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Daniel's Seventieth Week - chart
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Daniel 1 Commentary
Daniel 2 Commentary -- Da 2:1-23
Daniel 2 Commentary(2) -- Da 2:24-49
Daniel 3 Commentary
Daniel 4 Commentary
Daniel 5 Commentary
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Daniel 7 Commentary(1) -- Da 7:1-6
Daniel 7 Commentary(2) -- Da 7:7-14
Daniel 7 Commentary(3) -- Da 7:15-28

Daniel 8 Commentary

Daniel 9 Commentary(1)

Daniel 9:24 Commentary
 Daniel 9:25 Commentary
 Daniel 9:26 Commentary
 Daniel 9:27 Commentary
Daniel 10 Commentary
Daniel 11 Commentary(1) -- Da 11:1-19
Daniel 11 Commentary(2) -- Da 11:20-45

This lecture describes the king (Aliases of the Antichrist) who is to come as described in the last part of Daniel 11...and Kay believes he

''will come very, very soon! As a matter of fact he may already be in existence, but we may just not recognize him.''

Irregardless of when he comes, we need to know about this king of Daniel's 70th week so it does not sneak up and catch us unaware.

The first 69 Weeks of Daniel 9:24-27 are summarized (also see timeline above)

Daniel 11:2: King of Persian empire
Xerxes I (486-465BC)
 

Daniel 11 begins in Daniel's time "in the first year of Darius the Mede" (ca 539BC) and then briefly mentions 3 Persian kings (Ed note: Cambyses, also called Ahasuerus in Ezra 4:6 who reigned from 529-522BC, Smerdis or Pseudo-Smerdis who reigned from 522-521BC and Darius I Hystaspis, also called Darius the Great in ) but then focuses attention on the reign of the fourth and most powerful, influential, and wealthy of the four Persian kings, Xerxes I (486BC to 465BC) who "will arouse the whole empire against the realm of Greece". (Ed note: There were other Persian kings who followed Xerxes I but their power begin to wane because Xerxes' wars against the Greeks had stirred up Alexander whose rise to power is described in Daniel 11:3) 

Daniel 11:2 "And now I will tell you the truth. Behold, three more kings are going to arise in Persia. Then a fourth will gain far more riches than all of them; as soon as he becomes strong through his riches, he will arouse the whole empire against the realm of Greece."

Daniel 11:3: Alexander the Great

Daniel 11:3 "And a mighty king will arise, and he will rule with great authority and do as he pleases."

Alexander "a mighty king" extracts revenge for Xerxes' I actions against Greece

Daniel 11:4: Alexander's 4 generals
Divide his kingdom after his death

Daniel 11:4 "But as soon as he has arisen, his kingdom will be broken up and parceled out toward the four points of the compass, though not to his own descendants, nor according to his authority which he wielded; for his sovereignty will be uprooted and given to others besides them."

(Ed note: After Alexander's death, the description in Daniel 11:5-20 focuses on two of the four divisions of Alexander's Greek Empire, the Ptolemaic  [Kings of the South] and the Seleucid [Kings of the North]  because of their pivotal interaction with Israel, which was located between these two world powers.  Israel was first controlled by the Ptolemies and then the Seleucids, the latter division culminating in the rule of the "despicable person" described at length in Daniel 11:21-35).

Daniel 11:21-35: A Despicable Person
Antiochus Epiphanes

Daniel 11:21 "And in his place a despicable person will arise, on whom the honor of kingship has not been conferred, but he will come in a time of tranquility and seize the kingdom by intrigue...31 "And forces from him will arise, desecrate the sanctuary fortress, and do away with the regular sacrifice. And they will set up the abomination of desolation."

This "despicable person"  is also the same person as the "rather small horn" (RSH) described in (Daniel 8:9-14). His story picks up again in Daniel 11:21-35 where we read a relatively lengthy description of the reign of Antiochus Epiphanes, the "rather small horn", who eventually sets up an abomination of desolation in the Temple in Jerusalem, stops the Jewish sacrifices and desecrates the sanctuary (Click for more discussion of reign of Antiochus Epiphanes)

Daniel 8:9-14

Rather Small Horn Introduced

"And out of one of them came forth a rather small horn which grew exceedingly great toward the south, toward the east, and toward the Beautiful Land. 10 And it grew up to the host of heaven and caused some of the host and some of the stars to fall to the earth, and it trampled them down.11 It even magnified itself to be equal with the Commander of the host; and it removed the regular sacrifice from Him, and the place of His sanctuary was thrown down.12 And on account of transgression the host will be given over to the horn along with the regular sacrifice; and it will fling truth to the ground and perform its will and prosper. 13 Then I heard a holy one speaking, and another holy one said to the particular one who was speaking, "How long will the vision about the regular sacrifice apply, while the transgression causes horror, so as to allow both the holy place and the host to be trampled?"14 And he said to me, "For 2,300 evenings and mornings; then the holy place will be properly restored."

Daniel 8:9-14 describe Antiochus' reign as a time when he would "fling truth to the ground’’ as he had symbols written on the manuscripts.

(Ed note: 1 Maccabees 1:56–57 records that  "The books of the law which they found they tore to pieces and burned with fire. Where the book of the covenant was found in the possession of any one, or if any one adhered to the law, the decree of the king condemned him to death.")

Combined with Antiochus' setting up "the abomination of desolation" described in (Daniel 11:31) we see a picture of the complete desecration of the holy temple. These events are recorded by both the Jewish historian Josephus and the book of Maccabees

(Ed note: 1Macc 1:54 records that "On the fifteenth day of the month Chislev, in the year one hundred and forty-five [the date on our calendar was December 6, 167BC], the king erected the horrible abomination upon the altar of holocausts, and in the surrounding cities of Judah they built pagan altars." which describes the horrible time when the desecration of the Jewish religion reached its climax as an altar or idol-statue devoted to Olympian Zeus or Jupiter was erected in the temple ["abomination of desolation"] and on 25 Chislev sacrifices, probably including swine [1Macc 1:47 records that Antiochus sent orders to the Jews "to build pagan altars and temples and shrines, to sacrifice swine and unclean animals" and 2Macc 6:4, 5 records that the Gentiles "brought into the temple things that were forbidden, so that the altar was covered with abominable offerings prohibited by the laws."). Daniel 11 recorded prophecies of these events so those who knew the truth could recognize what was taking place. God had prophesied and it occurred in history just as God had written - Antiochus Epiphanes indeed did set up the ‘’abomination of desolation’’ in the Temple. (Click for more discussion of the "abomination of desolation")

Daniel 11:31 "And forces from him (Antiochus Epiphanes) will arise, desecrate (pollute, profane, defile) the sanctuary (consecrated place, holy place, usually reference to Temple) fortress (place of safety, protection, defense), and do away with the regular sacrifice. And they will set up the abomination (disgusting, filthy or detestable thing) of desolation."

(Ed note: KJV says "the abomination that maketh desolate", NIV "the abomination that causes desolation", International Children's Bible says "Then they will set up the horrible thing that destroys.")

This "Abomination of desolation" occurred in 167/168BC during the time in which the Grecian Empire was in control of the land of Israel, during the time period when God was "silent".  Remember however that God had already spoken in Daniel so that the warning to the Jews was clear.

In the same way today God has spoken to us in His Word and does not need to give us new revelation. He has told us oh man what is going to come to pass (in books like Daniel and the Revelation). The tragedy for many Christians is that they sit in darkness when they could be walking in the light if they would only begin to get into God’s word of truth which alone sets men free.

Daniel 11:32-33

Daniel 11:32: "And by smooth words he (Antiochus Epiphanes) will turn to godlessness those who act wickedly toward the covenant, but the people who know their God will display strength and take action."  

"The people who know their God will display strength and take action" were the group of Jews who took part Maccabean Revolt against Antiochus Epiphanes in 166BC (this revolt is alluded to only in this verse in Daniel) and ends with rededication of the Temple on Dec 25th, 165 BC which was commemorated in modern Judaism by the celebration of the "Festival of lights" or Hanukah. The description of this period of subjection of the Jews to Antiochus Epiphanes continued through Da 11:35 which brings a close to this period.

Da 11:33 "And those who have insight among the people will give understanding to the many; yet they will fall by sword and by flame, by captivity and by plunder, for many days. 34 "Now when they fall they will be granted a little help, and many will join with them in hypocrisy. 35 "And some of those who have insight will fall, in order to refine, purge, and make them pure, until the end time; because it is still to come at the appointed time. (Click here for continuation of discussion of Da 11:36ff)

Back to Daniel 9:25

Now go back to Daniel 9:25 where in a single verse we have a "panoramic" view of the whole period from the decree of Artaxerxes in 445BC to the first coming of the Messiah into Jerusalem. Then Daniel 11:1-35 expands on this single verse and gives incredible detail, predicting approximately 135 specific events that have been perfectly fulfilled. Beginning in Daniel 11:36 however none of the specific events or people described through the end of Daniel 12 have been recorded in history. These events and people therefore are yet to be fulfilled in the future. And our generation may on the verge of the fulfillment of these future events presented in Daniel’s 70th Week! Are you ready? Daniel 9:26 takes us from the death of Messiah to the destruction of Jerusalem (70AD)

God mentions only a few individual kings by name in the book of Daniel (Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar, Cyrus, Darius). Although God does not specifically name Alexander, his 4 generals, Antiochus Epiphanes (et al in Daniel 11), we are still able to determine who the passages refer to  because God has laid such a solid foundation in the specific details about Babylon and Medo-Persia.  So from 605BC to 538BC the children of Israel in captivity in Babylon. Then from 538BC to 331BC we see Israel's return from exile and restoration to the land.

Christ's Second Coming brings in His 1000 year kingdom, at the outset of which we have the judgment of the Gentiles, and then following the actual1000 year earthly reign of Christ, the earth and heavens will be destroyed by fire, then all men will be judged at the great white throne and finally we have the coming of the new heaven and the new earth.

To reiterate, Daniel 10 through 12 expands Daniel's prophecy of 70 Weeks. In Daniel 11:1-35 we have snapshots of the Gentile nations that interact with Israel, with emphasis on two (South - Ptolemy and North - Seleucid) of the four divisions of Alexander's kingdom.  Then the prophecy "jumps" forward at least 2000 years in Daniel 11:36 and from there to the end of Daniel God explains the fourth kingdom and its "king" in greater detail. Christ's Second Coming is in the time of this fourth kingdom.
 

 the King of daniel’s 70th week

From Daniel 9:27 we know that there is one week (one period of seven) ‘’missing", the 70th 7 year period which in turn has two 3.5 year divisions.

DANIEL 2

Daniel 2:43 "And in that you saw the iron mixed with common clay, they will combine with one another in the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another, even as iron does not combine with pottery. 44 And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which will never be destroyed, and [that] kingdom will not be left for another people; it will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, but it will itself endure forever.

So we learn in Daniel 2:44 that in the days of the Ten Toes God will set up his kingdom never to be destroyed . The "Ten Toes" indicate that a separate yet united structure which is consistent with a  loose confederation. These Ten Toes although a loose confederation, will not adhere to one another. It is during this time period in history that God will crush all other kingdoms and set up an indestructible, enduring kingdom.

DANIEL 7

Daniel 7:8  "While I was contemplating the horns (the Ten Horns), behold, another horn, a little one, came up among them, and three of the first horns were pulled out by the roots before it; and behold, this horn possessed eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth uttering great [boasts.]

So in Daniel 7 we learn that there are 10 horns which equate with 10 kingdoms/kings from which arises a Little Horn (the "math" is 10 + 1 - 3). This Little Horn has a mouth that boasts, eyes like man and eradicates 3 of first 10 kings.
 

DANIEL 7:20-25

Daniel 7:20 and the meaning of the ten horns that were on its head, and the other horn which came up, and before which three of them fell, namely, that horn which had eyes and a mouth uttering great boasts, and which was larger in appearance than its associates.
21 "I kept looking, and that horn was waging war with the saints and overpowering them
22 until the Ancient of Days came, and judgment was passed in favor of the saints of the Highest One, and the time arrived when the saints took possession of the kingdom.
23 "Thus he said: 'The fourth beast will be a fourth kingdom on the earth, which will be different from all the other kingdoms, and it will devour the whole earth and tread it down and crush it.
24 'As for the ten horns, out of this kingdom ten kings will arise; and another will arise after them, and he will be different from the previous ones and will subdue three kings.
25 'And he will speak out against the Most High and wear down the saints of the Highest One, and he will intend to make alterations in times and in law; and they will be given into his hand for a time, times, and half a time.

INTERACTION OF LITTLE HORN
AND THE SAINTS

In Daniel 7:21  we see that the Little Horn

"was waging war with the saints (Jewish believers) and overpowering them"  
 

In Daniel 7:25 the Little Horn overpowers the saints "and they will be given into his hand for a time, times, and half a time" or for three and one half years which perfectly parallels the last half of Daniel's 70th week of 7 years.  Now why do we say the Little Horn's overpowering of the saints occurs in the last three and one-half years? Look back at Daniel 7:21-22  where we see that the saints take control of the kingdom when the Ancient of Days comes down to earth and puts an end to the Little Horn's kingdom.

From Daniel 9:27 we have learned that the Little Horn ("he") will make a firm covenant with the many (the Jews) for one seven year period. The Little Horn or "he" is from Rome because in Daniel 9:26 he is associated with "the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary" and we know that the people who destroyed Jerusalem were from Rome. But Rome ceased to be a dominant world power about 476AD and so if "he" who makes the firm covenant is from Rome, he has to come from "Revived Rome". 

Although "He", the Little Horn, makes a firm covenant with the Jews for 7years, he breaks it in middle of 7 years, by putting a stop to sacrifice and grain offerings, just like Antiochus Epiphanes did. The Little Horn then makes desolate (Ed note: NIV translates it "he will set up an abomination that causes desolation"). This Little Horn is none other than the Antichrist. "Anti" can mean either opposed to or instead of and he manifests both actions, blaspheming God and opposing Christ, and doing so until his destruction which is decreed occurs. His destruction is described in Daniel 7 (see Scripture below) (Click Kay Arthur's lecture from the Precept series on the Revelation "When Will the Antichrist Rear His Destructive Head?" and also the lecture on "The Devil's Beauty & Beast")

Daniel 7:11 "Then I kept looking because of the sound of the boastful words which the horn was speaking; I kept looking until the beast was slain, and its body was destroyed and given to the burning fire...22 until the Ancient of Days came, and judgment was passed in favor of the saints of the Highest One, and the time arrived when the saints took possession of the kingdom...26 'But the court will sit for judgment, and his dominion will be taken away, annihilated and destroyed forever."

To summarize, the Antichrist is called the Little horn and the beast in Daniel 7. At end of this last 7 year period, his body is given to the burning fire, which Daniel 9:27 had also prophesied ("a complete destruction, one that is decreed, is poured out on the one who makes desolate")

Daniel 11:36-45

Daniel 11:36  "Then the king will do as he pleases, and he will exalt and magnify himself above every god, and will speak monstrous things against the God of gods; and he will prosper until the indignation is finished, for that which is decreed will be done.
37 "And he will show no regard for the gods of his fathers or for the desire of women, nor will he show regard for any other god; for he will magnify himself above them all.
38 "But instead he will honor a god of fortresses, a god whom his fathers did not know; he will honor him with gold, silver, costly stones, and treasures.
39 "And he will take action against the strongest of fortresses with the help of a foreign god; he will give great honor to those who acknowledge him, and he will cause them to rule over the many, and will parcel out land for a price.
40 "And at the end time the king of the South will collide with him, and the king of the North will storm against him with chariots, with horsemen, and with many ships; and he will enter countries, overflow them, and pass through.
41 "He will also enter the Beautiful Land, and many countries will fall; but these will be rescued out of his hand: Edom, Moab and the foremost of the sons of Ammon.
42 "Then he will stretch out his hand against other countries, and the land of Egypt will not escape.
43 "But he will gain control over the hidden treasures of gold and silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt; and Libyans and Ethiopians will follow at his heels.
44 "But rumors from the East and from the North will disturb him, and he will go forth with great wrath to destroy and annihilate many.
45 "And he will pitch the tents of his royal pavilion between the seas and the beautiful Holy Mountain; yet he will come to his end, and no one will help him.
12:1 "Now at that time Michael, the great prince who stands guard over the sons of your people, will arise. And there will be a time of distress such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time; and at that time your people, everyone who is found written in the book, will be rescued..

Remember that the preceding verses in Daniel 11:21-35 described the terrifying reign of a despicable one, Antiochus Epiphanes (click earlier discussion). The description that follows in Daniel 11:36-45 does not fit Antiochus Epiphanes. Therefore between Daniel 11:35 and Daniel 11:36 there is a time gap of at least 2000 years (Ed note: paralleling exactly the time gap between Daniel 9:26 and Daniel 9:27).  In Daniel 11:36-45  we see an expanded and more detailed description of Daniel's 70th Week (Daniel 9:27), all the way up to the time of the end, to the time of the little horn and finally to the time of the setting up of the kingdom of Jesus Christ, which the Jews have been waiting for.

Daniel 11:36  uses the term "the indignation" (Ed note: Hebrew word za'am = anger, wrath)  describes the fulfilling of God’s righteous wrath and His righteous judgment upon ISRAEL because even after the 70 years of captivity Israel did not repent. So God's "indignation" will be poured out on the Jews for 490 years (as prophesied in Daniel 9:24-27) and after the 490 years His "indignation is finished" (Ed note: Hebrew for "finished" is kalah =  completed, accomplished). So when God is finished judging Israel, using even the evil Antichrist to judge them and bring them to their Messiah, then the indignation will all be over and the saints will possess the kingdom with God forever and ever! Hallelujah!

Daniel 11:37 says that the Antichrist "will show no regard for the gods of his fathers..." where the Hebrew word for "gods" is elohim (''-im'' being the plural ending). Thus this verse could be translated ''gods'' or ''God'' because it refers to the plurality of the Godhead (the Trinity).

The phrase "desire of women" in Daniel 11:37 is interesting. The word "desire" is a subjective noun so some say that this should be translated ''the desired of woman''. Thus this phrase could be an allusion to the desire of every Jewish woman to be the bearer of the Messiah (Isaiah 9:6, 7:14, Micah 5:2 re Bethlehem Ephrathah).  Daniel 11:37 seems to be saying that whatever gods the Antichrist's ''fathers''  worshipped, he had no regard for them. He also had no regard for Christ.

Daniel 11:39 says that ''...he will take action against the strongest of fortresses...'' which describes the Antichrist as a man making war and giving honor to those who acknowledge him. Just as during the times of Antiochus Epiphanes, this last three and one half year time period ruled by the Antichrist  will see some Jews apostatize and come over to his side, selling their soul in order to get favors from him.

Daniel 11:39 says that ''at the end time the king of the South will collide with him'' which would have to be a description of Egypt. In this "end time" period we see that there is going to be war (see Daniel 11:40). This period referred to as "the end time" is most likely a reference to the last three and one-half years of Daniel's 70th Week. This same phrase "end time" is found in Daniel 12:9 where the angel tells Daniel to "Go your way, Daniel, for these words are concealed and sealed up until the end time."

Daniel 11:40 mentions the ''King of the North'' as one who comes against the Antichrist, so you know that the Antichrist is cannot be the king of the North. As we saw in Daniel 9:24-27, the Antichrist will arise from the Revived Roman Empire, at the time in which there is a confederation of 10 nations.

Daniel 11:43 describes the Antichrist's gaining great wealth for he "will gain control over the hidden treasures of gold and silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt."

Daniel 11:44 says that the Antichrist ''will go forth with great wrath to destroy and annihilate many.'' This most likely describes the last half of the 7 year period, during which we finally see the Antichrist in his ''true colors''. He is a very destructive man even as was Antiochus Epiphanes.
 

Daniel 11:45 says that the Antichrist ''will pitch the tents of his royal pavilion between the seas and the beautiful Holy Mountain.'' In other words, the Antichrist will move to the Land of Palestine, and yet ''he will come to his end, and no one will help him.'' What will his end be like? We'll look at that later.

In Daniel 8:19 (which refers specifically to Antiochus Epiphanes) the angel Gabriel tells Daniel

"Behold, I am going to let you know what will occur at the final period of the indignation, for it pertains to the appointed time of the end."

In other words, God gave Daniel a glimpse of the end through the portrait of Antiochus Epiphanes but God was saying that there was a worse time yet to come and God was going to let Daniel know what would happen at the appointed time of the end.  The next lecture is the last of this series on Daniel and will discuss the appointed time of the end, very appropriately at the end of this Precept course on Daniel !

Father we thank You for Your Word. We thank You, Father, for showing us the key of Daniel's 70th Week and that Father as we delve into that Word, more & more will we gain understanding and as we gain understanding, Father, we can give insight to many. We praise You and we thank You for the awesome wonder of the book of Daniel and the GOD OF DANIEL. We thank You that the Most High does rule in the realm of mankind and that He gives it to whomever He wishes. We bow before You and we say, even so Lord, even so, You are just and righteous in all your ways, but at the same time we cry ''even so come quickly Lord Jesus Christ! Come!'' In Your name we pray. Amen.