DANIEL 10:20

The Bible says in Daniel 10:20-21, “Then said he, Knowest thou wherefore I come unto thee? and now will I return to fight with the prince of Persia: and when I am gone forth, lo, the prince of Grecia shall come.[21] But I will shew thee that which is noted in the scripture of truth: and there is none that holdeth with me in these things, but Michael your prince.” We have seen this situation explained to us already in the book of Daniel. The leaders of countries are in conflict with each other, but this is an angel speaking about his conflict. And so we know that the evil spiritual forces are organized especially to take control of human governments. Angels fight with demons as part of this spiritual battle. When you and I pray, God’s answers to those prayers become a powerful force in the battles. If you do not like the outcomes you are seeing out there, maybe you can pray more about it. Notice that both the evil angels and the good angels are called “princes” in Daniel 10:20-21. That is because they are in positions of authority.

Daniel 11:1 is a continuation of the last verses of chapter 10. The angel is still speaking and he says, “Also I in the first year of Darius the Mede, even I, stood to confirm and to strengthen him.” Basically what this good angel is saying is that God put His stamp of approval on having Darius the Mede as leader of the Medes and Persians, and God sent this angel to fight the spiritual battles necessary so that Darius would be confirmed and strengthened. God wanted Darius in power because Darius was going to treat the Jewish people well. Even though Israel had been conquered by the Babylonians and Jerusalem destroyed, God was not finished with the children of Israel. When God has something to do, He chooses people to do His work at all levels. God chose Darius, and therefore the dark spiritual forces were defeated and were kept from putting their choice into power. One of the things that will make the last days so horrible is that the choice of evil will come into power, and we call that choice the antichrist. As it says in Second Thessalonians 2:7-8, “For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.[8] And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming.”

The Bible says in Daniel 11:2-6, “And now will I shew thee the truth. Behold, there shall stand up yet three kings in Persia; and the fourth shall be far richer than they all: and by his strength through his riches he shall stir up all against the realm of Grecia.[3] And a mighty king shall stand up, that shall rule with great dominion, and do according to his will.[4] And when he shall stand up, his kingdom shall be broken, and shall be divided toward the four winds of heaven; and not to his posterity, nor according to his dominion which he ruled: for his kingdom shall be plucked up, even for others beside those.[5] And the king of the south shall be strong, and one of his princes; and he shall be strong above him, and have dominion; his dominion shall be a great dominion.[6] And in the end of years they shall join themselves together; for the king's daughter of the south shall come to the king of the north to make an agreement: but she shall not retain the power of the arm; neither shall he stand, nor his arm: but she shall be given up, and they that brought her, and he that begat her, and he that strengthened her in these times.” This part of Daniel chapter 11 goes into some detail about what would happen in the region around Israel in the years following the breakup of the kingdom of Alexander the Great. Grecia is mentioned in verse two, and Alexander is mentioned in verse three where it speaks of “a mighty king.” At his death Alexander’s kingdom was divided into four pieces. This is mentioned in verse 4 that says, “his kingdom shall be broken, and shall be divided toward the four winds of heaven.” The “king of the south” refers to one of the Ptolemaic rulers of Egypt, who were one of the four pieces left over from Alexander’s kingdom. Another part of the broken-up kingdom of Alexander was the Seleucid rulers who ruled from Damascus. These were the kings of the north spoken of here. Of course, these events, though prophecy at the time of Daniel, have long since taken place. They serve no direct meaning to the last days, except as they are a lead in to the little horn, otherwise known as the antichrist. Of course, the fact that these events are revealed means that God was interested in comforting the believers who were alive when these things transpired. God wants all believers in every generation to have the comfort and assurance that God is in control no matter what is going on in the world around us. Nothing takes the Lord by surprise. He knows what is going to happen. He knows everything from the smallest to the greatest event before it happens, and He makes sure that it all fits into His great plan for the universe.

And so the purpose of the rest of the verses in this chapter from Daniel 11:7 through Daniel 11:20 is to foretell what will be happening between Egypt and Syria up until a man name Antiochus Epiphanes comes to power in Syria. Talking about one of the rulers who come into the Middle East, it says in Daniel 11:20, “Then shall stand up in his estate a raiser of taxes in the glory of the kingdom: but within few days he shall be destroyed, neither in anger, nor in battle.” This is not a compliment. One of the things that unjust and unholy leaders have always done to oppress the people who are under them is to levy taxes. Many bad things are said about most of these leaders, but this is one of the worse that can be said: “a raiser of taxes.” Someone is going to take your money that you have earned by your own hard work and spend it in ways that you do not agree with. That being said, we must always remember what Jesus said about these human kingdoms and the taxes they force us to pay. The incident is recorded in Luke 20:22-25, “Is it lawful for us to give tribute unto Caesar, or no?[23] But he perceived their craftiness, and said unto them, Why tempt ye me?[24] Shew me a penny. Whose image and superscription hath it? They answered and said, Caesar's.[25] And he said unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which be Caesar's, and unto God the things which be God's.”

Now starts another passage about the antichrist. The Bible says in Daniel 11:21-24, “And in his estate shall stand up a vile person, to whom they shall not give the honour of the kingdom: but he shall come in peaceably, and obtain the kingdom by flatteries.[22] And with the arms of a flood shall they be overflown from before him, and shall be broken; yea, also the prince of the covenant.[23] And after the league made with him he shall work deceitfully: for he shall come up, and shall become strong with a small people.[24] He shall enter peaceably even upon the fattest places of the province; and he shall do that which his fathers have not done, nor his fathers' fathers; he shall scatter among them the prey, and spoil, and riches: yea, and he shall forecast his devices against the strong holds, even for a time.” The “vile person” is the antichrist. Several things said about the antichrist have been told to us already in Daniel. The antichrist comes in to power because of his political abilities initially. “He shall come in peaceably,” and he shall “obtain the kingdom by flatteries.” The subject of peace and how to bring peace will be his strength even though he has no intention of bringing peace: just the opposite. The antichrist will also be a great speaker with abilities that are very persuasive and whose way with words cannot be resisted. This view of the antichrist coming in and taking control under the banner of peace can also be seen in Revelation 6:1-2 that says, “And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see.[2] And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.” But once he gains control, notice what happens as recorded in Revelation 6:34, “And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come and see.[4] And there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword.”

Daniel 11:24 says something interesting about the antichrist. It says, talking about his evil deeds and how bad he will be, “he shall do that which his fathers have not done, nor his fathers' fathers.” This is usually terminology that is used for someone who is Jewish. Something similar is said in verses 37 and 38, “Neither shall he regard the god of his fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all. But in his estate shall he honor the God of forces: and a god whom his fathers knew not shall he honor with gold, and silver, and with precious stones, and pleasant things.” This does not mean for certain that the antichrist is a Jew. It just gives some weight to the idea. Perhaps he claims to be a Muslim, but is a much worse person other Moslems, or perhaps he claims to be a Christian, but is a much worse person than others who claim to be Christians.

The Bible says in Daniel 11:28-31, “Then shall he return into his land with great riches; and his heart shall be against the holy covenant; and he shall do exploits, and return to his own land.[29] At the time appointed he shall return, and come toward the south; but it shall not be as the former, or as the latter.[30] For the ships of Chittim shall come against him: therefore he shall be grieved, and return, and have indignation against the holy covenant: so shall he do; he shall even return, and have intelligence with them that forsake the holy covenant.[31] And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate.” Three times it is mentioned that the antichrist is against the “holy covenant.” This refers to the law of Moses and the worship that was established in the Old Testament centering in the temple in Jerusalem. Daniel 11:31 tells us three terrible acts performed by the antichrist that demonstrate his hatred for God and for the Jewish people. The antichrist will pollute the sanctuary. The antichrist will take away the daily sacrifice. The antichrist will perform “the abominate that maketh desolate.” This is some kind of desecration of the temple, and probably includes declaring himself to be god. Jesus referred to this event and Jesus said in Matthew 24:15-22, “When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)[16] Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:[17] Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house:[18] Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.[19] And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days![20] But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day:[21] For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.[22] And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened.” What Jesus is saying is very clear: once the act of the abomination of desolation takes place in the temple by the antichrist, you had better get out of Jerusalem as quick as you can because what will follow is “great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.” At least the time will be short. And there is a Savior. Make sure that you turn to the Savior and believe on Him while you have time. His name is Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins.

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