John Calvin Commentary Daniel 11:23

"And after the league made with him he shall work deceitfully; for he shall come up, and shall become strong, with a small people." — Daniel 11:23 (ASV)

The angel points out some interruption of the wars, because Antiochus would be content for a time with Syria and would not make an attempt on Egypt. It was a significant achievement to repel the attempts of all those who wished to recover the rights of his nephew. There is no doubt that the whole country was impoverished and exhausted by the continual expense of these wars; for whenever fresh commotions arose, it was necessary to raise new troops from these provinces, and this caused very great expense.

It is not surprising, then, that Antiochus, who had a cunning disposition, negotiated a temporary peace with his nephew Ptolemy Philometor, the king of Egypt. His sister Cleopatra was still alive, and this provided an honorable excuse. The angel, then, first states the proposal of a truce leading to a settled peace between the two sovereigns.

He adds, however, the perfidious conduct of Antiochus in his friendships: During, or after these agreements, he shall deal treacherously with him. And so, while he pretended to be the friend and ally of his nephew, he still conducted himself deceitfully towards him.

And he shall ascend, and shall prevail by a small band; this means he will attack the boy suddenly. For when Ptolemy anticipated a lasting friendship with his uncle, Antiochus took the opportunity to fraudulently attack some cities with a small force.

He thus deceived his enemy, who thought all things would be tranquil for him. Consequently, when Ptolemy had no fear of his uncle, he suddenly lost some of his cities. The angel means this: he shall rise by deceit, and shall prevail without large forces, because there will be no suspicion of warfare. It is easy enough to oppress an enemy in a state of tranquillity and in the absence of all fear.