Daniel Extremity 11 pt 3

How Do You Define Antichrist ?

We have been detailing some historical warfare which will pattern itself in the not so distant future in the middle east. The wars fought between the northern and southern kings of the Ptolemaic and Seleucid empires. In other words Egypt and Syria. We interrupted our study to look into some of the factors that are coming into play with the nation of Egypt. It's no doubt a given that the historical details may put some to sleep. However what looks to be unfolding in the northern tip of Africa and into the middle east including Jordan is no doubt setting up the region for someone to eventually sweep through the middle east and set up shop in Jerusalem. We know this individual to be the antichrist or the human representative of Satan. The characteristics and geography are spelled out in our current study of chapter 11.

Dan 11:23-27 KJV

(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.

(25) And he shall stir up his power and his courage against the king of the south with a great army; and the king of the south shall be stirred up to battle with a very great and mighty army; but he shall not stand: for they shall forecast devices against him.

(26) Yea, they that feed of the portion of his meat shall destroy him, and his army shall overflow: and many shall fall down slain.

(27) And both these kings' hearts shall be to do mischief, and they shall speak lies at one table; but it shall not prosper: for yet the end shall be at the time appointed.

Dan 11:23

And after the league made with him -

A treaty of peace and concord. The great subject of contention between the kings of Syria and Egypt was the possession of Coelo-Syria and Palestine. This they often endeavored to settle by conquest as each of them claimed that in the original partition of the empire of Alexander this portion of the empire fell to himself; and often they endeavored to settle it by treaty. Consequently this region was constantly passing from one to the other, and was also the seat of frequent wars. The “league” here referred to seems to have been that respecting this country - file successive promises which had been made to the king of Egypt that Coelo-Syria and Palestine should be made over to him. These provinces had been secured to Ptolemy Lagus by the treaty made 301 b.c., and they had been again pledged by Antiochus the Great, in dowry, when his daughter Cleopatra should be made queen of Egypt. Antiochus Epiphanes, however, was by no means disposed to confirm this grant, and hence, the wars in which he was involved with the Egyptians.

Dan 11:24

He shall enter peaceably even upon the fattest places of the province -

Dan 11:25

And he shall stir up his power and his courage against the king of the south with a great army -

What we know of the history which took place Antioch Epiphanes(Antioch IV) entered into the land with peaceful deceit. This peace according to the agreement referenced in verse 23. The Jewish historian Josephus sets the stage as follows taken from the Antiquities of the Jews Book 12 chapter 5 section 2.

2. Now Antiochus, upon the agreeable situation of the affairs of his kingdom, resolved to make an expedition against Egypt, both because he had a desire to gain it, and because he contemned the son of Ptolemy, as now weak, and not yet of abilities to manage affairs of such consequence; so he came with great forces to Pelusium, and circumvented Ptolemy Philometor by treachery, and seized upon Egypt. He then came to the places about Memphis; and when he had taken them, he made haste to Alexandria, in hopes of taking it by siege, and of subduing Ptolemy, who reigned there.

This is where we gain the understanding of the fattest places of the provinces. The territories listed by Josephus are the where the greatest treasures as well as centers for commerce were located.

Dan 11:26

Yea, they that feed of the portion of his meat shall destroy him - They of his own family; they who are nourished at his table; they who are his cabinet counselors, and professed and confidential friends. The meaning is, that they would prove treacherous and unfaithful. This is by no means improbable. Antiochus was powerful, and had seized upon Pelusium, and upon Memphis, and upon the fairest portions of Egypt. He was also in possession of the person of the lawful king, and had a fair prospect of subduing the whole country. In these circumstances, nothing would be more natural than that the very inmates of the palace - the persons around the reigning king - should begin to doubt whether he could hold out, and should be disposed to make terms with the invader.

And his army shall overflow - The connection here requires us to understand this of the army of the king of Egypt. The meaning seems to be, that his forces would be great, and would spread themselves out like overflowing waters, but that not withstanding this many of them would be slain.

And many shall fall down slain - In battle. Not withstanding the army would be numerous, and would, as it were, spread over the land, still it would not be sufficient to keep out the invaders, but many of them would fall in the field. The account in 1 Macc. 1:18 is, that “Ptolemy was afraid of him (Antiochus) and fled; and many were wounded to death.”

1Ma 1:16-19 KJVA

(16) Now when the kingdom was established before Antiochus, he thought to reign over Egypt that he might have the dominion of two realms.

(17) Wherefore he entered into Egypt with a great multitude, with chariots, and elephants, and horsemen, and a great navy,

(18) And made war against Ptolemee king of Egypt: but Ptolemee was afraid of him, and fled; and many were wounded to death.

(19) Thus they got the strong cities in the land of Egypt and he took the spoils thereof.

Dan 11:27

And they shall speak lies at one table -

At the same table. Ptolemy was a captive, and was entirely in the possession of Antiochus, but it was a matter of policy with the latter to hide from him as far as poossible the fact that he was a prisoner, and to treat him as a king. It is to be presumed, therefore, that he would do so, and that they would be seated at the same table; that is, that Ptolemy would be treated outwardly with the respect due to a king. In this familiar condition - in this state of apparently respectful and confidential intercourse - they would form their plans. Yet the devices of both would be “false” - or would be, in fact, “speak ing lies.” Antiochus would be acting perfidiously throughout, endeavoring to impose on Ptolemy, and making promises, and giving assurances, which he knew to be false; and Ptolemy would be equally acting a deceitful part - entering into engagements which, perhaps, he did not intend to keep, and which would, at any rate, be soon violated. It is impossible now to know “how” he came into the hands of Antiochus - whether he surrendered himself in war; or whether he was persuaded to do it by the arts of his courtiers; or whether he was really deceived by Antiochus and supposed that he was his friend, and that his protection was necessary. On any of these suppositions it cannot be supposed that he would be very likely to be sincere in his transactions with Antiochus.

Dan 11:28 KJV

(28) 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.

In a nutshell and to help shorten things up a bit we can refer back to the passage of Josephus.

Speaking of Antioch IV

He then came to the places about Memphis; and when he had taken them, he made haste to Alexandria, in hopes of taking it by siege, and of subduing Ptolemy, who reigned there. But he was driven not only from Alexandria, but out of all Egypt, by the declaration of the Romans, who charged him to let that country alone; according as I have elsewhere formerly declared. I will now give a particular account of what concerns this king, how he subdued Judea and the temple; for in my former work I mentioned those things very briefly, and have therefore now thought it necessary to go over that history again, and that with great accuracy.

In 168 BC Antiochus led a second attack on Egypt and also sent a fleet to capture Cyprus. Before reaching Alexandria, his path was blocked by a single, old Roman ambassador named Gaius Popillius Laenas, who delivered a message from the Roman Senate directing Antiochus to withdraw his armies from Egypt and Cyprus, or consider themselves in a state of war with the Roman Republic. Antiochus said he would discuss it with his council, whereupon the Roman envoy drew a line in the sand around him and said, "Before you cross this circle I want you to give me a reply for the Roman Senate" - implying that Rome would declare war if the King stepped out of the circle without committing to leave Egypt immediately. Weighing his options, Antiochus decided to withdraw. Only then did Popillius agree to shake hands with him.

Dan 11:29-30 KJV

(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.

Dan 11:29

But it shall not be as the former, or as the latter -

At the first invasion or the second. In these he was successful; in this he would not be. The reason of his want of success is stated in the following verse - that by the aid which the two brothers had obtained from abroad, as expressed in the next verse, they would be able to oppose him.

Dan 11:30

For the ships of Chittim shall come against him -

The word rendered Chittim - כתים kı̂ttı̂ym - according to Gesenius, properly means “Cyprians,” so called from a celebrated Phoenician colony in the island of Cyprus. In a wider acceptation the name came to comprehend the islands and coasts of the Mediterranean Sea, especially the northern parts, and therefore stands for the islands and coasts of Greece and the AEgean Sea.

The Egyptian government had called in the aid of the Romans, and Antiochus, therefore, was threatened with a war with the Romans if he did not abandon his enterprise against Egypt. The reference in the passage before us is to the embassage which the Romans sent to Antiochus in Egypt, requiring him to desist from his enterprise against Egypt.

Therefore he shall be grieved -

The word used here - כאה kâ'âh - means, properly, to become faint-hearted; to be frightened; to be dejected, sad, humbled. The meaning here is, that he became dispirited, dejected, cast down, and abandoned his purpose. He saw that it would be vain to attempt to contend with the Romans, and he was constrained reluctantly to relinquish his enterprise.

In the humiliation of retreating from the Egyptians by order of the Romans Antioch IV sets out for Syria. His anger from this humiliation causes his anger to rise against the Hebrew people en route.

This habitual state of feeling toward Jerusalem and the Jews would make him ready to seize upon the slightest pretext to wreak his vengeance on the holy land. What was the immediate occasion of his taking this opportunity to attack Jerusalem is not certainly known, but in his marching back through Palestine, he detached from his army twenty-two thousand men, under the command of Apollonius, and sent them to Jerusalem to destroy it.

And have intelligence with them that forsake the holy covenant -

Have an understanding with them; that is, with a portion of the nation - with those who were disposed to cast off the religion of their fathers. There was a coonsiderable part of the nation that was inclined to do this, and to introduce the customs of the Greeks. It was natural that Antiochus should seek to have an understanding with them, and to make use of them in accomplishing his designs. It was very probably at the solicitation of this infidel and disaffected party of the Hebrew people that Antiochus had interfered in their affairs at all.

Compare 1 Macc. 1:11-15.

Judas Maccabee

1Ma 1:11-15 KJVA

(11) In those days went there out of Israel wicked men, who persuaded many, saying, Let us go and make a covenant with the heathen that are round about us: for since we departed from them we have had much sorrow.

(12) So this device pleased them well.

(13) Then certain of the people were so forward herein, that they went to the king, who gave them licence to do after the ordinances of the heathen:

(14) Whereupon they built a place of exercise at Jerusalem according to the customs of the heathen:

(15) And made themselves uncircumcised, and forsook the holy covenant, and joined themselves to the heathen, and were sold to do mischief.

Josephus describes it this way in section 3.

3. King Antiochus returning out of Egypt (16) for fear of the Romans, made an expedition against the city Jerusalem; and when he was there, in the hundred and forty-third year of the kingdom of the Seleucidse, he took the city without fighting, those of his own party opening the gates to him. And when he had gotten possession of Jerusalem, he slew many of the opposite party; and when he had plundered it of a great deal of money, he returned to Antioch.

We also see the fulfillment of Antioch's conquest found in Daniel 8.

Dan 8:8-14 KJV

(8) Therefore the he goat waxed very great: and when he was strong, the great horn was broken; and for it came up four notable ones toward the four winds of heaven.

(9) And out of one of them came forth a little horn, which waxed exceeding great, toward the south, and toward the east, and toward the pleasant land.

(10) And it waxed great, even to the host of heaven; and it cast down some of the host and of the stars to the ground, and stamped upon them.

(11) Yea, he magnified himself even to the prince of the host, and by him the daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place of his sanctuary was cast down.

(12) And an host was given him against the daily sacrifice by reason of transgression, and it cast down the truth to the ground; and it practised, and prospered.

(13) Then I heard one saint speaking, and another saint said unto that certain saint which spake, How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot?

(14) And he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.

Dan 8:21-27 KJV

(21) And the rough goat is the king of Grecia: and the great horn that is between his eyes is the first king.

(22) Now that being broken, whereas four stood up for it, four kingdoms shall stand up out of the nation, but not in his power.

(23) And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up.

(24) And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practise, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people.

(25) And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand.

(26) And the vision of the evening and the morning which was told is true: wherefore shut thou up the vision; for it shall be for many days.

(27) And I Daniel fainted, and was sick certain days; afterward I rose up, and did the king's business; and I was astonished at the vision, but none understood it.

Dan 11:31-32 KJV

(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.

(32) And such as do wickedly against the covenant shall he corrupt by flatteries: but the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits.

Dan 11:31  

And arms shall stand on his part -

Up to this verse there is a general agreement among commentators, that the reference is to Antiochus Epiphanes. From this verse, however, to the end of the chapter, there is no little diversity of opinion. One portion suppose that the description of Antiochus and his deeds continues still to be the design of the prophet; another, that the Romans are here introduced, and that a part of the predictions in the remainder of this chapter are yet to be fulfilled; another, as Jerome, and most of the Christian fathers, suppose that the reference is to Antiochus as the type of Antichrist, and that the description passes from the type to the antitype.

On a personal level it appears we are talking about one in the same.

Antioch IV is considered our OT version of what we can expect in the future from the antichrist. The cause and effect of the thing having been is the thing which shall be.

And they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength - 

We can once again obtain historical detail from the Maccabees.

1Ma 1:20-24 KJVA

(20) And after that Antiochus had smitten Egypt, he returned again in the hundred forty and third year, and went up against Israel and Jerusalem with a great multitude,

(21) And entered proudly into the sanctuary, and took away the golden altar, and the candlestick of light, and all the vessels thereof,

(22) And the table of the shewbread, and the pouring vessels, and the vials, and the censers of gold, and the veil, and the crown, and the golden ornaments that were before the temple, all which he pulled off.

(23) He took also the silver and the gold, and the precious vessels: also he took the hidden treasures which he found.

(24) And when he had taken all away, he went into his own land, having made a great massacre, and spoken very proudly.

1Ma 1:41-54 KJVA

(41) Moreover king Antiochus wrote to his whole kingdom, that all should be one people,

(42) And every one should leave his laws: so all the heathen agreed according to the commandment of the king.

(43) Yea, many also of the Israelites consented to his religion, and sacrificed unto idols, and profaned the sabbath.

(44) For the king had sent letters by messengers unto Jerusalem and the cities of Juda that they should follow the strange laws of the land,

(45) And forbid burnt offerings, and sacrifice, and drink offerings, in the temple; and that they should profane the sabbaths and festival days:

(46) And pollute the sanctuary and holy people:

(47) Set up altars, and groves, and chapels of idols, and sacrifice swine's flesh, and unclean beasts:

(48) That they should also leave their children uncircumcised, and make their souls abominable with all manner of uncleanness and profanation:

(49) To the end they might forget the law, and change all the ordinances.

(50) And whosoever would not do according to the commandment of the king, he said, he should die.

(51) In the selfsame manner wrote he to his whole kingdom, and appointed overseers over all the people, commanding the cities of Juda to sacrifice, city by city.

(52) Then many of the people were gathered unto them, to wit every one that forsook the law; and so they committed evils in the land;

(53) And drove the Israelites into secret places, even wheresoever they could flee for succour.

(54) Now the fifteenth day of the month Casleu, in the hundred forty and fifth year, they set up the abomination of desolation upon the altar, and builded idol altars throughout the cities of Juda on every side;

Dan 11:33-34 KJV

(33) And they that understand among the people shall instruct many: yet they shall fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil, many days.

(34) Now when they shall fall, they shall be holpen with a little help: but many shall cleave to them with flatteries. 

Dan 11:33

And they that understand among the people -

1Ma 2:1-7 KJVA

(1) In those days arose Mattathias the son of John, the son of Simeon, a priest of the sons of Joarib, from Jerusalem, and dwelt in Modin.

(2) And he had five sons, Joannan, called Caddis:

(3) Simon; called Thassi:

(4) Judas, who was called Maccabeus:

(5) Eleazar, called Avaran: and Jonathan, whose surname was Apphus.

(6) And when he saw the blasphemies that were committed in Juda and Jerusalem,

(7)He said, Woe is me! wherefore was I born to see this misery of my people, and of the holy city, and to dwell there, when it was delivered into the hand of the enemy, and the sanctuary into the hand of strangers?

They shall fall by the sword -

And by flame -

2Ma 6:1-12 KJVA

(1) Not long after this the king sent an old man of Athens to compel the Jews to depart from the laws of their fathers, and not to live after the laws of God:

(2) And to pollute also the temple in Jerusalem, and to call it the temple of Jupiter Olympius; and that in Garizim, of Jupiter the Defender of strangers, as they did desire that dwelt in the place.

(3) The coming in of this mischief was sore and grievous to the people:

(4) For the temple was filled with riot and revelling by the Gentiles, who dallied with harlots, and had to do with women within the circuit of the holy places, and besides that brought in things that were not lawful.

(5) The altar also was filled with profane things, which the law forbiddeth.

(6) Neither was it lawful for a man to keep sabbath days or ancient fasts, or to profess himself at all to be a Jew.

(7) And in the day of the king's birth every month they were brought by bitter constraint to eat of the sacrifices; and when the fast of Bacchus was kept, the Jews were compelled to go in procession to Bacchus, carrying ivy.

(8) Moreover there went out a decree to the neighbour cities of the heathen, by the suggestion of Ptolemee, against the Jews, that they should observe the same fashions, and be partakers of their sacrifices:

(9) And whoso would not conform themselves to the manners of the Gentiles should be put to death. Then might a man have seen the present misery.

(10) For there were two women brought, who had circumcised their children; whom when they had openly led round about the city, the babes handing at their breasts, they cast them down headlong from the wall.

(11) And others, that had run together into caves near by, to keep the sabbath day secretly, being discovered by Philip, were all burnt together, because they made a conscience to help themselves for the honour of the most sacred day.

(12) Now I beseech those that read this book, that they be not discouraged for these calamities, but that they judge those punishments not to be for destruction, but for a chastening of our nation.

Dan 11:35 KJV

(35) And some of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and to purge, and to make them white, even to the time of the end: because it is yet for a time appointed.

Dan 11:35

And some of them understanding shall fall -

Some of those who have a correct understanding of religion, and who have joined the army from pure motives. The idea seems to be that on some occasion they would meet with a temporary defeat, in order that the sincerity of the others might be tested, or that it might be seen who adhered to the cause from principle, and who from selfish purposes. If they should not always be successful; if they should be temporarily defeated; if some of the most eminent among them should fall among the slain; and if the cause should at any time look dark, this would serve to try the sin cerity of the remainder of the army, and would be likely to “thin it off” of those who had joined it only from mercenary motives.

Again it would go without saying that the historical details of these studies of the book of Daniel no doubt turn some people off. However it also goes without saying that Jesus Himself tells us to watch for the abomination of desolation that Daniel prophesies and the fulfillment found in the books of the Maccabees.

Mat 24:15 KJV

(15) 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:)

Of course in order to see we need to be watching. All of the things we have studied in the book of Daniel are things we should be looking for.

Mar 13:35-37 KJV

(35) Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning:

(36) Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping.

(37) And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.

1Ti 4:13-16 KJV

(13) Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine.

(14) Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy, with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery.

(15) Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them; that thy profiting may appear to all.

(16) Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.

The situation in Egypt is one which will no doubt shape the future in biblical prophecy. No one is exactly sure who will replace Hosni Mubarak. It has a parallel in certian ways to what we have observed in Daniel 11 to this point. Egypt was the hot zone in the conquests of Antioch IV. In order for the antichrist to take control of the middle east Egypt will no doubt be in the crosshairs.

We will especially gain more understanding and insight as we look at the the final few verses in chapter 11.