7:8 “As I was contemplating the horns, another horn – a small one – came up between them, and three of the former horns were torn out by the roots to make room for it. 8 This horn had eyes resembling human eyes and a mouth speaking arrogant 9 things.
7:23 “This is what he told me: 15
‘The fourth beast means that there will be a fourth kingdom on earth
that will differ from all the other kingdoms.
It will devour all the earth
and will trample and crush it.
7:24 The ten horns
mean that ten kings will arise from that kingdom.
Another king will arise after them,
but he will be different from the earlier ones.
He will humiliate 16 three kings.
7:25 He will speak words against the Most High.
He will harass 17 the holy ones of the Most High continually.
His intention 18 will be to change times established by law. 19
They will be delivered into his hand
For a time, times, 20 and half a time.
7:26 But the court will convene, 21 and his ruling authority will be removed –
destroyed and abolished forever!
11:21 “Then there will arise in his place a despicable person 22 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.
11:36 “Then the king 43 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 44 wrath is completed, for what has been decreed must occur. 45 11:37 He will not respect 46 the gods of his fathers – not even the god loved by women. 47 He will not respect any god; he will elevate himself above them all. 11:38 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. 11:39 He will attack 48 mighty fortresses, aided by 49 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. 50
11:40 “At the time of the end the king of the south will attack 51 him. Then the king of the north will storm against him 52 with chariots, horsemen, and a large armada of ships. 53 He 54 will invade lands, passing through them like an overflowing river. 55 11:41 Then he will enter the beautiful land. 56 Many 57 will fall, but these will escape: 58 Edom, Moab, and the Ammonite leadership. 11:42 He will extend his power 59 against other lands; the land of Egypt will not escape. 11:43 He will have control over the hidden stores of gold and silver, as well as all the treasures of Egypt. Libyans and Ethiopians 60 will submit to him. 61 11:44 But reports will trouble him from the east and north, and he will set out in a tremendous rage to destroy and wipe out many. 11:45 He will pitch his royal tents between the seas 62 toward the beautiful holy mountain. But he will come to his end, with no one to help him.
1 tc The present translation reads הַפְּשָׁעִים (happÿsha’im, “rebellious acts”) for the MT הַפֹּשְׁעִים (happoshÿ’im, “rebels”). While the MT is understandable (cf. NIV, “when rebels have become completely wicked”), the filling up of transgressions is a familiar OT expression (cf. Gen 15:16) and fits this context well. Cf. the LXX, Theodotion, the Vulgate, and the Syriac.
2 tn Heb “strong of face.”
3 tn Heb “understanding riddles.” Possible meanings include “double-dealing” (BDB 295 s.v. חִידָה; cf. TEV, CEV) and “with a good knowledge of intrigue” (HALOT 309 s.v. חִידָה; cf. NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).
4 tn Heb “stand” or “stand up.”
5 tn Heb “extraordinarily he will destroy.”
6 tn Heb “he will succeed and act.”
7 tn See the corresponding Aramaic expression in 7:27. If the “holy ones” are angels, then this probably refers to the angels as protectors of God’s people. One could translate, “people belonging to (i.e., protected by) the holy ones.” If the “holy ones” are God’s people, then this is an appositional construction, “the people who are the holy ones.” One could translate simply “holy people.” For examples of a plural appositional genitive after “people,” see 11:15, 32. Because either interpretation is possible, the translation has deliberately preserved the ambiguity of the Hebrew grammar here.
8 tn Aram “were uprooted from before it.”
9 tn Aram “great.” So also in vv. 11, 20.
10 tn The words “I also wanted to know” are added in the translation for stylistic reasons.
11 tc The conjunction in the MT before “eyes” is odd. The ancient versions do not seem to presuppose it.
12 tn Aram “greater than its companions.”
13 tn Aram “prevailing against” (KJV and ASV both similar); NASB “overpowering them”; TEV “conquered them.”
14 tc In the LXX, Syriac, and Vulgate the verb is active, understanding “judgment” to be the object rather than the subject of the verb (i.e., “the Ancient of Days rendered judgment”). This presupposes a different vocalization of the verb ( יְהַב [yÿhav] rather than the MT יְהִב [yÿhiv]).
15 tn Aram “thus he said.”
16 tn Or “subjugate”; KJV, NASB, NIV “subdue”; ASV, NRSV “put down.”
17 tn Aram “wear out” (so KJV, ASV, NRSV); NASB, NLT “wear down.” The word is a hapax legomenon in biblical Aramaic, but in biblical Hebrew it especially refers to wearing out such things as garments. Here it is translated “harass…continually.”
18 tn Aram “he will think.”
19 tn Aram “times and law.” The present translation is based on the understanding that the expression is a hendiadys.
20 sn Although the word times is vocalized in the MT as a plural, it probably should be regarded as a dual. The Masoretes may have been influenced here by the fact that in late Aramaic (and Syriac) the dual forms fall out of use. The meaning would thus be three and a half “times.”
21 tn Aram “judgment will sit” (KJV similar).
22 sn This despicable person to whom the royal honor has not been rightfully conferred is Antiochus IV Epiphanes (ca. 175-164
23 tn Heb “heart.”
24 sn This king of the south was Ptolemy Philometer (ca. 181-145
25 tc The present translation reads יִשָׁטֵף (yishatef, passive) rather than the MT יִשְׁטוֹף (yishtof, active).
26 tn Heb “heart.” So also in v. 28.
27 tn Heb “speak.”
28 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the king of the north) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
29 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).
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.
31 tn Heb “show regard for.”
32 tn Heb “arms.”
33 tn Heb “the sanctuary, the fortress.”
34 tn Heb “will give.”
35 tn Or “corrupt.”
36 tn Heb “acted wickedly toward.”
37 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.
38 sn This is an allusion to the Maccabean revolt, which struggled to bring about Jewish independence in the second century
39 tn Heb “the many.”
40 tn Heb “stumble.”
41 tn Or “by burning.”
42 tn Heb “days.”
43 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.
44 tn The words “the time of” are added in the translation for clarification.
45 tn Heb “has been done.” The Hebrew verb used here is the perfect of certitude, emphasizing the certainty of fulfillment.
46 tn Heb “consider.”
47 tn Heb “[the one] desired by women.” The referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.
48 tn Heb “act against.”
49 tn Heb “with.”
50 tn Or perhaps “for a reward.”
51 tn Heb “engage in thrusting.”
52 tn The referent of the pronoun is most likely the king of the south, in which case the text describes the king of the north countering the attack of the king of the south.
53 tn Heb “many ships.”
54 tn This most likely refers to the king of the north who, in response to the aggression of the king of the south, launches an invasion of the southern regions.
55 tn Heb “and will overflow and pass over.”
56 sn The beautiful land is a cryptic reference to the land of Israel.
57 tn This can be understood as “many people” (cf. NRSV) or “many countries” (cf. NASB, NIV, NLT).
58 tn Heb “be delivered from his hand.”
59 tn Heb “hand.”
60 tn Or “Nubians” (NIV, NCV); Heb “Cushites.”
61 tn Heb “Libyans and Cushites [will be] at his footsteps.”
62 sn Presumably seas refers to the Mediterranean Sea and the Dead Sea.