Daniel 11

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

And I also, in the first year of Darius the Mede, stood up to confirm and strengthen him.

2 [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.

And now I will tell thee what is true. Behold, there shall arise yet three kings in Persia, and the fourth shall be far richer than they all; and, relying upon his riches, he shall stir up all against the realm of Greece.

3 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.

But a mighty king shall arise, and rule with great dominion, and do according to his will.

4 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.

But when he shall have arisen, his kingdom shall be broken in pieces, and shall be divided toward the four winds of heaven; and not to his posterity, nor with the dominion with which he ruled; for his kingdom shall be plucked up, and divided amongst others besides those.

5 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.

And the king of the South shall become strong; but one of his princes shall become stronger than he, and have dominion; his dominion shall be a great dominion.

6 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.

And after some years they shall ally themselves with each other; and the daughter of the king of the South shall come to the king of the North, to make peace; but she shall not retain the power of giving aid; neither shall he stand, nor his aid; but she shall be given up, and they that caused her to go, and he that begat her, and he that received her in those times.

7 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.

But from a shoot of her roots shall one arise in his place, who shall come to an army, and shall come against the fortresses of the king of the North, and shall deal with them according to his pleasure, and prevail against them.

8 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.

And their gods, with their molten images, and their precious vessels of silver and of gold, shall he carry into captivity into Egypt; then shall he stand away for many years from the king of the North;

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

and he shall come against the kingdom of the king of the South, but he shall return into his own land.

10 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].

But his sons shall be stirred up, and shall assemble a multitude of large forces; and one of them shall move onward, and overflow, and pass through, and shall again stir himself up to carry on the war even to his stronghold.

11 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.

Then shall the king of the South be enraged, and shall come forth and fight with him, even with the king of the North; and shall lead forth a great multitude, and the multitude shall be given into his hand.

12 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.

And the multitude shall be elated, and his heart shall be lifted up, and he shall cast down tens of thousands; but he shall not be strong.

13 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].

For the king of the North shall return and raise up against him a multitude greater than the former, and shall steadily come after certain years with a great army and with great riches.

14 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.

And in those times many will stand up against the king of the South; and violent men of thy people shall exalt themselves, so as to establish the vision, and shall fall.

15 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.

And the king of the North shall come, and cast up a mound, and take a fortified city; and the arms of the South shall not withstand, neither his chosen men, neither shall there be any strength to withstand.

16 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.

And he that cometh against him shall do according to his will, and none shall stand before him; and he shall stand in the beautiful land, and destruction shall be in his hand.

17 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.

And he shall set his face to come with the strength of his whole kingdom, and shall make pacification with him; and he shall give him his daughter in marriage, to ruin his dominion. But it shall not succeed, neither shall it be for him.

18 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.

After this he shall turn his face to the isles, and shall take many; but a commander shall put an end to his scorn; nay, shall cause his scorn to return upon himself.

19 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.

Then shall he turn his face to the strongholds of his own land; and he shall stumble, and fall, and shall not be found.

20 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.

Then shall arise in his place one who shall send an exacter of tribute through the glory of his kingdom; but within few days shall he be destroyed, neither by anger nor by battle.

21 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.

And in his place shall arise a despised person, to whom they shall not give the honor of the kingdom; but in the midst of peace he shall come in and obtain the kingdom by flatteries.

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

And the forces of a flood shall be overwhelmed before him, and shall be broken in pieces; and even the prince that is allied with him.

23 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.

For after making a league with him, he will practise deceit; for he will come up, and prevail with a small people.

24 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.

In the midst of security shall he come into the fattest provinces of the land, and he shall do what his fathers never did, nor his fathers' fathers; he shall scatter among them prey, and spoil, and riches; and he shall form his devices against the strongholds, even to a set time.

25 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.

And he shall stir up his power and his courage against the king of the South, with a great army; and the king of the South shall be stirred up to battle with a very great and mighty army; but he shall not stand, for they shall form devices against him.

26 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.

Even they that eat of his own food shall destroy him; and his army shall overflow, and many shall fall down slain.

27 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].

And the hearts of both these kings shall be to do mischief; and at one table shall they speak lies; but it shall not prosper; for yet the end is for the appointed time.

28 [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.

Then shall he return into his land with great riches; and he will set his heart against the holy covenant, and he will execute his purposes, and return to his own land.

29 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.

At the appointed time he shall again go against the South; but the second time it shall not be as at the first.

30 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.

For the Chittaean ships shall come against him, and he shall be discouraged, and return, and be enraged against the holy covenant, and execute his purposes; and he shall again have an understanding with them that forsake the holy covenant.

31 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.

And forces shall be raised by him, which shall pollute the sanctuary, the stronghold, and take away the daily sacrifice, and set up the abomination of the destroyer.

32 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.

And such as do wickedly against the covenant will he lead to apostasy by flatteries; but the people that know their God shall be strong, and do exploits.

33 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.

And they that have understanding among the people shall instruct many; but they shall fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil, many days.

34 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.

And whilst they fall they shall receive a little help, and many shall join themselves to them with flatteries.

35 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.

And some of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and to purify, and cleanse, even to the time of the end, for it is yet at the time appointed.

36 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.

And the king shall do according to his will; and he will exalt himself and magnify himself against every god, and he will speak horrible things against the God of gods, and he will prosper until the indignation be accomplished; for that which is determined shall be done.

37 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.

Neither will he regard the god of his fathers, nor the desire of women; nor will he regard any god, but he will magnify himself against all.

38 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.

But in their place will he honor the god of strongholds, even the god whom his fathers knew not shall he honor with gold, and with silver, and with precious stones, and with jewels.

39 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.

And he shall do his will against fenced strongholds with a strange god; whoever acknowledge him, to them he will give great honor, and give them dominion over many, and divide the land amongst them for a reward.

40 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].

But at the time of the end shall the king of the South push at him, and the king of the North shall rush against him like a whirlwind with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and overflow them, and pass over them.

41 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.

He shall also enter into the beautiful land, and multitudes shall be overthrown; but these shall escape out of his hand, Edom, and Moab, and the chief of the sons of Ammon.

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

He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries, and the land of Egypt shall not escape.

43 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.

And he shall have power over the treasures of gold and of silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt; and the Lybians and Ethiopians shall be in his train.

44 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].

But tidings out of the East and out of the North shall trouble him, and he shall go forth with great fury to destroy and utterly to take away many.

45 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.”

And he shall pitch his palace-tents between the sea and the beautiful holy mountain; but he shall come to his end, and none shall help him.