are you ready for a history lesson? Daniel Chapter 11 (starting with verse 2) outlines several hundred years of Ancient Persian Greek political history. However, it does so from a viewpoint PRIOR to the events happening. Yes. It very accurately predicted quite a few remarkable and unique events.

In preparation for this blog post, I consulted three Ancient history textbooks which were written from a non-faith-based perspective. I also, out of curiosity, asked an Artificial Intelligence engine to summarize the historical links of the chapter for me. I also consulted several bible commentaries and videos. Honestly, though, if you’re interested in studying Persian and Greek history yourself, just look up each name on Wikipedia – it does a fine job of detailing all of these people and events.

I’m going to do my best to synthesize what I found and relied heavily on the ESV Study Bible notes. Remember, it is the heavenly messenger that God sent to Daniel to provide this vision who is speaking. I’m going to exam it piece by piece.

“And now I will show you the truth. Behold, three more kings shall arise in Persia, and a fourth shall be far richer than all of them. And when he has become strong through his riches, he shall stir up all against the kingdom of Greece.”

When Daniel heard this vision in 536 B.C., Cyrus the Great was king of Persia (Daniel 10:1). He died in 530 B.C. and was succeeded by his son, Cambyses II, who ruled from 530 to 522 B.C. His younger brother (Smerdis or Bardiya) claimed the throne then, but lasted only a few months before being overthrown by Darius (this is Darius the Great, not the Darius the Mede whom the heavenly messenger indicated in verse one that he had been guiding and helping on God’s behalf). Darius was king until 486 B.C. and was responsible for increasing the reach of the Persian Empire. When he died, his son Xerxes became king and was known for his aggressive invasion of Greece across the Aegean Sea. Xerxes was famously repelled by the Greeks, though, and assassinated in 465 B.C. This led to the realization that the Persian power was waning, opening the door for the next world power to arise.

The prophecy in Daniel 11 now skips about 130 years to focus on this next world power – Greece.

“Then a mighty king shall arise, who shall rule with great dominion and do as he wills.”

Scholars pretty unanimously identify this mighty king as Alexander the Great, who ruled Greece from 336 B.C. to 323 B.C. when he died.

“And as soon as he has arisen, his kingdom shall be broken and divided toward the four winds of heaven, but not to his posterity, nor according to the authority with which he ruled, for his kingdom shall be plucked up and go to others besides these.”

When Alexander died, his wife was pregnant with what would be a son. This baby and Alexander’s half-brother were declared co-regents, but in name only. There was a period of about 40 years of civil war after which four of Alexander’s military generals had divided up the Grecian Empire into four parts. The rest of Daniel 11 focuses on the kings “of the north and the south”, which represent the kingdoms ruled by two of the four generals. Ptolemy and his descendants ruled in Egypt, south of Israel, and Seleucus and his descendants ruled in Babylon/Syria, north of Israel. These are the two Grecian powers that had the most effect on Israel and thus the reason they are the focus in this prophecy.

This chart, from the ESV Study Bible, illustrates the two lineages.

“Then the king of the south shall be strong, but one of his princes shall be stronger than he and shall rule, and his authority shall be a great authority.”

Ptolemy I Soter (in Egypt 323 – 285 B.C.) initially appeared stronger than Seleucus to the north. Seleucus was embattled by the still raging civil war and ultimately fled Babylon to take refuge in Egypt as a subordinate to Ptolemy (thereby justifying the prophetic reference to him as being one of the “princes” of Ptolemy. However, when the civil war died down, Seleucus returned to his place of power in Babylon and rapidly expanded control to Syria and Media. This increase in territory justifies the prophetic reference to him having more authority.

“After some years they shall make an alliance, and the daughter of the king of the south shall come to the king of the north to make an agreement. But she shall not retain the strength of her arm, and he and his arm shall not endure, but she shall be given up, and her attendants, he who fathered her, and he who supported her in those times.”

Ptolemy I’s son, Ptolemy II, reigned from 285 to 247 B.C. He sent his daughter Berenice to marry the grandson of Seleucus, Antiochus II. However, Antiochus II was already married to Laodice and she jealously poisoned both Berenice and Antiochus, and Berenice’s father died in the same year! Antiochus II’s son, Seleucus II became king in his father’s stead.

“And from a branch from her roots one shall arise in his place. He shall come against the army and enter the fortress of the king of the north, and he shall deal with them and shall prevail. He shall also carry off to Egypt their gods with their metal images and their precious vessels of silver and gold, and for some years he shall refrain from attacking the king of the north. Then the latter shall come into the realm of the king of the south but shall return to his own land.”

Berenice’s brother (Ptolemy III) became ruler after his father died in 246 B.C. In retaliation for the murder of his sister, he invaded Syria and conquered its capitol, Antioch. He plundered the city and took the spoils back to Egypt. However he then offered a peace treaty with Seleucus II afterwards. There is apparently no historical record of whether Seleucus II traveled to Egypt or not.

“His sons shall wage war and assemble a multitude of great forces, which shall keep coming and overflow and pass through, and again shall carry the war as far as his fortress. Then the king of the south, moved with rage, shall come out and fight against the king of the north. And he shall raise a great multitude, but it shall be given into his hand. And when the multitude is taken away, his heart shall be exalted, and he shall cast down tens of thousands, but he shall not prevail. For the king of the north shall again raise a multitude, greater than the first. And after some years he shall come on with a great army and abundant supplies.”

Seleucus II had two sons: Seleucus III and Antiochus III. Seleucus III reigned for a short time and then was murdered. Antiochus III took the throne and led a military campaign across Israel and into northern Egypt. However, Ptolemy III’s son, Ptolemy IV, repelled him and drove him back across Israel. About 15 years later, Ptolemy IV died and this gave Antiochus III the opportunity to try another invasion during the early parts of the next rulers reign (Ptolemy V, Ptolemy IV’s son). Antiochus III was not the only one to see this opportunity.

“In those times many shall rise against the king of the south, and the violent among your own people shall lift themselves up in order to fulfill the vision, but they shall fail.”

There was a Jewish rebellion against Egyptian control of Israel in about 203 B.C. It was put down by Egyptian General Scopas and Judea was placed under subjugation to Ptolemy V.

“Then the king of the north shall come and throw up siegeworks and take a well-fortified city. And the forces of the south shall not stand, or even his best troops, for there shall be no strength to stand. But he who comes against him shall do as he wills, and none shall stand before him. And he shall stand in the glorious land, with destruction in his hand.”

In 200 B.C. Antiochus III’s forces laid seige to Panium (the Battle of Panium) at the location of what would later be known as Caesarea Philippi in the New Testament. Control of Israel shifted from Egyptian rule to Syrian rule at this time and would remain that way until the rise of the Roman Empire.

“He shall set his face to come with the strength of his whole kingdom, and he shall bring terms of an agreement and perform them. He shall give him the daughter of women to destroy the kingdom, but it shall not stand or be to his advantage.”

Antiochus III had a daughter named Cleopatra (but that’s not the same one that was with Mark Antony during Julius Caesar’s time). He gave her to Ptolemy V as a wife thinking that it would give him grandchildren through whom he could gain more control of Egypt. However, this didn’t pan out for him because Cleopatra supported her new husband in preference over her father’s wishes.

“Afterward he shall turn his face to the coastlands and shall capture many of them, but a commander shall put an end to his insolence. Indeed, he shall turn his insolence back upon him. Then he shall turn his face back toward the fortresses of his own land, but he shall stumble and fall, and shall not be found.”

This paragraph spells the final end of Antiochus III. He initially made some inroads of conquest along the coast of Asia Minor and possibly even mainland Greece, but he was eventually repelled by Greek and Roman forces. He was forced to surrender and pay tribute to Rome. When he returned with his army back to Babylon/Syria (Elymais), he was killed in a riot (187 B.C.) while trying to plunder the temple of Zeus to get back the money he had paid Rome. His son, Seleucus IV, took his place.

“Then shall arise in his place one who shall send an exactor of tribute for the glory of the kingdom. But within a few days he shall be broken, neither in anger nor in battle.”

Seleucus IV had an administrator named Helidorus who, among other things, was sent to Jerusalem to exact a tax on the Jews to pay the annual tribute to Rome. He apparently had intentions to raid the Jewish temple but did not. He did require payment of the tax, though. He later murdered Seleucus IV and tried to claim the throne, but Seleucus IV’s brother, Antiochus IV, was made king instead.

“In his place shall arise a contemptible person to whom royal majesty has not been given. He shall come in without warning and obtain the kingdom by flatteries.

Antiochus IV reigned from 175 to 164 B.C. He is the king referenced as the “little horn” in Daniel’s earlier vision recorded in Chapter 8. Antiochus IV took the throne even though the rightful heir was Seleucus IV’s son, Demetrius I, who was being held captive in Rome. Antiochus IV paid off members of the ruling upper class to support his ascension to the throne.

“Armies shall be utterly swept away before him and broken, even the prince of the covenant. And from the time that an alliance is made with him he shall act deceitfully, and he shall become strong with a small people. Without warning he shall come into the richest parts of the province, and he shall do what neither his fathers nor his fathers’ fathers have done, scattering among them plunder, spoil, and goods. He shall devise plans against strongholds, but only for a time. And he shall stir up his power and his heart against the king of the south with a great army.”

Antiochus IV received insider information of a looming attack from Ptolemy VI in Egypt and thwarted it. He surged south to Egypt and captured Ptolemy VI but then made a covenant with him and allowed him to remain as a “puppet” king. However, Antiochus IV was not content to leave well enough alone and he mustered another army and attacked Egypt a second time. However, this made the increasingly powerful Rome angry and they threatened him with war if he didn’t remove his army from Egypt.

“And the king of the south shall wage war with an exceedingly great and mighty army, but he shall not stand, for plots shall be devised against him. Even those who eat his food shall break him. His army shall be swept away, and many shall fall down slain. And as for the two kings, their hearts shall be bent on doing evil. They shall speak lies at the same table, but to no avail, for the end is yet to be at the time appointed. And he shall return to his land with great wealth, but his heart shall be set against the holy covenant. And he shall work his will and return to his own land.“

This passage seems to continue explaining the conflict between Antiochus IV and Ptolemy VI. The significant line is at the end, saying “his heart shall be set against the holy covenant.” This is in reference to his actions in Judea as he headed back to Syria. He found the Jews in revolt against his reign and he tried to squelch the insurrection by murdering 80,000 Jews. This led to the full-scale Maccabean revolt that ultimately led to the Jewish victory and the institution of the celebration of Hanukkah. The events of that conflict and resolution are described in the next passage below.

“At the time appointed he shall return and come into the south, but it shall not be this time as it was before. For ships of Kittim shall come against him, and he shall be afraid and withdraw, and shall turn back and be enraged and take action against the holy covenant. He shall turn back and pay attention to those who forsake the holy covenant. Forces from him shall appear and profane the temple and fortress, and shall take away the regular burnt offering. And they shall set up the abomination that makes desolate. He shall seduce with flattery those who violate the covenant, but the people who know their God shall stand firm and take action. And the wise among the people shall make many understand, though for some days they shall stumble by sword and flame, by captivity and plunder. When they stumble, they shall receive a little help. And many shall join themselves to them with flattery, and some of the wise shall stumble, so that they may be refined, purified, and made white, until the time of the end, for it still awaits the appointed time.“

This last phrase – “until the time of the end” – may refer to the end of Antiochus IV’s reign, but it may also be referring to a future “end”, which is what the remainder of Chapter 11 and Chapter 12 are talking about, so I’m going to stop here and pick up the story again in the next blog post.

I think, though, that it is obvious why critics of Daniel’s book claim that he can’t possibly have written this because it is too detailed and accurate in reference to events hundreds of years after Daniel’s death. Those same critics, though, also say that Jesus did not rise from the dead because, as anyone should know, that’s impossible.

Well, not only is it possible, it happened. And I say the same about this Daniel passage. He was given a vision of the future and allowed to write it down to serve as an encouragement to his people as they went through the troubling times. They saw what Daniel had written and recognized its truth, but also recognized that their story is not finished. As we’ll see in the remaining verses of Daniel’s book, God has the rest of the story planned out and we know what the final outcome will be!