Bible Prophecy

(Read Bible Prophecy, Part 1 First)

Bible Prophecy - Daniel 11 Continued...
Daniel 11:5: "Then the king of the South will grow strong, along with one of his princes who will gain ascendancy over him and obtain dominion; his domain will be a great dominion indeed."

[The first "king of the South" was Ptolemy I (305-283 BC). He was the first to sit upon Egypt's throne after Alexander's demise. Seleucus I (305-281), who served under Ptolemy as "one of his princes" during the Diadochi Wars (which followed Alexander's death), acquired the throne of Syria for himself, becoming the first "king of the North." Syria was by far the largest portion of Alexander's divided empire and thus, Seleucus' dominion was great indeed.]

Daniel 11:6: "After some years they 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. But she will not retain her position of power, nor will he remain with his power, but she will be given up, along with those who brought her in and the one who sired her as well as he who supported her in those times."

[Ptolemy II (283-246 BC), Ptolemy I's successor gave his daughter Berenice in a marriage-alliance to his rival Antiochus II (261-246 BC) who succeeded Seleucus I's son, Antiochus I (281-261 BC). Upon Ptolemy's death, Antiochus returned to his ex-wife Laodice (whom he had divorced in order to marry Berenice). Laodice took Antiochus' return to her bed as an opportunity to poison Antiochus and to have Bernice and her child murdered so that her own son Seleucus II (whom she had bore to Antiochus) could ascend the throne.]

Daniel 11:7-9: "But one of the descendants of her line will arise in his place, and he will come against their army and enter the fortress of the king of the North, and he will deal with them and display great strength. Also their gods with their metal images and their precious vessels of silver and gold he will take into captivity to Egypt, and he on his part will refrain from attacking the king of the North for some years. Then the latter will enter the realm of the king of the South, but will return to his own land.

[Ptolemy III (246-222 BC), Berenice's brother ("one of the descendants of her line"), upon hearing of Berenice's murder, launched a successful campaign against Seleucus II (246-225 BC) who fled to Asia Minor. Ptolemy took 40,000 talents worth of silver, 4000 talents of gold and 2500 idols from the Syrians before returning back to Egypt at which time Seleucus recovered Syria.]

Daniel 11:10-13: "His sons will mobilize and assemble a multitude of great forces; and one of them will keep on coming and overflow and pass through, that he may again wage war up to his very fortress. The king of the South will be enraged and go forth and fight with the king of the North. Then the latter will raise a great multitude, but that multitude will be given into the hand of the former. When the multitude is carried away, his heart will be lifted up, and he will cause tens of thousands to fall; yet he will not prevail. For the king of the North will again raise a greater multitude than the former, and after an interval of some years he will press on with a great army and much equipment."

[Seleucus III (225-223 BC) succeeded Seleucus II, raised up an army and launched a campaign against Attalus I (241-197 BC) of the Attalid dynasty. He was assassinated after a brief two-year reign. His younger brother, Antiochus III (a.k.a. "Antiochus the Great," who ruled from 223-187 BC) succeeded him after his death, amassed an army and marched against Ptolemy IV (221-205 BC) of Egypt. He was successful up until his defeat at Raphia in 217 BC, a loss which nullified his previous gains.

Ptolemy IV, his heart being lifted up after his victory at Raphia in Palestine, sought to enter the Holy of Holies of the Jewish temple, an act forbidden by Jewish law. The Jews resisted him inciting his anger and he had "tens of thousands" put to death.

After his defeat, Antiochus turned towards the east, and, following in the footsteps of Alexander the Great, marched as far as the Kabul Valley in Afghanistan, enjoying great success and acquiring for himself the title "Antiochus the Great." He returned to wage war against the Ptolemies and by 198 BC, nearly 20 years after his defeat at Raphia, Antiochus had succeeded in taking possession of Palestine. The battle of Panium (198 BC) marked the end of Ptolemaic rule in Palestine. Thus, upon the king of the North's return following his initial defeat the king of the South did not prevail.]

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