Daniel 11:10

• The sons of Seleucus II were:

  • Seleucus III Ceraunus, who ruled from 226 to 223 BC, and

  • Antiochus III the Great, who ruled from 223 to 187 BC.

• a great army … sweeping through like a flood: Antiochus III aggressively tried to reclaim lost lands, including Palestine.

• as far as his fortress: Antiochus III advanced to Raphia, near Egypt's border, in 217 BC. In the battle that followed, the king of the south, Ptolemy IV Philopater, who ruled from 221 to 203 BC, defeated Antiochus III and kept control of Palestine.

In this passage, the king of the South refers to Alexander's general Ptolemy and his descendants, who ruled Egypt. The king of the North refers to Alexander's general Seleucus and his descendants, who ruled Syria and Mesopotamia.

After Alexander's death, the kings of Egypt and Syria fought for control of Palestine, a strategically important land. The holy city and its people were caught between these two powers. These battles continued until their predetermined end (Daniel 11:27, 35, 40, 45; 12:1, 7).

Historical accounts of these events appear in 1, 2, and 3 Maccabees and in the works of Herodotus, Livy, Polybius, Porphyry, and Josephus.

The messenger shared a broad overview of history. It started with Persia, continued through the fall of Greece, and covered the rise and fall of a wicked king or several kings (Daniel 11:21–45). It concluded with the final resurrection and victory of God's people.

This final vision spans from 536 BC to a future when Daniel will rise from the dead and receive his inheritance. All earthly kingdoms will be destroyed. The eternal kingdom of the Son of Man will arise. God's people will finally be rescued, and death, the ultimate enemy, will be defeated.