The People Who Know Their God

November 2, 2024 Ken Miller

1 “And as for me, in the first year of Darius the Mede, I stood up to confirm and strengthen him.

2 “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. 3 Then a mighty king shall arise, who shall rule with great dominion and do as he wills. 4 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.

5 “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. 6 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.

7 “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. 8 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. 9 Then the latter shall come into the realm of the king of the south but shall return to his own land.

10 “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. 11 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. 12 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. 13 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.

14 “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. 15 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. 16 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. 17 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. 18 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. 19 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.

20 “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. 21 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. 22 Armies shall be utterly swept away before him and broken, even the prince of the covenant. 23 And from the time that an alliance is made with him he shall act deceitfully, and he shall become strong with a small people. 24 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. 25 And he shall stir up his power and his heart against the king of the south with a great army. 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. 26 Even those who eat his food shall break him. His army shall be swept away, and many shall fall down slain. 27 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. 28 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.

29 “At the time appointed he shall return and come into the south, but it shall not be this time as it was before. 30 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. 31 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. 32 He shall seduce with flattery those who violate the covenant, but the people who know their God shall stand firm and take action. 33 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. 34 When they stumble, they shall receive a little help. And many shall join themselves to them with flattery, 35 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.” – Daniel 11:1-35 ESV

Chapter 10 ends with a statement from Gabriel, the angel who delivered the vision to Daniel. In his closing remarks, Gabriel announced, “But I will tell you what is inscribed in the book of truth: there is none who contends by my side against these except Michael, your prince” (Daniel 10:27 ESV). Many Old Testament translators believe verse 1 of chapter 11 should be included in the parenthetical statement made by Gabriel that began in verse 21 of chapter 10. The New Living Translation renders the opening line of chapter 11 in this way:

“I have been standing beside Michael to support and strengthen him since the first year of the reign of Darius the Mede.)” – Daniel 11:1 NLT

They have made the remarks part of Gabriel’s closing message to Daniel, ensuring that the content of chapter 11 remains closely linked to the vision recorded in chapter 10. This is not a new incident and does not describe yet another vision. Gabriel is simply revealing additional information from “the book of truth” (Daniel 10:12 ESV).

Gabriel begins, “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” (Daniel 11:2 ESV). The heavenly messenger is still providing Daniel with an answer to the prayer he prayed in chapter 9. Having read in the writings of Jeremiah that Judah’s 70-year exile was about to end, Daniel was concerned about the fate of his people. What would happen to them when they returned to the land of promise? How would they fare?

Gabriel was sent to give Daniel a glimpse into the expansive plans that God had for His chosen people. In these chapters, Daniel is getting a panoramic view of prophetic history, beginning with the not-so-distant future and ending with events related to the end of the age. Verses 2-35 cover the flow of history from the days of King Cyrus to the rise of Antiochus Epiphanes, a vile world leader who will abuse the people of God mercilessly and relentlessly. Then the narrative will fast-forward to a future time when another world ruler will arise who mirrors the actions of Antiochus Epiphanes. This future king “shall do as he wills. He shall exalt himself and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak astonishing things against the God of gods” (Daniel 11:36 ESV).

Daniel has no way of knowing that the first part of Gabriel’s message concerns events preceding the first advent of Israel’s long-awaited Messiah (verses 2-35). The second half of the message concerns events that will precede Messiah’s second coming. But for those of us living after the first coming of Jesus the Christ (Messiah), this chapter provides us with hope because everything found in verses 2-35 has been fulfilled with painstaking clarity and detail.

In the first half of this chapter, Gabriel provides Daniel with news about the future – disturbing news that outlines the various wars and conflicts that will take place in the years ahead. He tells of the coming of Alexander the Great, the various kings of Egypt, and ultimately, the rise of Antiochus Epiphanes, the Syrian king who was so wicked that he foreshadows the coming of the Antichrist. The amazing thing about this message is its unbelievable accuracy. Some biblical scholars find the accuracy of these predictions too good to be true and write the entire chapter off as nothing more than a ruse. They conjecture that the author wrote this material long after the events it records, disguising his efforts as prophecy. But if they are right and chapter 11 is history disguised as prophecy, then the rest of chapter 11 should have already been fulfilled as well.

But as will become clear, there is no historical evidence that the events recorded in the second half of the chapter have already taken place. The prophecies found in verses 2-35 are not cleverly disguised historical events; they are divine predictions from the lips of the sovereign God of the universe. He knew, down to the smallest detail, what was going to take place long before it happened. He knew all about the coming wars between the Syrians and Egyptians. He knew who would win and who would lose. And while these great leaders would operate as if they were in control of their own destinies, in the end, their futures were in the hands of God.

Throughout this chapter, we read such phrases as "the end will come at the appointed time," "then at the appointed time," and "the appointed time is still to come." The rise and fall of nations is under the sovereign hand of Almighty God. He is in complete control. Daniel is reminded, "For what has been determined will surely take place" (Daniel 11:36 NLT).

Verses 2-35 set up and establish the rise to power of Antiochus Epiphanes, a conniving, flattering, and powerful king who seemed to have a special hatred for the people of Israel. His actions against them foreshadow the events of the end times when the Antichrist will target the people of God and persecute them as they have never been persecuted before. At one point, Antiochus Epiphanes, frustrated over a battle lost to the Egyptians, orders his general, Apollonius, and a contingent of 22,000 soldiers to attack Jerusalem on a Sabbath. They take many Jewish women and children captive, plundering the temple, and burning the city. His goal was to completely exterminate Judaism and to Hellenize Palestine. He would forbid the Jews to follow the Mosaic Law or practice the Jewish sacrifices, festivals, and circumcision. He would even install an image of the Greek god Zeus in the Temple and offer an unsanctioned and unclean sacrifice to his false god on the altar dedicated to Yahweh. This cruel and wicked man sacrificed a swine to Zeus and sprinkled its blood within the Holy of Holies, desecrating the Temple and defaming God’s name.

Yet, despite all these dire predictions, Daniel is told, "But the people who know their God will be strong and resist him" (Daniel 11:32 NLT). Even during the dire days of Antiochus Epiphanes, the people of God will remain. There will always be a remnant of God-fearing, God-believing, God-empowered saints to stand against the greatest of enemies. God was calling Daniel and the people of God to remain strong during the coming persecution because He would be with them. The immediate future was filled with turmoil, upheaval, political unrest, and persecution for the people of God, but they were to remember that He was in complete control.

We must remain strong as well. We should not be shocked at what we see taking place around us. There is a spiritual battle taking place that manifests itself in the material world. Wars and violence should not shock or scare us. They are to be expected and simply part of living in a fallen world at war with God. But we can rest in the knowledge that our God is great and is in full control of the situation. Like Daniel, we must learn to trust God even when we don't understand the ways of God. We must continually seek to grow in our knowledge and understanding of His character.

Paul even prayed for the believers in his day that God would give them, "complete knowledge of his will” and “spiritual wisdom and understanding” (Colossians 1:9 NLT). He knew the importance of these things and how necessary they were to a believer’s survival in a wicked world. Those equipped with a knowledge of God’s will, spiritual wisdom, and understanding would not only survive but thrive.

Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better. – Colossians 1:10 NLT

May you and I grow in our knowledge and understanding of God so that we might be strong and resist the enemy in our day. As we grow in our knowledge of God, we will come to love and trust Him more – no matter what comes our way.

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.