Daniel 11:44 - Printer Friendly

ESV: But news from the east and the north shall alarm him, and he shall go out with great fury to destroy and devote many to destruction.

NIV: But reports from the east and the north will alarm him, and he will set out in a great rage to destroy and annihilate many.

NASB: But rumors from the East and from the North will terrify him, and he will go out with great wrath to eliminate and annihilate many.

CSB: But reports from the east and the north will terrify him, and he will go out with great fury to annihilate and completely destroy many.

NLT: But then news from the east and the north will alarm him, and he will set out in great anger to destroy and obliterate many.

KJV: But tidings out of the east and out of the north shall trouble him: therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to make away many.

NKJV: But news from the east and the north shall trouble him; therefore he shall go out with great fury to destroy and annihilate many.

The last portion of Daniel's prophecy (Daniel 10:1) which corresponded to historical events ended several verses ago (Daniel 11:29–35). The recent segment (Daniel 11:36–43) looks much further forward. Since these events have not yet happened, we have less information to use in interpreting them. Other prophets, such as Ezekiel and Joel, provide suggestions but no ironclad answers. Each varying interpretation creates a branch of other possibilities. As a result, the last two verses of the chapter are subject to a wide variety of possible explanations.

The "king of the north" (Daniel 11:40) will react to some threat from the north and the east. His response will be violent—or at least that is his intent. He will get as far as the region between the sea and the "glorious holy mountain," which likely refer to the Mediterranean Sea and Zion, which is Jerusalem, only to fall (Daniel 11:45).

Some interpreters believe the new threat is the return of Jesus Christ (Revelation 19:11–15). Others picture Jewish armies supernaturally appearing to cut off the king's armies from returning home. Yet other commentators believe this refers to armies from nations such as China massing to attack the Middle East.

Still another possibility is that this threat comes from the armies controlled by the first beast of Revelation (Revelation 13:1–4). This option is often favored because it presumes that this "king of the north" attacked Israel because of Israel's treaty (Daniel 9:27) with second beast (Revelation 13:11–17).

Whatever persons or actions might be involved, the "king of the north" will meet defeat (Daniel 11:45).

Daniel 11:36–45 is part of a prophecy given to Daniel; everything he was told was to occur after his own life. Viewed from the modern perspective, most of the predictions have been fulfilled in our past. In this passage, that viewpoint shifts to the future. In the last days before the final judgment, a time of tribulation, a notable figure will honor some kind of military god. He will be attacked by armies from the north, but the leader of those armies will hastily retreat to a location between the Mediterranean Sea and Israel, where he will perish.

This chapter is most easily understood in terms of the historical events which it predicts. These include the conflicts between Ptolemaic Egypt and the Seleucid Empire up through the second century BC. This mentions the infamous Antiochus IV Epiphanes and what eventually became the Maccabean Revolt. The last portion of prophecy looks to the end times: blasphemous rulers, an invasion from the north, and a major defeat.

Daniel is receiving a prophecy, in an encounter which began in chapter 10. The substance of that prophecy is mostly given in chapter 11. This predicts the major events relating to Judea leading up to the conquest of the Roman Empire. It also begins to speak of end-times events. This leads to chapter 12 and the final prophetic remarks given to Daniel. Chapter 11 connects to other prophetic segments of Scripture such as Ezekiel 38 and Joel 2. Occurrences recorded here are also used by Jesus to depict end times events (Matthew 24:15).

The book of Daniel contains famous Old Testament stories and prophecies. Daniel was taken from the Israelite people and made an advisor for a conquering empire. He demonstrates faithfulness and wisdom during many years serving in this role. Though Daniel does not deliver a public message, Jesus refers to him as a "prophet" (Matthew 24:15). The first portion of the book mostly describes Daniel's interpretations of dreams and other events. The second portion looks ahead to the end times. Daniel is classified in English Bibles as a "major" prophet, meaning the book is relatively long and the content has broad implications. The book of Revelation echoes and expands on many of the same themes.