Key Text: Dan. 11:35

Study Focus: Daniel 11; Dan. 8:3–8, 20–22; Isa. 46:9, 10; Dan. 8:9, 23–25; Matt. 27:33–50.

Introduction: Daniel 11 is undoubtedly the most difficult chapter in the book. However, the overall contours of the prophecy stand out clearly. God’s people will be persecuted and attacked, but in the end, God wins. In this study, attention is given to the great war between the powers of the north and south and the picture of the final events that concludes the chapter.

Lesson Themes:

1. The Great War. The “great war” mentioned by the angelic being in Daniel 10:1 (NIV) unfolds throughout chapter 11 as a succession of rulers of the north and south who fight against each other until the time of the end.

2. The Final Events. The final section of the chapter culminates in the annihilation of the evil forces as they launch the last attack against Zion, God’s “glorious holy mountain.”

Life Application: Behind the many battles between the rulers of the north and south, there is only one great war. It is the great controversy between God and Satan, which also has political and social repercussions on earth. The war is not primarily about territorial conquests or material achievements. It is a battle of cosmic proportions for the hearts and minds of human beings. In this battle, neutrality is impossible; we must choose a side.

Part II: Commentary

Let us take a more in-depth look at the lesson’s themes as outlined above:

1. The Great War. The war between the north and south evokes the battles between powers vying for control of the promised land. Located between the confluence of the great empires of the time, the land of Israel was often entangled in the international conflicts of the time. The northern powers (Assyrians, Babylonians, Seleucids) fought against the southern powers (Egyptians, Ptolemies) for the strategic control of Palestine. Obviously, a war for the control of the holy land entails suffering for God’s people. As Gabriel makes clear, the prophecy intended to make Daniel “understand what will happen to your people in the latter days, for the vision refers to many days yet to come” (Dan 10:14, NKJV). So, the long sequence of kingdoms and the wars they fought are relevant inasmuch as they make God’s people undergo tremendous suffering. As the prophetic events unfold, the wars between the north and south culminate in an attack against the people of God on Mount Zion. Actually, this final battle, together with God’s saving intervention in favor of His people, is the apex of the message of Daniel.
   As we apply the historicist approach in the interpretation of this chapter, we must also understand that as the prophetic timeline passes through Calvary, the prophetic symbols and the events they represent must be interpreted according to the terms of the New Covenant. In Christ the covenant with Israel is offered to the gentiles, and the promised land is expanded to encompass the whole world. We must factor in such new realities that the Messiah brought about as we interpret the prophetic events depicted in Daniel 11. Thus, most historicist interpreters understand the king of the north initially as a reference to the Seleucid power located in Syria and the king of the south as representing the Ptolemies, who were ruling over Egypt. Subsequently, the role of the king of the north is taken over by pagan Rome and later on by papal Rome. In the same vein, later in the prophetic timeline the south comes to represent atheism, which was strongly promoted by the powers that unleashed the French Revolution, and which continues to this day. The exact points in Daniel 11 where a transition of power takes place remain a matter of debate. Therefore, we should focus on those matters that are fixed and clear, because they stand in parallel with the other prophetic outlines of Daniel. The following table shows the correlations of chapter 11 to the other prophecies of Daniel, especially chapter 8.

2. The Final Events. The final section (Dan 11:40–45) shows that the long war between the king of the north and the king of the south reaches its climax in the time of the end. By then, the king of the north overcomes the king of the south and launches the final attack on Mount Zion. Because most of the events herein described lie in the future, their interpretation remains tentative; thus, we should avoid dogmatism. Nevertheless, it is possible to delineate the broad contours of the prophecy by applying two basic principles of interpretation. First, we must understand that the events foretold in the prophecy are portrayed with language and imagery derived from the reality of Old Testament Israel and its institutions. Second, such imagery and language must be interpreted as symbols of the universal ecclesiological realities brought about by Christ. According to the above principles, the king of the South stands for Egypt, as consistently indicated throughout the prophecy. The king of the North in turn must be identified with Babylon, which appears in the Old Testament as the power from the north (Jer. 1:14; Jer. 4:5–7; Jer. 6:1; Jer. 10:22; Jer. 13:20; Jer. 16:15; Jer. 20:4; Jer. 23:8; Jer. 25:9, 12). Founded by Nimrod, Babylon became a center of pagan religion and the archenemy of Jerusalem. In apocalyptic symbolism, Babylon came to symbolize both pagan and papal Rome. Thus, at this point in the prophetic timeline, which is the time of the end, Babylon/king of the north symbolizes the papacy and its supporting forces. Egypt, in turn, represents the forces that make opposition to, but eventually are overpowered by, the papacy. Thus, among other possibilities—such as the former Ottoman Empire—Egypt most likely represents atheism and secularism. As the king of the north invades the “glorious land,” we are told that “Edom, Moab, and the prominent people of Ammon” (Dan. 11:41, NKJV) escape from his overwhelming power. Because these three nations have long ceased to exist, they must be interpreted as symbols of broader eschatological entities. To better understand the symbolism related to those nations, we should note that the “glorious land” is not a geographic entity in the Middle East, but a symbol of God’s remnant people. In the same vein, “Edom, Moab, and Ammon” are not ethnic entities, but they represent those who will resist the seduction of Babylon and come from different faiths and philosophical traditions to join the remnant in the last days. The final battle of the long war will take place when the king of the north will “plant the tents of his palace between the seas and the glorious holy mountain” (Dan. 11:45, NKJV). This scenario recalls the foreign kings who, coming from the north, attacked Jerusalem. Sennacherib, for example, set up his military tents at Lachish, which was between the Mediterranean Sea and Jerusalem. These images symbolize the final confrontation between the forces of spiritual Babylon (the papacy and its allies) against God’s people. The “glorious holy mountain” represents God’s people under the Lordship of Christ. So, with language evocative of the experience of old Israel and Judah, the prophecy portrays the attack of the end-time Babylon against God’s people. But the enemy will fail; “he shall come to his end, and no one will help him” (Dan. 11:45, NKJV).

Part III: Life Application

“In the annals of human history, the growth of nations, the rise and fall of empires, appear as if dependent on the will and prowess of man; the shaping of events seems, to a great degree, to be determined by his power, ambition, or caprice. But in the word of God the curtain is drawn aside, and we behold, above, behind, and through all the play and counterplay of human interest and power and passions, the agencies of the All-merciful One, silently, patiently working out the counsels of His own will.”—Ellen G. White, Prophets and Kings, pp. 499, 500.