What does Daniel 11:30 mean?

Among the Jewish history's most hated enemies is Antiochus IV Epiphanes. This passage is part of Daniel's recorded prophecy (Daniel 10:1) which foretold the rise of this dark figure. History confirms these predictions and allows us to explain them in greater detail. Recently, Daniel has noted Antiochus's return from a successful campaign in Egypt, after which he raided the Jewish temple in Jerusalem (Daniel 11:25–28). This moment in history is seen as one of the initial insults which sparked a chain of terrible violence.

The prior verse (Daniel 11:29) noted that Antiochus would once again move against Egypt, under the sovereign timing of God. This time, however, the trip would not end in victory. To that point, Antiochus IV Epiphanes had been able to focus his efforts on Egypt because the ever-growing Roman Empire was engaged in a war with Macedonia. Even though Rome traded with Egypt for grain, they could not spare armies to defend an ally across the Mediterranean Sea. As Antiochus prepared to march on Egypt once again, Rome defeated Macedonia.

When Antiochus moved into Egypt in 168 BC, a Roman delegation met them. The Roman emissary insisted that Antiochus take his forces out of Egypt and away from Cyprus, the large island north of Egypt. This area was called Kittim by the Hebrew people (Genesis 10:4–5; Numbers 24:24). Rome's ultimatum was posed as an all-or-nothing, immediate choice. Antiochus was forced to either agree to a retreat, or face war with a much more powerful enemy. In a rage, Antiochus agreed and returned his forces to their home territory.

At that time, unrest was rising in Israel, particularly in and around Jerusalem. Antiochus turned his attention to crushing this rebellion. Among his more infamous acts were forbidding Jewish religious practices, desecrating the temple with pagan rituals and the blood of unclean animals, and the slaughter of tens of thousands of Israelites. The crassest of these assaults involved replacing the altar of God with an altar to Zeus, on which a pig (Leviticus 11:7–8) was sacrificed. This is connected to the phrase "abomination of desolation" (Daniel 8:13; 11:31; 12:11; Matthew 24:15). Epiphanes's actions also foreshadow a noted figure from the end times: the Antichrist.