Verse-by-Verse Bible Commentary
Daniel 11:2

Clarke's Commentary

Verse Daniel 11:2. There shall stand up yet three kings — Gabriel had already spoken of Cyrus, who was now reigning; and after him three others should arise. These were,

1. Cambyses, the son of Cyrus.

2. Smerdis, the Magian, who was an impostor, who pretended to be another son of Cyrus. And,

3. Darius, the son of Hystaspes, who married Mandane, the daughter of Cyrus.

Cambyses reigned seven years and five months; Smerdis reigned only seven months; and Darius Hystaspes reigned thirty-six years.

The fourth shall be far richer than they all — This was Xerxes, the son of Darius, of whom Justin says. "He had so great an abundance of riches in his kingdom, that although rivers were dried up by his numerous armies, yet his wealth remained unexhausted."

He shall stir up all against the realm of Grecia. — His military strength was such, that Herodotus, who lived in that time, informs us that his army amounted to five millions, two hundred and eighty-three thousand, two hundred and twenty men. Besides these, the Carthaginians furnished him with an army of three hundred thousand men, and a fleet of two hundred ships. He led an army against the Greeks of eight hundred thousand men, and twelve hundred and seven ships, with three banks of rowers each. As he marched along, he obliged all the people of the countries through which he passed to join him.

Bridgeway Bible Commentary

Kings from the north and the south (11:2-20)

The messenger went on to describe to Daniel the conflicts involving Persia and Greece as they would affect the Jews. This account runs on unbroken through Chapters 11 and 12. The comments on these chapters below are designed to outline the history of the period and to show how events followed the pattern of the predictions given to Daniel.
After the death of Cyrus, the states in the region of Greece steadily grew in power. (Although there was no ‘official’ Greek nation at that time, these notes will use the name Greece to refer to the region in general. The most important of the Greek states was Macedonia in the north, which later became the centre of the Greek Empire.)
Earlier Persian kings had some outstanding successes against these Greek states, but the Greeks eventually re-established their independence and began to expand their power. Probably the most notable victory came in 333 BC, when the armies of Alexander the Great took control of the eastern Mediterranean region. The Greek conquest then spread rapidly through western Asia and northern Africa. Then, within only a few years of establishing his power, Alexander unexpectedly died, and his vast empire was divided among four of his generals (2-4; cf. 7:6; 8:8).

In the eastern areas of this divided empire there were two main sectors, Egyptian to the south and Syrian to the north. When the Syrian sector became dominant (under the leadership of a man who had previously served under the Egyptian leader), the struggle between the two sectors increased. Israel, caught between the two power centres, suffered much because of these conflicts (5).
Later an alliance was established between the south and the north when the Egyptian king gave his daughter in marriage to the Syrian king. But the marriage broke up and eventually the Syrian king was murdered (6). The woman’s brother then invaded and plundered Syria. This was about 246 BC (7-8). During the next fifty years Syria and Egypt invaded each other on several occasions, both sides tasting victory and defeat (9-13).

A decisive battle as far as the people of Israel were concerned was fought in 198 BC. Some of the Jews joined with the Syrians against Egypt, thinking they were fulfilling a prophetic vision that would bring benefits to themselves. In the end they only brought themselves greater trouble, because Syria not only conquered Egypt but also took firm control of Palestine (14-16).

The Syrian king tried to gain full control of the Egyptian throne by giving his daughter in marriage to the king of Egypt, but the scheme did not bring him the success he hoped for (17). He then attacked Greece, but was defeated and forced to flee back to Syria, where he died (18-19). The new king, in order to obtain money to pay the victorious enemy, was attempting to plunder the Jewish temple treasures when he was suddenly murdered (20).

Coffman's Commentaries on the Bible

"And as for me, in the first year of Darius the Mede, I stood up to confirm and strengthen him." (Actually the conclusion of Daniel 10).

"And now will I show thee the truth. Behold, there shall stand up yet three kings in Persia; and the fourth shall be far richer than they all: and when he is waxed strong through his riches, he shall stir up all against the realm of Greece. And a mighty king shall stand up, that shall rule with great dominion, and do according to his will. And when he shall stand up, his kingdom shall be broken, and shall be divided toward the four winds of heaven, but not to his posterity, nor according to his dominion wherewith he ruled; for his kingdom shall be plucked up, even for others besides these. And the king of the south shall be strong, and one of his princes; and he shall be strong above him, and have dominion; and his dominion shall be a great dominion. And at the end of years they shall join themselves together; and the daughter of the king of the south shall come to the king of the north to make an agreement: but she shall not retain the strength of her 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 those times. But out of a shoot from her roots shall one stand up in his place, who shall come unto the army, and shall enter into the fortress of the king of the north, and shall deal against them, and shall prevail. And also their gods, with their molten images, and with their goodly vessels of silver and of gold, shall he carry captive into Egypt; and he shall refrain some years from the king of the north. And he shall come into the realm of the king of the south, but he shall return into his own land. And his sons shall war, and shall assemble a multitude of great forces, which shall come on, and overflow, and pass through; and they shall return and war, even to his fortress. And the kings of the south shall be moved with anger, and shall come forth and fight with him, even with the king of the north; and he shall set forth a great multitude, and the multitude shall be given into his hand. And the multitude shall be lifted up, and his heart shall be exalted; and he shall cast down tens of thousands, but he shall not prevail. And the king of the north shall return, and shall set forth a multitude greater than the former; and he shall come on at the end of the times, even of years, with a great army, and with much substance. And in those times shall many stand up against the king of the south: also the children of the violent among thy people shall lift themselves up to establish the vision; but they shall fall. So the king of the north shall come, and cast up a mound, and take a well-fortified city: and the forces of the south shall not stand, neither his chosen people, neither shall there be any strength to stand. But he that cometh against him shall do according to his own will, and none shall stand before him; and he shall stand in the glorious land, and in his hand shall be destruction. And he shall set his face to come with the strength of his whole kingdom, and with him equitable conditions; and he shall perform them; and he shall give him the daughter of women, to corrupt her; but she shall not stand neither be for him. After this shall he turn his face unto the isles, and shall take many: but a prince shall cause the reproach offered by him to cease; yea, he shall cause his reproach to turn upon him. Then he shall turn his face toward the fortresses of his own land; but he shall stumble and fall, and shall not be found. Then shall stand up in his place one that shall cause an exactor to pass through the glory of the kingdom; but within few days shall he be destroyed, neither in anger, nor in battle. And in his place shall stand up a contemptible person, to whom they had not given the honor of the kingdom."

There is no way that this prophecy actually qualifies as some kind of a historical survey passed off as a pretended prophecy. The critical proposition that some forger in the second century wrote this is obviously ridiculous. What "historical survey" could possibly have passed over the tremendous military campaign of Xerxes against Greece with its tremendous battles which are still the talk of all mankind? Later on in Daniel 11:34, the great campaigns of the Maccabees were practically ignored, being called in that verse "a little help!" It is simply impossible to suppose that any person whatever could have written such a thing after those stirring events of the Maccabean rebellion.

The whole proposition that this chapter is a prophecy "post eventum" (after the event) is false, contrived, unsupported by anything whatever except the unbelieving slanders of the Bible by evil men. Keil has summarized some of the reasons why it is impossible intellectually to allow the allegations against the chapter which are advanced by unbelievers. His conclusion was that, "The contents and form of this prophecy contain much which a supposed Maccabean origin makes in the highest degree improbable, and directly contradicts."Ibid. All of these quotations in this extended paragraph are from Dummelow.

Moreover, all of the exact dates and many other particulars which are alleged to be in the prophecy are simply not in it. For example, take a look at Dummelow's analysis of what he alleges to be prophesied here:

"Yet three kings" "These are Cambyses, Darius I (Hystaspes), and Xerxes I (Ahasuerus). The fourth including Cyrus I is Xerxes I, a king of vast wealth. He prepared a great army and navy, invaded Greece, encountered total failure, suffered great losses at Thermopylae, Salamis (480 B.C.) and at Plataea and Mycale."H. A. Ironside, Lectures on Daniel the Prophet (New Jersey: Loizeaux Brothers), p. 192 Note that hardly any of this is actually in the prophecy!

"A mighty king" Alexander the Great (333:322 B.C.)."

"The partition of Alexander's empire is described."A. R. Millard, The New Layman's Bible Commentary, Daniel (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1979), p. 921. (Daniel 11:4)

"The king of the south" "This is Ptolemy I (Sorer), the first Egyptian king." "One of his princes" is Seleucus I (Nicator), the first Syrian king.

"The king's daughter of the south" is a reference to Berenice, daughter of Ptolemy II (Philadelphus). She was given in Marriage to Antiochus II. On the death of Ptolemy II, Antiochus divorced Berenice and took Laodice back. Laodice poisoned Antiochus, and their son Seleucus (afterward Callinicus) murdered Berenice and her child. "He that begat here, etc..." refers to Ptolemy II.

Ptolemy III (Euergetes), brother of Berenice, to avenge his sister's death invaded Syria, then ruled by Callinicus, captured Seleucia and returned to Egypt with much spoil. "A branch of her (Berenice's) roots" was her brother Ptolemy III. (Daniel 11:7-8)

Daniel 11:9 Seleucus II (Callinicus) invaded Egypt in 242 B.C. but had to retreat.

Daniel 11:10 "His sons" The sons of Seleucus II were Saleucus III and Antiochus III (called the Great).

Daniel 11:11 is an allusion to the battle of Raphia.

Daniel 11:12 refers to Ptolemy the IV.

Daniel 11:13-14. Twelve years later Antiochus joined with Philip of Macedon in an attack upon Ptolemy V (Epiphanes), son of Ptolemy IV.

Daniel 11:15-16. Antiochus III shut up Ptolemy V in Sidon, where Ptolemy surrendered in 198 B.C. Antiochus then overran Palestine and threatened Egypt. "The glorious land" (in Daniel 11:16) is Palestine."

"A well fortified city" Daniel 11:15 is a reference to Sidon.

"He that cometh" is Antiochus III. "Against him" i.e., against Ptolemy V.

(Daniel 11:17) Antiochus III gave his daughter Cleopatra in marriage to Ptolemy V.

"...The isles" is a reference to the coastlands on the shores of the Aegean Sea.

"A prince on his own behalf" is the Roman general Scipio.

"Fortresses of his own land" Daniel 11:19 is a reference to his withdrawal to Syria.

"Then shall stand up in his place one… and in his place shall stand up a contemptible person" Antiochus III was succeeded by Seleucus IV (Philopater) who sent his chief minister to take charge of the Temple treasures in Jerusalem. That chief minister (Heliodorus) murdered Seleucus IV and tried to usurp the kingdom, but he was dispossessed by Antiochus IV (Epiphanes), the brother of Seleucus. Antiochus Eipihanes was the contemptible one.

The next major paragraph of the prophecy is devoted to the career of Antiochus Epiphanes (176-164 B.C.).

We leave it to any fair minded person to judge whether or not a// of this is spelled out in the prophecy. The purpose of such detail is to show how it would have been impossible for a prophecy written before the event could possibly have contained so many details. However, critics need to remember that the sacred prophecies contain all kinds of the most detailed information.

Examples: (1) The exact amount, kind, and disposition of the 30 pieces of silver weighed out for Jesus' betrayal by Judas was prophesied (Zechariah 11:12). (2) There were two Bethlehems in ancient Israel; but the prophet declared that Christ would be born in Bethlehem Judah (Micah 5:2). (3) More than 20 of the most particular details of the crucifixion of Christ were foretold in Psalms 22, including even the fact of the soldiers gambling for the seamless robe of Christ! This list could be extended for many pages; but it is obvious to all Christians that true prophecy did indeed predict the most exact and circumstantial details; and the very fact of the critics finding all the details noted above in this prophecy of Daniel is merely what they should have expected to find. Remember, there is no doubt whatever that Daniel existed for centuries before these events happened. As old H. A. Ironside put it, "Don't ever forget that history is His Story!"C. F. Keil, Commentary on the Old Testament by Keil and Delitsch, Daniel (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company), p. 426. In this amazing prophecy, God wrote it down (through Daniel) before it happened!

Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible

And now will I show thee the truth - That is, the truth about events that are to occur in the future, and which will accord with what is written in “the scripture of truth,” Daniel 10:21.

Behold, there shall stand up yet three kings in Persia - The phrase “stand up means that there would be so many kings in Persia; that is, there would be three before the fourth which he mentions. The same Hebrew word here rendered “stand up” (עמד ‛âmad) occurs in Daniel 11:3-4, Daniel 11:6-8, Daniel 11:14-16 (twice), Daniel 11:17, Daniel 11:20, Daniel 11:21, Daniel 11:25, Daniel 11:31; also in Daniel 12:1, Daniel 12:13. In Daniel 11:8 it is rendered “continue;” in Daniel 11:15, “withstand;” in the other cases, “stand up,” or simply stand. Gesenius says it is a word used particularly of a new prince, as in Daniel 8:23; Daniel 11:2-3, Daniel 11:20. He does not say that there would be none afterward, but he evidently designs to touch on the great and leading events respecting the Persian empire, so far as they would affect the Hebrew people, and so far as they would constitute prominent points in the history of the world. He does not, therefore, go into all the details respecting the history, nor does he mention all the kings that would reign. The prominent, the material points, would be the reign of those three kings; then the reign of the fourth, or Xerxes, as his mad expedition to Greece would lay the real foundation for the invasion of Persia by Alexander, and the overthrow of the Persian empire; then the life and conquests of Alexander, and then the wars consequent on the division of his empire at his death. The “three kings” here referred to were Cambyses, Smerdis, and Darius Hystaspis. As this communication was made in the third year of Cyrus Daniel 10:1, these would be the next in order; and by the fourth is undoubtedly meant Xerxes. There were several kings of Persia after Xerxes, as Artaxerxes Longimanus, Darius Nothus, Artaxerxes Mnemon, Ochus, and Darius Codomanus, but these are not enumerated because the real ground of the invasion of Alexander, the thing which connected him with the affairs of Pcrsia, did not occur in their reign, but it was the invasion of Greece by Xerxes.

And the fourth shall be far richer than they all - That is, Xerxes - for he was the fourth in order, and the description here agrees entirely with him. He would of course inherit the wealth accumulated by these kings, and it is here implied that he would increase that wealth, or that, in some way, he would possess more than they all combined. The wealth of this king is mentioned here probably because the magnificence and glory of an Oriental monarch was estimated in a considerable degree by his possessions, and because his riches enabled him to accomplish his expedition into Greece. Some idea of the treasures of Xerxes may be obtained by considering,

(a) That Cyrus had collected a vast amount of wealth by the conquest of Lydia, and the subjugation of Croesus, its rich king, by the conquest of Asia Miner, of Armenia, and of Babylon - for it is said respecting him, “I will give thee the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches of secret places,” Isaiah 45:3 : see the note at that passage.

(b) That Cambyses increased that wealth which he inherited from Cyrus by his victories, and by his plundering the temples wherever he came. A single case occurring in his conquests may illustrate the amount of wealth which was accumulated. On his return from Thebes, in Egypt, he caused all the temples in that city to be pillaged and burned to the ground. But he saved from the flames gold to the amount of three hundred talents, and silver to the amount of two thousand and five hundred talents. He is also said to have carried away the famous circle of gold that encompassed the tomb of king Ozymandias, being three hundred and sixty-five cubits in circumference, on which were represented all the motions of the several constellations. - Universal History, iv. 140.

(c) This was further increased by the conquests of Darius Hystaspis, and by his heavy taxes on the people. So burdensome were these taxes, that he was called by the Persians, ὁ κάπηλος ho kapēlos - the “merchant,” or “hoarder.” One of the first acts of Darius was to divide his kingdom into provinces for the purpose of raising tribute. “During the reign of Cyrus, and indeed of Cambyses, there were no specific tributes; but presents were made to the sovereign. On account of these and similar innovations, the Persians call Darius a merchant, Cambyses a despot, but Cyrus a parent.” - Herodotus, b. iii. lxxxix. A full account of the taxation of the kingdom, and the amount of the revenue under Darius, may be seen in Herodotus, b. iii. xc. - xcvi. The sum of the tribute under Darius, according to Herodotus, was fourteen thousand five hundred and sixty talents. Besides this sum received from regular taxation, Herodotus enumerates a great amount of gold and silver, and other valuable things, which Darius was accustomed to receive annually from the Ethiopians, from the people of Colchis, from the Arabians, and from India. All this vast wealth was inherited by Xerxes, the son and successor of Darius, and the “fourth king” here referred to.

Xerxes was full four years in making provision for his celebrated expedition into Greece. Of the amount of his forces, and his preparation, a full account may be seen in Herodotus, b. vii. Of his wealth Justin makes this remark: “Si regem, spectes, divitias, non ducem, laudes: quarum tanta copia in regno ejus fuit, ut cum flumina multgtudine consumerentur, opes tamen regioe superessent.” - Hist. ii. 10. Compare Diod. Sic. x. c. 3; Pliny, Hist. Nat. xxiii. 10; AEl. xiii. 3; Herod. iii. 96; vii. 27-29. In the city of Celaenae, Herodotus says, there lived a man named Pythius, son of Atys, a native of Lydia, who entertained Xerxes and all his army with great magnificence, and who farther engaged to supply the king with money for the war. Xerxes on this was induced to inquire of his Persian attendants who this Pythius was, and what were the resources which enabled him to make these offers. “It is the same,” they replied, “who presented your father Darius with a plane-tree and a vine of gold, and who, next to yourself, is the richest of mankind.” - Herod. vii. 27.

And by his strength through his riches he shall stir up all against the realm of Grecia - That is, all his kingdom. He was enabled to do this by his great wealth - collecting and equipping, probably, the largest army that was ever assembled. The expedition of Xerxes against Greece is too well known to need to be detailed here, and no one can fail to see the applicability of this description to that invasion. Four years were spent in preparing for this expedition, and the forces that constituted the army were gathered out of all parts of the vast empire of Xerxes, embracing, as was then supposed, all the habitable world except Greece. According to Justin, the army was composed of seven hundred thousand of his own, and three hundred thousand auxiliaries. Diodorus Siculus makes it to be about three hundred thousand men; Prideaux, from Herodotus and others, computes it to have amounted, putting all his forces by sea and land together, to two million six hundred and forty-one thousand six hundred and ten men; and he adds that the servants, eunuchs, suttlers, and such persons as followed the camp, made as manymore, so that the whole number that followed Xerxes could not have been less than five million. - Connexions, pt. i. b. iv. vol. i. p. 410. Grotius reckons his forces at five million two hundred and eighty-two thousand. These immense numbers justify the expression here, and show with what propriety it is applied to the hosts of Xerxes. On the supposition that this was written after the event, and that it was history instead of prophecy, this would be the very language which would be employed.

Calvin's Commentary on the Bible

We must now understand God’s intention in thus informing his servant Daniel of future events. He was clearly unwilling to gratify a vain curiosity, and he enlarged upon events necessary to be known, thus enabling the Prophet not only privately to rely on God’s grace, through this manifestation of his care for his Church, but also to exhort others to persevere in the faith. This chapter seems like a historical narrative under the form of an enigmatic description of events then future. The angel relates and places before his eyes occurrences yet to come to pass. We gather from this very clearly how God spoke through his prophets; and thus Daniel, in his prophetic character alone, is a clear proof to us of God’s peculiar favor towards the Israelites. Here the angel discusses, not the general state of the world, but first the Persian kingdom, then the monarchy of Alexander, and afterwards the two kingdoms of Syria and Egypt. From this we cleverly perceive how the whole discourse was directed to the faithful. God did not regard the welfare of other nations, but wished to benefit his Church, and principally to sustain the faithful under their approaching troubles. It was to assure them of God’s never becoming forgetful of his covenant, and of his so moderating the convulsions then taking place throughout the world, as to be ever protecting his people by his assistance. But we shall have to repeat this again, and even more than once, as we proceed.

First of all, the angel states, Three kings shall yet stand up in Persia With respect to the clause, Behold! I announce to you the truth, I explained in yesterday’s Lecture how frequently he confirmed his prophecy whenever he treated events of the greatest importance, which seemed almost incredible. I shall tell you the real truth; three kings shall stand up. The Jews are not only very ignorant of everything, but very stupid also- then they have no sense of shame, and are endued with a perverse audacity; for they think there were only three kings of Persia, and they neglect all history, and mingle and confound things perfectly clear and completely distinct. There were eight kings of Persia of whom no mention is made here. Why, then, does the angel say, three kings should stand up? This was the first year of Darius, as we saw before. Hence, in their number of kings, Cyrus, the first monarch, is included, together with his son Cambyses. When these two kings have been decided on, a new question will arise again; for some add Smerdis to Cambyses, though he was only an impostor; for the Magi falsely thrust him in as the son of Darius, for the purpose of acquiring the sovereignty to themselves. Thus he was acknowledged as king for seven months; but when the cheat was discovered he was slain by seven of the nobles, among whom was Darius the son of Hystaspes, and he, according to the common narrative, was created king by the consent of the others on the neighing of his horse. The variations of interpreters might hinder us from reading them, and so we must gather the truth from the event. For Smerdis, as I have stated, cannot be reckoned among the kings of Persia, as he was but an impostor. I therefore exclude him, following the prudence of others who have considered the point with attention.

We must now observe why Daniel mentions four kings, the fourth of whom, he states, should be very rich Cambyses succeeded Cyrus, who was reigning when the prophecy was uttered. He was always moving about to distant places; he scarcely allowed himself rest for a single year; he was exceedingly desirous of glory, insatiable in his ambition, and ever stirring up new wars. Cambyses, his son, who had slain his brother, died in Egypt, and yet added this country to the Persian Empire. Darius, the son of Hystaspes, succeeded, and Xerxes followed him. They are deceived who think Darius, the son of Hystaspes, is the fourth king; without doubt the Prophet meant Xerxes, who crossed the sea with a mighty army. he led with him 900,000 men; and, however incredible this may appear, all historians constantly affirm it. He was so puffed up with pride that he said he came to put fetters upon the Hellespont, while his army covered all the neighboring country. This is one point; the four kings were Cyrus, Cambyses, Darius the son of Hystaspes, and Xerxes, omitting Smerdis. We may now inquire why the angel limits the number to four, as the successor of Xerxes was Artaxerxes, or Darius Longimanus, the long-handed, and some others after him. This difficulty is solved by the following probable method, — Xerxes destroyed the power of the Persian Empire by his rashness; he escaped with the greatest disgrace, and was scarcely saved by the baseness of his flight. He brought away but few companions with him hastily in a small boat, and could not obtain a single transport, although the Hellespont had been previously covered with his ships. His whole army was almost cut to pieces, first at Thermopylee, then at Leuctra, and afterwards at other places. From that period the Persian Empire declined, for when its warlike glory was annihilated, the people gave themselves up to sloth and idleness, according to the testimony of Xenophon. Some interpreters expound the phrase, three kings stood up, of the flourishing period of the Persian monarchy: they take the words “stood up” emphatically, since from that period the nation’s power began to wane. For Xerxes on his return was hated by the whole people, first for his folly, then for his putting his brother to death, for his disgraceful conduct towards his sister, and for his other crimes; and as he was so loaded with infamy before his own people, he was slain by Artabanus, who reigned seven months. As the power of Persia was then almost entirely destroyed, or at least was beginning to decline, some interpreters state these three kings to stand up, and then add Xerxes as the fourth and the most opulent. But suppose we take the word “stood up” relatively, with respect to the Church? For the angel states that the Persian prince, Cambyses, stood before him, in an attitude of hostility and conflict. The angel seems rather to hint at the standing up of four kings of Persia, for the purpose of reminding the Jews of the serious evils and the grievous troubles which they must suffer under their sway. In this sense I interpret the verb “to stand,” referring it to the contests by which God harassed the Church until the death of Xerxes. For at that period, when the power of the Persians declined, a longer period of rest and relaxation was afforded to the people of God. This is the reason why the angel omits and passes over in silence all the kings from Artabanus to Darius the son of Arsaces; for Arsaces was the last king but one, and although Ochus reigned before him, we know from profane historians how his posterity were reduced to the lowest rank under the last Darius, whom Alexander conquered, as we shall see by and bye. For this reason I think this to be the genuine sense of the passage, — from Cyrus to Xerxes kings of Persia should stand up against the Israelites, and during the whole of that period the contests should be renewed, and the Jews would almost perish through despair under that continued series of evils. Some say, four kings should stand forth until all the Jews were led out; and we know this never to have been completed, for a small portion only returned. As to my own opinion, I am unwilling to contend with others, yet I hesitate not to enforce the angel’s wish to exhort all the pious to endurance, for he announced the standing up of these four kings, who should bring upon them various tribulations. As to the fourth king, the statement of this passage suits Xerxes exactly. The fourth, he says, shall be enriched with wealth; for the noun is of similar meaning with the verb, as they both spring from the same root. Truly enough Darius the son of Hystaspes determined to carry on war with Greece; he made the attempt but without success, especially at the battle of Marathon. He was cut off by sudden death when his treasures were prepared and many forces were collected He thus left the material of war for his son. Xerxes, in the flower of his age, saw every preparation for war made ready to his hands; he eagerly embraced the occasion, and gave no heed to sound advice. For, as we have already stated, he destroyed himself and the whole monarchy, not by a single slaughter only, but by four. And this power of raising an army of 900,000 men was no ordinary occurrence. If he had only carried with him across the sea 100,000 men, this would have been a large force. But his power of feeding such large forces while he passed through so many provinces, and then of passing them across the sea, exceeds the ordinary bounds of our belief. We are not surprised, then, at the angel’s predicting the extreme wealth of this king.

He adds, In his fortitude and in his riches he shall stir them all up against the realm of the Greeks. This was not accomplished by Darius the son of Hystaspes. According to my former statement, he attacked certain Grecian cities, but without producing confusion throughout the whole East, as Xerxes his successor did. As to the phrase, the kingdom of Javan, I willingly subscribe to their opinion who think the word equivalent to the Greek word Ionia. For Javan went forth in that direction, and dwelt there with his posterity in the Grecian territory, whence almost the whole of Greece obtained its present name. The whole Grecian nation is often called “Chittim,” and some see good reason for their being termed “Machetae,” from Chittim the son of Jayan, and thus by the addition of a letter we arrive at the Macedonians. For the conjecture is probable that this people were first called Maketae, and afterwards Macedonians. Without doubt, in this passage and in many others, Javan. is put for the whole of Greece, since Ionia was the portion of the country most celebrated in Judea and throughout the East generally. Xerxes then stirred up against the realm of Javan — meaning Greece — all the people of the East; for it is very well known how his empire spread far and wide in every direction. It follows: —

Smith's Bible Commentary

Now He begins to reveal unto Daniel these things are going to transpire, as far as the future is concerned. And here Daniel gets into such interesting details that many of the Bible critics have a difficult time with the eleventh chapter of the book of Daniel. And they say that it was actually written in the year 166 B.C., after all of these events took place, because it was impossible that he could have written of these events until they had happened. However, that's of course quite a miracle in itself, because the Septuagint version was made in about 220 or so B.C., and in the Septuagint the book of Daniel is included. They accepted it as written by Daniel and as authentic. At least sixty years before these critics say the book of Daniel was written. So it's interesting that they could have had the copies sixty years before it was written and translated it into Greek. They say that figures don't lie but liars can sure figure.

Also I in the first year of Darius the Mede, even I, stood to confirm and to strengthen him. And now I will show thee the truth. Behold, there shall stand up yet three kings in Persia ( Daniel 11:1-2 );

Darius was the king at this time. The three kings that would follow would be Ahasuerus, Artaxerxes, and another Darius. These are in secular history known as Cambyses, pseudo-Smerdis, and Darius or Darius Hystaspes. So there will be three kings that will rise up.

and the fourth will be richer [this is Xerxes] than they all: and by his strength and through his riches he will stir up all against the realm of Grecia ( Daniel 11:2 ).

Xerxes was very wealthy, very powerful. And he made an expedition against Greece and was able to defeat, but yet, not conquer Greece. And so that particular part was fulfilled; there were the three kings, Ahasuerus, Artaxerxes, Darius, and then Xerxes the fourth richer than the others made the expedition against Greece.

But then Greece will arise.

And a mighty king [Alexander the Great] shall stand up, that shall rule with great dominion, and do according to his will. And when he shall stand up, his kingdom will be broken, and shall be divided toward the four winds of heaven; but not to his posterity, nor according to his dominion which he ruled: for his kingdom shall be plucked up, even for others beside those ( Daniel 11:3-4 ).

So Alexander the Great will rise up, but when he falls the kingdom will not go to his family, to his posterity, nor will they receive the full extent of his dominion.

For the king of the south shall be strong, and one of his princes; and he shall be strong above, and have dominion; and his dominion shall be a great dominion ( Daniel 11:5 ).

The king of the south, and was, of course, the General Ptolemy, who took over in Egypt. General Seleucus took over in Syria. And there also was another general who took over in Greece, and another one who took over in Thracia. So Greece was divided into the four dominions. But he speaks now and he doesn't bring up the Grecian or the Thracian kingdom, but only the Syrian and Egyptian, because they are the ones that relate to Israel. For in their wars, Israel was the middle ground between Syria and Egypt, and so in their fighting each other they had to pass through the land of Israel.

Now he begins to give some interesting details that were all fulfilled in history. "The king of the south will be strong, have a dominion. His dominion shall be a great dominion."

And in the end of the years they shall join themselves together; for the king's daughter ( Daniel 11:6 )

The king of the north and the king of the south were fighting, but in the end they'll 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 ( Daniel 11:6 ).

Now, what happened is that the king of Egypt gave his daughter, Berenice, to the king of the north, who divorced his wife in order to marry Berenice. But when Ptolemy died, then he got rid of Berenice and took his wife back again, who in turn poisoned him. And she killed also Berenice and her son. Now when Berenice had a son, the former queen, her sons were X'ed out according to the agreement. But when she poisoned her husband and killed Berenice and her sons, then of course her sons were in line again for the throne. And here Daniel tells all of this intrigue and everything else is going to take place. And then the brother of Berenice gathered together an army in Egypt and came up and destroyed this wife, who had poisoned her husband and had killed his sister. So, "and he that is begotten of her," actually is referring to a family member which was her brother. And he strengthened her in these times.

And a branch of her roots [that is, her brother] shall one stand up in his estate, which shall come with an army, and shall enter the fortress of the king of the north, and shall deal against them, and prevail ( Daniel 11:7 ):

Who was Ptolemy Euergetes, the brother of Berenice, who invaded Syria just as it's described here.

He shall also carry away captives into Egypt with their gods, and their princes, and with their precious vessels of silver and gold; and he shall continue more years than the king of the north. So the king of the south shall come into his kingdom, and shall return to his own land. But his sons shall be stirred up, and shall assemble a multitude of great forces: and one shall certainly come, and overflow, and pass through ( Daniel 11:8-10 ):

That is, his sons, the king of the north, who was defeated by Euergetes. And he will assemble... they will assemble a multitude of great forces. One shall certainly come and overflow and pass through.

then shall he return, and be stirred up, even to his fortress. And the king of the south shall be moved with choler, and shall come forth and fight with him, even with the king of the north: and he shall set forth a great multitude; but the multitude shall be given into his hand. And when he hath taken away the multitude, his heart shall be lifted up; and he shall cast down many ten thousands: but he shall not be strengthened by it ( Daniel 11:10-12 ).

This is Philopater, who is the Ptolemy Philopater who was the king of the south at this time. He gathered together a great army. Came against the king of the north, however, though he defeated him and took a lot of loot, the guy did not take full advantage and subjugate the people. He was too interested in the licentious life that he was living in Egypt. And so where it says here, "He will cast down many ten thousands," he did destroy a lot of the army, "but he will not be strengthened by it." He didn't take advantage of it. He just went back and lived a life of luxury and licentiousness in Egypt.

For the king of the north then shall return, and shall set forth a multitude greater than the former, and shall certainly come after certain years with a great army and with much riches. And in those times there shall many stand up against the king of the south ( Daniel 11:13-14 ):

So the king of the north came back again, which was Antiochus Megas, known as Antiochus the Great. "But many shall stand up." Philip of Macedon joined with him against Egypt at this point, plus some rebels in Egypt, plus some of the Jews who were called

the robbers of thy people will exalt themselves to establish the vision; and they shall fall. So the king of the north [Antiochus the Great] shall come, and cast up a mount, and take most of the fenced cities: and the arms of the south shall not withstand, neither his chosen people, neither shall there be any strength to withstand. But he that comes against him shall do according to his own will, and none shall stand before him: and he shall stand in the glorious land, which by his hand shall be consumed. He shall also set his face to enter with strength of his whole kingdom and upright ones with him; thus shall he do: and he shall give him the daughter of women, corrupting her: but she shall not stand on his side, neither be for him ( Daniel 11:14-17 ).

Now, Euergetes is the king of the south in Egypt. When he took over he was just seven years old. So, he was just at that point a figurehead. But Antiochus the Great took his daughter Cleopatra, and she... he made a deal that she should marry Euergetes. Figuring that when she got there in the kingdom of Egypt she would be for her old man. But when the marriage some years later was made and Cleopatra became the wife of Euergetes, rather than siding with her father, Antiochus the Great, she sided with her own husband against her father. So his little plan backfired. Now Daniel tells about the plan and how it will backfire. If he had only read the Bible, he would have known better than to send his daughter down there. "He shall give him the daughter of women, corrupting her, but she shall not stand on his side, neither be for him." She won't be for him and if he had only read that he would have known better than to send her down.

Now after this shall he turn his face unto the isles ( Daniel 11:18 ),

So not being able to conquer into Egypt, he then turned and began... he gathered a navy of 300 ships and he began to travel in the Mediterranean, beginning to fight actually against Rome, which at this point was beginning to be a power in the ancient world. So he turned his face unto the isles,

and shall take away many: but a prince for his own behalf shall cause the reproach offered by him to cease; without his own reproach he shall cause it to turn upon him. And then he shall turn his face toward the fort of his own land: but he shall stumble and fall, and not be found. Then ( Daniel 11:18-20 )

Now what happened, of course, is he was defeated by the Romans and they determined then that they would charge him for all of these wars. And so he was given a sum that he was to pay every year. Well, he and his men went into a temple to take away the treasures and the people of the city were so incensed they killed him. And so he fell; he stumbled and fell, was not, you know, he was lost in the place of history.

And there shall stand up in his place [his son, Seleucus Philopater], who would be a raiser of taxes ( Daniel 11:20 )

He tried to raise the taxes to pay this Roman tribute.

in the glory of the kingdom: but within a few days he will be destroyed, neither in anger, nor in battle ( Daniel 11:20 ).

He was poisoned and killed. And after just a very short reign, because the people didn't like the taxes he was trying to exact from them.

And in his estate shall stand up a vile person [Antiochus Epiphanes], to whom they shall not give the honor of the kingdom: and he shall come in peaceably, and obtain the kingdom by flatteries ( Daniel 11:21 ).

Now this, Antiochus Epiphanes was a real treacherous person.

And with the arms with a flood shall they be overflown from before him, and be broken; yea, also the prince of the covenant. And after the league made with him he shall work deceitfully: for he shall come up, and shall become strong with a small people. And he shall enter peaceably even on 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 the spoil, and the riches ( Daniel 11:22-24 ):

He began to conquer and he did what his fathers did not do, in that they amassed the wealth for themselves, but he began to give away all of the money to all of his generals and those that were with him. So his practice of distributing the loot among the men is here predicted by Daniel. "He shall scatter among them the prey and the spoil and the riches."

yes, and he shall forecast his devices against the strongholds, even for a time. 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 ( Daniel 11:24-25 ).

So he came against Egypt with a tremendous army and Egypt met him, but he began to defeat the Egyptians.

Yea, they the feed of the portion of his meat shall destroy him, and his army shall overflow: and many shall fall down slain. And both these kings' heart shall be to do mischief ( Daniel 11:26-27 ),

Now, they were stopped by the Roman government and yet both of them sought to do mischief. And, of course, you read the history and it's interesting--the king of Egypt, his brother was in Alexandria and both of them were doing a lot of lying and cunning and all, and so the kings' heart shall be in them to do mischief.

and they shall speak lies at one table; and shall not prosper ( Daniel 11:27 ):

They were just lying to each other making treaties and everything else, which neither of them intended to honor.

for yet at the end shall be the time appointed. Then shall he return unto his land with great riches; his heart shall be against the holy covenant; and he shall do exploits, and return to his own land. And at the time appointed he shall return, and come towards the south ( Daniel 11:27-29 );

So he sought again to invade. Antiochus Epiphanes sought again to invade Egypt.

but it shall not be as the former, or the latter. For the ships of Chittim ( Daniel 11:29-30 )

Actually, when he came this time to Alexandria, the Roman ships were there in the port. And so the Roman general, Popillius Laenas, came to him, and he said, "The Roman senate has ordered you to go home with your troops." And he said, "I will consult with my men and we will send an answer to Rome." And Popillius, the Roman general took his cane and he drew a circle in the sand around him and he said, "Make your decision before you leave that circle." And he was intimidated by the Roman general, and so he said, "I've decided to go home, tell the Roman senate." And so here, this is all predicted here. The Roman navy met him. They were waiting in port at Alexandria when he came. All predicted in advance. Amazing that God would speak in such detail of these things that had not yet transpired.

Now he was angry because he was rebuffed by Rome. And so he was determined to take it out upon the nation of Israel. And on his way back to Syria, he came to Jerusalem and really sought to desecrate the place.

he shall even return, and have intelligence with them that forsake the holy covenant. 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 ( Daniel 11:30-31 ).

He came back to Jerusalem and polluted the temple. He built an altar, a pagan altar above the altar of God and he offered a pig upon this altar to an idol that they had set up there in the temple of God.

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 ( Daniel 11:32 ).

His desecration of the temple so incensed the people that Judas Maccabaeus gathered together a group of zealots and they began to attack the Syrians in guerrilla type warfare, and they defeated every Syrian contingency that was sent against them. And they finally retook the temple and purified the temple, which period we've just gone through the Feast of Dedication or Hanukkah in the Jewish calendar to celebrate Judas Maccabaeus retaking and rededicating the temple unto God.

So the people that do know their God, Judas Maccabaeus and those Maccabean brothers will be strong and do exploits.

And they that understand among the people shall instruct many: yet they shall fall by the sword, and the flame, and by captivity, and by spoil, many days ( Daniel 11:33 ).

Both Judas and his brothers were all slain by the sword.

Now when they shall fall, they shall be helped with little help: but many shall cleave to them with flatteries. And some of them shall understand and shall fall, and try to purge, and to make them white, even to the time of the end: because it is yet for a time appointed ( Daniel 11:34-35 ).

Now at this point Daniel's prophecy goes out to the end and he sees now the man who is commonly called the antichrist. But in scripture is called the son of perdition or is called the man of sin or is called the beast.

And the king shall do according to his will; [the antichrist] he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god; and shall speak marvelous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper until the indignation ( Daniel 11:36 )

Which is the Old Testament word for the Great Tribulation

shall be accomplished ( Daniel 11:36 ):

He will prosper until the Tribulation be accomplished.

for that that is determined shall be done. Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers ( Daniel 11:36-37 ),

And so he will obviously be a Jew.

nor the desire of women ( Daniel 11:37 ),

Now this "not regarding the desire of women" can have one of two meanings. It was the desire of every Jewish girl to be privileged to bear the Messiah. And Christ was called the desire of nations. But the desire, really, of every young girl--to be chosen to be the mother of the Messiah. Mary was the one that God chose. But the desire of women. That is why so many of the Jewish mothers name their child Joshua. Hoping that God would use him for the salvation of Israel.

Now it is interesting today, there is an off-branch of the Moslems known as the Druze. It's a very secretive kind of a religion. In fact, the people do not know what it's about. Only the priests know what they believe. They don't teach the people. It's a secret religion. And the priests are the ones that do all of the worship and they're the ones that know the secrets and no one else knows but them. And, of course, they're sworn not to reveal the secrets to anybody. Now you go into the Druze' villages and you see the priest and they have a special little headband by which you know that they are priests, but not only that, they have these baggy pants with a big sack, sort of a contraption here in the front. And the reason why they have this big sack contraption in the front is that among the Druze' religion they believe that the Messiah will be born of a man. And thus, they have this big sack in the front in case they get pregnant. It's true. I've got pictures of them and you can go to the Druze' villages today and it's very amusing and interesting to see these men walking with these big sacks hanging down the front of their pants there in the front and all of them in hopes that they'll be chosen to bear the Messiah and to become pregnant with the Messiah.

So, "the desire of women" would in that sense be a reference to Jesus Christ. So he does not regard the God of his fathers nor Jesus Christ. He is a man who speaks blasphemously,

not regarding any god: for he'll magnify himself above all ( Daniel 11:37 ).

So that is, no doubt, the correct interpretation. There are some that says he'll be a homosexual, not regarding the desire of women. But more apt looking at the context of the Hebrew people, rather than referring to a homosexual, it is probably referring to the fact that he does not regard Jesus Christ.

But his god is the god of forces: a god whom his father knew not shall he honor with gold, and silver, and precious stones, and pleasant things ( Daniel 11:38 ).

Look how today men are honoring the god of forces with gold and silver. Do you realize that one trillion dollars was spent this year for weapons? One trillion dollars was spent this year in order to build tanks and guns and equip the military and all. One trillion dollars, what a tragic misuse of the resources of the world. But it's all preparing for this man who honors the god of force.

Thus shall he do in the most strongholds with a strange god, whom he shall acknowledge and increase with glory: and he shall cause him to rule over many, and shall divide the land for gain ( Daniel 11:39 ).

So the land of Israel, he will divide it for gain.

And at the time of the end shall the king of the south push at him: and the king of the north shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and horsemen, many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and overflow and pass over. And he shall enter also into the glorious land, and many countries shall be overthrown: but these will escape out of his hand, Edom, and Moab, [which is Jordan] and the chief of the children of Ammon ( Daniel 11:40-41 ).

So Jordan will not be taken by the antichrist, though Israel will. Interesting, because the Jews will actually flee for protection to Jordan at this point, to the rock city of Petra, where they will be preserved by God for three and half years, during the time of the great indignation or the wrath of God which is to be poured out upon the earth.

So Edom or Jordan escapes. However, he moves towards Egypt.

He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape ( Daniel 11:42 ).

He will take the land of Egypt.

And he shall have power over the treasures of gold and silver, and over the precious things of Egypt: and the Libyans and the Ethiopians shall be [at his doorsteps or] at his steps. But tidings out of the east and out of the north shall trouble him: therefore he shall go forth with his great fury to destroy, and utterly make away many. And he shall plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas and the glorious holy mountain; he shall come to his end, and none shall help him ( Daniel 11:43-45 ).

Now this is a reference to the antichrist who will be the leader of the united nations of Europe. He shall be moving towards Africa in the conquest of Africa. Taking Egypt, passing through Israel, taking Egypt moving towards Libya and Ethiopia, at which time he will hear of the troops from China and Russia coming against him. So he will turn from his proposed conquest of Africa and come back and they will meet in the Valley of Megiddo there in Israel. The tremendous force of the Chinese for whom the river Euphrates will be dried up in order that they might cross, according to the book of Revelation. Those forces that are remaining in Russia, gathering against the combined forces of Europe, and the United States will no doubt be in league with those forces of Europe at this point. And this final great world war, the major scene of battle, will be the Valley of Megiddo there in Israel. This is what is commonly called the Battle of Armageddon of which you have read and heard so much about. And this, of course, is what will perpetrate this battle, as he is moving against Africa, getting news that Chinese and the Russians have confederated together to come against him. He turns in great anger and the place of the their meeting is the Valley of Megiddo. And it is at that time where the blood will flow to the horses' bridle throughout the whole Valley of Megiddo as the slain of the earth. Millions destroyed in that great carnage and bloodshed.

"

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

2. The near future 11:2-35

The interpreting angel now explained the long anticipated (since Daniel 10:1) revelation about the future that involved Daniel’s people, the Jews. The first part of it concerns events preceding Messiah’s first advent (Daniel 11:2-35), and the second part, events preceding Messiah’s second advent (Daniel 11:36 to Daniel 12:4). [Note: The primary sources of information about Daniel’s predicted events that preceded Messiah’s first advent (Daniel 11:2-35), apart from Daniel himself, are the second-century B.C. Greek historian Polybius, the apocraphal books of 1 and 2 Maccabees, the first-century B.C. writer Diodorus Siculus, the Roman historian Livy (ca. 59 B.C.-A.D. 17), Josephus, the second-century A.D. writer Appian, and the historian Porphyry, whom Jerome quoted. See Goldingay, p. 293; Baldwin, p. 190.]

Four future Persian kings 11:2

This revelation begins at the same place as the vision of the ram and the goat in chapter 8. It begins with the second kingdom of Nebuchadnezzar’s image (ch. 2) and with the second of the four beasts (ch. 7), namely, Medo-Persia.

Daniel learned that three more Persian kings would arise after Darius (Cyrus, cf. Daniel 10:1). Historically, these proved to be Cambyses, Pseudo-Smerdis (also known as Gaumata and Bardiya), and Darius I. The fourth Persian king to appear did become stronger than his predecessors, and he attacked Greece-just as predicted. He was Xerxes I (Ahasuerus). Some conservative scholars do not count Pseudo-Smerdis, but identify the third king as Xerxes, and the fourth as Artaxerxes I (465-424, Ezra 7:11-26). However, Artaxerxes did not contend with Greece as Xerxes did. Xerxes attacked Greece in 480 B.C. with a huge army, but he suffered defeat and never recovered. This battle probably happened between chapters 1 and 2 of Esther. [Note: See the chart of Persian Kings of the Restoration Period under my comments on 5:31 above.]

"After his [Xerxes’] great army (estimated by Herodotus at a million men) had subdued virtually all of Greece down to the Isthmus of Corinth and the city of Athens had been reduced to ashes, Xerxes’ navy was thoroughly worsted by the united Greek fleet at the Battle of Salamis in 480 B.C. This unexpected setback prompted him to beat a hasty retreat to Asia. The one-hundred-thousand-man land army he left behind under the command of Mardonius was completely crushed in the following year by the allied forces of the Greeks at the battle of Plataea." [Note: Archer, "Daniel," p. 128.]

Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible

And now will I show thee the truth,.... And nothing but the truth; what will most certainly come to pass, and may be depended on, even what is written in the book of God's decrees, "the Scripture of truth", and which would appear in Providence in later times; and this he proposed to deliver to him, not in figurative, dark, and obscure expressions, but clearly and plainly, in language easy to be understood:

behold, there shall stand up yet three kings in Persia; which were Cyrus, who reigned alone after the death of Darius the Mede, his uncle; Cambyses, the son of Cyrus; and Darius Hystaspes. There was another between Cambyses and Darius, called Smerdis the magician, who reigned but seven months, and being an impostor is left out, as he is in Ptolemy's canon; not that these were all the kings of Persia after Darius the Mede; for, according to the above canon, there reigned six more after them; but because these kings had a connection with the Jews, and under them their affairs had different turns and changes, respecting their restoration and settlement, and the building of their city and temple; as also because these kings "stood", and the monarchy under them was strong and flourishing, whereas afterwards it began to decline; and chiefly it is for the sake of the fourth king that these are observed, who laid the foundation of the destruction of the Persian monarchy by the Grecians.

And the fourth shall be far richer than they all: this is Xerxes, who exceeded his predecessors in wealth and riches; enjoying what they by their conquests, or otherwise, had amassed together, to which he greatly added; Cyrus had collected a vast deal of riches from various nations, especially from Babylon: God gave him "the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches of secret places", Isaiah 14:3, Cambyses increased the store by his victories, and the plunder of temples wherever he came; out of the flames of which were saved three hundred talents of gold, and 2300 talents of silver, which he carried away, together with the famous circle of gold that encompassed the tomb of King Ozymandias d: and Darius, the father of Xerxes, laid heavy taxes upon the people, and hoarded up his money; hence he was called by the Persians καπηλος e, the huckster or hoarder: and Xerxes came into it all, and so became richer than them all; of whom Justin says f

"si regem species; divitias, non ducem laudes: quarum tanta copia in regno ejus fuit, ut cum flumina multitudine consumerentur, opes tamen regiae superessent.''

And by his strength through his riches he shall stir up all against the realm of Grecia; through his vast riches, which are the sinews of war, he collected a prodigious army out of all provinces, which he raised to make war against the Grecians; being moved to it by Mardonius, a relation of his, who was very ambitious of being at the head of a large army g; three years were spent in preparing for this expedition, and forces were gathered out of all parts of the then known habitable world; out of all the west, under Hamilcar, general of the Carthaginians, with whom he made a league; and out of all the east, under his own command: his army, according to Justin h, consisted of 700,000 of his own, and 300,000 auxiliaries; Diodorus Siculus i makes it much less, to be about 300,000 men; but Dr. Prideaux k, from Herodotus and others, computes, that putting all his forces together by sea and land, by the time he came to the straits of Thermopylae the number of them were 2,641,610 men; and Grotius, from the same writer reckons them 5,283,000, to which others add two hundred and twenty l with these he marched into Greece, where, after having done much mischief, he was shamefully defeated and obliged to retire, and was murdered by Artabanus the captain of his guards. The words may be rendered m, "he shall stir up all, even the realm of Grecia"; by the preparation he made, and the vast army he brought into the field, he raised all the cities and states of Greece to combine together to withstand him; and this step of his is what irritated the Grecians, and put them upon later attempts to avenge themselves on the Persians for this attack upon them; and which they never desisted from, till they had ruined the Persian empire, which they did under Alexander; and so he, in his letter to Darius, says n,

"your ancestors entered into Macedonia, and the other parts of Greece, and did us damage, when they had received no affront from us as the cause of it; and now I, created general of the Grecians, provoked by you, and desirous of avenging the injury done by the Persians, have passed over into Asia.''

And it is for the sake of this, the destruction of the Persian empire by Alexander, that this expedition of Xerxes is here hinted at; and to pave the way for the account of Alexander and his successors, in the following part of this prophecy.

d See the Universal History, vol. 5. p. 194. e Herodot. l. 3. sive Thalia, c. 89. f E Trogo, l. 2. c. 10. g Diodor. Sicul. Bibliothec. l. 11. par. 2. p. 3. Ed. Rhodoman. h E Trogo, l. 2. c. 10. i Ut supra, ( Diodor. Sicul. Bibliothec. l. 11.) par. 2. p. 2. k Connexion, &c. part 1. B. 4. p. 233, 234. l See the Universal History, vol. 5. p. 233. m יעיר הכל את מלכות יון "excitabit universos, nempe regnum" Graciae, Michaelis. n Apud Arrian. Exped. Alexand. l. 2.

Henry's Complete Commentary on the Bible

      1 Also I in the first year of Darius the Mede, even I, stood to confirm and to strengthen him.   2 And now will I show 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.

      Here, 1. The angel Gabriel lets Daniel know the good service he has done to the Jewish nation (Daniel 11:1; Daniel 11:1): "In the first year of Darius the Mede, who destroyed Babylon and released the Jews out of that house of bondage, I stood a strength and fortress to him, that is, I was instrumental to protect him, and give him success in his ward, and, after he had conquered Babylon, to confirm him in his resolution to release the Jews," which, it is likely, met with much opposition. Thus by the angel, and at the request of the watcher, the golden head was broken, and the axe laid to the root of the tree. Note, We must acknowledge the hand of God in the strengthening of those that are friends to the church for the service they are to do it, and confirming them in their good resolutions; herein he uses the ministry of angels more than we are aware of. And the many instances we have known of God's care of his church formerly encourage us to depend upon him in further straits and difficulties. 2. He foretels the reign of four Persian kings (Daniel 11:2; Daniel 11:2): Now I will tell thee the truth, that is, the true meaning of the visions of the great image, and of the four beasts, and expound in plain terms what was before represented by dark types. (1.) There shall stand up three kings in Persia, besides Darius, in whose reign this prophecy is dated, Daniel 9:1; Daniel 9:1. Mr. Broughton makes these three to be Cyrus, Artaxasta or Artaxerxes, called by the Greeks Cambyses, and Ahasuerus that married Esther, called Darius son of Hystaspes. To these three the Persians gave these attributes--Cyrus was a father, Cambyses a master, and Darius a hoarder up. So Herodotus. (2.) There shall be a fourth, far richer than they all, that is, Xerxes, of whose wealth the Greek authors take notice. By his strength (his vast army, consisting of 800,000 men at least) and his riches, with which he maintained and paid that vast army, he stirred up all against the realm of Greece. Xerxes's expedition against Greece is famous in history, and the shameful defeat that he met with. He who when he went out was the terror of Greece in his return was the scorn of Greece. Daniel needed not to be told what disappointment he would meet with, for he was a hinderer of the building of the temple; but soon after, about thirty years after the first return from captivity, Darius, a young king, revived the building of the temple, owning the hand of God against his predecessors for hindering it, Ezra 6:7. 3. He foretels Alexander's conquests and the partition of his kingdom, Daniel 11:3; Daniel 11:3. He is that mighty king that shall stand up against the kings of Persia, and he shall rule with great dominion, over many kingdoms, and with a despotic power, for he shall do according to his will, and undo likewise, which, by the law of the Medes and Persians, their kings could not. When Alexander, after he had conquered Asia, would be worshipped as a god, then this was fulfilled, that he shall do according to his will. That is God's prerogative, but was his pretension. But (Daniel 11:4; Daniel 11:4) his kingdom shall soon be broken, and divided into four parts, but not to his posterity, nor shall any of his successors reign according to his dominion; none of them shall have such large territories nor such an absolute power. His kingdom was plucked up for others besides those of his own family. Arideus, his brother, was made king in Macedonia; Olympias, Alexander's mother, killed him, and poisoned Alexander's two sons, Hercules and Alexander. Thus was his family rooted out by its own hands. See what decaying perishing things worldly pomp and possessions are, and the powers by which they are got. Never was the vanity of the world and its greatest things shown more evidently than in the story of Alexander. All is vanity and vexation of spirit.