Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Daniel 11:15
So the king of the north shall come, and cast up a mount, and take the most fenced cities: and the arms of the south shall not withstand, neither his chosen people, neither [shall there be any] strength to withstand.
So the king of the north – Antiochus the Great.
Shall come – Shall come again into these provinces. This occurred after he had vanquished the army of the Egyptians at Paneas. He then took Sidon and Patara, and made himself master of the whole country. – Prideaux, iii. 198. This happened 198 b.c. Scopas, a general of Ptolemy, had been sent by him into Coelo-Syria and Palestine, with a view of subjecting those countries again to Egyptian rule. He was met by Antiochus at Paneas, near the sources of the Jordan, and defeated, and fled with ten thousand men to Sidon, where he fortified himself, but from where he was expelled by Antiochus.
And cast up a mount – A fortification. That is, he shall so entrench himself that he cannot be dislodged. The reference does not seem to be to any particular fortification, but to the general fact that he would so entrench or fortify himself that he would make his conquests secure.
And take the most fenced cities – Margin, city of munitions Hebrew, city of fortifications. The singular is used here in a collective sense; or perhaps there is allusion particularly to Sidon, where Scopas entrenched himself, making it as strong as possible.
And the arms of the south shall not withstand – Shall not be able to resist him, or to dislodge him. The power of the Egyptian forces shall not be sufficient to remove him from his entrenchments. The Hebrew is, shall not stand; that is, shall not stand against him, or maintain their position in his advances. The word arms ( zerooth) is used here in the sense of heroes, warriors, commanders, as in Eze 30:22, Eze 30:24-25.
Neither his chosen people – Margin, the people of his choices. Those whom he had selected or chosen to carry on the war – referring, perhaps, to the fact that he would deem it necessary to employ picked men, or to send the choicest of his forces in order to withstand Antiochus. Such an occurrence is in every way probable. To illustrate this, it is only necessary to say that the Egyptians sent three of their most distin. guished generals, with a select army, to deliver Sidon – Eropus, Menocles, and Damoxenus. – Lengerke, in loc.
Neither shall there be any stregnth to withstand – No forces which the Egyptians can employ. In other words, Antiochus would carry all before him. This is in strict accordance with the history. When Scopas was defeated by Antiochus at Paneas, near the sources of the Jordan, he fled and entrenched himself in Sidon. There he was followed and besieged by Antiochus. The king of Egypt sent the three generals above named, with a choice army, to endeavor to deliver Scopas, but they were unable. Scopas was obliged to surrender, in consequence of famine, and the chosen forces returned to Egypt.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 15. So the king of the north] Antiochus came to recover Judea. Scopas was sent by Ptolemy to oppose him; but he was defeated near the fountains of Jordan, and was obliged to take refuge in Sidon with ten thousand men. Antiochus pursued and besieged him; and he was obliged by famine to surrender at discretion, and their lives only were spared. Antiochus afterwards besieged several of the fenced cities, and took them; in short, carried all before him; so that the king of the south, Ptolemy, and his chosen people, his ablest generals, were not able to oppose him.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Antiochus Epiphanes shall march on irresistibly and victoriously, besieging and taking fenced cities and strong holds, as Sidon, Samaria, &c., nor shall all the power of Egypt withstand him.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
15. king of . . . northAntiochusthe Great.
take . . . fencedcitiesScopas, the Egyptian general, met Antiochus at Paneas,near the sources of the Jordan, and was defeated, and fled to Sidon,a strongly “fenced city,” where he was forced to surrender.
chosen peopleEgypt’schoicest army was sent under Eropus, Menocles, and Damoxenus, todeliver Scopas, but in vain [JEROME].
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
So the king of the north shall come, and cast up a mount, and take the most fenced cities,…. That is, Antiochus the great, king of Syria, should come into Coelesyria and Phoenicia, which was the part of the kingdom of Egypt he was to have by the league with Philip king of Macedon; and this is a prophecy of his expedition into those parts, and the success of it. Scopas, a general of Ptolemy, being sent by him into Coelesyria, had took many of the cities of it, and the land of Judea; but Antiochus, coming into those parts with his army, beat Scopas at the fountains of Jordan, and destroyed great part of his forces, and retook the cities of Coelesyria that Scopas had made himself master of, and subdued Samaria; upon which the Jews voluntarily submitted to him, and received him into their city, as Josephus t relates; and Polybius u, as quoted by him, says, that Scopas being conquered by Antiochus, he took Batanea, Samaria, Abila, and Godara, and that the Jews in a little time surrendered to him; and so Livy says w, that Antiochus reduced all the cities that Ptolemy had in Coelesyria into subjection to him; and these are the most fenced cities pointed at in this prophecy, against which the king of Syria cast up mounts, in order to take them; or placed battering engines before them, as the word also signifies, as Kimchi observes x, by which stones were cast into the besieged cities:
and the arms of the south shall not withstand, neither his chosen people, neither shall there be any strength to withstand; all the forces of the king of Egypt mustered together would not be able to withstand the power of Antiochus, who would, as he did, carry all before him; not their most powerful armies, nor most courageous generals, nor valiant soldiers, the choicest of them, nor any auxiliaries called in to their assistance; for when Scopas was beaten by Antiochus at Jordan, he fled to Sidon with ten thousand soldiers, where he was shut up in a close siege; and though Ptolemy sent his famous and choicest commanders to his relief, Eropus, Menocles, and Damoxenus, as Jerome relates; yet they were not able to raise the siege, but by famine were forced to surrender; and he and his men were dismissed naked.
t Antiqu. l. 12. c. 3. sect. 3. u Histor. l. 16. apud Joseph. ib. w Hist. l. 33. x Sepher Shorash. rad. .
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
The angel follows up the same sentiment. He says, When Antiochus the Great shall burst forth, there shall be no valor in the Egyptians to resist him, for he shall take a fortified city. There is a change of number here, for he means fortified cities. For he should recover the cities which he had formerly lost, and should arrive at the city Raphia in Egypt. The explanation follows, The arms of Egypt shall not stand, nor the people of its levies. This relates to Scopas, who was sent forth with large forces: at first he prospered, but he was afterwards vanquished in the conflict, and had no courage to persevere in resistance. It afterwards follows, —
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(15) The king of the north.This prince attacks the fortress of his rival, who is unable to resist him. Here it is supposed that the allusion is to the capture of Sidon by Antiochus the Great. The troops of Ptolemy under Scopas had acquired possession of Jerusalem and of various portions of Syria during the absence of Antiochus. Scopas and the Egyptian troops under him fled to Sidon, where they were forced by famine to surrender to the Syrians (B.C. 198).
The arms of the south.Comp. Dan. 11:31. The phrase means the armed force of the south.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
15, 16. Antiochus the Great shall come against Egypt, raise earthworks against “a well-fortified city,” and take it. This probably has reference to the capture of Sidon, where Scopas, the commander of the Ptolemic forces, after the Syrian king’s victory at Mount Pannius, had intrenched himself with ten thousand of his men. The result is thus stated: “And the forces of the south (i.e., Ptolemy’s) shall not withstand [Antiochus] nor (even) his [Ptolemy’s] chosen men, and there shall be no strength to withstand (Dan 11:16). And he [Antiochus] who shall come against him [Ptolemy] shall do as he wills, and none shall withstand him, and he shall stand in the land of glory with destruction in his hand.” This is a fair historical statement, from a Hebrew standpoint, of the trials of Antiochus the Great. The love of the Jews for the pleasant or “glorious” land is shown from the days of David onward. That other nationalities felt in the same way concerning their own native country is seen from the tale of Sanehat, an Egyptian of Abraham’s day, who, while dying in a foreign land, craved with his last breath to be buried in “the blessed land,” i.e., Egypt.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
‘So the king of the north will come, and throw up siege works, and take a well-fenced city. And the arms of the south will not withstand, nor the people of his choice, nor will there be any strength to withstand.’
Most see this as a reference to the capture of Sidon by Antiochus. The boy king Ptolemy V, who had succeeded his father, had sent one of his best generals to oppose him, but the Egyptian forces were defeated at the headwaters of the Jordan (near the Biblical Dan) and eventually surrendered at Sidon.
‘The arms of the south will not withstand, nor the people of his choice, nor will there be any strength to withstand.’ The ‘arms’ denote strength. Here the Egyptians were not strong enough. ‘The people of his choice’ are probably his finest and best warriors selected to deal with the attack.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Dan 11:15-16. So the king of the north shall come, &c. and take the most fenced cities Antiochus, being desirous to recover Judaea, and the cities which Scopas had taken, came again into those parts. Scopas was sent to oppose him; but was defeated near the sources of Jordan, lost a great part of his army, and was pursued to Sidon, where he was shut up with ten thousand men, and closely besieged. Three famous generals were sent from Egypt to raise the siege; but were defeated of their purpose, and Scopas was forced by famine to surrender, upon the hard conditions of having life only granted to him and his men; after which they were obliged to lay down their arms, and were sent away stripped and naked. This event is supposed to be principally intended by his casting up a mount, and taking the city of munitions; for Sidon was an exceeding strong city in its situation and fortifications. But if we take the phrase more generally, Antiochus, after the success of this battle and siege, reduced other countries, and took other fenced cities. The arms of the south could not withstand him, neither his chosen people; neither Scopas, nor the other great generals, nor the choicest troops who were sent against him: but he did according to his own will, and none was able to stand before him; for he soon rendered himself master of Coelo-Syria and Palestine; the Jews meeting him in a solemn procession, supplying him with provisions, and assisting him to besiege the garrison which Scopas had left in the citadel. Thus he stood in the glorious land, and his power was established in Judaea. The next clause may be rendered, which shall be perfected, prosper, or flourish, in his hand. The original will admit of this sense, and the event confirms it; for Antiochus, to reward and encourage the Jews in their fidelity and obedience to him, ordered their city to be repaired, and the dispersed Jews to return and inhabit it; commanded them to be supplied with provisions for sacrifices, and with materials for finishing the temple; and that they should all live according to the laws of their country; exempted the priests and elders, scribes and Levites, from the capitation and other taxes; and ordered that those who returned within a limited term should be free from all tribute for three years, and have a third part of the tribute thenceforward to become due remitted to them for ever: and also, that as many as had been taken and forced into servitude, should be released, and their substance restored to them. What is said about finishing the temple, answers exactly to the word perfected, or consummated, in the Hebrew; and so it is rendered and explained by Theodoret and the LXX. See Newton.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Dan 11:15 So the king of the north shall come, and cast up a mount, and take the most fenced cities: and the arms of the south shall not withstand, neither his chosen people, neither [shall there be any] strength to withstand.
Ver. 15. So the king of the north shall come, ] i.e., Not the Romans, as some would have it, but Antiochus Great still. He had been foiled at Raphia, now he greatly prevaileth against the Egyptians. If we princes, said our Henry VII, shall take every occasion that is offered, the world shall never be quiet, but wearied with continual wars.
And the armies of the south shall not withstand.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
the king of the north. This is Antiochus III (the Great); and verses: Dan 11:16-19 describe his doings, which were a typical foreshadowing of his antitype, “the little horn”, the yet future antichrist, described in Dan 11:21 Dan 12:1; which show how the latter portion can be fulfilled by an individual.
neither his chosen people. Dr. Ginsburg suggests “but his people will flee”.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Dan 11:15
Dan 11:15 So the kingH4428 of the northH6828 shall come,H935 and cast upH8210 a mount,H5550 and takeH3920 the most fencedH4013 cities:H5892 and the armsH2220 of the southH5045 shall notH3808 withstand,H5975 neither his chosenH4005 people,H5971 neitherH369 shall there be any strengthH3581 to withstand.H5975
Dan 11:15
So the king of the north shall come, and cast up a mount, and take the most fenced cities: and the arms of the south shall not withstand, neither his chosen people, neither shall there be any strength to withstand.
Antiochus III, the king of the North, met an Egyptian general by the name of Scopas in battle at Paneas in 198 BC., near the mouth of the Jordan River. Scopas was defeated and fled to Sidon which was a heavily fortified city with massive walls. Ptolemy V sent Eropus, Menocles, and Damoxenus, his best military leaders to try and help Scopas but they failed. With the assistance of the Jews, Antiochus III captured Sidon and Scopas was forced to surrender.
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
the Despoiler Triumphs for a Time
Dan 11:15-29
What a picture is presented in this paragraph of the tangled web of earthly politics. They have been too much, and for too long, in the hands of those who sought only their own aggrandizement to attain which they have been willing to sacrifice their honor, their families, their daughters, their people. The time has arrived when the people themselves, at first hand, must determine their destinies. These intrigues between the kings of Syria on the north and the kings of Egypt on the south have little interest for us, and are recorded here only as affecting the history of the Chosen People. This enables us to realize that the events of the present hour are being overruled by divine Providence in the interests of the Church of Christ. This alone abides; all else is of secondary importance and is rapidly passing away. The eternal purpose stands forever sure-that the Father has committed the empire of the world to our Lord, and is about to sum all things up in Him, who is the Head.
Fuente: F.B. Meyer’s Through the Bible Commentary
king of the north
Antiochus the Great, B.C. 198.
Fuente: Scofield Reference Bible Notes
cast up: Jer 5:10, Jer 6:6, Jer 33:4, Jer 52:4, Eze 17:17
most fenced cities: Heb. city of munitions, After fourteen years, Ptolemy Philopater having been succeeded by Ptolemy Epiphanes, then a minor, Antiochus raised a greater army than before, and having defeated his best troops under Scopas, recovered possession of Caelo-Syria and Palestine, with all their fortified cities.
shall not: Dan 11:6, Dan 8:7, Jos 1:5, Pro 21:30, Pro 21:31
his chosen people: Heb. the people of his choices
Reciprocal: Rom 5:6 – without
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Dan 11:15-17. The persons and facts of this series of verses are so interwoven that I think it will the better be explained by grouping them into one paragraph. I shall quote some lines from history, then explain the events in their relation to the persons involved in the light of the history. Let the reader give close attention to the following:
“Antiochus, besieged and took, first Sidon, then Gaza, and afterwards all the cities of those provinces, notwithstanding the opposition made by the chosen troops which the king of Egypt had sent against him. He did according to his own will,’ in CoeleSyria and Palestine, and nothing was able to make the least resistance against him. Pursuing his conquests in Palestine, he entered Judea, the glorious,’ or, according to the Hebrew, that desirable land, He there established his authority and strengthened it, by repulsing from the eastle of Jerusalem, the garrison which Scopas had thrown into it. This garrison being so well defended that Antiochus was obliged to send for all the troops in order to force it, and the siege continuing a long time, the country was ruined and consumed by the stay the army was obliged to make in it. . . , Antiochus, seeing that the Romans undertook the defence of young Ptolemy Epiphanes, thought it would best suit his interest to lull the king asleep, by giving him his daughter in marriage, in order to ‘corrupt her,’ and excite her to betray her husband; but he was not successful in his design; for as soon as she was married to Ptolemy, she renounced her fathers interests, and embraced those of her husband. It was on this account that we see her join with him in the embassy which was sent from Egypt to Rome, to Congratulate the Romans on the victory which Acilius had gained over her father at Thermopylae.-Rollin’s Ancient History, Volume 4, pages 144, 145.
It should be remembered that a reference to the north always means Syria in this chapter, and the king who is ruling there at the time, and the south means Egypt. Cast up a mount means that Antiochus III would prepare to attack the cities of the south, which would not be able to withstand the attack. He that cometh against him means that Antiochus was to come against Ptolemy Epiphanes and the latter would not succeed. To make bis gains further sure, the king of the north was to give his daughter (whose name was Cleopatra as supplied by history) in marriage to the king of the south, thinking that she would place her love for her father above that for her husband, and thus really act as a spy for her father in the household of her husband. But she was true to her husband; not stand on his (her fathers) side, neither be for him.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Dan 11:15-16. So the king of the north shall come and take the most fenced cities It was in the absence of Antiochus that these advantages were obtained by the arms of Egypt; but his presence soon turned the scale, and changed the whole face of affairs: for being concerned to recover Judea, and the cities of Closyria and Palestine, which Scopas had taken, he came again into those parts. Scopas was sent again to oppose him, but was defeated near the sources of Jordan, lost a great part of his army, and was pursued to Sidon, where he was shut up with ten thousand men, and closely besieged. Three famous generals were sent from Egypt to raise the siege; but they could not succeed, and at length Scopas was forced by famine to surrender, upon the hard conditions of having life only granted to him and his men; they were obliged to lay down their arms, and were sent away stripped and naked. Antiochus took also Gaza, and then all the other cities of that district, namely, Abila, Samaria, and Gadara; and afterward became master of the whole country. The arms of the south could not withstand him, neither his chosen people, neither Scopas nor the other great generals, nor the choicest troops who were sent against him; but he did according to his own will, and none was able to stand before him Among others the Jews also readily submitted to him, went forth in solemn procession to meet him, received him splendidly into their city, supplied him with plenty of provisions for all his army and elephants, and assisted him in besieging the garrison which Scopas had left in the citadel. Thus he stood in the glorious land And his power was established in Judea. Which by his hand shall be consumed This clause, thus rendered, may be considered as referring to Antiochuss maintaining his army with the provisions he drew from Judea, and thereby exhausting it; and to the distresses the country suffered, by the marching and counter-marching of hostile armies through it. Thus Josephus: While Antiochus the Great was reigning in Asia, both the Jews and the inhabitants of Closyria, by the laying waste of their countries, suffered many things. For when he carried on war against Ptolemy Philopater, and against his son, surnamed Epiphanes, it happened, that whether he was conqueror or conquered, they suffered alike: so that they were like a ship at sea in a storm, tossed by the waves on both sides; for whether Antiochus prospered, or met with a reverse, their sufferings were the same. But then they could not be said to be consumed by the hand of Antiochus particularly; they were consumed as much, or more, by Scopas: and the Hebrew, , is capable of another interpretation; it may be translated, Which shall be perfected, or prosper, or flourish, in his hand; a sense which agrees as well with the truth of the text, and better with the truth of history. For Antiochus, to reward and encourage the Jews in their fidelity and obedience to him, gave orders that their city should be repaired, and the dispersed Jews should return and inhabit it; that they should be supplied with cattle and other provisions for sacrifices; that they should be furnished with timber and other materials for finishing and adorning the temple; that they should live all according to the laws of their country; that the priests and elders, the scribes and Levites, should be exempted from the capitation and other taxes; that those who then inhabited the city, or should return to it within a limited time, should be free from all tribute for three years, and that the third part of their tribute should be remitted to them for ever after; and also, that as many as had been taken and forced into servitude should be released, and their substance and goods be restored to them: see Bishop Newton.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Dan 11:15. well-fenced city: Sidon, which was captured by Antiochus.
Fuente: Peake’s Commentary on the Bible
11:15 So the king of the north shall come, and cast up a mount, and take the most fenced cities: and the arms of the south shall {e} not withstand, neither his chosen people, neither [shall there be any] strength to withstand.
(e) The Egyptians were not able to resist Stopas, Antiochus’ captain.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
The fortified city that Antiochus III besieged and took was Sidon, which he defeated about 200 B.C. There he forced the Egyptian General Scopas, whom he had recently defeated at Paneas (biblical Dan), near the headwaters of the Jordan River, to surrender. Three other Egyptian commanders tried to free Scopas from Sidon, but they failed. The king of the north in this instance was Seleucus IV Philopator (187-175 B.C.).