Daniel 11

Chapters of the Book of Daniel
1: Induction into Babylon 2: Nebuchadnezzar's dream of an image 3: The fiery furnace 4: The madness of Nebuchadnezzar 5: Belshazzar's feast 6: Daniel in the lions' den 7: Daniel's first vision 8: Vision of the ram and goat 9: Prophecy of Seventy Weeks 10: Vision of a man 11: Kings of the North and South 12: Epilogue
edit] King of the North See also: Antiochus IV Epiphanes Coin of Antiochus IV Epiphanes. The reverse shows Zeus(King of the Gods) enthroned carrying the Goddess Nike(Victory). The legend reads: "King Antiochus. God Manifest, Bearing Victory." In turning to Zeus Olympios, Antiochus neglected his ancestral god Tammuz/Adonis(cf Dan. 11:36-38, Eze 8:14)[1][2] Critical scholars have asserted that the prophecies in the Book of Daniel reflect the persecutions of the Jews by the Greek Seleucid king Antiochus IV Epiphanes who ruled the Jews from 175–164 BC, and his desecration of the altar in the temple at Jerusalem, and consequently they date its composition to that period. In particular, the vision in Chapter 11, which focuses on a series of wars between the "King of the North" and the "King of the South", is generally interpreted as a record of Levantine history from the time of Alexander the Great down to the era of Antiochus IV, with the "Kings of the North" being the Seleucid kings of Syria and the "Kings of the South" being the Ptolemaic rulers of Egypt. Scottish theologian John Drane notes that other details of the stories in the early chapters of Daniel are also similar to the prevailing conditions in the era of Antiochus. "Belshazzar for example, falls from power because he defiled the sacred objects taken from the Temple in Jerusalem (Dan. 5:1-4), in much the same way as Antiochus repeatedly robbed the Temple in Jerusalem. The worship of the great statue set up by Nebuchadnezzar (Dan. 3:1-18) and the story of the Bel found in the Septuagint highlighted the same issues as Antiochus' action in setting up an image of Zeus in the Temple at Jerusalem. Indeed it may be implied that the images were actual statues of the kings themselves. Even the story of Nebuchadnezzar's madness (Dan. 4:19-33) may have been intended to be reminiscent of the commonly held belief that Antiochus was mad ("epimanes"). The people of a later age would also recognize those apostate Jews who collaborated with the unbelieving Seleucids in the duplicitous figures of the spies and informers who plotted against Daniel and ensured that he was shut up in the den of lions (Dan. 6:1-14). The issue of food, which features so largely in the opening story of Daniel (Dan. 1:3-16), was one of the whole crucial points in the whole argument about Hellenism. Much of the opposition that sparked the Maccabean revolt was concerned with the unwillingness of faithful Jews to eat pork and other unclean foods".[3] Even the name Nebuchadnezzar contains a veiled reference to Antiochus Epiphanes to those acquainted with Hebrew numerology. In Hebrew, as in many other ancient languages, names and words often have numerical value (see Gematria). Nebuchadnezzar's name in cuneiform is Nabû-kudurri-uṣur which should be transliterated into Hebrew as נבוכדנאצר or Nebuwkadne'tstsar (as it is in Jer. 46:2, 39:11). It is unlikely to be a coincidence that when the numbers represented by "Nebuwkadne'tstsar" are added up, they come exactly the same figure (423) as the numbers of the name "Antiochus Epiphanes".[4][5] This conclusion regarding the date of composition was first drawn by the philosopher Porphyry of Tyros, a 3rd century pagan and Neoplatonist, whose fifteen-volume work Against the Christians is only known to us through Jerome's reply. The identification of Antiochus Epiphanes in Daniel, however, is a much older[6] interpretation which seems to be reflected, for example, in 1 Maccabees 1:54 (c100 BC), where an idol of Zeus set up upon the altar of burnt offering under Antiochus is referred to as an "abomination of desolation" (cf. Dan. 9:27, 11:31).[7] This identification is made explicit in Josephus' exposition of Daniel chapter eight (Antiquities 10:11, c94 AD) where he almost certainly cites a common Jewish interpretative tradition by identifying the "little horn" as Antiochus. According to British historian Bryan Rennie, the conclusion that the Book of Daniel was written at the time of the profanation of the Temple by Antiochus IV would explain why the author is not very precise about 6th century events, why he is so precise about the time of Antiochus, and why he was never counted among the prophets.[4] Scholars are virtually unanimous in regarding the Book of Daniel as a message of encouragement to those people(hasidim)[8] suffering for their faith under the oppression of Antiochus IV Epiphanes. Daniel 11 and historic events The Seleucid Empire in 200 BCE Daniel 11 begins in the court of Cyrus the Great, the first Zoroastrian Persian emperor and founder of the Persian Empire under the Achaemenid dynasty. Under his rule, the empire expanded vastly and eventually conquered most of Southwest Asia and much of Central Asia, from Egypt and the Hellespont in the west to the Indus River in the east, to create the largest empire the world had yet seen. His son, Cambyses II, expanded the empire into Egypt, and was succeeded for a few months by his younger brother Bardiya. Darius I then attempted to expand the empire into Greece. His first expedition failed. He immediately began planning a second expedition, but died before being able to carry it out, leaving the task to his son Xerxes. Xerxes I of Persia, the fourth king after Cyrus the Great, set out in the spring of 480 BC from Sardis with a fleet and army which Herodotus claimed was more than two million strong with at least 10,000 elite warriors named Persian Immortals. Xerxes was victorious during the initial battles. However, in spite of his international efforts against Greece, he eventually had to send part of his army to Babylon to prevent a revolt, and those left behind were defeated the following year at Plataea. The Hellenistic period of Jewish history began in 332 BCE when Alexander the Great defeated the last Persian king Darius III and conquered Persia.[9] Upon his death in 323 BCE, his empire was divided among his generals("Diadochi"). The entire region of Judea was heavily contested between the successor states of Alexander's empire, the satrapies of the Seleucid Empire and Ptolemaic Egypt, during the six Syrian Wars of the 3rd-1st centuries BCE: "After two centuries of peace under the Persians, the Hebrew state found itself once more caught in the middle of power struggles between two great empires: the Seleucid state with its capital in Syria to the north and the Ptolemaic state, with its capital in Egypt to the south...Between 319 and 302 BCE, Jerusalem changed hands seven times."[10] At first, Judea was ruled by the Egyptian-Hellenic Ptolemies, but in 198 BCE, the Syrian-Hellenic Seleucid Empire, under Antiochus III the Great, seized control of Judea. Generally, the Jews accepted foreign rule when they were only required to pay tribute, and otherwise allowed to govern themselves internally. Nevertheless, Jews were divided between those favoring hellenization and those opposing it, and were divided over allegiance to the Ptolemies or Seleucids. When the High Priest Simon II died in 175 BCE, conflict broke out between supporters of his son Onias III (who opposed hellenization, and favored the Ptolemies) and his son Jason (who favored hellenization, and favored the Seleucids). A period of political intrigue followed, with priests such as Jason and Menelaus bribing the Seleucid king Antiochus IV Epiphanes to win the high priesthood. In 170 BCE the deposed High Priest Onias III was murdered at the instigation of the high priest Menelaus, whom Antiochus IV had appointed to that position. In 168 BCE, while Antiochus was in Egypt, Jason led an attack against Menelaus to regain the high priesthood. The result was a brief civil war. Huge numbers of Jews flocked to Jason's side, and in 167 BCE the Seleucid king Antiochus IV Epiphanes invaded Judea, restored Menelaus and sacked the temple in reprisal for rebellion. He put a stop to the daily sacrifices and set up an altar to Zeus ("abomination of desolation") in the Temple. Jason fled to Egypt and Antiochus IV imposed a program of forced hellenization, requiring Jews to abandon their own religion and customs. At this point Mattathias and his five sons, John, Eleazar, Simon, Jonathan, and Judah Maccabee, priests of the Hasmonean family living in the area of ancient Modi'in, assumed leadership of a bloody revolt against the Seleucids. Following the death of Antiochus IV Epiphanes in Elam, Judah liberated Jerusalem in 164 BCE and restored the Temple sacrifices. In 163 BCE, Antiochus IV's regent Lysias made peace with the Jews and granted them religious freedom. Interpretations Just as scholars note parallels between the prophetic chapters of Daniel, so too have historicist interpreters since the Protestant reformation. The following table is based on historicist (Seventh-day Adventist) interpretation. (Names in parenthesis are textually given identification of nations, names in italics are modern, interpreted identification of nations.) Chapter Parallel sequence of prophetic elements as understood by Historicists[11][12] The Past Present The Future Daniel 2 Head Gold (Babylon) Chest & 2 arms Silver Belly and thighs Bronze 2 Legs Iron 2 Feet with toes Clay & Iron Rock God's unending kingdom left to no other people Daniel 7 Winged Lion Lopsided Bear 4 Headed/4 Winged Leopard Iron toothed beast w/Little Horn Judgment scene Beast slain A son of man comes in clouds Given everlasting dominion He gives it to the saints.[13] Daniel 8 2-horned Ram (Media-Persia) Uni- / 4-horned Goat 4 Winds (Greece) Little Horn A Master of Intrigue Cleansing of Sanctuary Leads to: (Kingdom of God) Daniel 11-12 Kings (Persia) North & South Kings 4 Winds (Greece) North & South Kings A Contemptible Person of Intrigue Pagan & Papal Rome North & South Kings End Times Global religio-political Government Michael stands up Many dead awake To everlasting life There are some who view Daniel's vision describing events that occurred in the 3rd and 2nd centuries BC concerning the struggle between the Ptolemies (the king of the south, cf 11:7-8) and the Seleucids (the king of the north) for the control of Judea, in which the Seleucids were eventually victorious.[14] Daniel 11:21-35 is devoted to the Seleucid king Antiochus Epiphanes(the ruler of the Jews from 175-164 BCE), his rise to power, wars against Egypt, and his subsequent actions against Jerusalem, the Temple and the Jewish people. Daniel 11:3-39 is considered very accurate.[15] All major conflicts are mentioned, and the Sixth Syrian War is described in great detail.[16] However, Daniel 11:2,40-45 are considered non-historical by most scholars, who generally agree that the vaticinia ex eventu cease at Daniel 11:39 and that the remaining verses are genuine predictions, and do not accurately describe the events of the time.[17] After describing the "desecration of the Temple(11:31) and the Maccabean revolt(11:32-35), the author predicts another attack from Egypt in which Antiochus will be victorious and capture the entire territory along with Libya and Ethiopia(11:40-43). There is however no historical evidence for this. Instead, Antiochus went to Armenia, Babylonia, and Susa.[16] It also claims that Antiochus will die after pitching his tents "between the seas (understood to be the Mediterranean) and the glorious mountain (understood to be Mount Zion)" after conquering Egypt, Libya and Ethiopia (v.45). Antiochus died in Elam near Persia in Mesopotamia, not in Judea. Further, Daniel 11:45-12:3 suggests a resurrection of the dead, but this event is not recorded shortly after Antiochus's death. This resurrection was likely metaphorical. Some Christian scholars,[who?] however, argue that v. 11:40-45 refer to Augustus Caesar, Herod[18] or to an antichrist yet to come. Appendix Over the centuries Bible scholars have identified specific kingdoms as fulfillment of the symbols as illustrated in the following table. References ^ The Collegeville Bible commentary: based on the New American Bible, p. 568 ^ Women in scripture: a dictionary of named and unnamed women in the Hebrew, p. 344 ^ Introducing the Old Testament By John William Drane, John Drane, pp. 221-222 ^ a b The Dating of the Book of Daniel, Bryan Rennie ^ Introduction to the Bible By John Haralson Hayes, pp 285-286 ^ Casey P.M, Porphyry and the origin of the Book of Daniel, Journal of Theological Studies, 1976, pp. 15-33 ^ Horrible abomination: šiqqǔṣ šômēm in the original Hebrew, a contemptuous pun on the title 'baal hashshamayim' (Lord of heaven), title of the Semitic storm god Hadad with whom Zeus Olympius had been identified. cf. e.g., J.A. Montgomery, Daniel, p. 388 ^ Interpreting the Bible: a handbook of terms and methods, W. Randolph Tate, [1] ^ A contemporary account of the battle of Gaugamela, Livius.org ^ Hooker, Richard. "Yavan in the House of Shem. Greeks and Jews 332-63 BCE". http://wsu.edu/~dee/HEBREWS/YAVAN.HTM.  World Civilizations Learning Modules. Washington State University, 1999. ^ Smith, U., 1944, Daniel and Revelation, Southern Publishing Association, Nashville, TN ^ Anderson, A., 1975, Pacific PRess Pub. Assoc., Unfolding Daniel's Prophecies, Mountain View, CA ^ Daniel 7:13-27 see verses 13, 14, 22, 27 ^ New American Bible ^ H. H. Rowley, The Growth of the Old Testament, Harper: 1950, p. 158)) ^ a b Livius.org:Daniel 11 in Context ^ The Classification, Stages of Growth, and Changing Intentions in the Book of Daniel, John G. Gammie, p. 194, 1976 ^ Jordan, James B. (2007). The Handwriting on the Wall: A Commentary on the Book of Daniel. American Vision. pp. 596–614.  ^ After table in Froom 1950, pp. 456–7 ^ After table in Froom 1950, pp. 894-75 ^ a b After table in Froom 1948, pp. 528–9 ^ After table in Froom 1948, pp. 784–5 ^ After table in Froom 1946, pp. 744–5 Wikimedia Foundation. 2010. Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу Daniel (novel) Daniel 2 Look at other dictionaries: DANIEL — (Heb. דָּנִאֵל ,דָּנִיֵאל, God has judged, or vindicated ). (1) An evidently pre Mosaic saint (Ezek. 14:14, 20) and sage (28:3) and, as such, of a type conceivable in any land (14:3ff.) and assumed by Ezekiel to have been heard of by the pagan… …   Encyclopedia of Judaism Daniel Wu — Chinese name 吳彥祖 (Traditional) Chinese name 吴彦祖 (Simplified) …   Wikipedia Daniel — • The hero and traditional author of the book which bears his name Catholic Encyclopedia. Kevin Knight. 2006. Daniel     Daniel     † …   Catholic encyclopedia Daniel 7 — Daniel s vision of the four beasts Woodcut by Hans Holbein the Younger Daniel 7 is the seventh chapter of the Book of Daniel in the Hebrew Bible. It is the last chapter written in Aramaic before it continues again in the Hebraic Masoretic text of …   Wikipedia Daniel 8 — is the eighth chapter of the Book of Daniel of the Hebrew Bible. 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Critics have argued that Caedmon is the author of the poem, but this theory has been since… …   Wikipedia Daniel K. — Daniel Küblböck nach der Aufzeichnung einer Dschungel Spezialsendung von Die Oliver Geissen Show Chartplatzierungen Erklärung der Daten Sing …   Deutsch Wikipedia Daniel — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Contenido 1 Nombre 2 Apellido 2.1 Botánicos y sus abreviaturas científicas …   Wikipedia Español Daniel — steht für: Daniel (Vorname) – dort auch zu Namensträgern Daniel (Familienname) – alphabetische Liste Daniel (Prophet) Buch Daniel, ein Biblisches Buch geographisch: St. Daniel, einen Ort in Österreich Daniel (Wyoming), ein census designated place …   Deutsch Wikipedia Daniel — 1 Daniel 2 Daniel 3 Daniel 4 Daniel 5 Daniel 6 Daniel 7 Daniel 8 Daniel 9 Daniel 10 Daniel 11 Daniel 12 …   The King James version of the Bible 18+ © Academic, 2000-2024 Contact us: Technical Support, Advertising Dictionaries export, created on PHP, Joomla, Drupal, WordPress, MODx. 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