Daniel 11

1 “And so, from the first year of Darius the Mede, I stood firm, so that he might be reinforced and strengthened.

“As for me, during the first year that Darius was king, I helped and encouraged Michael.”

2 And now I will announce to you the truth. Behold, up to a certain point, three kings will stand in Persia, and the fourth will be exceedingly enriched in power above them all. And when he has grown strong by his resources, he will stir up all against the kingdom of Greece.

[The angel also said], “And what I am going to reveal to you now will truly [happen]. There will be three more kings to rule Persia, [one after the other]. Then there will be a fourth king, who will be much richer than the others. As a result of [his giving] a lot of money [to people, they will enable him to] become very powerful. Then he will incite/persuade many nations [HYP] [to fight] against the kingdom of Greece.

3 But there will rise up a strong king, and he will rule with great power, and he will do what he pleases.

Then a very powerful king will appear [in Greece]. He will rule over a very large empire, and he will do whatever he wants to do.

4 And when he has been firmly established, his kingdom will be shattered and will be divided towards the four winds of the heaven, but not to his posterity, nor according to his power with which he ruled. For his kingdom will be torn to pieces, even for the outsiders who have been expelled from these.

But when he has become very powerful, [he will die]. Then his kingdom will be divided into four parts. Kings who are not his descendants will rule, but they will not be as powerful as he was.

5 And the king of the South will be reinforced, yet one of his leaders will prevail over him, and he will rule with riches, for great is his domain.

Then the King of Egypt [MTY] will become very powerful. But one of his army generals will become more powerful than he is, and he will rule a bigger area.

6 And after the end of years, they will form a federation, and the daughter of the king of the South will come to the king of the North to make friendship, but she will not obtain the strength of arms, neither will her offspring stand firm, and she will be handed over, along with those who brought her, her young men, and those who comforted her in these times.

Several years later, the King of Egypt and the King of Syria will make an (alliance/agreement to help each other) [MTY]. The King of Syria will give his daughter to the King of Egypt to become his wife. But she will not be able to influence him [MTY] very long, and that woman, her husband, her child, and her servants will all be killed/assassinated.

7 And a transplant from the germination of her roots will stand up, and he will come with an army, and will enter into the province of the king of the North, and he will abuse them, and will hold it fast.

Soon after that, one of her relatives [MET] will become King [of Egypt]. His army will attack the army of Syria. They will enter the fortress of the soldiers of Syria and defeat them.

8 And, in addition, he will carry away captive into Egypt their gods, and their graven images, and likewise their precious vessels of gold and silver. He will prevail against the king of the North.

They will return to Egypt, taking the statues of the gods [of the people of Syria] and many items made of silver and gold that had been dedicated to those gods. Then for several years his army will not attack [the army of] the King of Syria.

9 And the king of the South will enter into the kingdom, and will return to his own land.

Then the army of the King of Syria will invade Egypt, but they will soon return to Syria.

10 But his sons will be challenged, and they will assemble a multitude of very many forces. And he will arrive rushing and overflowing. And he will be turned back, and he will be enraged, and he will join the battle in his redness.

However, the sons of the King of Syria will prepare to start a war, and they will gather a large army. That army will march [south] and spread all over [Israel] like a huge flood. They will attack a strong fortress [in the south of Israel].

11 And the king of the South, having being challenged, will go forth and will fight against the king of the North, and he will prepare an exceedingly great multitude, and a multitude will be given into his hand.

Then the King of Egypt, having become very angry, will march [with his army north] from Egypt and fight against the army of Syria. The King [of Syria] will gather together a very large army, but [the army of the King of Egypt] will defeat them.

12 And he will seize a multitude, and his heart will be exalted, and he will cast down many thousands, but he will not prevail.

The King of Egypt will become very proud because of [his army] having killed a very large number of soldiers [from Syria], but his army will not continue to win battles.

13 For the king of the North will change strategy and will prepare a multitude much greater than before, and at the end of times and years, he will rush forward with a great army and exceedingly great resources.

The King of Syria will again gather together an army that will be bigger than the one that he had before. After a few years, he will again march [south on their way to Egypt] with a large army and a lot of equipment [for fighting battles].

14 And in those times, many will rise up against the king of the South. And likewise the sons of the deceivers among your people will extol themselves, so as to fulfill the vision, and they will collapse.

At that time, many people in Egypt will rebel against their king. In order to fulfill a vision that [one of their leaders had seen], some violent/lawless people from your country [of Israel] will also rebel [in order to not be controlled by Egypt any more], but they will be defeated.

15 And the king of the North will arrive and will transport siege works, and he will seize the most fortified cities. And the arms of the South will not withstand him, and his elect will rise up to resist, but the strength will not.

Then the King of Syria will come [south with his army] and pile up dirt against the walls of a city that is well protected, and they will [break through those walls and] they will capture the city. The soldiers from Egypt [who have come to defend that city], even the best troops, will not be strong enough to continue to fight.

16 And when he arrives, he will do just as he pleases, and there will be none who stand against his face. And he will stand in the illustrious land, and it will be consumed by his hand.

So the King of Syria will do whatever he wants to, and no one will be able to oppose him. [His army] will occupy the glorious land [of Israel] and completely control/subdue it.

17 And he will set his face to strive to hold his entire kingdom, and he will make fair conditions with him. And he will give him a daughter among women, so as to overthrow it. But she will not stand, neither will she be for him.

Then he will decide to march [south] with all the soldiers from his kingdom. He will make an alliance with the King [of Egypt] and in order that his own daughter will [help him to] destroy the kingdom of Egypt, he will give her to the King of Egypt to become his wife. But that plan will fail.

18 And he will turn his face towards the islands, and he will seize many. And he will cause the leader of his reproach to cease, and his reproach will be turned around for him.

After that, the [army of] the King of Syria will attack the regions that are close to the [Mediterranean] Sea, and his [army] will conquer many of them. But [the army of] a leader from another country will defeat the army of Syria and will stop their king from continuing to be proud. He will do to the King of Syria what he deserved for being very insolent.

19 And he will turn his face to the empire of his own land, and he will strike, and will overthrow, but he will not succeed.

Then the King of Syria will return to the fortresses in his own land. But he will be defeated, and he will (die/be assassinated) [EUP] there.

20 And there will stand up in his place one who is most worthless and unworthy of kingly honor. And in a short time, he will be worn out, but not in fury, nor in battle.

Then another man will (succeed him/become king). That king will send one of his officers to oppress the people [in Jerusalem] by forcing them to pay big taxes, in order to get more money for his kingdom. But after a few years [HYP] that king will die, but he will not die as a result of people being angry with him or in a battle.

21 And there will stand up in his place the despicable one, and he will not be assigned the honor of a king. And he will arrive in secret, and he will obtain the kingdom by deceitfulness.

The next King of Syria will be an evil man who, [because he will not be the son of the previous king, ] will not have the right to become king. But he will come when people do not expect it, and he will become king by tricking the people.

22 And the arms of the fighting will be assaulted before his face and will be shattered, and, in addition, the leader of the federation.

When his army advances, they will attack any armies that oppose him and destroy those armies. They will also kill God’s Supreme Priest.

23 And, after making friends, he will trick him, and he will go up and will overcome with a small people.

By making treaties/alliances with [the rulers of] other nations, he will deceive them, and he will become very powerful, even though he rules a nation that does not have a lot of people.

24 And he will enter into rich and resourceful cities, and he will do what his fathers never did, nor his fathers’ fathers. He will scatter their spoils, and their prey, and their riches, and will form a plan against the most steadfast, and this until a time.

Suddenly his [army] will invade a province that is very wealthy, and they will do things that none of his ancestors did: they will capture in battles all kinds of possessions from the people whom they defeat. Then the king will divide those possessions among his friends. He will also plan [for his army] to attack fortresses [in Egypt], but only for a short time.

25 And his strength and his heart will be enraged against the king of the South with a great army. And the king of the South will be provoked into going to war by having many allies and exceedingly good circumstances, and yet these will not stand, for they will form plans against him.

He will courageously/boldly conscript/gather a large and powerful army to attack [the army of] the king of Egypt. But the King of Egypt will prepare to fight against them with a huge and powerful army. However, someone will deceive him, with the result that his plan will not be successful.

26 And those who eat bread with him will crush him, and his army will be suppressed, and very many will die, having been executed.

Even his most trusted advisors will plan to get rid of him. His army will be defeated and many of his soldiers will be killed.

27 And the heart of two kings will be similar, to do harm, and they will speak lies at one table, but they will not succeed, because as yet the end is for another time.

Then the two [kings who both want to rule that area] will sit down at the same table and eat together, but they will both lie to each other. Neither of them will get what he wants, because it will not be the time [that God] has determined/set [for them to rule Egypt].

28 And he will return to his land with many resources. And his heart will be against the holy testament, and he will act, and he will return to his own land.

[The army of] the King [of Syria] will return to Syria, taking with them all the valuable things [that they had captured]. The king will be determined to get rid of the Supreme Priest of the Jewish people. He will do what he wants to [in Israel], and then return to his own country.

29 At the appointed time, he will return, and he will approach the South, but the latter time will not be like the former.

When it is the time that God has decided, the King of Syria [and his army] will invade Egypt again. But this time he will not be successful like he was before.

30 And the Greek warships and the Romans will come upon him, and he will be pierced, and will retreat, and will have scorn against the testament of the sanctuary, and he will act. And he will return and will consult their adversaries, who have forsaken the covenant of the sanctuary.

The army of Rome will come in ships and oppose his army and cause him to be afraid. So he will be very angry, and [with his army] he will return [to Israel] and try to get rid of the Supreme Priest. The King of Syria will do what those who have abandoned the Jewish religion advise/want him to do for them.

31 And arms will take his side, and they will pollute the sanctuary of the strength, and they will take away the continual sacrifice and will replace it with the abomination of desolation.

Some of his soldiers will do things to (defile the temple/cause the temple to become unholy for them). They will prevent the priests from offering sacrifices each day, and they will put [in the temple] something that is disgusting/abominable.

32 And the impious within the testament will imitate deceitfully, but the people, knowing their God, will persevere and will act.

By deceiving those who have abandoned the Jewish religion, he will persuade them to (become his supporters/help him to do what he wants to do). But those who are devoted to their God will firmly oppose them.

33 And the teachers among the people will teach many, but they will be ruined by the sword, and by fire, and by captivity, and by assaults for many days.

And wise [Israeli] leaders will teach others also. But for a while, some of those wise leaders will be killed in battles, and some will be burned to death, and some will be robbed, and some will be put in prison.

34 And when they have fallen, they will be supported with a little help, but many will apply to them deceitfully.

While God’s people are being persecuted, some people will help them a little bit, although some of those who help them will not do it sincerely.

35 And some of the learned will be ruined, that they may be kindled and chosen and purified, up to the predetermined time, because there will be still another time.

Some of those wise leaders will be killed [EUP], but as a result the others will be purified [DOU]. This suffering will continue until it is the time [that God] has appointed [for it to] end.

36 And the king will act according to his will, and he will be lifted up and will be extolled against every god. And he will speak great things against the God of gods, and he will control, until the passion is completed. Once accomplished, the limit is reached with certainty.

The King [of Syria] will do what he wants to. He will boast and say that he is greater than any god. He will even revile the Supreme God. He will be able to do what he wants until the time that [God] punishes [MTY] him. [God] will accomplish what he has planned.

37 And he will give no thought to the God of his fathers, and he will be in the desire of women, and he will not attend to any gods, because he will rise up against all things.

The [King of Syria] will ignore the god that his ancestors worshiped and the god that many women love. He will ignore every god, because he will think that he is greater than all of them.

38 But he will do homage to the god Maozim in his place, and, a god whom his fathers did not know, he will worship with gold, and silver, and precious stones, and costly things.

But he will honor the god who [people think] protects fortresses. That is a god whom his ancestors did not honor. And he will give gold, silver, (jewels/very valuable stones) and other expensive gifts to that god.

39 And he will act to reinforce Maozim with an alien god, of whom he has become aware, and he will increase their glory, and will give them power over many, and he will distribute land for free.

He will ask that god (OR, people who worship a god) from another country to help him to defend his fortresses. He will greatly honor those who allow him [to be their ruler]. He will appoint [some of] them to important positions in the government; and to reward them, he will give them some land.

40 And, at the predetermined time, the king of the South will fight against him, and the king of the North will come against him like a tempest, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with a great fleet, and he will enter into the lands, and will crush and pass through.

But when his time [to rule] is almost ended, [the army of] the King of Egypt will attack his [army]. The [army of the] King of Syria will fight against them furiously [SIM]. [His soldiers will be driving] chariots and [riding on] horses and [traveling in] many ships. His army will invade many countries and [spread all over those countries] like a flood [MET].

41 And he will enter into the glorious land, and many will fall. But only these will be saved from his hand: Edom, and Moab, and the first part of the sons of Ammon.

They will invade the glorious land [of Israel] and kill [EUP] tens of thousands of people. But the people of the Edom people-group and the people of the Moab people-group and the people of the Ammon people-group who are still alive will escape.

42 And he will cast his hand upon the lands, and the land of Egypt will not escape.

When the army of Syria invades other countries, even the people of Egypt will be defeated.

43 And he will rule over the treasure chests of gold, and silver, and all the precious things of Egypt, and likewise he will pass through Libya and Ethiopia.

The army of Syria will take away from Egypt gold, silver, and other valuable items. The people of Libya and Ethiopia will allow [the King of Syria] to rule over them.

44 And rumors from the East and from the North will trouble him. And he will arrive with a great multitude to destroy and to execute many.

But he will become very frightened/alarmed when he hears reports about what is happening in the east and in the north. So he will become very angry, and send his army to fight furiously and kill many [of their enemies].

45 And he will fasten his tabernacle, Apadno, between the seas, upon an illustrious and holy mountain, and he will come even to its summit, and no one will help him.”

The [King of Syria] will set up his royal tents in the area between the [Mediterranean] Sea and the hill [in Jerusalem] on which the temple (exists/was built). But he will be killed there, because there will be no one to help him.”