John Calvin Commentary Daniel 11:13-14

"And the king of the north shall return, and shall set forth a multitude greater than the former; and he shall come on at the end of the times, [even of] years, with a great army and with much substance. And in those times there shall many stand up against the king of the south: also the children of the violent among thy people shall lift themselves up to establish the vision; but they shall fall." — Daniel 11:13-14 (ASV)

Here the angel prophesies about other wars. For he first describes the war that was waged by Antiochus against the Egyptians, after the death of Philopater, who left as his heir a young son named Ptolemy Epiphanes. Therefore, when he perceived the land was deprived of its king, he raised an army and invaded Egypt.

As the Egyptians lacked the strength to resist him, an embassy was sent to Rome; and we know how eager the Romans were to become involved in all the world's affairs. Intending to extend their empire even further and wider, they immediately sent to Antiochus the Great and commanded him to desist from the war. However, after many attempts, he was unsuccessful, until he engaged in a very desperate battle with Scopas and at last obtained a victory.

In the meantime, the Egyptians were far from idle. Although they hoped to subdue Antiochus's empire with the Senate's assistance, they carefully equipped an army of their own under their General Scopas. He was successful in many of his plans but was finally defeated on the borders of Judea.

The angel now describes this war. The king of Syria shall return, he says. This means that after the death of Ptolemy Philopator, he rested for a time, because his forces had been unsuccessful, and they were so completely disorganized that he had no confidence in the success of any expedition.

But he thought Egypt would give him no trouble, as it had lost its head and was like a lifeless corpse. Then he gained fresh confidence and returned to Egypt. And he shall arrange a greater multitude than at the first. He had a large and powerful army, as we have said, and a noble cavalry force: he had 70,000 foot soldiers and was still gathering greater forces.

The angel indicates the future arrival of the king of Syria after a certain period. At the end of the times of the years he shall surely come, that is, he shall break forth. The angel seems to use this expression to increase its certainty, for Antiochus initially despised the Romans because of their great distance from him, and he had no fear of what later occurred. He never supposed they possessed such boldness as to cross the sea against him.

He later adds, And in those times many shall stand against the king of the South, (or Egypt). The angel hints that Antiochus the Great would not be his only enemy; historians inform us of his treaty and alliance with Philip king of Macedon to wage this war.

Without doubt, the two kings stirred up the whole of Asia Minor, and they were so powerful together that many were prompted to join them. It seemed as if it were all over for the kingdom of Egypt, and thus the angel says, many should stand up against the king of the South.

He adds, and his sons dissipation. The Hebrews call “robbers” פריצים pheritzim. The root of this word is פרץ, pheretz, which means to break or dissipate, and sometimes to destroy.

Without doubt, the angel here uses the word to imply factious men, for the people had no other chance of remaining strong except by remaining quiet and united. The word, then, applies to those who violated that unity; for when anyone allied himself with foreign monarchs, Judea became exposed as prey to either the Syrians or Egyptians.

Some interpreters apply this passage to the younger Onias, who seized Heliopolis, took some exiles with him, and built a temple there, as we learn from Josephus and the Book of Maccabees. For he claimed that the prophecy in Isaiah 19 supported him, where it is said, And there shall be an altar to God in the midst of Egypt (Isaiah 19:19).

Without doubt, the Prophet here predicts the enlargement of God’s kingdom through the spread of his religion throughout the whole world.

As Egypt was extremely devoted to idolatry, Isaiah here shows how the pure and perfect worship of God would prevail in Egypt. It is as if he had said: Even the Egyptians, who have until now endeavored to abolish true and sincere piety, shall be added to God’s people and shall worship him acceptably.

We know the Prophet is here speaking figuratively about the spiritual reign of Christ and is always using the shadows of his own time. By the word “altar,” he simply means the worship of God. That impostor Onias, when he erected his profane temple and polluted the sacred altar, boasted that he was fulfilling this prophecy of Isaiah.

This then is the meaning of the passage: The sons — dissipaters of thy people — shall exalt themselves to establish the vision; that is, under a fallacious pretext of fulfilling Isaiah’s prediction, and yet they shall fall. It may also have an indefinite meaning, as if the angel declared that these multitudes would not come forth except by God’s secret counsel.

We know how much this thought tends to lighten the sorrow of the devout, and how much consolation it brings, when we recognize all the tumults of the world as springing from the fixed counsel of God. Then nothing appears to happen at random; instead, people are agitated because God desires to inflict his punishments upon them, and the Church is often shaken because God wishes to test and examine the patience of his people.

We may, therefore, understand this prophecy absolutely, as if the angel had said: These apostates and dissipaters never intended to fulfill this prophecy of Isaiah, and yet there was nothing confused or out of order in all these events, as God was fulfilling what he had testified through his own Prophets. Therefore, we may accept this prediction simply, just as we do other similar ones scattered throughout the prophets. We have already heard how the Prophet was forewarned of the many distresses of the Church, in order to lead the faithful to acquiesce in God's providence when they saw such disturbances throughout the world.