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Mike, will you open us up with a word of prayer? I will.
Holy Father, we thank you for this day. We thank you for your love for us. We thank you for the blessing that you've given us in this first day of the week to gather together as your people. We pray that you bless our time as we study your word, bless our brother as he brings it.
I pray that we will have hearts that are ready to receive and we pray that you would use it to Inform us more to the image of your son our Savior the Lord Jesus Christ. We pray.
Turn my ringer off. I just heard it go off. Right Daniel chapter 11 Gonna begin in verse 2 and I'm gonna read to verse 3 to verse 35 and then we'll start walking through it. Says now I will tell you the truth.
Behold three more kings are going to arise in Persia. Then a fourth will gain far more riches than all of them and as soon as he becomes strong Through his riches. He will arouse the whole Empire against the realm of Greece and a mighty King will arise.
And he will rule the group with great authority and do as he pleases. But as soon as he Has arisen his kingdom will be broken up and parceled out toward the four points of the compass though not to his own descendants nor according to his own authority.
Which he wielded for his sovereignty will be uprooted and given to others besides them. Then the king of the south will Grow strong along with one of his princes Who will gain ascendancy over him and obtain dominion.
His dominion will be a great dominion. Indeed after some years that will form an alliance and the daughter of the king of the south will come to the king of the north and will come To the king of the north to carry out a peaceful arrangement.
But she will not retain her position of power nor will he remain with his power? But she will be given up along with those who brought her in and with those who stirred or who sired her as Well as the one who supported her in those times.
But one of those descendants of her line will arise in this place and he will come against their army and Enter the fortress of the king of the north and he will deal with them and display great strength.
Also their gods with their metal images their precious vessels of silver and gold. He will take into captivity to Egypt and he on his part will refrain from attacking the king of the north for some years.
Then the latter will Enter the realm of the king of the south, but will return to his own land. His sons will mobilize and assemble a multitude of great forces. One of them will keep on coming overflow pass through that he may again wage war upon his Very fortress.
The king of the south will be enraged and go forth and fight against the king of the north. Then the latter will raise a great multitude. But that multitude will be given into the hand of the former and when the multitude is carried away His heart will be lifted up and he will cause tens of thousands to fall yet He will not prevail but the king of the north will again rise with great multitude than the former and After an interval of some years, he will press on with them with a great army and much equipment.
Now in those times many will rise against the king of the south. The violent ones among your people will also lift themselves up in Order to fulfill the vision, but they will fall down and then the king of the north will come.
He will cast up a siege ramp he will capture a well-fortified city and the forces of the south will not stand their ground nor Even their choices troops for there will be no strength to make a stand.
But he will come against him and will do as he pleases and no one will be able to withstand him. He will also stay for a time in the beautiful land with destruction in his hands. He will set his face to come with power on this whole kingdom bringing with him a proposal of peace Which he will put into effect.
He also will give him a Daughter of women to ruin it, but she will not take a stand for him or be on his side. Then he will turn his face to the coastlands and capture many but a Commander will put a stop to his scorn against him.
Moreover, he will repay him for his scorn. So he will turn his face to the fortress of his own land and he will stumble and fall and he will be found no more. 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. In his place a despicable person will arise in whom the honor of kingship has not been conferred. But he will come and in time and tranquility and seize the kingdom by intrigue.
The overflowing forces will be flooded away before him and it will be shattered and also the Prince of the Covenant After an alliance is made with him. He will practice deception. He will go up and gain power with a small force of people and at a time of tranquility.
He will enter the richest parts of the realm and he will accomplish what his father's never did nor his ancestors. He will distribute plunder booty Possessions among them and he will devise his schemes against strongholds, but only for a time.
He will stir up his strength and courage against the King of the South with a large army. So that 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.
Those who eat his choice food will destroy him. His army will overflow. But it but many will fall down slain as for both those Kings their hearts will be intent on evil. They will speak lies to each other at the same table.
But it will not succeed for the end is still yet to come at the appointed time. Then he will return to his land with much plunder but his heart will be set up against the Holy Covenant and he will take action and then return to his own land and At the appointed time he will return and come to the south.
But his life but this last time will not turn out the way it did before. For the ships of Cateen will come against him. Therefore he will be disheartened and will return and become enraged against the Holy Covenant and take action.
So he will come back and show regard for those who forsook the Holy Covenant. Forces from him will arrive. They will desecrate the sanctuary fortress. They will do away with the regular sacrifice and then they will set up the abomination of desolation.
By smooth words, he will turn to godlessness those who have act wickedly towards the Covenant. But the people who know their God will display strength and take action. Those who have insight among the people will give understanding to the many yet.
There will be many will fall by sword and by flame by captivity and by plunder for many days. Now when? They fall they will be granted a little help and many will Join with them in their hypocrisy. Some of those who have insight will fall in order to refine purge and Make them pure until the end because it is still yet time to come at the appointed time.
Got clear enough, wasn't it? The reason why I stopped at 35. Because there is every scholar believes and I'll get into this whenever we get to 36. There is a shift from 36 to verse 2 of Or verse 1 of chapter 12 and there's a shift to a another individual which we'll get into that once we get there so.
What we're fixing to do is is somewhat tedious in order for us to understand. What has actually taken place we have to remember. Said last week. These are the four world empires one. These are the four world empires that Daniel never deviates from.
Remember Chapter 2 these work and you see everybody see. These were the ones that were given to Nebuchadnezzar as what would be the world powers now that is a five kingdoms game. We're not going to deal with the kingdom of Messiah yet.
I do believe that puts come. That's what take place at the end of chapter 12, but we'll deal with that when we get there, but these are the four. The kingdom scheme that has always been in Daniel's mind and it happened from the time of Nebuchadnezzar.
Remember Nebuchadnezzar had some crazy dream. He nobody could tell him what it was. He wanted to tell all the fakes look not only you're going to tell me what the dream is. You're gonna have to tell me its interpretation.
They said nobody can do that. Daniel prayed and he says hey I'm gonna tell you what you actually dream. He saw the Colossus and what you may remember what the what the head was. What were the what were the metals?
What's that? All right. Not only was it gold but later in the book in chapter 7. What was the animal that it was connected to? There's a lion. It's a lion. Remember he goes from should be he gets more you have what's called Progressive parallelism what happens is as he continually gets these visions.
They're progressing in a parallel what happens when he got the Colossus it was gold. But when he gets to seven and eight, it's actually a lion. What was Persia? Silver. You may remember what the animal was this one was that was the bird, right?
No, this one. This was a bear. You may remember was significant since the bear. What happened? He was kind of hopped up on one side. And what was Greece that bronze you may remember what this guy was here.
Leopard is a supercharged memory the leopard with wings. May remember what the Roman one was. Iron and clay iron mixture of clay and remember what this animal was. I was the hybrid hybrid beast. Why do they call it hybrid?
Because if you go back and you read it says this is like no other beast. It had teeth like lion it had. All the it basically had these qualities in one One Empire and it was ruthless. It actually doesn't even call it just it was a wild fierce beast he's not because there's no animal to describe it and as each one of these is Conquered by its next one they envelop a lot of their their tactics their religions a lot of that matter of fact, I do believe the reason why.
The the fall of of the Greek Empire had a lot to do if you know anything about Alexander the Great as he conquered Persia. He had he loved Persian women. And he he began to at the later part of his life, although it was very short.
Okay, 33 years. He he began to dress like the Persians. He began to embrace a lot of the Persian stuff his the commanders did not like that his actual command. He made his commanders marry Persian women and they weren't with it.
They wanted to Hellenize the world and we'll get into that here shortly. But well, maybe their goal was to Hellenize the world not engulf each success of people that they conquered.
It was like it was like I guess Christians marrying Christians. I mean like I guess what my point is is like.
Bottom line they know that if they were to they want to Hellenize the world. They don't want it. They don't want any Persian. They don't want any Persian influence. They wanted to Hellenize the world and actually we're going to get to a person who his intent was to kill anybody.
It was not going to be Hellenized. So Each one of these this and this is the scheme he never deviates. I have to make sure you understand that so that as we get towards the end of the book you go. Wait a minute.
This isn't talking about some some 2 ,000 years later Revived Roman Empire that's going to come with this figurehead because date that would never have been in the mind of Daniel. Daniel is getting a message here that says this is the scroll of truth and it's dealing Specifically with the holy people and the holy city.
Okay, so good enough. We'll start right here in verse 2. He says now I'm going to tell you the truth. Interesting. This is what I whom I believe is the pre-incarnate Christ and he has to let him know.
I'm gonna tell you the truth. I don't think for one minute that Daniel thought he was gonna lie to him. Okay, he says I'm going to tell you the truth. Behold three kings are going to arise in Persia. Who's in power right now.
Daniel's this isn't he talking to Daniel who's in power? Yeah, same guy Cyrus and I'm gonna have to put the me here because there's a difference between him. There is the great so just there's a number of Darius's along the way and just want you to make sure when I put there's Cyrus the great is not Darius the great Cyrus.
The great is Darius the meat. Okay. Hi. His rule was roughly 550 to 530. Okay. He's telling Daniel. There's going to be three more men that will arise after him the next one would be Can be seats he would rule from 530 to 522.
Then you would have a very Insignificant dude that comes along and he has a couple of aliases you have Mardia. These are aliases. Okay Smyrna's and One in history, if you look most likely the name you will see will be Kamala.
And he only reigned for one year. It is believed not that this this is not in but in. This guy's aliases because one killed the other we really don't know what happened. But these are the same person only reigned for one year.
Very insignificant and didn't do a whole bunch but who arose after him was Darius the great and he ruled from. He said three more Kings are coming Will rise in Persia, but then it says the next part of that verse it says but then a fourth will gain More riches than them all and as soon as he becomes strong Through his riches he will arise the whole Empire against the realm of Greece.
Anybody have any idea who this person might be? Yes, sir Xerxes. Better known as who we know this person as I has your wares. Yep 486 you might correct me if I'm wrong, but I think he 424. Okay. Little brain so it's all up here.
Okay somewhere around there. He Xerxes reigned. Now this is not saying that only four kings are going to come. After what Daniel said what he's telling Daniel I wonder so because there are many that come after this you have our desert seeds.
You have Darius the second you've got Darius the third that comes along and actually gets leveled by Alexander the Great. Okay, this is specifically he's telling giving you information. That's telling you what's going to take place because he's trying to give us an understanding that Greece is coming member in the previous chapter.
What did he say he had to go do remember Greece was great significant at this point. History you may know that word history. No. They're not they did a matter of fact, it was nothing that they had that was of any value.
They didn't have anything. It's not like they had a bunch of minerals or they had stuff that that people wanted. It was just we don't understand. Why Xerxes would want to rise up and go into or other than he just wanted to expand his empire.
And that is ultimately what he wanted to do. But he wanted to expand his empire because his dad this dude failed miserably in 490. His dad wanted to go in and conquer Greece failed and Failed very bad at this point.
Greeks was all city-states. There were conglomeration. They failed miserably and In doing so when he dies Xerxes comes to power and says you know what? I'm going to go back in there and I want to go this is at 480.
He's going to go back in and we know those of you have been in here before. That were early on. What battle took place that's they've made movies over 480. The battle of Thermopylae and Artaxerxes. That was also ones where they actually the Persians were Popped pretty hard.
Okay, so Xerxes says I'm going to go back into the land. I'm gonna go back in and we can't he's gonna he's gonna cross the Hellespont and He's gonna go in and he's gonna he's gonna start conquering Greece.
Athens falls. We'll just let you know. That's what happens. So it says he's gonna stir up Greece in doing so. Okay, when he goes in and does this in 480 it causes the rise of the Macedonians. Which is what will eventually be the Grecian Empire so You have Xerxes raising up the hostility towards Greece.
That then sets the stage for Philip of Macedon. Philip of Macedon Would be Alex of Alexander the Great's dad. Okay, what happens is when he comes to power all of those city-states now. There is some obviously there's some time frame here about 50 years maybe 60 years.
There's some some infighting within between Macedonia and Greece. But then they find out that Philip of Macedon as he comes to power as a general that's put in Macedon as king. That this guy's actually a pretty smart guy militarily.
Not only is he Smart militarily he will go and as he goes into lands He would offer terms of peace before he ever laid waste to the city. He which Alexander the Great often did as well. He would go in offer terms of peace and if you didn't make terms of peace, then he would lay waste to your city and Make you a pile of rubble.
That's what that's what they did. Well Philip of Macedon then was able to Get the city-states of Greece into one group and say look Let's push back against the the Persian Empire and that is what takes place then.
That would lead to the rise. If anybody wants to write that down this would be the time to do it. I'm fixing to get rid of it that would lead to the rise of the Greeks. First this would be I'm gonna put Macedonia here too as well because that's not quite he has to he has to overthrow Greece.
Which he will do which would be Philip Philip the Great. He then He then gets all those city-states of Greece together and says hey, we're going to be fine. We're going to push back. They then go against Darius the third.
Darius the third, I'm sorry Darius the third Have a clash with him. He then is then assassinated in 336. Who's put in place? Just everybody should know this. Who's put in place? Who's put in place when he's assassinated?
Alexander. When you mention Darius the third, is that like?
Hang on just a second. I'm fixing to answer something. Go ahead. I think this might answer your question. Is that Xerxes' son? Yes, well, it's Artaxerxes. You gotta remember you have a list of from Xerxes.
You have Artaxerxes, Darius the second. Another Artaxerxes the second. Then you have Darius the third. You have a number of Persian kings that still come after. Now some of them are insignificant. He's not giving us an exhaustive time frame.
You've got to understand we're looking at if you just look at Verse 2. You have about 150 years maybe? Worth of history that's put in one verse. What chapter? 11 11. You're talking about the rise of the Persian Empire.
And then the fall of the Persian Empire. Well, no, that's 219 years because the Persian Empire was 219 years. So here's what happens. Alexander, he raises up the hostility of the Greeks. Alexander the Great comes to power in 336.
He has to handle some problems at home. He gets that. Then he starts his campaign Across the Hellespont River. He knocks Darius the Great's brain crooked. I'm sorry Darius the third Knocks his brain crooked and Sends them at the Battle of Granicus and then he sends him on and then that was in 334 and 331 he lays waste to the Persian Empire.
It's over. Persian Empire is done. Right here and this is the rise of the Persian Empire. I mean the rise of the Greek Empire. Okay, very short though very short. And remember how long his campaign crossed the river when he conquered the whole world?
12 he was 33 12 years. Well, think about that. That's not I mean older you get your man. 12 years is a blink of an eye 12 years now there was a lot of a lot of bloodshed. So in 331 it's the rise of the Greek Empire.
Yep. Greeks are now a world superpower. It says in verse 3 and a mighty king will arise and he will rule with great authority and do as he pleases. That is this guy here Who rises out of the Greek Empire and overthrow.
I mean just runs loose through the from. From basically Macedonia all the way to the Indus River. It's Alexander the Great and he has his will wherever he goes. Matter of fact even the city of Tyre seemed to be impregnable because they Nobody could capture it if you go read the book of Ezekiel Nebuchadnezzar laid siege of the city of Tyre for 13 years and could never overthrow it.
God used Nebuchadnezzar as a as a scourge against the king of Tyre. Okay, and he he couldn't overthrow it but when Alexander that comes along, you know what Alexander do he overthrows the city? Not only is over throw the city.
But they also had Tyre had an island off the coast and you know anybody know what he doesn't hit what he did in history. He he flattened the city and then he used the rubble to build a causeway all the way out to the Tyre Island so he could kill those people.
Imagine you're watching this take place. You're seeing your city. Where you thought you would have safety at this island and he is taking your city that he has destroyed you build the causeway. You see it coming right nothing you can do.
You're there's nowhere for you to go. That was Alexander the Great's tactics. It says that He will do As he pleases but as soon as he has risen the kingdom will be broken up and parceled out. Towards the four points of the compass and not to his own descendants nor according to his own authority.
Which he wielded for his sovereignty will be uprooted and given to others beside them. So here's what happens. Alexander the Great has some generals. It's broken up to into four Key places you have Ptolemy, I'm gonna have to leave this one blank for just a second because what happened is that's kind of antiqueness.
You know these or these were. Not yet. That's why I gotta leave this at this because we we're gonna show you how the Seleucid Empire came into power. But you are correct. It is going to be one of those you have Cassander Isemacus he takes Macedonia.
He takes Thrace, Asia. What we call Asia Minor. Ptolemy Takes Egypt and what happens here is Antigonus takes basically the Syrian area. Inside the Ptolemy he takes what we would say we'll just use this because this is going to be a central location.
Jerusalem okay, or if you want to say Palestine, although that's reading more back into the Palestine was not the name of to understand takes her the area of Jerusalem. Israel, okay. And taking this takes the Syrian area.
Well, what's going to draw? We're fixing to read is how the rise of this Empire Which will be the king of the north and the king of the south. Okay, that's what we're fixing to get into so these become.
It's broken up into the four winds, right? But the compass these guys become really Insignificant because that's not the location in which God it Got. What is God's central location of the world? In redemptive history.
Truth you're correct. That is correct so We'll just say here if Jerusalem's here Kingdom of the north Egypt winds up being. This is going to be the south. Because what's south of Jerusalem Africa Egypt correct?
Yeah, what's what's north of? Jerusalem or Israel Will be Syria. Which like you said Mike will be the rise of the Seleucid Empire. These are the details in which God had gave Daniel I. Maybe it's me. Okay, but this stuff's in the Bible and it's Absolutely amazing.
Hey, and just don't take my word for it. Don't take my little pea brain for it. There is no argument among conservatives or Liberal scholars as of to what this is. Zero zero debate. The problem is when did the their argument is Daniel?
No way shape form or fashion could have predicted this Two three four hundred years before it happened. That's the thing. They said there's no way it could have happened. So the details are not in in question.
It's when did Daniel get it was it in did he write it in file? 534 or did somebody else write it after the Maccabean Revolt and the egg-headed liberals would say the that Dudo Daniel the second Daniel came along and wrote it but there is no historical evidence to say that Daniel wrote it after The Maccabean Revolt because the cannon was closed when the Old Testament cannon Four hundred years before the Maccabean or three hundred years before the Maccabean Revolt ever took place.
So now. Yes, and we'll get that actually comes up towards the end of the around verse 35 or 32 through 35. So it says in verse 5 then the king of the south will grow strong Along with one of his princes.
So here's what happens. Ptolemy takes Egypt. One of it. What is it? What did somebody read it to me? What does it say one of his what princes? Don't he says he does it says one of his princes grows strong what happens is Ptolemy has a general.
He grows strong and goes, you know what I can whip this guy Goodbye the guy's name. That was his general was Lucas. This is the beginning of the Seleucid Empire and what happens is. Now we don't have to worry about any of the four winds of the earth they become insignificant.
We have the rise of the king of the north King of the south you will have a line of Ptolemy's. Actually, you know what? I could probably put it over here. Because it is in much detail. That it shows you how though the rise of this Seleucid Empire which really becomes a huge pain in the posterior for the people of God huge so you're going to have Ptolemy's one and then you're gonna have Seleucus a whole list of Seleucus's and Ptolemy's you're gonna have cool names like say in our case we go like Ptolemy the first Seleucus the second they didn't have names like that.
They didn't do like junior and senior and the third those are relatively modern editions they had cool names like Ptolemy Soter Ptolemy the Savior. They had cool names like Antiochus Theos Antiochus the God but this guy will have two sons.
You will have Seleucus and Antiochus and then Just to let you know there's just gonna be a bunch of these okay a bunch of these and a bunch of these Ptolemies. We're gonna have a bunch of them. So as we walk through and we won't get through maybe a couple of them this morning so as Seleucus grew strong he overthrew Antigonus that he takes over Syria area.
Okay, so now you basically have the rise of the Seleucid Empire against the Ptolemy Empire and He's gonna say in verse 6, but the king of the south will grow strong. Along with on his president. He will gain ascendancy over and obtain it.
I mean, okay, that's what Seleucus did. He gained dominion over that land his dominion will be a great dominion but after some years. They will form an alliance and the daughter of the king of the south will come to the king of the north to carry out a peaceful arrangement.
Clear enough, right? You see what you may see what's happened. Yeah, yeah there were all the Lysimachus who took Thrace. Cassander was the general that took over Macedonia. He actually handled things while Alexander the Great was gone.
So he just kind of rolled into power there. Ptolemy was a general. Seleucus was a general so all those were Greeks. So now what you've had like I said, it said it's that hit the the Greek Empire splintered into four.
Into four empires because nobody was there to take to fill Alexander's position nobody had the power nor did anybody have the brains to do what he did. So it's splintered and they fought against one another to try to gain control and it went on for years.
Okay, it says here after some time. There will be an alliance and the daughter of the south I'm sorry, the daughter of the king of the south will come to the king of the north to carry out a marriage.
So Ptolemy Says that he's going to go to the king of the north and he's going to do what what does it say a political marriage so he gives his daughter. He has a daughter. Her name is Bernice. He's going to give her to Antiochus Second.
Okay. It's like in all political marriages try to keep peace quit fighting. Hey, I'll give her my daughter and things will be hunky-dory and. Like in the French Revolution time and England and all that remember those kind of things happen we don't do that anymore.
I mean think about even in King Solomon, you know. A lot of his wives were given for political and gift purposes. It wasn't like he he sent out. Sent out to get 300 bridezilla's to his harem and a lot of them were given to him.
So what happens here is Bernice is given to Antiochus huge problem done huge problem. Antiochus the second is already married. He's married to Laodicea. We know what city that's named after Laodicea. He basically divorces her.
For the younger hotter wife. I mean come on with more benefits more territorial reign. Well. She's unhappy. About that. Yes, sir question. Okay. Yeah, okay so. She's unhappy. Told him he dies. Her daddy dies.
He said you know what? I don't need her anymore. I want my old wife back now that he's dead. The Alliance is over so he divorces Chick, okay. It's gonna reinstate her. She has a son so Lucas the second he's got a cool name.
He got a real cool name. So Lucas Calcaneus Progon. It means the triumphant bearded one. I was like, I like that. So she has a son. What she does is because she's still mad at this guy. She poisons her kills her and her son.
Okay, I mean look I can give you the books you want to go this is this for real. And not only she poisoned her. She's still a little bitter and sore. She poisons him too. Yeah, so. So Lucas Calcaneus Progon Comes to power.
Now that's the new guy. Problem is she has a brother. This is in the text. Huh, oh man, we're running out of time. I need about seven more hours to get through this. Told me the third told me the benefactor.
That's his sister. He ain't with it. He's like, you know what? I'm gonna go across here and I'm gonna whip them and what he does he raises up. Let's see where we at here. Uh Verse 7 but one of the Defendants of her line will arise in his place and will come against the army of the fortress of the king of the north.
So what happens her brother says I'm gonna binge my sister's death. He raises up his army. He comes over to Syria gets into their territory. He then takes over. And I think he takes over and Antioch Falls he takes over it.
They then somewhat come to an agreement. They sign a 10-year peace agreement with this guy. And what's interesting about him is and we got to go. Did you would think this guy would have died in battle and he did under that 10-year peace agreement he dies in a riding accident.
Ride the horse and dies. Yeah, yeah, so. The Jerry Springer show will continue next week. But this is what's in the text. Hey, let's say if you don't want to take my word for it I gave y 'all a list of eight thousand dollars or twelve thousand dollars worth of books last week.
My library that y 'all can look at it. I mean you can there is no I've said there is no debate of the Historical accuracy to what has taken place in this prophecy. It's the argument is there's no way Daniel could have wrote it when he did and if we not if since we believe in predictive prophecy and we know that there's a God in heaven that arranges everything and he uses means to Carry out his purposes.
Okay, then we don't have a problem with that. But over the next two weeks, that's probably how long it's going to take to get through some of this I will show you why God went through great detail to give this to us to Daniel and Why he went through our great pains of trying to understand it because it is important look every every detail Prophetically that God gives is important.
There's a reason look the person that pops up on the scene. That will persecute God that this is leading up to God is giving his people marker points. Look when you see this This is coming when you see this this is coming when you see this this is coming and why is it to do that?
Well one it's to warn those who are going to be turncoats and be Apostatized from from Yahweh to tell them don't do that. But then for those that are faithful it's for them to go. You know what God will still be faithful to his people you be faithful to the Covenant.
God will be faithful to his people. That's the reason as we get to that. You'll see that God then uses The Greek Empire to sift out the fakes. And what does God do all through history? He sifts out the fakes.
Usually through persecution, all right, we got to go we got to listen to Andy preach you'll pray for us Burt, please He's his son's.