Daniel 11

Daniel Chapter 11

20 “There shall arise in his place one who imposes taxes on the glorious kingdom; but within a few days he shall be destroyed, but not in anger or in battle. 21 And in his place shall arise a vile person, to whom they will not give the honor of royalty; but he shall come in peaceably, and seize the kingdom by intrigue. 22 With the force of a flood they shall be swept away from before him and be broken, and also the prince of the covenant. 23 And after the league is made with him, he shall act deceitfully, for he shall come up and become strong with a small number of people. 24 He shall enter peaceably, even into the richest places of the province; and he shall do what his fathers have not done, nor his forefathers: he shall disperse among them the plunder, spoil, and riches; and he shall devise his plans against the strongholds, but only for a time.

25 “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 devise plans against him. 26 Yes, those who eat of the portion of his delicacies shall destroy him; his army shall be swept away, and many shall fall down slain. 27 Both these kings’ hearts shall be bent on evil, and they shall speak lies at the same table; but it shall not prosper, for the end will still be at the appointed time. 28 While returning to his land with great riches, his heart shall be moved against the holy covenant; so, he shall do damage and return to his own land.

The Northern King’s Blasphemies

29 “At the appointed time he shall return and go toward the south; but it shall not be like the former or the latter. 30 For ships from Cyprus shall come against him; therefore, he shall be grieved, and return in rage against the holy covenant, and do damage.

“So, he shall return and show regard for those who forsake the holy covenant. 31 And forces shall be mustered by him, and they shall defile the sanctuary fortress; then they shall take away the daily sacrifices, and place there the ABOMINATION OF DESOLATION. 32 Those who do wickedly against the covenant he shall corrupt with flattery; but the people who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits. 33 And those of the people who understand shall instruct many; yet for many days they shall fall by sword and flame, by captivity and plundering. 34 Now when they fall, they shall be aided with a little help; but many shall join with them by intrigue. 35 And some of those of understanding shall fall, to refine them, purify them, and make them white, until the time of the end; because it is still for the appointed time.

36 “Then the king shall do according to his own will: he shall exalt and magnify himself above every god, shall speak blasphemies against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the wrath has been accomplished; for what has been determined shall be done. 37 He shall regard neither the God of his fathers nor the desire of women, nor regard any god; for he shall exalt himself above them all. 38 But in their place, he shall honor a god of fortresses; and a god which his fathers did not know he shall honor with gold and silver, with precious stones and pleasant things. 39 Thus he shall act against the strongest fortresses with a foreign god, which he shall acknowledge, and advance its glory; and he shall cause them to rule over many, and divide the land for gain.

The Northern King’s Conquests

40 “At the time of the end the king of the South shall attack him; and the king of the North shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter the countries, overwhelm them, and pass through. 41 He shall also enter the Glorious Land, and many countries shall be overthrown; but these shall escape from his hand: Edom, Moab, and the prominent people of Ammon. 42 He shall stretch out his hand against the countries, and the land of Egypt shall not escape. 43 He shall have power over the treasures of gold and silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt; also, the Libyans and Ethiopians shall follow at his heels. 44 But news from the east and the north shall trouble him; therefore, he shall go out with great fury to destroy and annihilate many. 45 And he shall plant the tents of his palace between the seas and the glorious holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and no one will help him.

Why is the Book of Daniel and the man Daniel so famous?

            > Because of the accuracy in the details of the prophecies Daniel shares.

            > Because of predictive involvement of God in the history and future of man.

            > He focused upon 4 empires: Babylonian; Persian; Greek and Roman.

            > He focused upon 2 main historical figures:

                   The coming threat: Antiochus Epiphanes, a foretaste of an evil one.

                   The future long-term threat: The Antichrist.

            > In 11:35 to the end of the Book, he is focusing mostly on the Antichrist.

We can learn that God is still working out His purposes even if conditions are bad.

            > God will test His own people but He will preserve His own people.

                        His people will be refined and made stronger.

                        His people will grow more in their commitment to Him.

            > God will sift out the chaff from the wheat; the sheep from the goats.

                        Thus, there will be a great “falling away”.

Jesus, in the Gospels, picks up on Daniel’s language.

            He said that before He would return, there will be a great falling away.

            He said that before He would return, the final expression of Evil would come.

            In Mark 13:14, Jesus refers to Daniel 11:31

                        “So, when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by  Daniel the prophet,                           standing where it ought not” (let the reader understand), 
          “then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.”

Daniel gives characteristics of the Antichrist thru the life of Antiochus Epiphanes:

            Deceptiveness:

            11:21 “he shall come in peaceably, and seize the kingdom by intrigue”

            11:23 “And after the league is made with him, he shall act deceitfully”

            11:24 “shall devise his plans against the strongholds”          

            Autonomy:

            11:36 “Then the king shall do according to his own will”

            Blasphemy:

            11:36 “he shall exalt and magnify himself above every god”

            11:36 “shall speak blasphemies against the God of gods”

            No Loyalty:

            11:37 “He shall regard neither the God of his fathers nor the desire of   women, nor regard any
            god; for he shall exalt himself above them all.”

            11:39 “Thus he shall act against the strongest fortresses”

            11:44 “he shall go out with great fury to destroy and annihilate many.”

Daniel also tells of the ultimate demise of the Antichrist:

            11:45 “And he shall plant the tents of his palace between the seas and the glorious holy

            mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and no one will help him.     

I want to close with a specific focus on 11:28-35

28 While returning to his land with great riches, his heart shall be moved against the holy covenant; so, he shall do damage and return to his own land.

The Northern King’s Blasphemies

29 “At the appointed time he shall return and go toward the south; but it shall not be like the former or the latter. 30 For ships from Cyprus shall come against him; therefore, he shall be grieved, and return in rage against the holy covenant, and do damage.

“So, he shall return and show regard for those who forsake the holy covenant. 31 And forces shall be mustered by him, and they shall defile the sanctuary fortress; then they shall take away the daily sacrifices, and place there the abomination of desolation. 32 Those who do wickedly against the covenant he shall corrupt with flattery; but the people who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits. 33 And those of the people who understand shall instruct many; yet for many days they shall fall by sword and flame, by captivity and plundering. 34 Now when they fall, they shall be aided with a little help; but many shall join with them by intrigue. 35 And some of those of understanding shall fall, to refine them, purify them, and make them white, until the time of the end; because it is still for the appointed time.

In history, Antiochus Epiphanes did go into the Temple and killed a pig and spread its blood all over the Most Holy Place.

But you and I must realize that the Antichrist is not going to a temple in Jerusalem.

            The Antichrist is coming to abominate and desecrate the CHURCH.

            Other antichrists have attacked the Covenant Community of the Church.

                        Smooth words have been used to influence people

                                    > to leave the Church.

                                    > to compromise their doctrinal beliefs.

                                    > to draw people toward godlessness.

                                    > to re-invent God; to re-position Jesus; to re-invent worship.

            The final Antichrist is coming for a final assault.

            True believers are the “living stones” that form Christ’s Church.

Europe lost Christianity in a short 100 year-period. IT HAPPENED FAST!

We are just one generation away from losing Christianity in North America.