John Calvin Commentary Daniel 11:10-11

"And his sons shall war, and shall assemble a multitude of great forces, which shall come on, and overflow, and pass through; and they shall return and war, even to his fortress. And the king of the south shall be moved with anger, and shall come forth and fight with him, even with the king of the north; and he shall set forth a great multitude, and the multitude shall be given into his hand." — Daniel 11:10-11 (ASV)

Here the angel passes to the third war, namely, that which the son of Callinicus stirred up against Ptolemy Philopator. After the death of Euergetes, the two sons of Callinicus united their forces and attempted to recover Syria, and especially that part of it from which they had been deprived.

When they were already on their expedition, and their forces were on their march, the elder Seleucus died, and his surviving brother was Antiochus, called the Great. Ptolemy, called Philopator, which means "a lover of his father," was then alive. He was so called because of the parricide he committed, having killed both his parents and his brother.

The word is used in ridicule, and this epithet—honorable in itself and expressing the virtue of filial piety—implies a meaning opposite to what it literally states. But he slew his father, mother, and brother, and because of all these wicked murders, the name of Philopator was applied to him as a mark of disgrace.

Therefore, since he was so thoroughly hated by his own people, the sons of Callinicus, namely, Seleucus Ceraunus the elder, and Antiochus the Great, thought the time had arrived for the recovery of the lost cities of Syria. For he was detested and despised because of his many crimes.

They therefore anticipated little trouble in recovering their possessions, when their enemy was thus branded with infamy and had many enemies at home. This is the reason why the angel says of the sons of Callinicus, They shall be provoked, and shall lead a multitude of great armies; it may mean “great forces,” as some historians report the gathering of two very strong armies.

Unless I am mistaken, Antiochus the Great had 70,000 foot soldiers and 5,000 horsemen. Ptolemy excelled in cavalry as he had 6,000 horsemen but only 62,000 foot soldiers, as Polybius informs us in his fifth book. They were nearly equal in forces, but the confidence of the two sons of Callinicus, of whom alone the angel now speaks, was increased when they saw their wicked enemy so greatly detested in consequence of his parricide.

He afterwards says, He shall come. He changes the number because the elder brother, Seleucus Ceraunus, the eldest son of Callinicus, died while they were preparing for the war; they say he was killed by his attendants while passing through Asia Minor. Whether this was so or not, all historians agree that Antiochus the Great alone carried on the war with Philopator.

The angel continues, saying Antiochus shall come so as to overflow and pass through. He recovered the part of Syria he had lost, and when he approached Egypt, Philopator then met him. Secular historians describe him as a coward, stating that he obtained power not by open bravery but by fear alone. He was too late in preparing his forces to resist his enemy.

This is the reason why the angel says, The king of Syria, or of the north, should come, even to the citadels, or fortifications; for finally Philopator roused himself from slumber, for he never took up arms to repel an enemy except when compelled by extreme necessity.

Therefore, he adds, The king of the south shall be irritated, or exasperated. He uses the word “exasperated” because, as I have just said, Ptolemy would never have opposed his enemy Antiochus unless he had perceived his own kingdom placed in great danger.

He might have patiently accepted the loss of Syria as long as Egypt remained safe. But when his life and all his possessions were in danger, he became sufficiently exasperated to attack his foe; and yet he prevailed, as we will see later.

I cannot complete this subject today, so I will draw to a close. Philopator became victorious, yet he was so sluggish that he distrusted his friends and foes alike. He was forced by this very fear to make peace with his enemy, even though he was really the conqueror.

Not only could he have driven back the enemy he had defeated, but he might also have taken possession of his territories. However, he did not dare to do this; he was conscious of being a parricide and knew full well how hateful his name was to everyone.

Therefore, although superior in strength and actually the conqueror of his enemy in battle, he did not dare to proceed further. But we will explain the remainder another time.

Prayer:

Grant, Almighty God, as you have deigned to set before our eyes as in a mirror that particular providence of yours by which you defend your Church: Grant that, being confirmed by these examples, we may learn to depend entirely upon you. Amid the many disturbances by which the world is now agitated, may we remain quiet under your protection. May we so commit our safety to you that we never hesitate, whatever may happen, about our future safety and security. Whatever we may suffer, may it all result in our salvation, while we are protected by your hand; thus we will call upon your name with sincerity of mind, and you will in return show yourself as our Father in your only-begotten Son. — Amen.

[Exposition continues from previous day's lecture]

In our last lecture we explained why the angel mentions the exasperation of King Ptolemy. Unless he had been dragged into the war, his disposition was so sluggish that he would have allowed many cities to be seized from him, and he would never have been moved by either the disgrace or the loss.

But at last he took up arms. On seeing what a stern and bold enemy he had to deal with, the angel later adds, He shall go out to battle against the king of the North, meaning Antiochus king of Syria. And he shall set in array a large multitude. This may be referred to either of them, for Antiochus then brought into the field a large army; he had 5,000 horsemen and 70,000 foot soldiers.

Ptolemy was superior in his cavalry, which amounted to 6,000 men. The prophetic statement, He shall bring into the field a great multitude, and the multitude shall be given into his hand, meaning into Ptolemy’s hand, could refer to Antiochus bringing the multitude that is then given to Ptolemy. The context seems to flow more easily this way.

Yet, if anyone prefers to consider this statement as applicable to Ptolemy himself (that Ptolemy shall bring forth a multitude, which is then given into his own hand), I will not argue the point. It is not very important, because the angel simply declares Ptolemy’s superiority in this battle, in which he conquered Antiochus the Great.

Besides, we must note that he was not the conqueror through his own effort, valor, strategy, or military skill, but because the Lord, who regulates the events of battles, wished at that time to subdue the pride of Antiochus the Great.