The Rise and Fall of Kings
11 1 And I, in the first year of Darius the Mede, stood up to support and strengthen him.
2 And now I will tell you the truth. Look — three more kings will arise in Persia, and a fourth will gain far greater riches than all of them. When he has grown strong through his riches, he will stir up everyone against the kingdom of Greece. 3 Then a mighty king will arise, who will rule with great dominion and do as he pleases. 4 But as soon as he has arisen, his kingdom will be broken and divided toward the four winds of heaven, yet not to his own descendants, nor with the dominion he wielded; for his kingdom will be uprooted and given to others besides these.
5 Then the king of the south will grow strong, but one of his commanders will become stronger than he and will rule; his dominion will be a great dominion. 1 1 v5 The "king of the south" and "king of the north" refer to rival kingdoms that emerged after Alexander the Great's empire was divided. 6 After some years they will form an alliance, and the daughter of the king of the south will come to the king of the north to make an agreement. But she will not hold on to her influence, and neither he nor his forces will endure. She will be handed over, along with those who brought her, the one who fathered her, and the one who supported her in those times.
7 But from a branch of her roots one will arise in his place, who will come against the army, enter the fortress of the king of the north, and deal with them and prevail. 8 He will also carry their gods captive to Egypt, with their metal images and their precious vessels of silver and gold; and for some years he will leave the king of the north alone. 9 Then the king of the north will invade the realm of the king of the south, but he will return to his own land. 10 His sons will wage war and assemble a great host of forces, which will keep coming, overflow, and pass through; then it will return and wage war as far as his fortress. 11 Then the king of the south will be enraged and go out to fight with the king of the north, who will raise a great multitude; but the multitude will be given into his hand. 12 When the multitude is carried off, his heart will grow proud, and he will cast down tens of thousands; yet he will not prevail. 13 For the king of the north will again raise a multitude greater than the first, and after some years he will advance with a great army and abundant supplies.
14 In those times many will rise against the king of the south, and violent men among your own people will lift themselves up to fulfill the vision, but they will fail. 15 Then the king of the north will come, throw up siege ramps, and capture a fortified city; the forces of the south will not stand, even their finest troops, for there will be no strength to stand. 16 The one who comes against him will do as he pleases, and no one will stand before him. He will take his stand in the glorious land, with destruction in his hand. 17 He will march out with the full strength of his kingdom and make an agreement with him; he will give him a daughter of women to ruin the kingdom, but it will not stand or work to his advantage. 2 2 v17 "Daughter of women" refers to a royal daughter given in marriage to secure a political alliance. 18 Then he will turn his face to the coastlands and capture many, but a commander will put an end to his insolence; indeed, he will turn his insolence back upon him. 19 Then he will turn his face back toward the fortresses of his own land, but he will stumble and fall and seen no more.
20 In his place will arise one who sends out a tax collector for the glory of the kingdom, but within a few days he will be broken, though not in anger or in battle.
21 In his place will arise a contemptible person, to whom royal majesty has not been given. He will come during a time of ease and seize the kingdom by intrigue. 22 Armies will be swept away before him and broken, and the prince of the covenant as well. 23 And from the time an alliance is made with him, he will act deceitfully; he will grow strong with only a small people. 24 During a time of ease he will enter the richest parts of the province and do what neither his fathers nor his fathers' fathers did; he will scatter among them plunder, spoil, and goods, and will devise schemes against the strongholds, but only for a time.
25 He will stir up his strength and his courage against the king of the south with a great army, and the king of the south will wage war with an exceedingly great and mighty army; but he will not stand, for schemes will be devised against him. 26 Those who eat his fine food will break him; his army will be swept away, and many will fall slain. 27 As for the two kings, their hearts will be bent on evil, and they will speak lies at the same table; but it will not succeed, for the end still awaits the appointed time. 28 Then he will return to his land with great wealth, but his heart will be set against the holy covenant. He will take action and then return to his own land.
29 At the appointed time he will return and come into the south, but this time it will not be as it was before. 30 For ships of Kittim will come against him, and he will be disheartened and turn back, raging against the holy covenant and taking action. He will return and show favor to those who forsake the holy covenant. 3 3 v30 Kittim: an ancient name for western Mediterranean sea powers, most likely Rome. 31 Forces from him will rise up and profane the sanctuary fortress; they will abolish the daily sacrifice and set up the abomination that causes desolation. 4 4 v31 Jesus pointed back to this prophecy as a warning still to come in his own day (Matthew 24:15). 32 Those who act wickedly against the covenant he will corrupt with flattery, but the people who know their Father will stand firm and take action. 33 And the wise among the people will instruct many, though for some days they will fall by sword and flame, by captivity and plunder. 34 When they fall, they will receive a little help, and many will join them with flattery. 35 Some of the wise will fall, so that they may be refined, purified, and made pure until the time of the end; for it still awaits the appointed time.
The King Who Defies Our Father
36 The king will do as he pleases. He will exalt and magnify himself above every god and will speak astonishing things against our Father. He will prosper until the wrath is finished, for what is decreed will be done. 37 He will show no regard for the gods of his fathers, or for the one desired by women, or for any god, for he will magnify himself above them all. 38 Instead he will honor a god of fortresses; a god his fathers did not know he will honor with gold and silver, with precious stones and costly gifts. 39 He will deal with the strongest fortresses with the help of a foreign god. Those who acknowledge him he will greatly honor; he will make them rule over many and will parcel out land for a price.
40 At the time of the end the king of the south will clash with him, and the king of the north will storm against him with chariots, horsemen, and many ships. He will invade the lands, overflow, and pass through. 41 He will enter the glorious land, and many will fall, but these will escape from his hand: Edom, Moab, and the leaders of the Ammonites. 42 He will stretch out his hand against the lands, and the land of Egypt will not escape. 43 He will gain control of the treasures of gold and silver and all the riches of Egypt, and the Libyans and Cushites will follow at his heels. 44 But reports from the east and the north will alarm him, and he will go out with great fury to destroy and devote many to destruction. 45 He will pitch his royal tents between the seas and the glorious holy mountain, yet he will come to his end, with no one to help him.