“Three 2 more kings will arise for Persia. Then a fourth 3 king will be unusually rich, 4 more so than all who preceded him. When he has amassed power through his riches, he will stir up everyone against 5 the kingdom of Greece. 11:3 Then a powerful king 6 will arise, exercising great authority and doing as he pleases. 11:4 Shortly after his rise to power, 7 his kingdom will be broken up and distributed toward the four winds of the sky 8 – but not to his posterity or with the authority he exercised, for his kingdom will be uprooted and distributed to others besides these.
11:5 “Then the king of the south 9 and one of his subordinates 10 will grow strong. His subordinate 11 will resist 12 him and will rule a kingdom greater than his. 13 11:6 After some years have passed, they 14 will form an alliance. Then the daughter 15 of the king of the south will come to the king of the north to make an agreement, but she will not retain her power, 16 nor will he continue 17 in his strength. 18 She, together with the one who brought her, her child, 19 and her benefactor will all be delivered over at that time. 20
11:7 “There will arise in his 21 place one from her family line 22 who will come against their army and will enter the stronghold of the king of the north and will move against them successfully. 23 11:8 He will also take their gods into captivity to Egypt, along with their cast images and prized utensils of silver and gold. Then he will withdraw for some years from 24 the king of the north. 11:9 Then the king of the north 25 will advance against the empire of the king of the south, but will withdraw to his own land. 11:10 His sons 26 will wage war, mustering a large army which will advance like an overflowing river and carrying the battle all the way to the enemy’s 27 fortress. 28
11:11 “Then the king of the south 29 will be enraged and will march out to fight against the king of the north, who will also muster a large army, but that army will be delivered into his hand. 11:12 When the army is taken away, the king of the south will become arrogant. 30 He will be responsible for the death 31 of thousands and thousands of people, 32 but he will not continue to prevail. 11:13 For the king of the north will again muster an army, one larger than before. At the end of some years he will advance with a huge army and enormous supplies.
1 sn The antecedent of the pronoun “I” is the angel, not Daniel. The traditional chapter division at this point, and the presence of a chronological note in the verse similar to ones used elsewhere in the book to position Daniel’s activities in relation to imperial affairs, sometimes lead to confusion on this matter.
2 sn Perhaps these three more kings are Cambyses (ca. 530-522
3 sn This fourth king is Xerxes I (ca. 486-465
4 tn Heb “rich with great riches.”
5 tn The text is difficult. The Hebrew has here אֶת (’et), the marker of a definite direct object. As it stands, this would suggest the meaning that “he will arouse everyone, that is, the kingdom of Greece.” The context, however, seems to suggest the idea that this Persian king will arouse in hostility against Greece the constituent elements of his own empire. This requires supplying the word “against,” which is not actually present in the Hebrew text.
6 sn The powerful king mentioned here is Alexander the Great (ca. 336-323
7 tn Heb “and when he stands.”
8 tn Or “the heavens.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heavens” or “sky” depending on the context.
9 sn The king of the south is Ptolemy I Soter (ca. 323-285
10 tn Heb “princes.”
11 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (the subordinate prince mentioned in the previous clause) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
12 tn Heb “be strong against.”
13 tn Heb “greater than his kingdom.”
14 sn Here they refers to Ptolemy II Philadelphus (ca. 285-246
15 sn The daughter refers to Berenice, who was given in marriage to Antiochus II Theos.
16 tn Heb “the strength of the arm.”
17 tn Heb “stand.” So also in vv. 7, 8, 11, 13.
18 tn Heb “and his arm.” Some understand this to refer to the descendants of the king of the north.
19 tc The present translation reads יַלְדָּה (yaldah, “her child”) rather than the MT יֹלְדָהּ (yolÿdah, “the one who begot her”). Cf. Theodotion, the Syriac, and the Vulgate.
20 sn Antiochus II eventually divorced Berenice and remarried his former wife Laodice, who then poisoned her husband, had Berenice put to death, and installed her own son, Seleucus II Callinicus (ca. 246-227
21 sn The reference is to the king of Egypt.
22 tn Heb “the stock of her roots.”
23 tn Heb “will deal with them and prevail.”
24 tn The Hebrew preposition מִן (min) is used here with the verb עָמַד (’amad, “to stand”). It probably has a sense of separation (“stand away from”), although it may also be understood in an adversative sense (“stand against”).
25 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the king of the north) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
26 sn The sons of Seleucus II Callinicus were Seleucus III Ceraunus (ca. 227-223
27 tn Heb “his”; the referent (the enemy of the king of the north) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
28 tn Heb “and he will certainly come and overflow and cross over and return and be aroused unto a fortress.” The translation has attempted to simplify the syntax of this difficult sequence.
29 sn This king of the south refers to Ptolemy IV Philopator (ca. 221-204
30 tn Heb “his heart will be lifted up.” The referent (the king of the south) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
31 tn Heb “cause to fall.”
32 tn Heb “of myriads.”