This morning we return to Daniel chapter 11. So if you'll find your place there, Daniel chapter 11. I'd like to ask that you think about. Think about something that is contemporary, more contemporary to us in order to maybe begin to get a grasp of what's happening in Daniel chapter 11. I want you to think about modern day, the modern day Middle East and the modern day Eastern Europe. Think about that. Think about that region of the world. Maybe even include moving into the South, include the region of Palestine and Egypt. and maybe even move east to the Indus River. Think of that territory of India and moving west across to the Mediterranean going north. Think about that area of the world today. Now, think to yourself how much that area has changed just in the last hundred years. Politically, how much that that area of the world has changed in terms of in terms of political alliances between one country and another. Just in the last hundred years, all the history of treaties that have been kept and broken, think of just in the last hundred years, that region of the world, all of the territorial changes and the changes of boundaries, changes in leadership and changes in government and government style, government structure. Think of Turkey and how much that's changed in the last hundred years. Think of Iran and Iraq, even. How much it has changed in the last hundred years. And now I'm going to add to that mix, thinking about that, the history of battles and wars just in that region of the world, the histories of conflict. I think even if you were a professionally trained historian and you were given the job of writing a history just of the last hundred years of that region of the world, that would be a life's work. Just that region of the world for a hundred years to incorporate all of the political intrigue and the battles and the changes in leadership and maybe even tracing out the genealogies of kings and queens and sons and daughters and who assumed the throne and who didn't. and why it was and wasn't a certain way. What if you had to write a work like that or what if you had to read something like that? How would you approach that study? Well, I think that you would have two tasks in front of you if you were to sit down and read through a history like that. I think your first task would be that you would have to understand the details, the facts. You would have to read names and dates. You would have to think about the progression of events. You would have to think about the chronology of events, wouldn't you, in doing a study of that kind of history? That would be your first task, just the basic facts. But you would have a second task, and you would probably have to be doing this at the same time that you're doing the first one. And the second one would be that you would have to be At times, standing back from the information and thinking about what is the big picture? What is the big picture of what's happening? Not only the names and the dates and the chronology of events, but what sort of big ideas do we get about politics? What are the big ideas, big pictures that we get maybe of even human nature in studying this history? We use the analogy of the forest and the trees, and I think that I think that that works well. We need to know, first of all, what what kind of trees are there? You go into a forest and what are the what are the species present? And what's the number of each species, those kind of facts, those kind of details, but then we also need to step back and consider the forest. With Daniel, chapter 11. what this is as this messenger has come to Daniel and is going to give Daniel this last vision before Daniel dies. Daniel is in probably his early 80s at this point, and this is the last revelation that God will give to him regarding future events. And we'll see this morning that Daniel chapter 11 is a revealing of historical detail of the times that will follow Daniel's lifetime. And so there's two tasks that I'm going to give you today. One is, and this may not seem very pleasant to you, so I know some of you enjoy history. You love to teach it. You love to study it. And so maybe this comment isn't so much for you, but I know that there's others of you that when you think about studying history, it really hasn't been a joyful study for you. Just the thought of dates and names is enough to send you running from the history section of the library. It's not really something you enjoy. But God has given us history in Daniel 11, and so I'm going to ask that you apply yourself this morning and follow carefully. God is going to give us details. He's going to give us facts. He's going to give us the particular kinds of trees that are in the forest. He's going to give us a chronology. He's going to give us political intrigue. But as we do that, as we apply our minds and think carefully and follow through with those details, we have to also be standing back, and we'll do that towards the end, and think about what's the big deal? What's the big idea that's being communicated? Why would God communicate in this way to Daniel? Why would God preserve this for us, for you to read this morning and to think about? And we'll think about that big picture. I hope that you have caught a very general idea, at least, of the book of Daniel up to this point. And just in terms of the visions that have been given, let me review that briefly for you. In Daniel chapter 2, there's a pattern that has developed in the book of Daniel. It's a very clear pattern, I think. It's a very purposeful pattern in these visions. It's not this mixed up giving of weird kinds of images and we're supposed to sort through all of that and be confused. It's a very purposeful pattern. There's a clear progression to it. And I think that's designed to help lead us along into greater and greater detail. But as the visions begin in Daniel chapter 2, the visions begin very generally. We're not given a whole lot of detail. We're given a very big, just an overall picture of what's going to happen from Daniel's time forward. Consider and remember from Daniel chapter 2, this dream that's given to Nebuchadnezzar. It's the dream of an image. It's like a statue. And this statue is made up of four different components. There's a mix. And Daniel interprets this dream to Nebuchadnezzar. And basically, the interpretation is this. Nebuchadnezzar, there will be a progression of four kingdoms that are all temporary. But after these four kingdoms, there will be the coming of a kingdom that's everlasting. And that's basically the vision. It's very general. We really don't know anybody. We're not introduced to any particular king of those four kingdoms, but we know four kingdoms and then an everlasting kingdom. That's the very general vision of Daniel 2. Then Daniel 7, there's another vision. It's the vision of the four beasts. In Daniel 7, we get a little more detail than the previous vision. Now we get something of the character of these kingdoms. If you'll look here in Daniel 7 at the beginning, the first beast who is stirred up out of the sea is like a lion and has eagle's wings, and we've talked about the characteristics that that portrayed of that kingdom. There was suddenly a second beast, and the second beast was this lopsided bear. There was a third beast, which was a leopard, and that was verse 6. It was swift and fast. And then there was the fourth beast, which was even more vicious, even than maybe all three of the first three combined. More vicious. So we're given more detail of the characteristics of these kingdoms. And we know that they're kingdoms because that's what Gabriel told Daniel. They're representing kings and kingdoms. And so what do we understand from the second vision? We understand there's an overall progression of kingdoms coming up to the time of an everlasting kingdom. But in the second vision, we are introduced to the king of the everlasting kingdom. Remember the description of verse 9, chapter 7? I watched until thrones were put in place, and the Ancient of Days was seated. His garment was white as snow. Now, we know who this is, don't we? We know who the Ancient of Days is. The hair of his head was like pure wool. His throne was a fiery flame. It's will is a burning flame. Now, verse 13, I was watching the night visions, and behold, here's the introduction to you, the King of the everlasting kingdom. Daniel says, I was watching the night visions, and behold, one like the Son of Man. We know who this is, don't we? Coming with the clouds of heaven. He came to the ancient of days, and they brought Him near before him, and then to Him was given..." Now here we understand this is no ordinary king. Somehow, some way, this is no ordinary man. Because to this man, the One who appears like the Son of Man, who comes in the clouds of heaven, to this king is given dominion. To this king is given glory. and a kingdom that all people's nations and languages should serve Him. And His dominion is an everlasting dominion. Do you see what God's doing with Daniel? He's striking that chord of Emmanuel. We don't have a complete revelation of Christ at this point, but there's that note. God Himself will come. Could it be just any mere man who would be given glory? Does God share His glory and dominion with a mere man? Or must this be someone special and unique? The king of the everlasting kingdom. So we're given a little bit more detail at this point. Next, Daniel chapter 8. This next vision gives us a little more detail. At this point, we know there is a progression of four kingdoms followed by an everlasting kingdom. Now we've been introduced to the king of the everlasting kingdom, and now in the vision in chapter 8, we're given a little bit more detail on two of the temporary kingdoms. Those kingdoms were represented by a ram and a goat. And what happened to those two kingdoms? What was the interpretation? The goat conquers. We begin here at the beginning of chapter 8. In the third year of the reign of the king of Belshazzar, a vision appeared to me, Daniel. in this vision of the ram and goat and this conflict between the ram and goat. And in verse 15, Gabriel comes to give him the understanding. He says in verse 20, the ram which you saw having the two horns, they are the kings of Media and Persia. So the Median Persian kingdom is the ram. And in verse 21, the male goat is the kingdom of Greece. Now, what's the point of this vision? The point of this vision is to give you detail of a king who will arise in the last part of the Greek kingdom or the latter part of the Greek empire. You remember the description of that last king? Notice in verse 23, in the latter times of their kingdom, that is the kingdom of Greece, when the transgressors have reached their fullness, a king shall arise. having fierce features who understands sinister schemes. His power shall be mighty, but not by his own power. He shall destroy fearfully." Now, previously, I identified that king as Antiochus Epiphanes, Antiochus IV. God made a point, and we didn't really understand perhaps all the reasons why God did this, but he pointed out and wanted to bring our attention in more detail to Antiochus Epiphanes, to Antiochus IV. This last great, tremendously vicious ruler of the Greek Empire, he's a violent man and he's an arrogant king. And so then the vision ends at that point. And then we came to Daniel chapter 9. And you see the pattern, you see the progression of increasingly, of increasing in detail. In Daniel 9, Daniel is praying for release from bondage and God gives the answer. Now we're given even more detail regarding the king of the everlasting kingdom. Now we're given a picture of the work of the king. Now we know from Daniel 9, not only is he given glory and dominion in a kingdom, and he's given an everlasting dominion and kingdom, and not only do we know that all nations and peoples will serve this king, but now we know from Daniel 9 that this particular king has an unusual work. He suffers. The vision told Daniel or indicated to Daniel that this king, though mighty and though glorious, would be cut off for the deliverance of his people. We're given a little more detail on the work, the particular kind of work that this king will come and accomplish in delivering those who believe in him from bondage. The true deliverance, the true forgiveness of sins. is answered in this vision of the 70 weeks. And so now we come to where we are this morning, to Daniel chapter 11. Now, before we get into it, what would you expect to have in this last vision? You're going to have more detail. And that's a part of what makes Daniel 11 a difficult chapter. I'll go ahead and admit that because of the great detail that's given. So we're going to have to think carefully. What we're given in Daniel chapter 11 is an amazing amount of detail regarding the progression of these four kingdoms. And God's going to focus in on two particular, if you want to call them sub kingdoms, and we'll see why I said it that way, just a particular time frame within that progression of four kingdoms. But even we could say this, excruciating detail. Daniel 11 is divided up into three sections, and this in summary is what God is revealing. The first main section of Daniel 11 is verses 2-20. 2-20 is the progression of history from Daniel up to Antiochus Epiphanes, who was originally spoken of in Daniel 8. Verses 2-20, again I'll say this for you, is again the progression of history in detail from the time of Daniel up to Antiochus IV. The second section of Daniel 11 is verses 21 through 35, and that focuses in on the rise and reign of Antiochus IV. And then the last section, verses 36 through 45, is the fall of Antiochus. Now, in saying that, I've already tipped my hand a little bit as to how I think the chapter ought to be interpreted. And we'll talk about that next time we have opportunity to study in the book of Daniel. We'll go into more detail regarding Antiochus. But just for this morning, we will cover the first section up to verse 20. Obviously, the main subject of Daniel chapter 11, I believe, is this king Antiochus the fourth. And we'll look in the future, we'll look at perhaps why he gets so much press in the scripture here. Okay, are you ready to jump into the details? God has given this for our encouragement. God has given us this passage of Scripture for you who believe in Christ. He's given this passage of Scripture to comfort you. That's why He gave it to Daniel. He gave it for the people who would be alive during this time period. God gave this information, this historical detail, to comfort His people. and to reassure them. And so listen to these details with that in mind. Daniel 11, chapter 2. The messenger is speaking to Daniel, and he says to him, And now I will tell you the truth. Behold, three more kings will arise in Persia, and the fourth shall be far richer than them all by his strength. Through his riches he shall stir up all against the realm of Greece. Stop. What does this mean? The messenger comes to Daniel and basically says, there will be three more kings after Cyrus. Cyrus, as you know, as Daniel identifies in the beginning of chapter 10, he's writing this. He got this vision during the time of Cyrus. The messenger comes and says, Daniel, there will be three kings that follow Cyrus. But the third one is the focus of this verse. The third one, you notice, is going to be rich. He's going to be powerful. He'll be more powerful than the three kings that preceded him. Well, who is this king who is more powerful? He's a Persian king, and he fights against Greece. Well, this king, and commentators pretty much agree on this, this king is the king known as Xerxes. Now, who is Xerxes? Turn back in your Bibles to Esther, the book of Esther, chapter 1. Xerxes. third king spoken of. He's a Persian king. He goes by another name in Esther, chapter 1, verse 1. Xerxes is also known as Ahasuerus. Esther 1, verse 1, Now it came to pass in the days of Ahasuerus. And so this is the time period, this book that we call the book of Esther, The events described in that book occur in the time period of which the messenger here says, this king who is rich and he rules by his strength and he fights against Greece. This is the king known as Xerxes or Ahasuerus. Here's the first detail given to us. Notice what happens next. Verse 3, then a mighty king shall arise who shall rule with great dominion and do according to his will. After Xerxes, another king comes. This king is Alexander the Great, who raised up the Greek Empire. At this point, from verse 2 to verse 3 is a transition. Okay, here again is this progression of kingdoms. From the Persian Empire, led by Xerxes, to the Greek Empire, led by Alexander the Great, who in verse 3 is described as the mighty king who arises. Now, let's hear what happens to Alexander. who shall rule with great dominion. He will do according to his will." And indeed, he did. By the time he was 33, he ruled the world. When he was 33, imagine. Verse 4, "'And when he has arisen, his kingdom shall be broken up and divided toward the four winds of heaven.'" And indeed, that is what we see that did happen with Alexander the Great. Now, we're looking on this back as past to Daniel. All of this is yet future. When Alexander died, his sons did not inherit his kingdom. And indeed, this was revealed to Daniel. Notice what it says. His kingdom shall be broken up and divided toward the four winds of heaven, but not among his posterity. What happened when Alexander the Great died is that his chief officers in his army inherited his kingdom. but they didn't keep the kingdom unified. This general got that part of the kingdom and this general got that part of the kingdom and it was divided up so that it was fulfilled what was spoken of here to Daniel. Not among his posterity, nor according to his dominion with which he rules. So the kingdom that followed Alexander the Great did not have the dominion that Alexander the Great enjoyed. It had a dominion, but it was of a lesser kind because it was broken up toward the four winds of heaven. nor according to his dominion for which he ruled. For his kingdom shall be uprooted, even for others besides these." Alexander the Great ruled for a very short period of time. He died in his early thirties. His kingdom was broken up. And that brings us to verse 5. You may have a title, and if your Bible has titles, it may say, and mine says, The Warring Kings of North and South. Maybe your Bible says something like that. What we are about to read now in verses 5 through 20 is a history of two of those sub-kingdoms which emerged after Alexander the Great. Now here's what happened. Alexander the Great died. He had two officers. One of his officers was named Ptolemy. Another of his officers was named Seleucus. Ptolemy decided he would take the kingdom of the south. So Ptolemy, after Alexander's death, took the region of Egypt and Palestine. So picture that in your mind. He took this area of North Africa and came up the coastland of the area that we know of today as Palestine. Seleucus, another one of Alexander's officers, took a northern region, which would have included going east towards India, and then working his way west to an area today that we would know of as Iraq and Iran, Mesopotamia, and moved on west towards the northern coastline of the Mediterranean that we would know of as Turkey or Asia Minor in that area. So we have a North Kingdom and we have a Southern Kingdom. The Southern Kingdom ruled by Ptolemy, the Northern Kingdom ruled by Seleucus. And so maybe you remember from a history class a long time ago of the southern Ptolemaic kingdom or Ptolemaic empire and the northern Seleucid kingdom or empire. And that's where those names come from, from the names of these two officers who served under Alexander. That's where we are. Let's see what happens in verse five. Also, the king of the south shall become strong. There's Ptolemy. As well as one of his princes. Now, that's another officer that served under him. That's Seleucus. and he shall gain power over him and have dominion." That means that the northern kingdom was more powerful than the southern kingdom, and that indeed came to pass. "'His dominion shall be a great dominion.'" And now verse 6, "'And at the end of some years they shall join forces. For the daughter of the king of the south shall go to the king of the north to make an agreement.'" Now here's what happened. After these first two kings died, their successors came up. In the South, it was Ptolemy II. Maybe we should expect that. The king of the North was a man by the name of Antiochus II. Now, let me warn you, from this point forward, it gets really ugly. This is going to read worse than a bad soap opera. What's going to happen? We have two kings who established their kingdoms. Some years pass. Their progeny, their posterity make an agreement so that when we come to verse six, we're now speaking of Ptolemy II and Antiochus II. They decide to get into a little agreement. They're going to make a political arrangement. Ptolemy II has a daughter and her name is Berenice. Now, this may sound odd to our modern day ears, where treaties are nothing but paper. In this day, treaties were made with people sometimes. And so Ptolemy II comes to Antiochus II, king of the north. He makes an agreement. Let's say we get along. Let's say you do something for me and I do something for you and we get along and we have this peaceful coexistence. Antiochus II says, yes, that sounds good to me. And in order to seal this treaty, Ptolemy II sends his daughter, and that's the reference in verse 6, that a daughter goes A daughter of the king of the south shall go to the king of the north and make an agreement." So Berenice is sent to marry Antiochus II, king of the north. It was a political marriage, but there was a problem. Antiochus II was already married to Laodicea, and they already had children. Now, ladies, think about this for a minute. Imagine you're the queen and your husband is the ruler of a vast empire. And he comes to you one day and says, honey, I made an agreement with the king of the south today. And you say, great. And he says to you, well, and that, by the way, because of this agreement, I get to marry his daughter. You're probably not going to be too happy because now this daughter is the queen. And it's their children who are the heirs to the throne." Well, it gets worse. Let's see what happens. It says, verse 6, "...at the end of some years they shall join forces with the daughter of the king of the south shall go to the king of the north and make an agreement, but she shall not retain the power of her authority." Now, what happened to Berenice? She was to go as queen, but the Scripture predicts here that she will not retain the power of her authority And neither he nor his authority, the man she married, nor his authority shall stand, but she shall be given up with those who brought her, and with him who begot her, and with him who strengthened her in those times." Something happens to Berenice, and this is indeed what happened from a study of history. Ptolemy II, after he gave his daughter away in marriage, died. And so Antiochus II, he's stuck in this political marriage, His former wife is not too happy about this. And Tychus II decides, you know what, now that this man that I made a treaty with, I don't have to stay married to his daughter. Now that he's dead, it doesn't matter anymore. So what Tychus II decides is that he will divorce Berenice and take back his wife Laodicea. But Laodicea was not at peace with this. And I think you can imagine why. According to Laodicea's thinking, Antiochus II had to die. And that's indeed what happened. She ended up, though being remarried to the king, poisoned him. But that wasn't enough for Laodicea. She arranged for one of her own sons that she had had with Antiochus II to go and murder Berenice and her infant son. who would have been the rightful heir to the throne. Laodicea sends her own son to murder Berenice and Berenice's infant son that she had had with Antiochus II. So now, you see what's happened, and it fulfills the scripture that this daughter who goes does not retain her authority. She's given up, along with those who tried to strengthen her. And so that now, according to this working of Laodicea, Berenice is dead, her son is dead, and Antiochus II also has been murdered. Well, the son that was sent, the son of Laodicea who was sent and did this murderous act, he now assumes the throne of the northern kingdom. And that's the point that we're at here. But let's see what next happens. Verse 7. But from a branch of her roots, that is Berenice, that is from her family line, one shall arise in his place and shall come with an army. Now, what do you think would be the response of the southern kingdom? Berenice had a brother who lived in the southern kingdom. Berenice's brother was named Ptolemy III. When he received news that his sister Berenice had been murdered, what do you think his response was? Revenge. And that's exactly what the scripture says. He shall rise up in his place and shall come with an army into the fortress of the king of the north and deal with them and prevail. This was revenge. for the death of Berenice. Berenice's brother, Ptolemy III, rises up, gathers an army, goes to the north, and he kills Laodicea. Well, what do you think would happen after that? The family of Laodicea now wants revenge. So what's going to go back in the other direction now? It's this back and forth, constant. You did this to me, now I'm going to do this to you. You did that to me, now I'm going to get you back. And so now we are at verse 8. Ptolemy III comes, and he shall also carry their gods captive to Egypt, that is, he carries them back to the south, with their princes and their precious articles of silver and gold, and he shall continue more years than the king of the north. Also the king of the north shall come to the kingdom of the king of the south. Now, this is one of Laodicea's sons. Seleucus II rises up, gathers an army, goes to the north. He wants revenge. He goes to the south. But what happens to him? Verse 9, he goes to the king of the south, but shall return to his own land. That means that Seleucus II, who wanted revenge for the death of his mother, Laodicea, went down for revenge and is utterly defeated by Ptolemy III. Ptolemy III turns him around and sends him with his bags packed back to the north. But Seleucus II himself had sons. And that's what we read about in verse 10. However, his sons, that is the sons from the northern kingdom, shall stir up strife and assemble a multitude of great forces. And one shall certainly one of those sons shall certainly come and overwhelm and pass through. And then he shall return to his fortress and stir up strife. OK, are you are you still with me? These are details. It's like a soap opera of revenge and murder and intrigue. One of those sons from the North was called Antiochus III. Who do you think was one of his sons? You see where we're going with this? We're now down, we've worked our way to the one who is the father of Antiochus IV. Antiochus III was also known as Antiochus the Great. His dad was defeated by the king of the South, but he's not going to let that go. He can't rest with that and so he goes to the south and gains control. It says here, he assembles a multitude of great forces and he overcomes, he overwhelms, he passes through. Now what do you think is going to happen after that? Verse 11, the king of the south shall be moved with rage. Now here's the next act of revenge. The south is now going to go back to the north and take again another revenge. This king who was enraged in verse 11, his name was Ptolemy IV. And what a warrior this man was and how enraged he was. He goes now to fight and take revenge against Antiochus the Great, Antiochus III. And it's estimated that Ptolemy IV raised an army that he brought out to that battlefield 70,000 infantry and 5,000 cavalry and 73 elephants. That was the C-130 transports of that time. He was well supplied. And in this great battle, Antiochus the Great, we notice they go out to fight in verse 11 with the king of the north. The king of the north, who is Antiochus the Great, musters a great multitude, but his multitude shall be given into the hand of his enemy, and indeed that's what happened. Antiochus the Great, who had previously won, now suffers the loss of over 14,000 men in battle. Because Ptolemy had such a tremendous army. Verse 12, when he has taken away the multitude, his hearts will be lifted up, and he will cast down tens of thousands, but he will not prevail. For the king of the north will return. Antiochus the Great would not take no for an answer. And what he did, even after losing 14,000 men, he himself was not killed. He went back. and through a series of political alliances with other nations raised up an even greater army than the one that Ptolemy had and goes back. The king of the north will return and muster a multitude greater than the former and shall certainly come at the end of some years with a great army and much equipment. Antiochus had learned the lesson after his loss. He gathers a larger army than he had before and he defeats the southern kingdom. Now verse 14, Now in those times, many shall rise up against the king of the south. Also, violent men of your people shall exalt themselves in fulfillment of the vision, but they shall fall. This is a reference to the Jews alive at this time. Even some of your people will exalt themselves, and it says in fulfillment of the vision. We won't turn there for the sake of time. But just for reference, if you're taking notes, Ezekiel chapter 18 describes this. There were Jews who were disobedient, who would not trust the Lord for their deliverance, and in an attempt to gain protection from the northern kingdom, wanted to make an alliance with the southern kingdom. And that's the reference here that comes to be fulfilled. There will be some of your people, Daniel, who will think of themselves as fulfilling prophecy and try to make an alliance with the king of the south, but they shall fall. And indeed, that's what we read in Ezekiel, verse 15. So the king of the north shall come and build a siege mound and take a fortified city and the forces of the south shall not withstand him. Even his choice troops shall have no strength to resist. But he who comes against him shall do according to his own will, and no one shall stand against him. He shall stand in the glorious land with destruction in his power." Do you see what happens to Antiochus III now? He suffered a loss, and now he comes back and dominates. And now what happens, previously the land of Palestine was controlled by the southern kingdom, the Ptolemaic kingdom. But now Antiochus the Great comes, and because of his tremendous victory, Now, it says here, He stands in the glorious land. That means that the northern kingdom now comes down and takes control of the land of Palestine. Antiochus has extended his reach. Okay. You doing okay? The details. The details that God has given to us. We are now at verse 17. This is what Antiochus does now. He's not satisfied. Even with all the victory He has, He still wants more. So in verse 17, He shall also set His face to enter with the strength of His whole kingdom, and upright ones with Him, thus shall He do. And He shall give Him the daughter of women to destroy it. Antiochus, failing to be a student of history, failing to remember the mistakes of the past, Antiochus the Great has a daughter, and her name is Cleopatra. And he gives his daughter to the King of the South to make an alliance because he wants to utterly destroy it. Antiochus the Great thinks to himself, if I give my daughter to the King of the South, well then now I've got an ally right in the middle of the enemy's camp. My own daughter will influence my enemy. But that's not what happened. Notice. He shall give him the daughter of women to destroy it, but she shall not stand with him or be for him." You know what happened to Cleopatra? She ended up siding with her husband. Imagine! She ended up siding with her husband, the king of the south, which frustrated the efforts of Antiochus, king of the north, to completely and utterly overrun the kingdom of the south. Verse 18, after this then, he changes his direction. If he can't go south fully, he will go to the north. Verse 18, after this, he shall turn his face to the coastlands, and that is the northern Mediterranean area, which had been controlled by the southern kingdom, the coastlands of that area. He shall turn his face to the coastlands and shall take many, but something happens to Antiochus. A ruler shall bring the reproach against them to an end, and with the reproach removed, he shall turn back on him. Antiochus up to this point is enjoying great victory. But when he goes north and he goes into the area of Asia Minor, he runs into one little small problem. And that problem was known as the Roman Empire, an up-and-coming empire. And Antiochus the Great runs into a Roman general. This Roman general, who was named Lucius Scipio, humiliates Antiochus and sends him with his bags packed. Lucius, in fact, captured one of Antiochus' sons, who was Antiochus IV, Antiochus Epiphanes, and we'll learn about him more in the next sermon. Lucius Scipio sends Antiochus back humiliated, and that's this reproach that's spoken of here in the verse. But Antiochus had an older son whose name was Seleucus IV, who was not captured, but he did not last long. Notice this attempt to collect taxes here as we'll come to the end of the section we're covering today. Verse 19, then he shall turn his face toward the fortress of his own land, but he shall stumble and fall and not be found. That's the end of Antiochus III. He went back and dies. In verse 20, there shall arise in his place one of his older sons, who imposes taxes on the glorious kingdom, that's Israel, but within a few days he shall be destroyed, but not in anger or in battle." And that's where we're going to end today. What happened is that Seleucus IV had this brilliant idea of attempting to raid the temple treasury, and it's not really clear as to what happened. What he did is actually he sent one of his prime ministers to collect the temple treasury, Something happens there and there's there's this legend, something like I think according to Jewish legend, this prime minister came and actually saw an apparition of some kind and was turned away from the temple. And I don't put too much stock in that, of course. But anyway, he comes back and ends up poisoning his boss. Look, I'm not going to do this and ends up killing. And Seleucus IV, and so the verse there ends that he lasts for a few days, but he's destroyed. He's poisoned. After this point, then, Antiochus IV will raise up. Okay, what's the point of all this? What amazing detail. She did this. He said that. He does this. He murders her, and then her family responds in revenge. the progression and the genealogies and the political intrigue and the murder, the lying, the cheating, the stealing. I think what it is, it's an illustration of God's direction of humanity. Now, ask yourself this question. How is it that God knows that all this is going to happen? How is it that God can say with certainty to Daniel, through this vision, that this is exactly what's going to happen to this detail unless it is God Himself who is directing this. Antiochus IV, that is, Antiochus Epiphanes, whom we will read beginning in verse 21, has already been revealed in Daniel chapter 8. God had already said, I'm going to raise up a king who will be towards the end of the Greek empire. How is it that God can guarantee that? Is God hoping that he's just going to be lucky enough that things will fall out that way? Or is it indeed true that God Himself is directing not only the big picture, but all of the small steps in order to get Antiochus to where He wants him to be? What does it take for Antiochus Epiphanes to appear on the scene? It's just what we've been through. All of those steps are necessary in order to raise up a man who would be known as Antiochus Epiphanes, sacrifice a pig on the altar of God in the temple and that sacrifice that would be known of as the abomination of desolation. To bring all of this to pass, God has to not only be in control of the big things, but God has to be in control of the very, very small, excruciating details. And that's exactly what God is showing to Daniel. The fact that God reveals these steps before they have even happened shows that it's He who is the true Director of all of history. What would you think if you were alive at this time period? What would be your temptation to think? You'd say you're a Jew. You're a Jewish man or a Jewish woman, and you're right in the middle of the two kingdoms. You're in the land of Palestine. Your land is the battlefield between the King of the North and the King of the South. Do you think it would be your temptation to think, Where is God in all this? The Gentiles are running rampant. God, where are you? And God previously, before it even happens, reveals exactly what's going to happen. God uses kings and queens. God uses military equipment. He uses whatever means at His disposal. In the midst of all of this political intrigue, how is Daniel supposed to be encouraged? How are the Jewish believers after Daniel supposed to be encouraged with these details? They are to be encouraged in this way that in the midst of it they understand the Gentiles are only accomplishing God's purposes. And so I can stand with courage and see that it is not that somehow Cyrus does just whatever he wants. It's not that Antiochus the Great is a free agent doing whatever he wants in this universe. He's a tool in the hand of God. It was previously revealed that he would do these things. He's fulfilling the plan of the High King. I want you to consider something. Turn back to Jeremiah. Jeremiah, a prophet, is also given a vision of this future. You know, if you're familiar with the book of Jeremiah, that Jeremiah is given this revelation of the coming time when the Gentiles would run over God's people, this coming time of captivity, this time of indignation, when God would be demonstrating His indignation, His wrath against the sins of His people. Jeremiah can see that. He's given information of that future. Look at what he says, though. Look at how he comforts himself when he looks to the future And he sees the rampaging of the Gentiles. That's what we've just read the details of. The rampaging of the Gentiles. Jeremiah is talking about this in chapter 10, verse 6. And as much as there is none like you, O Lord, you are great, and your name is great and mighty. Great in might. Who would not fear you, O King of the nations? For this is your rightful due. For among all the wise men of the nations, and in all their kingdoms, there is none like you. But they are altogether dull-hearted and foolish. A wooden idol is a worthless doctrine. Silver is beaten into plates. It is brought up from Tarshish, and gold from Uphaz. The work of the craftsmen in the hands of the metalsmith. Blue and purple are their clothing. They are all the work of skillful men. But the Lord is the true God. He is the living God. At His wrath, the earth will tremble, and the nations will not be able to endure His indignation." So he's speaking about this time of the Gentiles. We'll skip down to verse 17. "'Gather up your wares from the land, O inhabitant of the fortress, for thus says the Lord, Behold, I will throw out at this time the inhabitants of the land, and distress them that they may find it so. Woe is me for my hurt. My wound is severe, but I say truly, This is an infirmity, and I must bear it. My tent is plundered, and all my cords are broken. My children have gone from me, and they are no more. There is no one to pitch my tent anymore or set up my curtains. For the shepherds have become dull-hearted and have not sought the Lord. Therefore they shall prosper, and all their flocks shall be scattered. Behold, the noise of the report has come, and a great commotion out of the north country, to make the cities of Judah desolate, a den of jackals. But notice next what Jeremiah says. He says, Oh, Lord, I know the way of man is not in himself. It is not in man who walks to direct his own steps. Do you see how Jeremiah, do you see what he preaches to himself? Do you see what is to be the impact upon Daniel? in giving the details of the rampaging of the Gentiles. Daniel is to look at all of this political intrigue and to say, like Jeremiah said, Lord, I know the way of man is not in himself. It is not in man who walks to direct his own steps. The NIV puts it this way. I know, Lord, that a man's life is not his own. Jeremiah looks at the Gentiles who will come and make Judah a desolate place. And does he say, Oh, Lord, look, the Gentiles just do whatever they want to do. No, he says the Gentiles, they may have a plan in their heart, but their steps are directed by you, God. Their lives don't belong to themselves, they belong to you, God. Proverbs 16, 9, In his heart, a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps. That's where Jeremiah went. when he considered the details of what the Gentiles would do in this time of captivity, in this time of running over the land, this time of indignation of which Daniel is speaking of and giving information of in Daniel chapter 11. God is showing and is to give the comfort, listen, you're going to see all this going on, but you need to remember, the way of a man is not in himself. It is not in man who walks to direct his own steps. I, the Lord, direct the steps of Antiochus. I am the one who is in control of Antiochus Epiphanes, Ptolemy II, and Ptolemy III. They have their plans. They plan their course. But I, the Lord, determine their steps. And Daniel chapter 11 is an illustration of just how detailed God's guiding of the steps of men is. Details may not seem very exciting to you. But dear believer, you ought to be encouraged when you see this. That God is not only in control of determining the general progression of kingdoms, but God determines all of the steps of men and women in order to accomplish his ends. Now, does this mean that Ptolemy II wasn't responsible for his sin. No, he was responsible for his sin. Does this mean that somehow because God remains in control, that God is directing the steps that we have outlined in Daniel 11, that somehow Antiochus II or Antiochus III, that they're exempt from judgment because after all, you know, God made me do it? God forbid. They're responsible for their sin. But at the same time, we have to accept the other part of God's revelation that though men plan their course and they have in their heart what they want to do, if they do it or if they don't, it's up to God. If Laodicea succeeds or fails, regardless of what she wants to do, it's God who succeeds. It's God who directs her steps. Why? Because God has a plan. is a step in the plan to bring about one nation after another. Antiochus II, he's one step in bringing about the progression of the kingdoms. It is the Lord who reigns. Consider Psalm 93. Psalm 93, the psalmist declares that the Lord reigns. He is clothed in majesty. The Lord is clothed. He has girded Himself with strength. Surely the world is established so that it cannot be moved. Your throne is established from of old. You are from everlasting." Now, here's a description of what humanity does. These floods is not referring to literal water. It's referring to us. Notice what the world does. The floods have lifted up, O Lord. The floods have lifted up their voice. The floods lift up their waves. That's Daniel chapter 11. Here's the rampaging of the ocean of humanity. Verse 4, the Lord on high is mightier. Oh yeah, they rampage. Oh, they yell. They make a bunch of noise. They lift up their voice. They lift up their waves, but the Lord on high is mightier. That's what God is teaching us in Daniel 11. He's letting us listen in a little bit on just how loud those waves are. just how harsh the crashing of them is against the shore. God says, I'm mightier because through all of this, I'm accomplishing my plan. I've already spoken of it to you, Daniel. I'm the one who will raise up the Greek empire. And after them, I'm the one who will raise up the Roman empire and their kings. And here's exactly how I'm going to do it. The Lord is mightier. The Lord on high is mightier than the noise of many waters, than the mighty waves of the sea." Who is it that reigns? Who is it that remains in control? After September 11th, preachers attempted to deal with the difficulty of God's sovereignty in the light of crisis. Do you think Daniel chapter 11 describes crisis? There's murder. There's revenge. Are we supposed to somehow stand back and say, well, you know, if something good happens, well then, yeah, that's God's will. But if something bad happens, then say, well, that wasn't God's will, but He can bring good out of it. Is that where we're left? Or in fact, does the Scripture contradict this idea? In Daniel chapter 11, is God helpless? Is He somehow pushed off to the side of the stage and thinking, Oh, I really hope this works out because I had already told Daniel that Antiochus Epiphanes would appear. Or is it in fact true that God Himself is right in the middle with His hand on Ptolemy II and His hand on Ptolemy III? Though these men remain responsible for their sins, God directs. See, they all have what they want to do. They all have their plans, but it's God who determines their steps. so that he is shown to be mightier than the waves. One Southern Baptist preacher, and I'll not name him, in an attempt to explain September 11, 2001, said this, and I quote, God could have kept the terrorists from completing their suicidal missions by removing their ability to choose their own will instead of his. But to be fair, God would also have to do that to all of us. Now, basically what his point is, His point is this, that God could have prevented those 19 hijackers, but He didn't because that would have removed their ability to choose what they wanted to do. Now, do you really think He's saying that? Am I being too harsh? Am I being too harsh to say that this particular explanation has God bowing before men? Well, that's what you want to do. I can. Yes, I do have the power to stop you, but I can't because that would keep you from doing what you planned in your heart. Well, I can't change the steps that you've chosen. Listen carefully to what he says next. He says, you may hear misguided minds say, this must have been God's will. He says to that, nonsense. In a world of free choices, God's will is rarely done. Is that what we see in Daniel 11? Or is, in fact, do we see this? God is accomplishing His will through the acts of evil men and evil women. It's a mystery. I don't know how to explain that. How is it that God can direct the steps of evil men and yet Himself remain sinless? And yet them remain responsible for their sins? I don't know how that can be. But if that's what I get from the Scripture, then that's what I must hold on to. That God remains sovereign. That God remains in control. And dear believer, this is your hope. This is your encouragement. That yes, God remains in control. Am I supposed to be encouraged as I sit in this man's congregation? You know, I'm sorry to tell you, but rarely if ever is God's will ever done. Am I supposed to go home and put my head on my pillow and sleep well that night? Thinking that men rampage at their own will and their steps are not directed and God won't prevent it. God accomplishes His will. He reigns supreme. Psalm 33. Consider the words of the psalmist. Verse 10 Psalm 33, verse 10, the Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing. That doesn't sound like He's bowing to me. That doesn't sound like God bows to the will of terrorists. The Lord wants to. He brings the counsel of the nations to nothing. He makes the plans of the people of no effect. Oh, they have plans. They have in their heart a way that they would go, and God says, you won't go that way. God completely, utterly brings those plans to nothing. Of no effect, the counsel of the Lord stands forever. Do you see who rules and reigns in the universe? Do you see who's really in control in Daniel chapter 11? It's not the kings and queens. They plan within their hearts, but the Lord directs their steps. And this is our hope. This is the ground of our comfort, that God works all things according to the counsel of His will. that God works all things according to the counsel of His will. So for us to live in depression, or for us to read a text like Daniel 11 and to go out of this building and live responding to events with anxiousness or fear, is to respond to this truth with unbelief. Let's call it for what it is. If I go out of here and I'm thinking, oh, you know, Monday morning is all this stuff that I've got to do at work and I just don't know. And I'm acting like an unbeliever. To consider the work of God, to consider the detail of his providence, the reigning of him over the whole world and over all events, over the details of kings and queens. Why would I then go out and think, well, the details of my life are beyond his control? That somehow I've got to make it on my own. If God can't control 19 hijackers, can God save me? Dear believer in Christ, where were you before you came to Christ? What was the plan of your heart? Were you seeking Him? The Scripture says no one seeks Him. Before God regenerated your heart, were you seeking after Him? Did you love God? Were you trying to find Him and really to find truth? Or did God, by His loving providence, Conquer your heart. You see, this is a truth which we ought to rejoice in. Not try to explain away. This is the foundation of our hope. That God came to me, whom He called His enemy, and He slayed me. Gloriously slayed my unbelieving heart. And overcame what I wanted and changed what I wanted. And gave me a new heart where His law is written. So where before I loved to disobey and I loved my transgressions, but now I love to obey and I seek to obey. For you who believe in Christ, this is your ground of a foundation of hope to worry about what you will eat, to worry about what you're going to wear or where you're going to live is unbelief. Because God has revealed that He controls even the sparrow that dies and falls from a tree. Chapter 11 is almost 400 years of sparrows falling from trees. God's hand is there to live and believe and respond to life as if God is not directing your steps and the steps of those around you is to be at that point acting in unbelief and in denial of what the Scripture has plainly declared to you. Confess it as what it is and replace it with the truth of this text. The foundation of hope for Daniel. The foundation of hope for the Jewish believers who would be alive during this terrible time period. And the foundation of your hope is in the sovereignty of God. The foundation of you rebuking fear is the loving and wise control of God of all events. You get rid of that and you've gotten rid of your hope. The foundation of your turning away from your tendency to depression and worry. The foundation of you turning away from that is the truth that the Lord reigns over nations. That He reigns over people. That He reigns over your circumstances. Dear believer, you ought to be encouraged today. Go back, I encourage you. Think about the details of Daniel 11 and be encouraged. Because the God who reigned during that time period is the God whom we've come to worship today. He is the God who lives and reigns today. The God today that we sing praises to is the same God who stands on this stage of humanity. And you may be tempted like Daniel. You may be like other people of Daniel's time period. You may be tempted to look around you and be discouraged. You may be tempted to look around you and to tend towards worriness, fear and anxiety and depression, but you need to preach to yourself the truth that God reigns, down to the smallest detail of your life. You ought to be encouraged, because this God loves you and has accomplished the detail of sending His Son to die. And through all of humanity, All the people that He could have come and placed His love on for you who believe in Christ, out of all He met, He came to you and said, I will love this one. And He arranged all the details for someone to give you the Gospel. He arranged for that particular detail for you to have a copy of the Scriptures in your hand to read. He arranged that detail for a preacher to speak to you, for a parent to share the Gospel with you, because He loves you. God is saying to Daniel, My love reigns. And though you may not understand it, and though there is mystery to it, My living will and My will which is all wise will always conquer. The waves rage, Daniel. The waves are bad. They make a loud noise. But I'm mightier. This God loves us. Let's pray. Father, we thank You for the time in Your Word. Lord, give us grace not to sacrifice Your sovereignty. Lord, but to rejoice in You as You have revealed Yourself to be. And Father, it is in You that we find our hope. We find our place of rest. Lord, that You reign supreme. Lord, that You not only control the quote-unquote big things in our life, but Lord, are Lord of the small details of our lives. And so, Lord, we stand with great encouragement and courage, because Your will will be done. Lord, Your promise to save us will be accomplished. Lord, Your promise to move us along in our sanctification will be accomplished. Lord, Your promise to give to us an inheritance of heaven will be accomplished. Lord, we rejoice to think that no one will thwart Your will, even ourselves. But You reign and will fully and finally one day bring us to Yourself in a glorified state. Lord, You will accomplish Your plan. Father, looking back, we rejoice to see the plan that You had in bringing Messiah. of arranging all the details to bring out the fullness of time into which the Son of God would come. That time, the darkest of midnight in which He would come to save His people. Lord, we rejoice to see how You were the master of detail. Lord, because in the working out of Your plan, You brought to us a Savior. Lord, in Him we place our trust. We thank You for placing us in an everlasting kingdom. We thank You for placing us in the Beloved, in the High King of Kings. We rejoice in Your plan. Father, give us grace to rest in Your will, to trust Your wisdom, to trust in Your goodness, We pray these things in Jesus' name, Amen.