Diving into Daniel - The King of the North Prevails (For a Time)
Daniel 11:14-16 - Various players allow for Antiochus III the Great to win, but these territorial disputes are very temporary things in the great arc of Earth time.
“Now in those times many will rise up 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. Then the king of the North will come, cast up a siege ramp and capture a well-fortified city; and the forces of the South will not stand their ground, not even their choicest troops, for there will be no strength to make a stand. But he who comes against him 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 hand.”
Daniel 11:14-16 NASB1995
So others rise up to fight against the king of the South; some of these “violent” ones come from the Jewish people in the “beautiful land”. The term “violent” is translated as “robbers” in the KJV. Precept Austin has been my go-to resource for Daniel 11:
Now in those times - This phrase amplifies the previous passage describing after an interval of some years.
Many will rise up - The Macedonians under Philip V of Macedon and the Jews ("violent ones") living in Israel joined Antiochus III the Great in opposing the Egyptians. Evidently some of the politically zealous Jews believed that they could gain more freedom if Antiochus III succeeded, but that did not happen.
Wikipedia records some details explaining why Philip V of Macedon allied himself with Antiochus III...
Following an agreement with the Seleucid king Antiochus III to capture Egyptian held territory from the boy king Ptolemy V, Philip was able to gain control of Egyptian territory in the Aegean Sea and in Anatolia. (Reference)
The king of the South - Ptolemy Philopator and his queen died mysteriously in 203BC and were succeeded by their son, the child king Ptolemy V Epiphanes (203-181BC).
Violent ones (Literally = "the sons of the violent ones") among your people - "Violent ones" (pariys) was used in OT to describe robbers (Ezek 7:22). Here it is a reference to Jews who would arise to assist Antiochus in his campaign against Egypt.
In explaining "violent ones" (literally "sons of violence") the NET Bible note says...
"Son(s) is sometimes used idiomatically in Hebrew to indicate that someone is characterized by a certain quality. So the expression "sons of violence" means that these individuals will be characterized by violent deeds. (KJV = "robbers")
In order to fulfill the vision - This phrase is difficult to interpret with certainty. Dr Walvoord feels that "The reference to establish the vision is probably a prophecy of the afflictions of the Jews under Antiochus Epiphanes already recorded in Daniel 8.... (Daniel 11 - World History From Darius To The Time Of The End)
But they will fall down - This phrase refers to those who aided Antiochus III.
Miller explains that "Although General Scopas of the Egyptian forces was ultimately defeated, he punished the leaders of Jerusalem and Judah who rebelled against the Ptolemaic government. Scopas’ squelching of such a Jewish uprising against Egypt may have been suggested by Polybius.
Let’s look at a map of the eastern Mediterranean area and Macedonia in about 200 B.C.:
Attributed to Raymond Palmer on Wikipedia, released to the public domain
So Philip V of Macedonia allied with Antiochus III the Great and gained control of Egyptian territory in the Aegean and Anatolia regions in the battle against the Ptolemaic empire. This alliance is only temporary, as historical records indicate that he later allied with the Romans against the Seleucids.
The phrase “fulfill the vision” in verse 14 is difficult for Bible scholars to interpret. John Walvoord believed that it was connected to the vision in Daniel 8, which describes the evil Antiochus Ephiphanes. Those who supported the Seleucids (kings of the North) from the Beautiful Land ended up fulfilling the vision of their persecution.
More from Precept Austin (the timeframe is about 199-198 B.C.):
The King of the North will come - Antiochus III the Great
A well fortified city - Apparently a reference to Sidon, (see prophecy against Sidon in Ezek 28:20, 21, 22, 23, 24) the fortified city that Antiochus III besieged circa 199-198BC (see note below) forcing the Egyptian General Scopas, to surrender. Antiochus III had just recently defeated Scopas at the battle of Panium (synonymous with Caesarea Philippi near the headwaters of the Jordan River). Antiochus' victory resulted in the Syrian occupation of all Palestine as far south as Gaza.
NET Bible notes that...
This well-fortified city is apparently Sidon. Its capture from the Ptolemies by Antiochus the Great was a strategic victory for the Seleucid kingdom.
Walvoord records that...
The Egyptian armies led by Scopas were defeated at Paneas, near the headwaters of the Jordan River. Antiochus III subsequently forced Scopas to surrender at Sidon, referred to as “the most fenced cities,” literally “a city of fortifications,” which the Seleucid king captured in 199-198BC. This victory resulted in the Syrian occupation of all Palestine as far south as Gaza. (Daniel 11 - World History From Darius To The Time Of The End)
Wikipedia adds that Scopas
Was appointed to the chief command of the army in Coele-Syria (the region of southern Syria disputed between the Seleucid dynasty and the Ptolemaic dynasty) where he had to make head against the ambitious designs of Antiochus III the Great. At first he was completely successful, and reduced the whole province of Judaea into subjection to Ptolemy V Epiphanes, but was afterwards defeated by Antiochus III at the battle of Panium. Shutting himself up within the walls of Sidon, after an ineffectual attempt by Ptolemy to relieve him he was ultimately compelled by famine to surrender (Polybius XIII.1-2, XVI.18-19, 39; Josephus, Antiguities XII.3.3; St. Jerome, ad Daniel 11:15-16). (Scopas of Aetolia)
The forces of the south will not stand their ground - The KJV says "the arms of the south shall not withstand". This description may allude to the unsuccessful attempt of 3 Egyptian commanders to liberate Scopas who was besieged at Sidon.
Sidon is in present-day Lebanon and is the third-largest city in that country (the photo above is of a seaside fortress ruin in Sidon). So this battle results in the Seleucid empire taking control of the region all the way down to Gaza. This is an historical turning point, as the forces of the Ptolemaic empire never take control again in Palestine and Phoenicia. No one stands against Antiochus III and he will do as he pleases and visits the “beautiful land” for a time with “destruction in his hand”. A final excerpt from Precept Austin:
Beautiful land - The land of splendor. The land of glory. The glorious land of Israel (Da 11:41,45 8:9 Isa 8:8, Jer 3:19, Ezek 20:6) Upon the surrender of Scopas to Antiochus III at Sidon, the Holy Land became the permanent acquisition of the Seleucids (Syria) and was never again under the dominion of the Ptolemies of Egypt.
Miller writes that "With the defeat of the Egyptians at Sidon, Antiochus (“the invader”) acquired complete control over Phoenicia and Palestine. Although Palestine had come under Antiochus’s control for a brief time previously (ca. 219–217BC), now the “Beautiful Land” (Palestine; cf. Da 8:9; Ezek 20:6) would become a permanent possession of the Syrian Empire. This fact is extremely important because it sets the stage for the reign of terror to follow under the Syrian Greek ruler Antiochus IV Epiphanes. (Miller, S. R. - Daniel - New American Commentary, 18)
Beautiful (6643) (tsebi) - 18x in 18v in the NAS - Beautiful(3), beautiful(4), beauty(4), glorious beauty(2), glory(5).
2 Sam 1:19; Isa 4:2; 13:19; 23:9; 24:16; 28:1, 4f; Jer 3:19; Ezek 7:20; 20:6, 15; 25:9; 26:20; Dan 8:9; 11:16, 41, 45
With destruction in his hand (NIV "will have the power to destroy it") - This phrase indicates that while he clearly had the capability to destroy any who opposed him, when Antiochus IIIentered Jerusalem in 198BC, the Jews welcomed him as a "deliverer and benefactor" (Gleason Archer) and as a result he was well disposed towards the Jews. He did however punish Jews who were pro-Egyptian.
Nothing lasts forever, of course, and the next passage in Daniel 11 (verses 17-19) looks at the circumstances that lead to the downfall of Antiochus III the Great, with the Romans playing a part and also a woman named Cleopatra (not the most famous one). But the Ptolemaic Empire will never regain the lost territories. This will be my next devotional.
Heaven on Wheels Daily Prayer:
Dear Lord - I can see the wheels turning in this prophecy that leads to the circumstances of the Maccabee Revolt and, more importantly, the empires in place at the time of the birth of Christ. Thank you for the insights and for the scholarship on Precept Austin. Amen.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Precept Austin was accessed on 5/28/2025 to review commentary for Daniel 11:14-16.