Daniel 11:2-4

2 "And now I will tell you the 1truth. Behold, three more kings are going to arise in Persia. Then a fourth will gain far more riches than all of them; as soon as he becomes strong through his riches, he will arouse the whole empire against the realm of 2Greece.
3 "And a 3mighty king will arise, and he will rule with great authority and 4do as he pleases.
4 "But as soon as he has arisen, his kingdom will be broken up and parceled out 5toward the 6four points of the compass, though not to his own descendants, nor according to his authority which he wielded, for his sovereignty will be 7uprooted and given to others besides * them.

Daniel 11:2-4 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO DANIEL 11

In this chapter the angel makes good his promise to Daniel, that he would show him what was written in the Scripture of truth, concerning the monarchies of the earth, and what would befall his people the Jews in the latter days; and after he had observed that he had strengthened and confirmed Darius the Mede, who was the first king of the then present flourishing monarchy, Da 11:1, he foretells the number of the kings of Persia, and particularly describes the fourth, Da 11:2 predicts the rise of the Grecian monarchy under Alexander the great, and the disposition of it after his death, Da 11:3,4 and then proceeds to give an account of the two principal kingdoms of that monarchy, into which it was divided, the Seleucidae and Lagidae; and of their kings, the king of Egypt, and the king of Syria, under the names of the king of the south, and the king of the north, and of their power and agreement, Da 11:5,6 and then of their various wars between themselves and others, and the success of them, Da 11:7-20, and particularly of Antiochus, his character and manner of coming to the kingdom, and of his wars with the king of Egypt, and the issue of them, Da 11:21-29 and of his persecution of the Jews, and the distress he should bring on them, and the use it should be of to the godly among them, Da 11:30-35, and then his antitype, antichrist, is described; the western antichrist, his character and actions, Da 11:36-39 then the eastern, his power, wealth and riches, hail and rain, Da 11:40-45.

Cross References 7

  • 1. Daniel 8:26; Daniel 10:1, 21
  • 2. Daniel 8:21; Daniel 10:20
  • 3. Daniel 8:5, 21
  • 4. Daniel 5:19; Daniel 8:4; Daniel 11:16, 36
  • 5. Daniel 8:8, 22
  • 6. Jeremiah 49:36; Ezekiel 37:9; Daniel 7:2; Daniel 8:8; Zechariah 2:6; Revelation 7:1
  • 7. Jeremiah 12:15, 17; Jeremiah 18:7

Footnotes 5

New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, California.  All rights reserved.