Daniel 11:20-39
Lexham English Bible
20 “Then in his place will arise one sending an official throughout the glory[a] of his kingdom, and in a few days[b] he will be broken, but not in anger and not in battle. 21 And in his place a despicable person will arise on whom[c] they have not conferred the majesty of the kingdom, and he will come in without warning[d] and he will seize the kingdom by deceit. 22 And before him[e] mighty military forces[f] will be utterly swept away, and they will be broken, and also the leader of the covenant. 23 And after an alliance is made with him, he will act deceitfully, and he will rise and he will become powerful with few people backing him. 24 In a time of ease and in the rich parts of the province, he will come and he will do what his predecessors[g] did not do; he will distribute plunder and spoil and possessions to them, and he will devise his plans against fortifications, but only for a time.[h] 25 And he will stir up his power and his heart against the king of the south and with a much greater and stronger army;[i] but he will not succeed, for they will devise plans against him. 26 And those who eat of his royal rations will break him and his army will be overwhelmed, and many will fall, slain. 27 And two of the kings[j] will bend their hearts[k] to evil. And at the same table[l] they will speak lies, but what is discussed will not succeed, for still an end is coming at the appointed time. 28 Then he will return to his land with many possessions, but his heart will be set against the holy covenant,[m] and he will take action and he will return to his land.
29 “At the appointed time he will return and he will come into the south, but it will not be as it was before.[n] 30 And the ships of Kittim will come against him, and he will lose heart, and he will turn back, and he will be enraged against the holy covenant,[o] and he will take action, and he will turn back, and he will pay attention to those who forsake the holy covenant.[p] 31 And military forces from him will occupy[q] and will profane[r] the sanctuary stronghold,[s] and they will abolish the regular burnt offering, and they will set up the abomination that causes desolation.
32 “And those who violate the covenant he will seduce with flattery, but the persons who know their God[t] will stand firm and will take action. 33 And those who have insight will instruct[u] the many, but they will fall by sword and by flame, by captivity and by plunder for some time.[v] 34 And when they fall[w] they will receive little help, and many will join with them in hypocrisy. 35 And even some of those who have insight[x] will fall[y] in order for them to be refined by it, and to be purified and cleansed until the time of the end, for the appointed time is still to come.
36 “Then the king will do as he pleases,[z] and he will exalt himself and will consider himself above any god, and he will speak horrendous things against[aa] the God of gods, yet he will succeed until the period of anger is finished, for what is determined will be done. 37 He will not pay respect to the gods of his ancestors,[ab] or to the darling of women, and not to any god will he pay respect, for he will consider himself great over all gods. 38 But instead[ac] he will honor the god of fortresses, a god whom his ancestors[ad] did not know. He will honor him with gold, and with silver, and with precious stones[ae] and with costly gifts. 39 And he will deal with the fortified strongholds[af] with the help of a foreign god;[ag] and he will increase wealth for whoever will acknowledge him, and he will cause them to rule[ah] over the many, and he will distribute land for a price.
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- Daniel 11:20 Or “splendor”
- Daniel 11:20 Literally “in some days”
- Daniel 11:21 Hebrew “him”
- Daniel 11:21 Literally “in ease”
- Daniel 11:22 Literally “to the face of him”
- Daniel 11:22 Literally “military forces of the flood”
- Daniel 11:24 Literally “his fathers and the father of his fathers”
- Daniel 11:24 Literally “until time”
- Daniel 11:25 Literally “with an army great and numerous exceedingly”
- Daniel 11:27 Literally “And two of them, the kings”
- Daniel 11:27 Literally “their heart”
- Daniel 11:27 Literally “one table”
- Daniel 11:28 Literally “covenant of holiness”
- Daniel 11:29 Literally “as the former and as the last”
- Daniel 11:30 Literally “against the covenant of holiness”
- Daniel 11:30 Literally “the covenant of holiness”
- Daniel 11:31 Literally “will stand forth”
- Daniel 11:31 Or “desecrate”
- Daniel 11:31 Literally “the sanctuary, the stronghold”
- Daniel 11:32 Hebrew “the ones who know his God”
- Daniel 11:33 Literally “make understand”
- Daniel 11:33 Literally “during days”
- Daniel 11:34 Literally “in/at their falling”
- Daniel 11:35 Literally “the ones who produce insight”
- Daniel 11:35 Or “stumble”
- Daniel 11:36 Literally “as his pleasure”
- Daniel 11:36 Literally “over”
- Daniel 11:37 Or “fathers”
- Daniel 11:38 Literally “in his place”
- Daniel 11:38 Or “fathers”
- Daniel 11:38 Hebrew “precious stone”
- Daniel 11:39 Literally “the fortifications of strongholds”
- Daniel 11:39 Literally “the god of a foreign land”
- Daniel 11:39 Or “appoint”
Daniel 11:20-39
New English Translation
20 There will arise after him[a] one[b] who will send out an exactor[c] of tribute to enhance the splendor of the kingdom, but after a few days he will be destroyed,[d] though not in anger or battle.
21 “Then there will arise in his place a despicable person[e] to whom the royal honor has not been rightfully conferred. He will come on the scene in a time of prosperity and will seize the kingdom through deceit. 22 Armies[f] will be suddenly[g] swept away in defeat[h] before him; both they and a covenant leader[i] will be destroyed.[j] 23 After[k] entering into an alliance with him, he will behave treacherously; he will ascend to power with only a small force.[l] 24 In a time of prosperity for the most productive areas of the province he will come and accomplish what neither his fathers nor their fathers accomplished. He will distribute loot, spoils, and property to his followers, and he will devise plans against fortified cities, but not for long.[m] 25 He will rouse his strength and enthusiasm[n] against the king of the south[o] with a large army. The king of the south will wage war with a large and very powerful army, but he will not be able to prevail because of the plans devised against him. 26 Those who share the king’s fine food will attempt to destroy him, and his army will be swept away;[p] many will be killed in battle. 27 These two kings, their minds[q] filled with evil intentions, will trade[r] lies with one another at the same table. But it will not succeed, for there is still an end at the appointed time. 28 Then the king of the north[s] will return to his own land with much property. His mind will be set against the holy covenant. He will take action, and then return to his own land. 29 At an appointed time he will again invade the south, but this latter visit will not turn out the way the former one did. 30 The ships of Kittim[t] will come against him, leaving him disheartened.[u] He will turn back and direct his indignation against the holy covenant. He will return and honor[v] those who forsake the holy covenant. 31 His forces[w] will rise up and profane the fortified sanctuary,[x] stopping the daily sacrifice. In its place they will set up[y] the abomination that causes desolation. 32 Then with smooth words he will defile[z] those who have rejected[aa] the covenant. But the people who are loyal to[ab] their God will act valiantly.[ac] 33 These who are wise among the people will teach the masses.[ad] However, they will fall[ae] by the sword and by the flame,[af] and they will be imprisoned and plundered for some time.[ag] 34 When they stumble, they will be granted some help. But many will unite with them deceitfully. 35 Even some of the wise will stumble, resulting in their refinement, purification, and cleansing until the time of the end, for it is still for the appointed time.
36 “Then the king[ah] will do as he pleases. He will exalt and magnify himself above every deity and he will utter presumptuous things against the God of gods. He will succeed until the time of[ai] wrath is completed, for what has been decreed must occur.[aj] 37 He will not respect[ak] the gods of his fathers—not even the god loved by women.[al] He will not respect any god; he will elevate himself above them all. 38 What he will honor is a god of fortresses—a god his fathers did not acknowledge he will honor with gold, silver, valuable stones, and treasured commodities. 39 He will attack[am] mighty fortresses, aided by[an] a foreign deity. To those who recognize him he will grant considerable honor. He will place them in authority over many people, and he will parcel out land for a price.[ao]
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- Daniel 11:20 tn Heb “on his place.”
- Daniel 11:20 sn The one who will send out an exactor of tribute was Seleucus IV Philopator (ca. 187-176 b.c.).
- Daniel 11:20 sn Perhaps this exactor of tribute was Heliodorus (cf. 2 Macc 3).
- Daniel 11:20 tn Heb “broken” or “shattered.”
- Daniel 11:21 sn This despicable person to whom the royal honor has not been rightfully conferred is Antiochus IV Epiphanes (ca. 175-164 b.c.).
- Daniel 11:22 tn Heb “arms.”
- Daniel 11:22 tc The present translation reads הִשָּׁטֹף (hishatof), Niphal infinitive absolute of שָׁטַף (shataf, “to overflow”), for the MT הַשֶּׁטֶף (hashetef, “flood”).
- Daniel 11:22 tn The words “in defeat” are added in the translation for clarification.
- Daniel 11:22 tn Heb “a prince of the covenant.”
- Daniel 11:22 tn Heb “broken” or “shattered.”
- Daniel 11:23 tn The preposition מִן (min) is probably temporal here (so BDB 583 s.v. 7.c; cf. KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV), although it could also be understood here as indicating means (so J. Goldingay, Daniel [WBC], 279, n. 23a; cf. TEV, NLT).
- Daniel 11:23 tn Heb “nation.”
- Daniel 11:24 tn Heb “and unto a time.”
- Daniel 11:25 tn Heb “heart.”
- Daniel 11:25 sn This king of the south was Ptolemy Philometer (ca. 181-145 b.c.).
- Daniel 11:26 tc The present translation reads יִשָׁטֵף (yishatef, passive) rather than the MT יִשְׁטוֹף (yishtof, active).
- Daniel 11:27 tn Heb “heart,” as also in v. 28.
- Daniel 11:27 tn Heb “speak.”
- Daniel 11:28 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the king of the north) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Daniel 11:30 sn The name Kittim has various designations in extra-biblical literature. It can refer to a location on the island of Cyprus, or more generally to the island itself, or it can be an inclusive term to refer to parts of the Mediterranean world that lay west of the Middle East (e.g., Rome). For ships of Kittim the Greek OT (LXX) has “Romans,” an interpretation followed by a few English versions (e.g., TEV). A number of times in the Dead Sea Scrolls the word is used in reference to the Romans. Other English versions are more generic: “[ships] of the western coastlands” (NIV, NLT); “from the west” (NCV, CEV).
- Daniel 11:30 sn This is apparently a reference to the Roman forces, led by Gaius Popilius Laenas, which confronted Antiochus when he came to Egypt and demanded that he withdraw or face the wrath of Rome. Antiochus wisely withdrew from Egypt, albeit in a state of bitter frustration.
- Daniel 11:30 tn Heb “show regard for.”
- Daniel 11:31 tn Heb “arms.”
- Daniel 11:31 tn Heb “the sanctuary, the fortress.”
- Daniel 11:31 tn Heb “will give.”
- Daniel 11:32 tn Or “corrupt.”
- Daniel 11:32 tn Heb “acted wickedly toward.”
- Daniel 11:32 tn Heb “know.” The term “know” sometimes means “to recognize.” In relational contexts it can have the connotation “recognize the authority of, be loyal to,” as it does here.
- Daniel 11:32 sn This is an allusion to the Maccabean revolt, which struggled to bring about Jewish independence in the second century b.c.
- Daniel 11:33 tn Heb “the many.”
- Daniel 11:33 tn Heb “stumble.”
- Daniel 11:33 tn Or “by burning.”
- Daniel 11:33 tn Heb “days.”
- Daniel 11:36 sn The identity of this king is problematic. If vv. 36-45 continue the description of Antiochus Epiphanes, the account must be viewed as erroneous, since the details do not match what is known of Antiochus’ latter days. Most modern scholars take this view, concluding that this section was written just shortly before the death of Antiochus and that the writer erred on several key points as he tried to predict what would follow the events of his own day. Conservative scholars, however, usually understand the reference to shift at this point to an eschatological figure, viz., the Antichrist. The chronological gap that this would presuppose to be in the narrative is not necessarily a problem, since by all accounts there are many chronological gaps throughout the chapter, as the historical figures intended by such expressions as “king of the north” and “king of the south” repeatedly shift.
- Daniel 11:36 tn The words “the time of” are added in the translation for clarification.
- Daniel 11:36 tn Heb “has been done.” The Hebrew verb used here is the perfect of certitude, emphasizing the certainty of fulfillment.
- Daniel 11:37 tn Heb “consider.”
- Daniel 11:37 tn Heb “[the one] desired by women.” The referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Daniel 11:39 tn Heb “act against.”
- Daniel 11:39 tn Heb “with.”
- Daniel 11:39 tn Or perhaps “for a reward.”
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