Daniel 11 - The Text

Daniel 11 - North vs. South (=CET 228.1-3+; GC 45.3)[1] 

            One of the most intriguing prophecies in Bible is found in Daniel chapter 11. In it is found an epic battle that focuses on two warring factions, namely, the King of the North and the King of the South. Like any other prophecy, or even simple statement, given by God in the Bible, it is still to speak in some way to His people today. Therefore it is beneficial to study this prophecy even if the exact interpretation may not yet be fully understood. The following is thus an introductory overview in the study of this prophecy based upon several years of study. As proper Bible study rightly first, and foremost, starts with an accurate translation of the text under consideration, from its original language, the following text of Dan 11, based upon the NASB version ([1995 updated version] - the most accurate Bible version available today), has been given. Where a better rendition could be made, it was done here in this text.

            The following guiding introductory pointers and observations from the careful study of this prophecy in its Biblical and Theological context are also here provided:

Eschatological Application
            Arguably the prophecy of Daniel 11 can be viewed as an Apocalyptic Passage from the Old Testament. Like the other Apocalyptic prophecies of the Bible, like Christ’s Olivet Discourse (Matt 24|Mark 13|Luke 21) and the book of Revelation, they speak to, and have an application, even if only partially, with different generations of believers. Still these applications serve to prepare for the ultimate fulfilment, and thus they actually, non-contradictorily, build on these past, partial fulfillments.

            Succinctly said, it can be seen that the prophecy of Daniel 11 was meant to indeed ultimately have a full fulfilment in an eschatological context (cf. WM 136.5 [= RH Nov 24, 1904 Art B. par. 8]; 9T 14.2). While the prophecy does start with the then “here and now” statements of vss. 1-4, (with, as discussed here, the timing for that chronology and wave of fulfillment being conditional, and also unfulfilled),, as does Christ’s Olivet discourse, and even in part, the book of Revelation (Rev 1-3), starting in Dan 11:5 the specific naming of kingdoms ends, and the unidentified figures of the Kings of the North and South are introduced, and last until the end of the chapter. So while there may be historical applications of this prophecy, its ultimate fulfilments lies in its spiritual and eschatological fulfilment. 

Historical/Contextual Background 
            Within the Kingdom of Israel, there was major and lasting division known as the Kingdom of the South (the tribe of Judah and part of Benjamin) and the Kingdom of the North (the 11 other tribes). These 11 tribes eventually were conquered and became assimilated with the surrounding peoples. They in large part still remained a God worshipping people, however their worship was greatly and detrimentally diluted and influenced by the teachings, rites and custom of foreign religions.

Apostasied Main Body vs. Its Remnant
            Therefore, with this Biblical historical and spiritual background in mind, and with the general common development of particularly eschatological prophecy in mind, where the ultimate endgame ultimately falls between two groups of people who both profess to be worshiping God, the proper (eschatological) interpretation and meaning of the prophecy of Daniel 11 can be seen. Surprisingly, contrary to what is commonly concluded, a careful reading shows the King of the South is not as good as it is assumed to be, and the King of the North is actually not the evil character that he is defaultly assumed to be. A case in point example that shows how this could be is seen in the first applicable quasi-eschatological fulfilment of this prophecy in the 1st century A.D. where it actually was the Kingdom of the South, i.e., the remaining Jewish Nation from the remaining faithful tribe in Judah who crucified the Messiah, Jesus Christ.[2] As a consequence of this, the gospel was preached, initially through Paul and the other Apostles, to the “lost sheep of Israel,” the Samaritans, and then the rest of the Gentile world, leading to the establishment of the worldwide Christian Church that exists today. Interestingly enough this propagation initially, predominantly had a geographically northward expansion. Eventually, this Church established by Christ indeed became a great kingdom and supplanted the Southern Kingdom. However, later on in the History of the Christian Church a similar, typological division took place in this, God’s New Israel, spiritually resulting in a small portion which remained faithful to God and His truth, while the larger portion were corrupted and confused by their inclusion of many worldly practices in their religion. The following table helps to illustrate this historical, typical/typological Remnant Theology repetition.

 [Click Images to Enlarge] 

Dan 11 Remnant Chart

            Therefore in the eschatological and (ultimate) fulfilment of this prophecy, it should be expected to see a reoccurrence, and this time a more extensive/conclusive one, of this: Main People/Church [and formerly, itself a previous Remnant] (i.e., the South) vs. a Restoring Remnant (the North). So do keep this biblical typological template in mind here in this reading.

Common Prophetic Principle 
            Also, like in the structure of the book of Revelation (see this chart -included below (based on DARCOM 6:38-39)), while the prophecies do have a linear/consecutive view for mainly its historical application, God in His infinite wisdom was also able to craft it to also have a, among others, parallel view. I.e., one in which repetition occurs covering the same prophesied events, but from a different thematic perspective (cf. 13MR 394.1 [12/20/1898]- “Much of the history [thus potentially also “prophetic elements”] that has taken place in fulfillment of this prophecy [i.e., Dan 11] will be repeated.”). So also keep this structural provision in mind in this introductory reading.

Dan 11 = Revelation Overview

            Indeed the following is the detailed charting for the prophecy of Dan 11+ and how it indeed thematically, sequentially and organizationally aligns itself with the book/prophecies of Revelation. The various, mainly Eschatological expositions on the prophecies of Revelation in this blog help to present what the meaning/implication of those Dan 11 prophetic statements are. (See indexing here, and major presentation on Rev.’s Series of 7 here and here).

Dan 11 &/= Revelation Charting

Notes From Charting
-A pointed/specific “end” (Strongs #07093), as in an “endgame/goal/objective” (cf. Hab 2:3 (NASB), is mentioned 6 times in this “OT-given Apocalypse” of Dan 11. The first mention in Dan 11:6, is a, right off the bat, mention of how this whole Israel Civil War would have inceptively/right away stop escalatingly unravelling (see better translation of this, and other verses in the verse-by-verse commentary started below), and the subsequent, other 5 mentions of this “end/endgame”, occurring namely in Dan 11:13, 27, 35, 40, 45, most interestingly all occur, as seen in the charting above, at the matching 7th/endpoints in the parallel series in Revelation. Even the other two prophetic endings at Dan 11:9, 17 which do not explicitly have that word “end” still relate events which implicitly allude to what that sought for, “Israel/Church Civil War endgame” is all about. So like in Revelation, they all point to the time when God would wrap things up in the GC, synonymously in regards to an Israel Civil War which in the “Utter End” scenario for the prophecies of Revelation will be worldwide. (Rev 13:13-14ff; 16:13-14, 16). And the linguistically most possible “phrase parallelism” in the final “end” mention, in Dan 11:45b could be explicatively have pointed out that this “end” of the King of the North would be in his, thus “end goal/objective”, achievement mentioned in Dan 11:45a of, as Biblically supported in the commentary on that verse below, him having: ‘pitch (i.e., established) the tents/habitations of his royal pavilion in the midst of the seas (=Rev 15:1-2ff’s “Sea of (non-crystalized) Glass”), due to the beautiful* Holy Mountain” (=Rev 14:1-5ff’s Mount Zion)’.

Identity of the “Northern Kingdom”
            As it can be seen from the above chart, the eschatological understanding of the King of the North and its identity differs from the common SDA identification of it as the papacy. While this surfacely is indeed completely different, it actually is solely a shifted improvement in regards to the final fate of that Northern Kingdom. Again, as the Biblical template of the Northern and Southern split kingdoms of Israel shows, by spiritualized extension into the Christian era, these two kingdoms can rightly be understood as the current split that exist in the New Israel, in, namely, the Global Christian Church. Like with the OT template of Judah (South) vs. (the 10+ (lost) tribes of) Israel (North), a separation in Israel is seen in not only the major denominational separations that exists in the Christian Church today, but more pertinently, a two-part, North/South separation is seen between the Remnant Church who observe the 7th Day Sabbath and other Christians who observe the First Day, Sunday.
            Interestingly enough, the identification of the Papacy as the King of this Northern Kingdom would also be applicable through this understanding, however in the necessary shift that has been caused by the unreadiness and unworthiness of the Laodicean Remnant (see Rev 7:1-3), the understanding of this eschatological Northern Kingdom, as being formed from all of the tribes of Spiritual Israel today, starting with Judah (see vs. 4-8), is now indeed perfectly applicable.
            This is an understanding that was always left as a possibility if needed, as the cleverly crafted ambiguousness in this prophecy, (especially seen in the original language), where e.g., actions could either relate to the King of the North or the South and the a fulfillment could occur either: (1) by the time of the end in ca. 1844; or (2) in these days, also involving the Papacy, or (3) in an “extension of time” where all of (Spiritual/New) Israel is once again restored following the schism of the dark ages but this time not by an anti-christ power.
            Indeed, like with Ancient Israel and its many prophecies of national triumph which were all temporarily suspended due to the unbelief and subsequent corporate rebellious acts and decision of those generations, this prophecy has similarly, not only been put on hold in the light of current, unchristlike, ecclesiastical affairs, but also, quite presciently, been switched to its other, time-extension applicable interpretation. Barring a most improbable change of conditions, this applicable, and much “Greater/Grandeur view” will not be reversed, and still the even more pervasive anti-christ power will be defeated.
            (It is actually the belief here that God always expected, based upon the typical behavior of his professed people, that this prophecy would extend to this its ultimate fulfillment.)

            This is all in perfect harmony with the correct Biblical view of ‘God’s planning of the future’, and also the existing possibility, as copiously stated in the SOP, that time would be extended if the Remnant Church fails to achieve its comprehensive Great Commission mandate. And this pointed warning was not only limited to the days of EGW. Indeed like it is due in proper Bible study, all of these pertinent and relatable aspects of the Biblical Theology and Interpretation and the SOP have to be taken into consideration here in the study of this most interesting prophecy.

Restoration Advances Parallels

            What is combinedly interesting is the Prophetic Theology that is seen, as in the following chart, when the transpired the (above) charting of the Full Restoration Starts/Attempts of the Israel of God are viewed in combination with the charting of Attempted New Covenant Israel Restorations seen in the book of Revelation:

Israel of God Restoration Attempts Parallels

            First of all, as it was foundationally stated here in discussing those parallel Series of Seven in Revelation, it was seen that they each focused on a specific/different aspect towards God’s restoration of His, now New Covenant, Israel. Namely:

I. The Seven Churches - dealt with the Internal, Spiritual State of God’s People (OT = Israel; NT = Church) = Their own “Revivals and Reformations”.

II. The Seven Seals - revealed a new, future (world) historical charting for God’s People.

III. The Seven Trumpets - pitted God’s People in offensive campaigns against World Powers.

V. The Seven Plagues - revealed God’s Judgements on a World that is then without/beyond the benefits of the Ministry/Testimony/Companionship of God’s People.

Added to these parallel prophetic sweeps are also the following pointed, pivotal protracted prophetic events :

IV. Great Controversy - exposes Satan’s own, (most) direct warring opposition to God’s  establishments and advances.

VI. Babylon & its Fall - here is revealed, and engaged, the last vestiges of Satan’s, now even more subtle, Babylonian opposition against God’s People.

VII. Final Conflict & Judgement - God’s Final/Finalizing Assault against the forces and entity grouping leagued against His People.
---. Jubilee Millennium - Interluding, Variously Sorting Out Period Towards God’s Full Restoration.

VIII. Israel Restoration - Finally, the Full Restoration of God’s True Israel (12 tribes): i.e. their religion, socio-economics, kingdom and realm.                    

            What is (confirmingly) interesting with this Dan 11 Remnant and Israel of God Apocalypse combination comparison is how, in both the structural outlay of Dan 11 & the book of Revelation, there is a repeated sudden aborting of a restoration attempt just before it is realized. In revelation, that is most explicitly and dramatically seen in endings just before the Seventh (Seal and Trumpet). Arguably, as Laodicea is a devolved aberration to what God’s Seventh Church should actually have been from its Philadelphian Church background (as indeed SDA pioneers self-realized starting around the early 1850's), it inherently constitutes one of those sudden aborting of God’s restoration work. This “aborted & postponed” notion is indeed seen in some qualifying degree in all of those charted parallel “Seventh blocs” (="B2 - GC Denouement" row in chartings above). So these all reveal that God had begun to do something in all of those parallel developments, but had to abruptly end things just prior to moving beyond the effectuated 6^th part of that Restoration development. And as indeed quite typical with/from God, these sudden endings were done through an injunctive adjudication of His People then and their deficient/incomplete state, as indeed variously informingly revealed in SOP communications (e.g., Rev 8:1|EW 16.2 “half hour” = ‘half judgement hour’; EW 38.1-2, etc).

            Now explicitly/concretely applying all of these observations and understanding to the combined charting in this section, above, the following observations in regards to attempted Dan 11 Israel of God Full restorations are seen:

I. The Seven Churches - As it was done in Revelation’s 7 Churches prophetic sweep, God, following the Babylonian Destruction and Exile days of Israel, first attempted to do a religious revival and reformation of His own People through most prominently the ministries of Ezra and Nehemiah. But that actually did not fully avail to what it should have, that full restoration attempt, which manifestly would have gone on to involve the full implementing of the mainly religious Messianic prepping restoration blueprint prophetically given to/through the prophet Ezekiel, was suddenly ended before that final/finalizing stage.

II. The Seven Seals - Following the Spiritual unfitness of God’s People from the prior Religious Revival and Reformation attempt of God, a new course has to now be charted for God’s People in regards to a prolonged, effectively now alternative history development. And so that priorly “sealed” alternative history is now put into effect and gradually unsealed. That “alternative” development is most interestingly seen in OT Israel’s history in how Biblical History suddenly ended being canonically recorded/valued shortly following the failed efforts of Ezra and Nehemiah. In fact God Himself drastically punctuated that prior Biblical/Canonical History of Israel with the messages of the prophet Malachi (see. Mal 4:4-6) and what follows in Jewish history is quite literally their silent years taking place between ca. 400 B.C. to the time of Christ. The history of those times which involved pivotal interactions with world powers such as Greece and Rome can now only be read about in non-canonical works such as the OT Apocrypha and the writings of Jewish writers such as Josephus. Clearly God actually, literally had nothing more to say/do with that Ezra-Nehemiah Revival and Reformation failing OT Israel, and now His next efforts would be in what God would “patchingly” try to do with them in the, now, quite out of context (i.e. given the non-rebuilding of the Ezekiel Temple and its Messianic preparation religious economy), Messianic advent of Jesus Christ. So despite Jesus variously trying to accomplish that OT Israel preserving, seamless restoration, (see e.g., Mark 1:14-15; Matt 10:1, 5, 23; Luke 10:1ff (Cf. how Matt 10:10-22ff was later prophetically reapplied by Christ in Matt 24:9-13|Mark 13:11-13, -which is indicative of the finality that Jesus expected in those evangelistic missions of his 12&70 disciples then.) But those Israel Full Restoration efforts of Jesus were also for naught, and so Jesus instead began speaking from around that time of establishing a new Israel (Matt 16:13-20), and also Himself dying at the hands of the Jewish nation (Matt 16:21-23), and manifestly upon his meeting with meeting with Moses and Elijah (Matt 17:1-8), about His soon, bodily resurrection (Matt 17:22-23).

            So that second (II) Israel Restoration attempt also failed, with Jesus actually dramatically abruptly ending it at the Triumphal Entry, as He then could easily have accepted the Royal Acclamations of the Jewish people then (Luke 19:28-40), but as the people were then not Spiritual ready, He could only see that deserving judgements were instead in order (Luke 19:41-44ff; 21:22-24)

III. The Seven Trumpets - The theme of offensive military campaigns of God’s Israel, as emblematically seen in OT Israel’s assault and conquest of their promised land, with first Jericho, and then the land of Canaan, this same, though for New Covenant Israel, Spiritual, Conquest theme was seen in the “Acts of the NT Church”, heeding the militarism-correspondingly foreign missions mandate of Christ (Matt 28:19-20; Acts 1:6-8). That is indeed the Kingdom of God, militaristic theme of the Seven Trumpet. However here also, the NT Church failed to become all that it could be with, as seen in the many rebukes in the letters of Paul to especially the Gentile Church, this new, and increasingly majoritary part of God’s Israel then had not come to Spiritually be in the ready state that it should have been. And so, the Consummation of that Full Restoration attempt should have begun to end around the 70 A.D. destruction of Jerusalem events culminating in Christ’s Second Coming then (cf. Matt 24:29-31), but it too was abruptly aborted leading again to a similar Rev 5 ‘aborted prior history’ crisis. (This is telling all related to the Unrolling of the Scroll theme which comes to chart that new, alternative prophetic/historical course for God’s Remnant(s) following such sudden aborting of prior developments.).

IV. Great Controversy - This fourth prophetic sweep here is quite distinctive, and in pivotal/central in how is involves a much wider sweep than the others. Indeed in Rev 11:19-14:20 we not only have a much more expansive GC view of things then, but the curtains are then actually pulled back and Satan’s direct warring opposition schemes/motivation, plans and actions are explicitly revealed. This is indeed quite unlike prior prophetic sweeps where the defeating problem was paramountly squarely upon the more than less self-initiated decisions of humans, whether God’s failing peoples themselves, and/or the natural-minded oppositions of pagans and non-believers towards God’s people. But here, Satan necessarily steps up his game, in a last gap effort to try to quash what God is clearly about to most powerfully do. So that is (indicatively) seen in how he had opposed the advent of the Messiah (Rev 12:1-5), and the success of Christ’s Triumph in the establishment of a New Israel (Rev 12:6); in how Satan reacted to the defeat of the Cross (Luke 10:17-18; John 12:31-33; Rev 12:7-12; DA 761.1-2); and how Satan was to advance his plans to revive a tangible and organized “Babylonian” foe entity for God’s People with (1) Pagan Rome (Rev 12:3), (2) Papal Rome (Rev 12:13-15; 13:1-10), and his crowning, most subtle (=EW 266-269) achievement in (3) the Religious|Cultural|Political|Socio-Economical Babylon, which, as discussed in here, will be a joint “Eighth Head-King(dom)-Mountain” joint venture of the Roman Catholic Church and (prominently) (Protestant) America. (=Rev 12:16, 17; 13:11-18). But God has his own matching empowering: organizational plans (Rev 14:1-5), heightened message (Rev 14:6-13); and victorious deliverance (Rev 14:14-16; cf. Dan 12:1-2|GC 635-652) measures (Rev 14:17-20).

V. The Seven Plagues - Just as all should have been ended by the transpiring of that Fourth Prophetic Sweep above, in the attempts of God’s Israel Restorations, which in history corresponded to the ending of the 1260 year (Rev 11:3; 12:6; 13:5) period in 1798, the utter end should have actually have come around in the supposed-to-be final “Reformation” work that was to occur between 1798-1843 with indeed great Matt 24:29|Luke 21:25-26 (cf. Rev 6:12-13ff) “signs in the heavens” effectuations then culminating in the great (literalistic) meteoric “star” shower which occurred on November 13, 1833. But that did not come to transpire then, again due to the (still) non-readiness of God’s (Reformation) People then (=Rev 3:1-6).

            But instead, during that period (i.e., ca. 1798-1843ff) was still seen the increasing, but not as total as it should have been, demise of the priorly powerful Holy Roman Empire power in what can be seen as being akin to its own plague destruction judgements.

VI. Babylon & its Fall - In this Sixth prophetic Sweep, God has now managed to Ecclesiastically reestablish His previously decimated New Covenant Israel Church in the Remnant Church. And with the drawing apart from the Protestant Churches that had to take place to accomplish this when it was Biblically seen that these too “fallenly” constituted Babylon (Rev 14:8; EW 237-240; 241-245; 245-250), then it is seen here how Satan’s more subtle and deceptive Spiritual Babylon (=the Protestant (American) Church) is indeed the focal point of this “almost there” Sixth Prophetic Sweep.

            And the work to be done in the complete sacking of this Rev 17-18 Eschatological|Spiritual Babylon is quite complex and involve, going way beyond a mere Religious aspect as SDA’s limitedly think, for, as stated above, this last gasp, crowning deception achievement of Satan comes to also, and that most entrenchedly inculcatedly, involve Cultural, Political, and Socio-Economical aspects as indeed seen in the Libertarian Culture, Freed-dom Democracy Politics and Capitalistic Socio-Economics that the United States of America have not only “championed” themselves but have also managed to intoxicatingly spread around the world. (=Rev 17:2, 4; 18:3, 23). These 4 Chief Babylonian aspects are directly in opposition to the Righteous Ones, as symbolically depicted in the Four Living Creatures, that God has required for the establishment of His throne on the Earth (Ezek 1:1-5ff).

VII. Final Conflict & Judgement - In this symbolically enough significant “Seventh” Prophetic Sweep, God aims to prepare a people most ready to live Eternally in His restored world. It is thus in this Israel Restoration attempt Period that the Wheat are separated from the Tares in God’s (Remnant) Israel and the Church Triumphant is distinguishingly thus formed from the (Sixth Sweep failing) Church Militant (cf. LDE 61-62). As a total fitness for heaven is to be achieved in this Seventh Restoration sweep, it is not at all surprising to see that heaven is most concretely reflected in God’s readying people then (Matt 6:10). It is thus not at all Spiritually impossible that many prophetic elements here which speak of “Heaven” also, anticipatorily have, as actually prophetically and hermeneutically warranted, typological applications in what God’s People are managing to preparatorily do while still on Earth, right down to, as discussed in this post, achieving an (indeterminate) typological temporal, judgment of the wicked and Jubilee Millennium Era (=EW 286.1).

---. Jubilee Millennium - This Section is the interjected Millennium Era Development, and though it involves the Triumphing of God’s Righteous Ones, they too will eventually, prior to the sealing utter end (=VIII. Israel Restoration), be permitted (cf. Rev 20:3b) to be candidly tested through a re-effectuation of the pivotal IV. Great Controversy Era, and thus reinvolving the Dan 11:18-27 prophetic template elements.

VIII. Israel Restoration - The Scope of this, loosely applied here (Eighth) “Prophetic Sweep” is quite simple and self-explanative as by then God will have managed to full restore His Israel and its Zion, through how ever many people will have heeded His call then (Rev 19:6-9) And through this will FINALLY be established the crowning achievement of God’s Israel, His fully functional and Earth-beneficiating (Rev 21:22-27) New Jerusalem, Holy Cities (cf. Luke 19:17, 19 (= Matt 25:14-30); Rev 3:21; 5:9-10) Kingdom (=NJK) (Rev 21:9-11ff)!!!

It is significant to see in those first 6 Israel Restoration attempts, just as the

Series of Sevens in the prophecies of Revelation did not actually end in their Seventh part being immediately/sequentially fulfilled then as planned/necessary and yet what had been done during the effectuation of their first 6 parts still contributed to the advancement of God’s work and plans, similarly, what was accomplish in prior-but-aborted Israel Restoration attempts was still able to contribute to the future advancement of God’s Israel Restoration endeavor. Namely, what was accomplished during the incompleted efforts of (1) Ezra-Nehemiah, (2) Jesus Christ, (3) Paul, (4) Faithful Catholic Church Remnants, (5) Reformers, (6) Millerites and SDA’s was all recursively and culminatively contributive towards the final Restoration of God Israel which is scheduled to be ratified in the work of God’s (7) Church Triumphant. So God’s great work does indeed undefeatedly advance despite these drastic failing of past Restoration movements (=15MR 292.2-4)!

            But the also binding fact is from all of this is that should God’s Seventh Attempt plan fail to do its restoration work, then that will spell an alternative drastic end to God merciful endeavoring here (=Mal 4:6)

Discussion Links
See a discussion of mine on this Daniel 11 prophecy starting here.


Footnotes

[1] CET 228.1-3+:

CET 228.1

In vision I saw two armies in terrible conflict. {CET 228.1a-1}

One army was led by banners bearing the world's insignia; the other was led by the blood-stained banner of Prince Emmanuel. {CET 228.1a-2}

Standard after standard was left to trail in the dust, as company after company from the Lord's army joined the foe, {CET 228.1a-3}

and tribe after tribe from the ranks of the enemy united with the commandment-keeping people of God. {CET 228.1a-4}

An angel flying in the midst of heaven put the standard of Emmanuel into many hands, while a mighty general cried out with a loud voice: "Come into line. {CET 228.1b-1}

Let those who are loyal to the commandments of God and the testimony of Christ[Rev 12:17; 19:10; cf. 1 Cor 1:5-8] now take their position. {CET 228.1b-2}

Come out from among them, and be ye separate, {CET 228.1b-3}

and touch not the unclean, and I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be My sons and daughters. {CET 228.1b-4}

Let all who will, come up to the help of the Lord, to the help of the Lord against the mighty." {CET 228.1c-1}

CET 228.2

The battle raged. Victory alternated from side to side. Now the soldiers of the cross gave way, "as when a standard-bearer fainteth." Isaiah 10:18. {CET 228.2a-1}

 But their apparent retreat was but to gain a more advantageous position. {CET 228.2a-2}

Shouts of joy were heard. A song of praise to God went up, and angel voices united in the song, as Christ's soldiers planted His banner on the walls of fortresses till then held by the enemy. {CET 228.2a-3}

The Captain of our salvation was ordering the battle, and sending support to His soldiers. {CET 228.2a-4}

His power was mightily displayed, encouraging them to press the battle to the gates[=Rev 21:12*]. {CET 228.2a-5}

* The foundations of the (Spiritually-protecting) “walls” of this city of God (Rev 21:14 =Heb 11:10) also come from the model of the Apostolic Church. (Eph 2:20).

He taught them terrible things in righteousness as He led them on step by step, conquering and to conquer. [=Rev 6:1-2; 19:11-16] {CET 228.2a-6}

CET 228.3

At last the victory was gained. {CET 228.3a}

The army following the banner with the inscription, "The commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus,"[Rev 14:12] was gloriously triumphant. {CET 228.3b}

The soldiers of Christ were close beside the gates of the city, and with joy the city received her King. {CET 228.3c}

The kingdom of peace and joy and everlasting righteousness was established. {CET 228.3d}

CET 229.1

Now the church is militant. Now we are confronted with a world in midnight darkness, almost wholly given over to idolatry. {CET 229.1a}

But the day is coming in which the battle will have been fought, the victory won. The will of God is to be done on earth, as it is done in heaven. Then the nations will own no other law than the law of heaven. All will be a happy, united family, clothed with the garments of praise and thanksgiving,--the robe of Christ's righteousness. All nature, in its surpassing loveliness, will offer to God a constant tribute of praise and adoration. The world will be bathed in the light of heaven. {CET 229.1b}

The years will move on in gladness. The light of the moon will be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun will be sevenfold greater than it is now. {CET 229.1c}

Over the scene the morning stars will sing together, and the sons of God will shout for joy, while God and Christ will unite in proclaiming, "There shall be no more sin, neither shall there be any more death." {CET 229.1d}

[2] Jesus does indeed precisely fulfill the 1st Century’s literal-geographic aspects of this prophecy as He, being, in a merely temporal sense, the Davidic King-(elect) of Israel, was from the Northern Region of Israel, according to its first century boundaries, namely the region of Galilee, (specifically being from the town of Nazareth). This is indeed the area where the Northern Kingdom of Israel (i.e., the 10 northern tribes of Israel) had been located. However as the “son of David”, who, (i.e., David), was from the small town of Bethlehem located in the region of Judea where the Southern Kingdom of Judah had been in Israel’s past, Christ could also be considered to be ‘a prince of the Southern Kingdom’ as stipulated in Dan Dan 11:5. The dynastic separation that had occurred in Israel to form the Northern and Southern kingdom was indeed still quite tangibly, even if tracely, present in the first century to the point were Southern (i.e., Judean) Jews considered Northern (Galilean) Jews to be inferior, including in spiritual teachings and practices. Interestingly the widely-disdained region of Samaria, with its city by the same name, which formerly had been the capital city of the Northern Kingdom of Israel, was located in between these two main Jewish regions.

[The key for grammatical color coding is provided at the end.]

Daniel 11 

Persia and Greece

Dan 11:1

And I, in year one of Darius the Mede, I had to stand in his place as one to cause to take hold and be a strength for him.

Dan 11:2

And now I will tell you the truth. Behold! Three more kings will arise in Persia, of which the fourth will be enriched with more riches than them all. And by his riches he will awaken all against the Kingdom of Greece.

Dan 11:3

Then there shall arise a mighty King, and he will rule a great dominion and do as he pleases.

Dan 11:4

Then as he is about to arise, his kingdom shall be broken and it shall be divided towards the four winds of the heavens but not to his posterity and it will not be as the dominion with which he ruled. For his kingdom shall be uprooted and even given to others besides these (4 kings).

North vs. South

Dan 11:5

Then the King of the South will be strong, but one from among his princes shall be stronger than him and will rule a great dominion. His dominion will be great indeed!

Dan 11:6

But  to the end the time/years, they will join themselves together. But, the daughter of the King of the South shall come to the King of the North in order to make equity, but she shall not obtain the arm of strength. That is, she shall not arise, nor her arm (of strength) be given to her, neither by they that brought her, nor by the ones she brought forth and nor by the ones that take hold of her in these times.

Dan 11:7

(And) A branch of her roots will stand in his (own) estate, and shall come as an army and shall enter in the fortress of King of the North and shall execute  in them and prevail.

Dan 11:8

Yea also their gods with their princes, with their desirable vessels of silver and gold, he will carry into captivity to Egypt. And he will stand against the King of the North for years

Dan 11:9

And he shall come into the kingdom of the King of the South but return to his own land.

Dan 11:10

Then his sons shall stir themselves and gather a multitude of great forces and come to enter and overflow and pass over. That is, he will return and stir himself even towards his (own) fortress.

Dan 11:11

But the King of the South will become enraged and shall go forth and fight with him, even against the King of the North. And he shall present a great multitude, but the multitude will be given into his hands.

Dan 11:12

And when he has taken away the multitude, his heart will be exalted and he will cause tens of thousands to fall, yet he will not prevail.

Dan 11:13

For the King of the North will return and will cause a multitude greater than the first to be establish. Then after the end of the times /years he will come in order to enter with the great army and with many goods.

Dan 11:14

Also during these times many will arise against the King of the South and the pests [zealots] of your people will exalt themselves in order to cause a vision to be establish, but they will fall.

Commentary:

 “Zealots” = LXX~Josephus, scoffers (not believers in KS); violent ones; ruthless; worthless (i.e., poor/no standing)

-2 Chr 13:7 - Strong men rising against King

-1 Maccabees 10:61 (NRSV) A group of malcontents from Israel, renegades, gathered together against him to accuse him; but the king paid no attention to them.

-1 Maccabees 10:61 (NJB) A number of scoundrels, the pest of Israel, combined to denounce him, but the king paid no attention to them.

Dan 11:15

(And) the King of the North will come and cast up embankments and take the defenses of the city. And the arm of the South will not stand, neither will their chosen people have strength in order to stand.

Dan 11:16

And the one who comes will do against these according to his desire, and have no one who will stand unto him. And he will stand in the Glorious Land and will consume in his power.

Dan 11:17

Then he will set his faces in order to arise at the whole strength of his kingdom, and righteous ones with him. And he will (naturally) make the daughter of the women (naturally) give to him in order to cause her to be destroyed; although she shall not stand (in service) for him, nor be with him.

Dan 11:18

Then he will cause his faces to turn to the coastlands and shall take  many. [Isa 49:1ff] But a ruler will cause his reproach to him to cease, lest his reproach to him be caused to return.              

Dan 11:19

Then he will cause his faces to return to the fortress of his own land, but he will be overthrown and fall (slained), and he shall not be found.

Dan 11:20

 ¶"Then in his place one will arise who will send an oppressor through the Jewel of his kingdom; yet within a few days he will be shattered, though not in anger nor in battle.

Dan 11:21

In his place a despicable [=Isa 53:3] person will arise, on whom the honor of kingship has not been conferred, but he will come in a time of prosperity/complacency/ease [cf. Rev 3:17] and seize the kingdom by intrigue.

Dan 11:22

The overflowing forces will be flooded away before him and shattered, and also the prince of the covenant.

Dan 11:23

After an alliance is made with him he will practice deception, and he will go up and gain power with a small force of people.

Dan 11:24

In a time of prosperity/complacency/ease he will enter the richest parts of the realm, and he will accomplish what his fathers never did, nor his ancestors; he will distribute plunder, booty and possessions among them, and he will devise his schemes against strongholds, but only for a time.

Dan 11:25

He will stir up his strength and courage against the king of the South with a large army; so the king of the South will mobilize an extremely large and mighty army for war; but he will not stand, for schemes will be devised against him.

Dan 11:26

Those who eat his choice food will destroy him, but his army will(future) overflow[Rev 19:11-14], and many will fall down slain.

Dan 11:27

As for both kings, their hearts/minds will be [...] towards evil[KS= Isa 28:15 vs. KN= Isa 45:7; 6:8-12, 13], and they will speak deceptive things [...] at the same table; but it will not succeed/advance/prosper,[KS= Isa 28:16-20, 21-22 vs. KN= Rev 7:13-14, 15-17; EW 54.2-55.1; cf. 1 Kgs 22:14-15ff] for the end[=Isa 45:8; 11:4-5; 54:14; Rev 19:11ff] is still [...] at the appointed time. [=Rev 18:1ff; Num 14:21; Hab 2:14; Isa 6:3]

Dan 11:28

Then he [KN] will return to his land with much plunder; but his [KN] heart will be for the holy covenant, and he [KN] will take action and then return to his own land.

Dan 11:29

 ¶"At the appointed time he [KN] will return and come into the South, but this last time it will not turn out the way it did before.

Dan 11:30

For ships of Kittim will come against him [KS]; therefore he [KS] will be disheartened and will return and become enraged at the holy covenant and take action; so he [KS] will come back and show regard for those who forsake the holy covenant.

Dan 11:31

Forces from him [KS] will arise, desecrate the sanctuary fortress, and do away with the regular sacrifice. And they will set up the abomination of desolation.

Dan 11:32

By smooth words he [KS] will turn to godlessness those who act wickedly toward the covenant, but the people who know their God will display strength and take action.

Dan 11:33

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.

Dan 11:34

Now when they fall they will be granted a little help, and many will join with them in intrigue and/or hypocrisy.

Dan 11:35

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.

Dan 11:36

 ¶"Then the king [KN] will do as he pleases, and he [KN]will exalt and magnify himself above every god and will speak monstrous/wondrously surpassing things against the god of gods; and he [KN] will prosper until the indignation is finished, for that which is decreed will be done.

Dan 11:37

He [KN] 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.

Dan 11:38

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.

Dan 11:39

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 will cause them to rule over the many, and will parcel out land for a price.

Dan 11:40              

 ¶"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.

Dan 11:41

He will also enter the Beautiful Land, and many will fall; but these will be rescued out of|by his hand: Edom, Moab and the foremost of the sons of Ammon.

Edomites: Descendants of Esau, brother of Jacob/Israel (Gen 25:30; 36:8, 9)
Moabites: Descendants of Lot, Abraham’s nephew (Gen 19:37)
Ammonites: Descendants of Lot, Abraham’s nephew (Gen 19:38)

Therefore all relatives of/to “Israel” though not then themselves Israelites. As pointed out in this sermon [23:09-27:04], the informal spiritual “Gentile” followers of God and/or His Righteous ways though living among heathens. (Isa 11:14) Cf. also this post-Shaking Davidic Restoration (Isa 11:1) in Amos 9:11, 12 (cf. Acts 15:13-19).

Dan 11:42

Then he will stretch out his hand against countries, and the land of Egypt will not escape.    

Dan 11:43

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.

Dan 11:44

But rumors from the East and from the North will dismay him, and he will go forth with great wrath [=Isa 63:1-6; Rev 14:10] to destroy, and devote to (utter) destruction, many. [=Rev 14:17-20]

Dan 11:45

He will pitch the tents/habitations of his royal pavilion in the midst of the seas,* due to the beautiful** Holy Mountain. (=Dan 2:34-35, 44-45; Zech 8:3ff; cf. Rev 21:9-10ff)*** And|But|Then|That is, he will come to [this] his end, and|but|then|that is no one will help him. (I.e., either (e.g.,): EW 286.1 or Mal 4:6c (cf. here). See more on this Final (Super-Power) Kingdom of Daniel 2 in this dedicated post. 

* This “midst of the seas” planting/positioning for God’s restored (Spiritual) Israel then (=Isa 24:14-16a; discussed here) will be different from where/how God had priorly, strategically, position Ethnic Israel (Ezek 5:5), but, in that eschatological re-position|locat-ing of His restored Israel, God will then still be doing so for the then applicable strategic reasons. (See e.g., Ev 76.4-78.1ff; Gen 19:18-25, 29-30) moreover as, in our technologically advanced days where obstacles to communications and travels have virtually been removed, this will not come to hinder God’s still influential & benefitting, testimony (See here|here =Matt 24:14) and certainly not His (even if merely natural) “terra-firma” earth-judging (e.g., Isa 24:1-13, 16b-23) plans here.

** Cf. Dan 8:9 = by process of elimination, probably the North (or West); “Land” = Dan 11:16, 41.

*** =Mount Zion: Psa 2:6; 15:1ff; 48:1-2; 78:68; Isa 11:9; 24:23; 37:31-32; 56:6-7; Joel 2:1; Micah 4:1-7ff; Heb 12:22; Rev 14:1; 2SG 32.

-As it was discussion-respondingly stated here: Hebrew Parallelism in Dan 11:45 easily can define what that “end”, (-which Hab 2:3 (NASB) rightly shows can be genericly understood as a “goal|objective”), by showing that this End Goal/Objective of the King of the North, (which, as presented above in regards to the charting’s indications) was indeed timely explicitly stated (or alluded to) at the “Apocalypse chart”-“ending” segments of (Dan 11:9), Dan 11:13, (Dan 11:17), Dan 11:27, 35, 40), was in, (as stated above):

 ‘the King of the North having manage to set up the tent|habitations of his royal estate in the midst of the seas and all due to the Glorious Mountain (=the NJK`s HC (-Rev 15) due to its Israel of God (Rev 7) Remnant Gathering (Rom 10:13-15, Sacrificial Gospel-Following (Isa 52:7ff; cf. Rom 10:16ff) Church Triumphant Mount Zion congregation -Rev 14)’.

_____________

Dan 12:1-2
Once the (Eschatological) King of the North has ‘reached his end’, which now is to establish the Triumphant Temporal Zion Kingdom of God, all to duly, properly provide the Matt 24:14 global/national testimony, as soon as that righteous “end” it reached, meaning whenever it tangibly begins, then will “surely” begin the persecution of those who are desiring and endeavoring to accomplish it (=2 Tim 3:12), thus their, by now, “Great” time of Trouble. And surely at the very start of such works, in order to not allow them to “get off the ground”. And so it is in this ensuing reactionary development that Dan 12:1-2 is stipulated. And with actually only “many” and not “all” being said to be “resurrected” then, and with the imagery here resembling greatly what took place when Stephen was stoned (Acts 7:55-56), it is Spiritually (1 Cor 2:6-16), Prophetically perceived here that this is where, as in 34 A.D., the specific point where God’s prior professed people are officially and sealingly rejected, now applying to the rejected SDA Church along with the wider Christian Church who both are then fully entrenched in their common, “overmastering”, Mark of the Beast deception (2 Thess 2:9-11), including a most “special/snareful” one for SDA’s (EW 266-269), in fact “Omegaly” even deceivingly more subtle, now being garbed in “zealous Sabbath & Second Coming, albeit, “halving”, overtones” (=EW 36.2; 2 Cor 3:7-18) than what had been warned in that SOP passage, which indeed has now caused most of the Church to deservingly fail this thorough Shaking. Only the fully-sealed 144,000 will be standing as God’s righteous people then (Dan 12:3, 10), and He will gloriously protect them during this times.

So the “resurrection” spoken of in Dan 12:2, is actually only the pre-utter end “Special Resurrection” where those who, in this presently in effect, non-utter end context: “Spiritually” died in faith of the True/Actual/Full Third Angel’s Message will be raised here, as well as many of those who had prominently opposed it and had Spiritually “died” (FLB 182.1-7; Mal 3:16-18). I.e., many will then be clearly shown that they had held the proper Full Righteousness|Sabbatical faith, while others (including these ones) will be shown that they had been fighting Christ and His Truth. And this is all pointedly when the Israel|Zion-Army “resurrection” prophesied in Ezek 37 (see here) transpires all to fight this Battle of H/Ar-Mageddon, which will all revolve around (truly) Righteous Acts (Rev 16:15; 19:8-9) and go on to lead to this needed, Millennially Typological, Temporal|Territorial|Testimonial (EW 286.1; 9T 28.4) establishment of this Church Triumphant Zion  (Rev 14:1-5; 15:1-2; Rev 21:9-11ff =PK 722.1-730.1ff)

Color Key     

Conjugation:

@@@@@-Imperfect Tense

@@@@@-Perfect Tense

@@@@@-Infinitive Construct

@@@@@-Participle

Verbal Stem:

@@@@@-Qal

@@@@@-Niphal

@@@@@-Hiphîl

@@@@@-Hithpeel