THE BOOK OF DANIEL
Lesson 7
Chapters 10:20-12:13
The Final Prophecies
Eternal Lord,
Sometimes we forget that You are the Master of human history and that
all human events are under Your sovereign authority. Even in the worst of
human events, You can uplift the human spirit and bring out the good, defeating
the hatred and destruction orchestrated by Satan in his jealousy of Your human
children. The visions and angelic revelations You gave Your servant Daniel
foretold terrible future events, but Daniel trusted You to bring Your faithful
remnant through those events to a better future that reached its fulfillment in
the glorification of God the Son. Send Your Holy Spirit to guide us in our
study of Daniel's final revelations and help us to understand how they impact
human history. We pray in the name of God the Father, the Son, and the Holy
Spirit. Amen.
+ + +
Daniel received a
divine touch like Jeremiah: Then Yahweh stretched out his hand and touched
my mouth, and Yahweh said to me: "There! I have put my words into your mouth.
Look, today I have set you over the nations and kingdoms to uproot and to knock
down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.
Jeremiah 1:9-10
The events in Daniel's final revelation take place in 537 BC, the third year after Cyrus conquered Babylon (as the ancients counted), and when Daniel is about 80 years old. It is the third year after Cyrus conquered Babylon and issued his edict allowing the return of the covenant people to their homeland with their Temple treasures and enough gold to being rebuilding Jerusalem and Yahweh's Temple. However, Daniel did not accompany the returning exiles. In Daniel's vision of the "man in white linen" (who is either an angel or the pre-Incarnate Christ), the spiritual being told Daniel that he came to give him an understanding of what will happen to the covenant people in the days to come. His revelation concerns a great war and the role of the Archangel Michael in the conflict (10:1, 5-6; 10-14). Michael is the leader of Yahweh's angelic armies who battle Satan, his demon angels, and their spirit of darkness (see for example Rev 12:7-9). He will play a leading role in the deliverance and raising of the Lord's faithful to eternal life in the Messianic Age (Dan 12:1-4).(1) Daniel was initially comforted and encouraged (10:10-12), but the divine being's announcement of what will come in the new revelation leaves him stunned and terror-stricken (Dan 10:15). He calms Daniel's fears by a touch on the lips (Dan 10:16). The touch is a reminder that the prophets Isaiah and Jeremiah also received their prophetic vocations through a divine touch (Is 6:6-9; Jer 1:9-10).
Daniel 10:20-11:1 ~ Prelude to the Final Prophecy by
the Man Dressed in White Linen
20b He
then said, "Do you know why I have come to you? I must go back to fight the
Prince of Persia; when I have overcome him, the Prince of Javan* will come
next. 21 But I will tell you what is
written in the Book [Scroll] of Truth. In all this, there is no one
to lend me support except Michael your Prince, 11:1 on whom I rely to give me support and to
reinforce me. 2 And now I shall
tell you the truth about these things." * Greece
The being that looks like a man who is wearing a white linen tunic with a belt of pure gold and first appeared to Daniel in Chapter 10 (Dan 10:5-8) continues his prophecies of the future. The "Prince of Persia" is a demon angel like the "Prince of Javan/Greece" (10:20b) who is exerting his power over those men ruling Persia and Greece in opposition to Yahweh's divine plan (see Dan 10:13). The "man" tells Daniel that Michael the Archangel (whose name means "who is like God") is "your Prince;" "your" refers to Daniel because Michael is the patron and protector of the nation of Israel. He is one of the three angels the Church venerates by name along with Gabriel and Raphael (see Dan 10:13. 21; 12:1; Jude 9; Rev 12:7).
Question: Who was Javan in the Table of Nations
in Genesis Chapter 10? See Gen 10:1-4 and 1 Chr 1:5.
Answer: Javan was one of the grandsons of Noah
and one of the seven sons of Noah's second son Japheth.
In Scripture, the name Javan usually applies to the Ionian cities established by the Greeks along the coast of Asia Minor (Is 66:19; Ez 27:13). Ionia was an ancient region on the central part of the western coast of Anatolia in present-day Turkey. The designation "Javan" also applied to Greece proper (Dan 8:21; 10:20; 11:2; Joel 3:6 and Zech 9:13).
21 But I will
tell you what is written in the Book [Scroll] of Truth.
The Book/Scroll of Truth is God's infallible record of
history and future events. That the revelation Daniel will receive is already
written down is evidence that these events are ordained to take place according
to the will of God. In other Biblical passages, God's scroll is said to be an
account of an individual's behavior and destiny (cf. Ex 32:32-33; Mal 3:16; Ps 40:8; 139:16) and see Daniel 12:1 where there is a reference to the future
salvation of "all those whose names are found written in the Book."
2 And now I shall
tell you the truth about these things."
"These things" is a reference to the future events in the
last days of the old covenant leading to the Final Age of the Messianic Era.
Daniel 11:2-45 covers the period from the Persian Age to Seleucid ruler Antiochus IV in three parts:
Of the Greek kingdoms after the death of Alexander the Great, only the Seleucids and Ptolemies were directly concerned with Jewish history.
Part three concerning the history of the Greek Seleucids and Greek Ptolemies divides into six sections (11:5-45):
Daniel 11:2-14 ~ Struggles and Wars Between the Greek
Kings of the North and South
2"Three more
kings are going to rise in Persia; a fourth will come and be richer than all
the others, and when, thanks to his wealth, he has grown powerful, he will make
war on all the kingdoms of Greece. 3 A
mighty king will rise and govern a vast empire and do whatever he pleases. 4 But once he has come to power, his empire will
be broken up and parceled out to the four winds of heaven, though not to his
descendants: it will not be ruled as he ruled it, for his sovereignty will be
uprooted and will pass to others than his own descendants. 5 The king of the south will grow powerful, but
one of his princes will grow more powerful still, with an empire greater than
his own. 6 Some years later, these
will conclude a treaty and, to ratify the agreement, the daughter of the king
of the south will go to the king of the north. Her arm
will not, however, retain its strength, nor his posterity endure: she will be
handed over, she, her escorts and her child, and he who has had authority over
her. In due time 7 a sprig [branch = netzer] from her roots will
rise in his place, will march on the defenses, force the stronghold of the king
of the north, and succeed in overcoming them. 8 He will even carry off all their gods, their statues, their
precious gold and silver vessels as booty to Egypt.
For some years he will leave the king of the north in peace, 9 but
the latter will invade the kingdom of the king of the south, then retire to his
own country. 10 His sons will next
be on the march, mustering a host of powerful forces; and he will advance,
deploy, break through and march on the southern stronghold once again. 11 The king of the south will fly into a rage
and set out to give battle to the king of the north, who will have an immense
army on his side, but this army will be defeated by him. 12 The army will be annihilated; he will be
triumphant; he will overthrow tens of thousands; yet he will have no enduring
strength. 13 The king of the north
will come back, having recruited an even larger army than before, and finally,
after some years, he will advance a second time with a great army and plentiful
supplies. 14 At that time, many
will take up arms against the king of the south, and the more violent of your own
people will rebel in the hope of realizing the vision; but they will fail.
[...] IBHE, vol. III, page 2069.
2"Three more
kings are going to rise in Persia; a fourth will come and be richer than all
the others, and when, thanks to his wealth, he has grown powerful, he will make
war on all the kingdoms of Greece."
The four kings of Persia who came after Cyrus:
Xerxes is the Greek form of his Persian name Ahasuerus. The Septuagint and Flavius Josephus consistently render Ahasuerus as Artaxerxes (see Antiquities of the Jews, II.184). Xerxes the Great was the fourth king of the Achaemenid dynasty of Persia. He ruled the Persian empire at its territorial apex and is known for his attempts to conquer the city-states of mainland Greece which Alexander the Great used as his excuse for invading and conquering Persia. He ruled until 465 BC when Artabanus, the commander of his royal bodyguard, assassinated him.
3A mighty king will rise and govern a vast empire and do whatever he pleases. 4 But once he has come to power, his empire will be broken up and parceled out to the four winds of heaven, though not to his descendants: it will not be ruled as he ruled it, for his sovereignty will be uprooted and will pass to others than his own descendants.
All Biblical scholars and commentators, ancient and modern, believe these prophecies apply to Alexander the Great, the "great horn" of the "he-goat" in Daniel 8:5-8. After his untimely death in 323 BC from a fever at age 32, his four most powerful generals, known as the Diadokhoi, meaning "successors," divided his kingdom. St. Jerome listed his generals as Ptolemy, Seleucus, Philip, and Antigonus" (Jerome, Commentary on Daniel, 7.6). St. Theodoret list has: "The rulership of Egypt was entrusted to Ptolemy, son of Lagos; the realm of the Orient was granted to Seleucus; Antigonus acquired Asia; and Antipater Macedonia (although some say that Alexander's brother, Philip, also known as Aridaeus) acquired Macedonia" (Theodoret, Commentary on Daniel, 7.6).
Power struggles began almost immediately after Alexander's death. When the political situation stabilized, Antipater lost control of Macedonia and Greece to Cassander in 319 BC. Lysimachus was in control of Thrace and Asia Minor, Ptolemy Soter had Egypt, Palestine, and Phoenicia, while Seleucus replaced Antigonus in Babylonia and Syria. The "four winds" in verse 11 most likely refers to the four regions of the compass in the division of the Greek empire. The wars of the Diadokhoi mark the beginning of the Hellenistic period that extended Hellenistic culture from the Mediterranean to the Indus River in India.
|
The Syrian-Greek Seleucid Dynasty (kings of the north) |
The Egyptian-Greek Ptolemaic Dynasty (kings of the south) |
|
Seleucus I Nicator ruled 312-281 BC Antiochus I Soter ruled 281-261 BC Antiochus II Theos ruled 261-246 BC Seleucus II Callinicus ruled 246-226 BC Seleucus III Soter ruled 226-223 BC Antiochus III the Great ruled 223-187 BC Seleucus IV Philopator ruled 187-175 BC Antiochus IV Epiphanes ruled 175-164 BC Antiochus V Eupator ruled 164-162 BC Demetrius, I Soter ruled 162-150 BC Alexander Balas ruled 150-145 BC Demetrius II Nicator ruled 145-139 BC Antiochus VI Dionysus ruled 145-142 BC Antiochus VII Sidetes ruled 138-129 BC Dynastic struggles, civil wars, and regional wars ended the dynasty and made way for the Roman conquest in 63 BC. |
Ptolemy I Soter ruled 323-285 BC Ptolemy II Philadelphus ruled 285-246 BC Ptolemy III Euergetes ruled 246-221 BC Ptolemy IV Philopater ruled 221-205 BC Ptolemy V Epiphanes ruled 203-180 BC Ptolemy VI Philometor ruled 180-145 BC Ptolemy VII Neos Pilopator ruled 145 BC Ptolemy VIII & Euergetes II ruled 145-116 BC Ptolemy IX Soter II (Lathyrus) ruled 116-108 BC Ptolemy X Alexander ruled 108-88 BC Ptolemy XI Alexander II ruled 80 BC Ptolemy XII Auletes ruled 80-51 BC Ptolemy XIII ruled 51-47 BC with Cleopatra VII 51-30 BC Ptolemy XIV ruled 47-44 BC with Cleopatra VII 51-30 BC Cleopatra VII ruled 51-30 BC and with her son Ptolemy XV Caesarion from 44-30 BC After Cleopatra and Marc Antony's defeat at the Battle of Actium in 30 BC, Rome controlled Egypt as a Roman province. |
Antiochus IV Epiphanes persecuted the Jews and desecrated
the Temple, leading to the successful revolt of the Maccabees and the
rededication of the Temple in 164 BC.
Ptolemy XV Caesarion was the son of Cleopatra and Julius Caesar.
5 The king of the south will
grow powerful, but one of his princes will grow more powerful still, with an
empire greater than his own.
The "king of the south" refers to Ptolemy I Soter who ruled
Egypt. The focus of this part of the revelation is the struggles between the
Ptolemies to the south in Egypt and the Seleucids to the north in Syria for
control of the Levant that included Phoenician and Judah. Seleucus I Nicator
was forced to flee his domain in 316 BC to escape from Antigonus. He then
offered his services to Ptolemy, becoming "one of his princes" (see verse
11:5), and together they defeated Demetrius, son of Antigonus, at Gaza in 312
BC. Seleucus I Nicator then recovered his lost territories of Babylon and
northern Syria and the other eastern provinces of Alexander's empire,
consolidating his power and territory that eventually extended from Asia Minor
to the Punjab in India, an empire larger than Ptolemy's control over Egypt,
Phoenicia, and Judah.
6 Some years later, these will
conclude a treaty and, to ratify the agreement, the daughter of the king of the
south will go to the king of the north.
Some years later, in 250 BC, Ptolemy II Philadelphus
("the king of the south") formed an alliance with Antiochus II Theos ("the king
of the north") by giving him his daughter Berenice in marriage. It was a
marriage that led to tragedy.
6b Her arm will
not, however, retain its strength, nor his posterity endure: she will be handed
over, she, her escorts and her child, and he who has had authority over her.
Antiochus II Theos divorced his sister/wife Laodice to
marry the Egyptian princess with the agreement that only Berenice's son would
inherit the throne. The "hell has no fury like that of a woman scorned"
expression describes the discarded wife who sought her revenge by first
convincing her husband to take her back and then by poisoning him and murdering
Berenice, her baby son, and all her Egyptian attendants, thus assuring the
succession of Laodice's sons. Verse 6 summarizes all this violent history.
In due time 7 a sprig from her
roots will rise in his place, will march on the defenses, force the stronghold
of the king of the north, and succeed in overcoming them. 8 He
will even carry off all their gods, their statues, their precious gold and
silver vessels as booty to Egypt.
While these events were taking place, Berenice's brother,
"a sprig from her roots," arose to become Pharaoh Ptolemy III of Egypt (verse
7). He tried to save his sister and nephew by leading an army to "the
stronghold of the king of the north" in Antioch, but he was too late. He did,
however, avenge his sister and her son's brutal deaths by executing Laodice and
devastating Syria. He conquered large portions of Upper Asia as far as Bactria
but later withdrew. He did, however, bring back enormous amounts of war spoils
which he shared with his people, earning him the title "Euergetes,
"Benefactor."
8b For some years
he will leave the king of the north in peace, 9 but the
latter will invade the kingdom of the king of the south, then retire to his own
country. 10 His sons will next be on the march, mustering
a host of powerful forces; and he will advance, deploy, break through and march
on the southern stronghold once again. 11 The king of the
south will fly into a rage and set out to give battle to the king of the north,
who will have an immense army on his side, but this army will be defeated by
him. 12 The army will be annihilated; he will be
triumphant; he will overthrow tens of thousands; yet he will have no enduring
strength.
Peace existed between the Egypt and Syria until Seleucus
III (r. 226 until his murder in 223 BC) and later his brother Antiochus III (223-187)
began to fulfill the long-held dream of the Syrian Greeks to control Phoenicia,
Judah, and southern Syria known as "Coele-Syria" to distinguish it from
northern Syria. In 219 BC, Antiochus III recaptured the port of Antioch and
then led a large force against Egyptian territory in the Levant. At the Battle
of Raphia in June 217 BC, the army of Egyptian Pharaoh Ptolemy IV Philopater
defeated the Syrians and regained possession of southern Syria. It was the most
significant battle of the Hellenistic kingdoms and one of the largest battles of
the ancient world. However, he didn't have to will to follow up on his victory
and made peace with the Syrians that lasted about fourteen years.
13 The king of
the north will come back, having recruited an even larger army than before, and
finally, after some years, he will advance a second time with a great army and
plentiful supplies. 14 At that
time, many will take up arms against the king of the south, and the more
violent of your own people will rebel in the hope of realizing the vision; but
they will fail.
In the meantime, Antiochus III launched several
successful campaigns in Asia Minor and Persia up to the frontiers of India,
recapturing the eastern part of the old Seleucid empire and earning for himself
the title "the Great." With his confidence and power restored, he decided to
have another go at Egypt in 200 BC. Antiochus saw that the timing was to his
advantage. Ptolemy IV died and his infant son, Ptolemy V Epiphanes (203-181
BC) succeeded him as Pharaoh.
Men of Judah who hoped to overthrow the Egyptian sovereignty of Judah will fight with the Syrians against the Egyptians (verse 14a). Their action was probably a reaction to the oppressive regime of Agathocles, the Egyptian regent of the infant pharaoh and in the hope of establishing a free and independent Judah, but it is a hope that will fail (14b). The result is the defeat of the Egyptians at the Battle of Paneas near the source of the Jordan River in 199 BC, and Judah became part of the Syrian-Seleucid Empire.
Question: The region of Paneas was the
northern-most part of Israel and the territorial possession of the tribe of Dan
that was the first Israelite territory conquered by the Gentiles. Later, in
the 1st century AD, Herod the Great's son Philip renames Paneas,
calling the city and the region Caesarea Philippi. What significant event took
place there in Matthew 16:13-19 and why is the location important?
Answer: Inspired by the Holy Spirit, St. Peter
will profess that Jesus of Nazareth is the Redeemer-Messiah and Son of God.
Jesus is reclaiming the Holy Land beginning in the territory where the covenant
people first became dispossessed of their holy land.
Daniel 11:15-20 ~ The Prophecies of the Man Dressed in
Linen Concerning the Continuing Wars of the Greek Kings
15 "The
king of the north will then come and throw up siege-works to capture a strongly
fortified city. The forces of the south will not stand their ground; the pick
of the people will not be strong enough to resist. 16 The invader will do as he pleases, no one
will be able to resist him: he will take his stand in the Land of Splendor,
destruction in his hands. 17 He
will set about conquering his entire kingdom, but will then make a treaty with
him and, to overthrow the kingdom, give him a woman's hand; but this will not
last or be to his advantage. 18 He
will next turn to the coasts and islands and conquer many of them, but a
magistrate will put a stop to his outrages in such a way that he will be unable
to repay outrage for outrage. 19 He
will then turn on the strongholds of his own country, but will stumble, fall,
and never be seen again. 20 In his
place there will rise a man who will send an extortioner to despoil the royal
splendor; in a few days he will be shattered, though neither publicly nor in
battle."
The "Land of Splendor" refers to the holy land of Israel/Judah that the Syrians subdued as a vassal state (verses 15-16). After his success in Phoenicia, Samaria, and Judah, Antiochus III "set about conquering his [Ptolemy's] entire kingdom" but then made a treaty with the Egyptians (verse 17). Antiochus was now firmly in control of Coele-Syria, but Rome was a growing power across the Mediterranean, and Antiochus feared Roman intervention. Instead, he made a treaty with Ptolemy V and sealed it by giving his daughter Cleopatra in marriage. According to St. Jerome, the formal betrothal took place in 197 BC, and the wedding in 193 at Raphia when Cleopatra was of marriageable age. Antiochus hoped to control Ptolemy through his daughter, but she proved to be loyal to her husband and urged Ptolemy to make an alliance with the Romans which would turn out to be a calamity for the Syrians.
18 He will next
turn to the coasts and islands and conquer many of them, but a magistrate will
put a stop to his outrages in such a way that he will be unable to repay
outrage for outrage.
Antiochus turned his attention to the coasts and islands
of Asia Minor, capturing many Egyptian cities despite the peace treaty. In 192
BC, he ignored Rome's warnings not to attack Greece and was defeated by the Romans
at Thermopylae a year later. Two years later, the Romans, now allies of the
Egyptians, drove him out of Asia Minor in the Battle of Magnesia near Smyrna in
190 BC.
19 He will then
turn on the strongholds of his own country, but will stumble, fall, and never
be seen again. 20 In his place
there will rise a man who will send an extortioner to despoil the royal
splendor; in a few days he will be shattered, though neither publicly nor in
battle."
Heavily in debt, Antiochus turn
on the strongholds of his own country. In 187 BC, at Elymais, a Syrian
controlled province located at the head of the Persian Gulf, he was
assassinated (but will stumble, fall, and never be seen again) while
sacking the treasury of Bel, one of his own gods, to meet his tribute payments
to Rome.
When he died in 187 BC, he was succeeded by his son Seleucus IV Philopator, a weak and ineffective ruler who sent his finance minister to Jerusalem to pillage the Temple treasury (see 2 Macc 3:1-40). He was assassinated in 175 BC (verse 20).
Daniel 11:21-28 ~ The Prophecy of the Wicked King
21 "In his place will rise a
wretch: royal honors will not be given to him, but rather he will insinuate
himself into them at his pleasure and will gain possession of the kingdom by
intrigue. 22 Armies will be utterly routed and crushed by
him, the Prince of the covenant too. 23 Through his
alliances he will act treacherously and, despite the smallness of his
following, grow ever stronger. 24 At his pleasure, he
will invade rich provinces, acting as his fathers or his fathers' fathers never
acted, distributing among them plunder, spoil and wealth, plotting his
stratagems against the fortresses for a time. 25 He will
summon up his might and courage against the king of the south with a great
army. The king of the south will march to war with a huge and powerful army but
will not succeed, since he will be outwitted by trickery. 26 Those
who shared his food will ruin him; his army will be swept away, many will fall
in the slaughter. 27 The two kings, seated at one table,
hearts bent on evil, will tell their lies; but they will not have their way,
for the appointed time is still to come. 28 Then the
wretch will return greatly enriched to his own country, his heart set against
the holy covenant; he will take action and then return to his own country."
Seleucus IV Philopator's successor was the vilest of the Seleucid kings, Antiochus IV Epiphanes. He was the son of Antiochus III the Great who assumed the throne after the murder of his elder brother Seleucus and his nephew Demetrius in 175 BC (verse 21). He had been a valuable and well-treated hostage in Rome since 190 BC, after the Roman victory against the Syrians at the Battle of Magnesia. He returned to claim the throne of the Greek Seleucid Kingdom and launched a diabolical and systematic persecution of the Jews.(3)
22 Armies will be utterly routed
and crushed by him, the Prince of the covenant too.
Antiochus IV overcame all attempts to prevent him from seizing
the throne. The "Prince of the covenant" probably refers to the Jewish High Priest,
Onias III who was opposed to the Hellenizing policies of Antiochus. Onias'
brother Jason approached Antiochus and offered a bribe if the king would make
him high priest with the promise that he would aid in the Hellenization of
Judah (2 Macc 4:9-19). Antiochus accepted the bribe and deposed Onias. In 172
BC, a Jew named Menelaus offered Antiochus another bribe and obtains the high
priesthood (2 Macc 4:23-24). When Onias learned that Menelaus had looted some
of the sacred gold vessels from the Temple, he made a public protest, and
Menelaus had him assassinated (2 Macc 4:32-34). Onias was the last legitimate
Aaronic and Zadokite high priest of the Jerusalem Temple.
Verses 23-28 summarize Antiochus IV's history in the region, including his first successful war against his nephew and his sister who ruled Egypt, and his intent to destroy the Jew's covenant with their God by making them worship the pagan gods of the Greeks.
Daniel 11:29-39 ~ The Wicked King Makes War Against
Yahweh and the Holy Temple
29 "In due
time, he will make his way southwards again, but this time the outcome will not
be as before. 30 The ships of the Kittim will oppose him,
and he will be worsted. He will retire and take furious action against the holy
covenant and, as before, will favor those who forsake that holy covenant. 31 Forces of his will come and
profane the Citadel-Sanctuary; they will abolish the perpetual sacrifice and
install the appalling abomination there. 32 Those who
break the covenant he will seduce by his blandishments, but the people who know
their God will stand firm and take action. 33 Those of
the people who are wise leaders will instruct many; for some days, however,
they will stumble from sword and flame, captivity and pillage. 34 And thus stumbling, little help
will they receive, though many will be scheming in their support. 35
Of the wise leaders some will stumble, and so a number of them will be
purged, purified and made clean until the time of the End, for the appointed
time is still to come. 36 The
king will do as he pleases, growing more and more arrogant, considering
himself greater than all the gods; he will utter incredible blasphemies against
the God of gods, and he will thrive until the wrath reaches bursting point; for
what has been decreed will certainly be fulfilled. 37
Heedless of his fathers' gods, heedless of the god whom women love,
heedless of any god whatever, he will consider himself greatest of all. 38
Instead of them, he will honor the god of fortresses, will honor a god
unknown to his ancestors with gold and silver, precious stones and valuable
presents. 39 He will use the
people of an alien god to defend the fortresses; he will confer great honors on
those whom he acknowledges, by giving them wide authority and by parceling the
country out for rent."
Verses 29-25 probably refer to Antiochus IV's second war with Egypt. His second invasion was not like the first since the "ships of the Kittim" (verse 30), a reference to his sister's Roman allies, came against him, and he began his retreat back to Antioch. He first decided to strengthen his hold on Judah. The Syrians had many supporters of Hellenistic culture and religion among the Jews like Jason and Menelaus, but there were also Jews who resisted and remained faithful to their covenant with Yahweh. Passing through Judah on his return, he vented his rage on the pious Jews particularly in Jerusalem (verses 30b-35; 1 Macc 1:16-25).
31 Forces of his will come and
profane the Citadel-Sanctuary; they will abolish the perpetual [tamid] sacrifice
and install the appalling abomination there.
Antiochus' royal governor will abolish
the Temple's twice-daily Tamid sacrifice for the atonement and sanctification
of the covenant people and will establish the sacrifice of pigs offered to
pagan gods on Yahweh's altar of sacrifice. The word tamid is not only the name
of the sacrifice but means "standing" as in continual or perpetual.
The Books of the Maccabees record the persecution against the Jews carried out by the orders of Antiochus IV ( 1 Maccabees 1:20-25, 30-35, 41-64; 2:6-12, 27-38; 3:38-41; 2 Maccabees 6:6-11, 18-31; 7:1-41; also see Heb 11:36-38).
34 And thus stumbling, little
help will they receive, though many will be scheming in their support.
Verse 34 probably refers to the
resistance of the priest Mattathias and his sons, called the Maccabees, "the
hammers" (1 Macc 2:15-28, 42-48; 3:10-26; 4:1-25), and the scheming may refer
to those who had previously renounced their faith to embrace Hellenism but
joined the resistance because of their fear of retaliation by the Maccabees (1
Macc 2:44-46; 3:5-8). But as soon as the Syrians seemed to have the upper
hand, they abandoned their faith again (1 Macc 9:23).
35 Of the wise leaders some will stumble, and so a number of them will be purged, purified and made clean until the time of the End, for the appointed time is still to come. 36 The king will do as he pleases, growing more and more arrogant, considering himself greater than all the gods; he will utter incredible blasphemies against the God of gods, and he will thrive until the wrath reaches bursting point; for what has been decreed will certainly be fulfilled. 37 Heedless of his fathers' gods, heedless of the god whom women love, heedless of any god whatever, he will consider himself greatest of all.
The persecution and the apostasy, even by Jewish leaders, will continue until "the time of the End" when God will not permit the oppression to exceed its allotted limit" (verse 35). The next section in verses 36-39 evaluates and describes the conduct of Antiochus IV summarized in the phrase "the king will do as he pleases" (11:36a):
The "god whom women love" was Tammuz, the god of fertility.
38 Instead of them, he will
honor the god of fortresses, will honor a god unknown to his ancestors with
gold and silver, precious stones and valuable presents.
Antiochus developed a devotion to the
Roman god Jupiter Optimus Maximus while a royal captive in Rome and even minted
coins with the god's image. Jupiter's temple in Rome was known as the Temple
of Jupiter Capitolinus (Jupiter of the Fortress). Located on the Capitoline
Hill, it was the most important temple in ancient Rome.
39 He will use the people of an
alien god to defend the fortresses; he will confer great honors on those whom
he acknowledges, by giving them wide authority and by parceling the country out
for rent.
The fortresses probably refer to the
strongholds and fortified cities he built in Judah and the Acra in Jerusalem defended
with non-Jews including mercenaries from Mysia to enforce his will upon the Jews.
Antiochus rewarded those loyal to him and bribed others (for example, see 1
Macc 2:18 and 2 Macc 7:26).
Daniel 11:40-45 ~ The End of the Persecutor
40 "When the time comes for the
End, the king of the south will try conclusions with him; but the king of the
north will come storming down on him with chariots, cavalry, and a large fleet.
He will invade countries, overrun them and drive on. 41 He
will invade the Land of Splendor, and many will fall; but Edom, Moab, and what
remains of the sons of Ammon will escape him. 42 He will
reach out to attack countries: Egypt will not escape him. 43 The
gold and silver treasures and all the valuables of Egypt will lie in his power.
Libyans and Cushites will be at his feet: 44 but reports
coming from the East and the north will worry him, and in great fury he will
set out to bring ruin and complete destruction to many. 45 He
will pitch the tents of his royal headquarters between the sea and the
mountains of the Holy Splendor. Yet he will come to his end; there will be no
help for him."
Verses 40-45 give a prediction of Antiochus last endeavors. There may have been a third war against Egypt that is unknown in the historical record, or the verses may be a summary of his last Egyptian war that ended with his withdrawal from Egypt and his ravaging of Judah. Daniel 8:25 predicted he will be broken but not by human hand. What is not in the prediction is Antiochus' eastern campaign against Judah in 165 BC, his defeat by the rebellion of the Maccabees, the rededication of the Temple in December 164 BC, and the fulfillment of the prophecy concerning his painful death from a mysterious disease in late 164 BC in Persia when he is struck down by "not by human hand."
Chapter 12
Charge them with crime after crime, exclude them from your saving
justice, erase them from the Book of Life, do no enroll them among the upright.
Psalm 69:27-28
| The Vision | Book of Daniel | Book of Revelation |
| 1. The worship of the Beast's statue | Chapter 3:5-7, 15 | Chapter 13:15 |
| 2. The Leopard, the Bear, and the Lion | Chapter 7:4-6 | Chapter 13:2 |
| 3. The ten horns | Chapter 7:8 | Chapters 12:3, 13:1; 17:3, 8 |
| 4. The Beast mouthing boasting and blasphemies | Chapter 7:8, 11 | Chapter 13:5 |
| 5. The Son of Man coming on the Glory-Cloud | Chapter 7:13 | Chapter 1:7 & 14:14 |
| 6. The war against the Saints | Chapter 7:21 | Chapter 13:7 |
| 7. Three-and-a-half-time period (a time, 2 times and half a time) | Chapter 7:25; 12:7 | Chapter 11:9, 11 |
| 8. The scroll | Chapter 12:4 | Chapter 10:1-11 |
Daniel 12:1-4 ~ Resurrection and Retribution
The prophecies of the man dressed in linen with a golden belt continues: 1 "At that time Michael will arise, the great Prince, defender of your people. That will be a time of great distress, unparalleled since nations first came into existence. When that time comes, your own people will be spared, all those whose names are found written in the Book. 2 Of those who are sleeping in the Land of Dust, many will awaken, some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting disgrace. 3 Those who are wise will shine as brightly as the expanse of the heavens, and those who have instructed many in uprightness, as bright as stars for all eternity. 4 But you, Daniel, must keep these words secret and keep the book sealed until the time of the End. Many will roam about, this way and that, and wickedness will continue to increase."
Michael, the Prince of angels and defender of Israel, will arise to aid the covenant people. This prediction may refer to the end of Syrian persecution and the Maccabees' successful revolt against the Seleucid Empire in 164 BC when Judah became an independent nation for the first time in centuries. However, the mention of "the Book" and verse 2 presents a picture of a future resurrection of the dead which will only occur in Jesus' Second Advent at the end of time when there will be a Final Judgment. At that time, some of the dead will awaken to everlasting shame and condemnation, and all those whose names are in the Book of Life will receive the gift of eternal salvation.(5) This prophecy must concern the last of the five kingdoms in Chapter two, the only kingdom not covered in these last prophecies that began in Chapter 7. The everlasting kingdom ruled by a king who has the appearance of a man (Dan 7:13) but, On him was conferred rule, honor and kingship, and all peoples, nations and languages became his servants. His rule is an everlasting rule which will never pass away, and his kingship will never come to an end (Dan 7:14; cf. 2:44-45).
In Chapters 10-12, Daniel's revelations concerned the flow of history from the fall of Persia to the Greek conquest and the rise of the Greek Ptolemy dynasty of Egypt and the Greek Seleucids of Syria, all of whom would rule over Judah before the conquest of the Romans in 63 BC. For example, in 11:9-11 the king of the north is a historical fit with Seleucus II the king of Syria, and the king of the south is a historical match with Ptolemy IV. But in Chapter 12, Michael the Archangel speaks of "the end times" when everyone whose name is found written in "the book" will be delivered, and multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt. This passage refers to the resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked at the Final/Last Judgment. Up to Daniel's time, teaching about the resurrection was not common even though the covenant people believed that one day they would be included in the restoration of the New Kingdom of the Messiah.
Daniel 12:2-3 is one of the key texts in the Old
Testament to support the doctrine of the resurrection of the body. Also see
Isaiah 26:19a, Ezekiel 37:1-14; Hosea 13:14,
Psalm 16:7-11, and
2 Maccabees 7:8-9, 11, 14, 23, 36; 12:28-45; and 14:46.
Question: Compare Daniel 12:2-3 with Isaiah 26:19
and 2 Maccabees 7:8:
Answer:
Daniel 12:2 ~ Of those who are sleeping in the Land of
Dust, many will awaken, some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting
disgrace. 3 Those who are wise will
shine as brightly as the expanse of the heavens, and those who have instructed
many in uprightness, as bright as stars for all eternity.
Isaiah 26:19a ~ Your dead will come back to life, your
corpses will rise again. Wake up [awaken] and sing, you dwellers in the dust,
for your dew will be a radiant dew, but the earth will give birth to the
shades.
2 Maccabees 7:8-9 ~ Replying in his ancestral tongue,
he said, "No!" So he too was put to the torture in his turn. With his last breath
he exclaimed, "Cruel brute, you may discharge us from this present life, but
the King of the world will raise us up, since we die for his laws, to live
again forever."
Question: What words and concepts are common to both prophecies?
Answer: Common to both Daniel 12:2 and Isaiah 26:19 are the words "dust," referring to death and burial, and "awaken," a
reference to arising from death to renewed and eternal life; concepts that
refer to the resurrection of the dead. The verses from Maccabees also expresses
the promise of a resurrection from death for the faithful by the Messiah-King.
3 Those who are
wise will shine as brightly as the expanse of the heavens, and those who have
instructed many in uprightness, as bright as stars for all eternity.
Two groups receive the promise of an eternal blessing:
the wise who chose to be faithful to God and His commandments and those "who
have instructed many in uprightness," a reference to those who taught the
faithful God's commandments as the path to righteousness and salvation. These
two groups receive the promise of an eschatological transformation into a
glorified state.
The verses in Isaiah and 2 Maccabees express a belief in the resurrection of the just, but for the first time in Scripture, the passage in Daniel refers to a universal resurrection of the righteous and the wicked. Jesus will speak of a universal judgment of the dead in Matthew 13:41-43; 25:31-46 and John 5:28-29; and in Revelation 20:11-15 St. John has a vision of the universal judgment of all the dead.
Question: In 12:4, what does the angel Michael tell Daniel to do
with the scroll that reveals the secrets of the End Times? What instructions
were given to St. John concerning a scroll in Revelation 10:1-11?
Answer: Michael tells Daniel to seal it up and wait
because the mysteries are not to be revealed until the time of "the End." St.
John is told to unroll the scroll, eat it, and prophesy because "the time of
waiting is over" (Rev 10:6b).
Concerning the resurrection, the Catechism tells us: "God revealed the resurrection of the dead to his people progressively. Hope in the bodily resurrection of the dead established itself as a consequence intrinsic to faith in God as the creator of the whole man, soul and body. The creator of heaven and earth is also the one who faithfully maintains his covenant with Abraham and his posterity. It was in this double perspective that faith in the resurrection came to be expressed. In their trials, the Maccabean martyrs confessed: The King of the universe will raise us from death to an everlasting renewal of life because we have died for his laws. One cannot but choose to die at the hands of men and to cherish the hope that God gives of being raised again by him'" (CCC 992 quoting 2 Macc 7:14). Concerning the resurrection also see CCC 993-1003.
Daniel 12:5-13 ~ The Sealed Prophecy
5 I, Daniel, then
looked and saw two other people standing, one on the near bank of the river,
the other on the far. 6 One of them
said to the man dressed in linen who was standing further up the stream, "How long until these wonders take place?" 7 I heard the man speak who was dressed in
linen, standing further up the stream: he raised his right hand and his left to
heaven and swore by him who lives forever, "A time and two times, and half a
time; and all these things will come true, once the crushing of the holy
people's power is over." 8 I
listened but did not understand. I then said, "My lord, what is to be the
outcome?" 9 "Go, Daniel," he said.
"These words are to remain secret and sealed until the time of the End. 10 Many will be cleansed, made white and purged;
the wicked will persist in doing wrong; the wicked will never understand; those
who are wise will understand. 11 From
the moment that the perpetual sacrifice is abolished, and the appalling
abomination set up: a thousand two hundred and ninety days. 12 Blessed is he who perseveres and attains a
thousand three hundred and thirty-five days. 13 But you, go away and rest; and you will rise for your reward
at the end of time."
Daniel sees two figures standing on either side of the river that may represent the great divide between life and death. If the man dressed in linen is the pre-Incarnate Christ, is it possible that the other two beings Daniel sees are the other two persons of the Trinity, or it is possible that they are Gabriel and Michael? The question one of the divine beings asks is, "How long until these wonders take place?"
7 I heard the man speak who was
dressed in linen, standing further up the stream: he raised his right hand and
his left to heaven and swore by him who lives forever, "A time and two times,
and half a time; and all these things will come true, once the crushing of the
holy people's power is over."
The man dressed in linen sore an oath that the revelation will not take
place for the time span of three and a half years (?)when the power of the
"holy people," meaning the Old Covenant people, has been broken and the daily
Tamid ("standing" as in perpetual) sacrifice comes to an end. It is possibly a
reference to the domination of the 4th kingdom and the destruction
of Jerusalem and the Temple by the Romans in AD 70.
The perpetual sacrifice in verse 11 is the daily liturgy of the Tamid sacrifice. It was the first sacrifice ordained at the covenant ratification at Mt. Sinai and was the most important of all the sacrifices. Two lambs were offered as a single sacrifice daily for the people in the Temple in a morning and afternoon liturgical worship service along with unleavened bread and red wine (Ex 29:36-42). The whole daily prayer life of the covenant people revolved around this sacrifice. See the e-Book "Jesus and the Mystery of the Tamid Sacrifice."
In the New Testament Book of Revelation 10:7, the prophet John receives the revelation that the time of waiting is over! In Revelation 5:5, John hears that the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, the Root of David has triumphed and so He will open the scroll. Daniel 7:25 mentions the same three-and-a-half length of time in association with a period of intense persecution. Another link between the Book of Daniel and the Book of Revelation is where the same numbers appear in Revelation 11:9-12 associated with a period of persecution lasting days and the murder and resurrection of God's holy messengers. An angel tells St. John: People of every race, tribe, language and nation stare at their corpses, for three-and-a-half days, not letting them be buried, and the people of the world are glad about it and celebrate the event by giving presents to each other, because these two prophets have been a plague to the people of the world. After the three-and-a-half days, God breathed life into them and they stood up on their feet, and everybody who saw it happen was terrified; then I heard a loud voice from heaven say to them, "Come up here," and while their enemies were watching, they went up to heaven in a cloud.
Daniel's secret may concern the revelations Jesus will make concerning the great tribulation and end of the Old Covenant in Matthew Chapter 24. In AD 70, when the Romans destroyed the Temple in Jerusalem, the daily Tamid sacrifice, ordained by God to last for long as the Sinai Covenant endured, ended for all time. It was what the writer of the Book of Hebrews wrote in 9:8-9 testifying that to the destruction of the Temple by the Romans: By this, the Holy Spirit means us to see that as long as the old tent [Tabernacle/Temple] stands, the way into the holy place is not opened up; it is a symbol for this present time. The point was that the New Covenant could not be fully in place until the Old Covenant animal sacrifices ended in the destruction of the earthly Temple.
In Daniel 12:11-13, the archangel Michel tells Daniel from the time of
his revelation until the coming of the period of oppression when the perpetual
Tamid sacrifice ends and the "appalling abomination"
is set up in the sanctuary will be 1,290 days but blessed is he who
perseveres and attains 1,335 days. The "appalling abomination" is
fulfilled by the Roman general, Titus, when he profanes the Temple with pagan
images and offers sacrifices to them (Josephus, War of the Jews, 6.6.1
[316]).
Scholars have long debated the meaning of the numbers in Chapter 12:11-13.
There may be a relationship to the 430 years given in Exodus 12:40 as the time
of oppression in Egypt and the 45 years from the Exodus from Egypt to the completion
of the first phase of the conquest of the Promised Land in Joshua 14:6-10.
Could these numbers mean that the coming period of oppression, compared to the
Egyptian oppression, will be brief: days instead of years, but three times more
intense [3 x 430 = 1,290]? But those who preserver in faith and obedience,
like the new generation that was victorious in the conquest of Canaan, will
attain to the 1,335th day of victory and dominion [1,290 + 45 =
1,335] (?). The meaning of these numbers presents one of those great Bible
mysteries.
Many Biblical scholars, ancient and modern, believe the prophecy refers to the end of the Tamid sacrifice for all time that will signal the end of the Sinai Covenant. The Great Jewish Revolt lasted for about three and a half years from the fall of AD 66 to the end of the Tamid sacrifice, followed a month later by the destruction of the Temple in the summer of AD 70. The daily liturgy of the Old Covenant came to an end at the time, but the continuing New Covenant liturgy of worship in the sacrifice of the Eucharist was the sign of humanity's final age: the Age of the Messiah. It is the "everlasting fifth kingdom" of Daniel 2:44: Jesus the Messiah's Kingdom of the Universal Church.
Question for reflection or group discussion:
What does Jesus teach concerning the resurrection of the
dead and the Last Judgment in Matthew 25:31-46? In which group do you hope to
stand, and what are the qualifications for being judged worthy of eternal life?
Endnotes:
1. 2 Maccabees 5:1-4 records a graphic account of a
vision in which angelic horsemen charge in mid-air with companies fully armed
with lances and drawn swords.
2. The meaning of some of the Greek cult names in the king lists: Soter means "savior," Philadelphus means "loving one's brother/fellow man," Philopater means "father lover," Philometor means "mother lover," Evergetes means "benefactor," Nicator means "victor," Theos means "god," Eupator means "of noble father."
3.The Battle of Magnesia was the concluding battle of the Roman "Seleucid War, fought in 190 BC near Magnesia on the plains of the kingdom of Lydia in western Asia Minor. The Romans defeated the army of Antiochus III the Great of the Seleucid Empire. It was a victory thatresulted in Roman domination over a large part of the territory once controlled by the Seleucid Empire in Asia Minor.
4 Mysia was an ancient district in northwest Anatolia, adjoining the Sea of Marmara on the north and the Aegean Sea on the west. Today, it is part of modern Turkey.
5. The Book of Life: see Ex 32:32-33; Ps 69:27-28; 139:16; Dan 7:10; Lk 10:20; Rev 20:12.
Michal Hunt, Copyright © 2018 Agape Bible Study. Permissions All Rights Reserved.
Catechism references (*indicated Scripture is
either quoted or paraphrased in the citation):
12:1-13 (CCC 992*)
12:3 (CCC 998*-1003)