For the king of the north shall return
As Antiochus king of Syria did, upon the death of Ptolemy
Philopator, who was succeeded by his son Ptolemy Epiphanes, a
minor of five years of age: Antiochus took the advantage of this
minority, and entered into a league with Philip king of Macedon,
to divide the kingdom of Egypt between them; and marched an army
into Coelesyria and Palestine, and made himself master of those
countries: and shall set forth a multitude greater than the
former;
bring a larger army into the field than he had done before, which
Jerom says he brought out of the upper parts of Babylon; some say
it consisted of three hundred thousand footmen, besides horsemen
and elephants: and shall certainly come (after certain
years) with a great army, and
with much riches;
with all manner of provisions to supply his numerous army, and
all proper accommodations for it; money to pay his soldiers, and
beasts of burden to carry their baggage from place to place: this
was about fourteen years after the former battle, as Dr. Prideaux
F16 observes; and, according to Bishop
Usher's annals, thirteen years.