Daniel 11:1
King James Version (1769)
Other translations
| Verse | KJV | BSB | ASV |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Also I in the first year of Darius the Mede, even I, stood to confirm and to strengthen him. | “And I, in the first year of Darius the Mede, stood up to strengthen and protect him. | And as for me, in the first year of Darius the Mede, I stood up to confirm and strengthen him. |
In context
AI-assisted, sourcedThe heavenly messenger who has been speaking to Daniel says that in the first year of Darius the Mede he himself stood by to confirm and strengthen him. This is the bridge from chapter 10 into the long prophecy of kings that begins in the next verse. Daniel 11:1Daniel 11:2Daniel 10:18Daniel overview
SpeakingThe one "like the appearance of a man" who touched and strengthened Daniel in the vision. He goes on to say, "now will I shew thee the truth." Daniel 10:18Daniel 11:2
ToDaniel, who records the vision in the first person. Daniel overviewDaniel 11:2
Also involvedDarius the Mede, who took the kingdom of the Chaldeans after Babylon fell. The verse says the messenger stood to confirm and strengthen him. Daniel 11:1Daniel 5:31Daniel 9:1
The messenger tells Daniel of help he gave in the past. In Darius's first year he took his stand to support and protect him. Then he turns to what is still to come: kings of Persia and Grecia, and the kings of the south and north. Daniel 11:1Daniel 11:2Daniel 11:3Daniel 11:5
Daniel was in Babylon, serving under the Persian kings after the realm of the Chaldeans passed to Darius the Mede. Daniel overviewDaniel 9:1Daniel 5:31
The eventsThe help described took place in the first year of Darius the Mede, the year Darius took the kingdom. The vision itself came in the third year of Cyrus, about 536 BC. Daniel 11:1Daniel 5:31Daniel 9:1Daniel overview
WrittenTraditional: written by Daniel in the 500s BC. Scholarly: many critical scholars date the final form to about 167-164 BC because chapter 11 describes those years in detail. Others keep the 500s BC date, pointing to Jesus' words in Matthew 24:15. Daniel overview
HereThe verse shows that the same messenger who strengthened Daniel had earlier strengthened a ruler. It gives weight to the "truth" he is about to reveal. Daniel 11:1Daniel 11:2Daniel 10:18
In the whole of ScriptureDaniel shows that "the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men" and that God sets up and removes kings. Chapter 11 traces many kings rising and falling, yet "that that is determined shall be done." Daniel overviewDaniel 11:36
For readersRulers rise and fall, but heaven is at work behind them. The same messenger who strengthened Daniel also stood behind a king, and the chapter shows events moving toward "the time appointed." Daniel 11:1Daniel 10:18Daniel 11:27Daniel 11:35
- stoodעָמַד
The word means to stand, take one's stand, hold one's ground. The chapter keeps using "stand up" for kings who rise and fall. Here the messenger takes his stand in support. Strong's H5975GDaniel 11:2Daniel 11:3Daniel 11:4
- to confirmחָזַק
The word means to strengthen, sustain, or encourage. The same idea appears when the messenger "strengthened" Daniel himself. Strong's H2388GDaniel 10:18
- to strengthenמָעוֹז
This word means a place or means of safety: protection, refuge, stronghold. It pictures the messenger as a protection for the ruler. Strong's H4581
Takeaway
Behind the rise of Darius, a heavenly messenger stood to strengthen him. The kings that follow in Daniel 11 are not outside God's rule. Daniel 11:1Daniel overview
Drafted by AI from the Scripture and data shown under “Show sources,” then checked automatically and by a second AI pass. Updated 2026-10-28.
The world around the text
About 605-536 BC. King of Babylon: Nebuchadnezzar (605-562 BC). Where Daniel lived and served for about seventy years. The capital of the Babylonian empire, on the Euphrates south of modern Baghdad, in the land the Bible calls Shinar and Chaldea.
Who ruled
- King of BabylonNebuchadnezzar605-562 BC
The king who besieged Jerusalem, carried Daniel and the temple vessels to Babylon, and later destroyed the city and temple. His own building inscriptions boast of the Babylon he built. Daniel 1:1-22 Kings 24:12 Kings 25:8-10Jeremiah 25:1Babylonian Chronicles (ABC 5)
- Last king of Babylon, and his son who ruled in his placeNabonidus and Belshazzar556-539 BC
Nabonidus spent about ten years at the oasis of Tema in Arabia and left his son Belshazzar to rule in Babylon. That is why Belshazzar could only offer Daniel the place of "third ruler in the kingdom": he was himself second. Daniel 5:1Daniel 5:7Daniel 5:29Nabonidus Chronicle (ABC 7)Verse Account of Nabonidus
- Received the kingdom after Babylon fellDarius the MedianFrom 539 BC
Daniel says he "took the kingdom, being about threescore and two years old" and set 120 princes over it. Records outside the Bible do not name him; he has been identified with Gubaru, the governor Cyrus set over Babylon, or with Cyrus himself. Daniel 5:31Daniel 6:1Daniel 9:1Nabonidus Chronicle (ABC 7)
- King of PersiaCyrus559-530 BC
He united the Medes and Persians, took Babylon in 539 BC, and let the exiles go home to rebuild the temple, as Isaiah had named him beforehand. Daniel 1:21Daniel 6:28Daniel 10:1Ezra 1:1-4Isaiah 44:28-45:1Cyrus Cylinder
- King of JudahJehoiakim609-598 BC
Judah's king when Daniel was taken. Jeremiah warned him and his people that the land would serve Babylon seventy years. Daniel 1:1-22 Kings 23:36-24:6Jeremiah 25:1-11
What was happening, 612 BC to 167 BC
- 612 BCWarNineveh falls
Babylon and the Medes destroyed Nineveh, the capital of Assyria, as Nahum and Zephaniah had foretold. Babylon became the great power of the region. Nahum 3:7Zephaniah 2:13Fall of Nineveh Chronicle (ABC 3)
- 605 BCWarBattle of Carchemish
Nebuchadnezzar defeated Pharaoh Necho of Egypt at Carchemish on the Euphrates, in Jehoiakim's fourth year. The same year he came against Jerusalem and took the first captives, Daniel among them. Jeremiah 46:2Daniel 1:1-4Babylonian Chronicles (ABC 5)
- 597 BCWarJerusalem surrenders
Nebuchadnezzar took King Jehoiachin, his nobles and craftsmen to Babylon. The prophet Ezekiel went into exile with them. 2 Kings 24:10-17Ezekiel 1:2Babylonian Chronicles (ABC 5)
- 586 BCWarJerusalem and the temple destroyed
Babylon's army burned the temple and the city and broke down its walls. Daniel later prays over "the desolations of Jerusalem" and asks God to shine on his "sanctuary that is desolate." 2 Kings 25:8-10Jeremiah 52:12-14Daniel 9:2Daniel 9:17
- c. 575 BCBuildingBabylon rebuilt in splendor
Nebuchadnezzar rebuilt Babylon with great walls, palaces and the blue-glazed Ishtar Gate, and his inscriptions praise his own work. Compare his boast: "Is not this great Babylon, that I have built?" Daniel 4:30Nebuchadnezzar's East India House InscriptionHerodotus, Histories 1.178-183
- 562 BCRulersNebuchadnezzar dies
His son Evil-merodach became king and released Jehoiachin of Judah from prison. 2 Kings 25:27-30Jeremiah 52:31-34
- c. 553-543 BCRulersNabonidus leaves Babylon to Belshazzar
King Nabonidus stayed at Tema in Arabia for about ten years, and the yearly New Year festival in Babylon was not held. Belshazzar governed in Babylon. Nabonidus Chronicle (ABC 7)Daniel 5:1Daniel 7:1
- 550 BCWarCyrus unites the Medes and Persians
Cyrus of Persia defeated Astyages king of the Medes, joining the two peoples in one kingdom. Daniel's vision names the ram's two horns as "the kings of Media and Persia," the higher coming up last. Daniel 8:3Daniel 8:20Nabonidus Chronicle (ABC 7)Herodotus, Histories 1.127-130
- October 539 BCWarBabylon falls to Cyrus
Cyrus's army entered Babylon without a long siege. Herodotus says the people were feasting when the city was taken. Daniel records that "in that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain." Daniel 5:30-31Nabonidus Chronicle (ABC 7)Herodotus, Histories 1.191Cyrus Cylinder
- 538 BCGod's peopleCyrus lets the exiles return
In his first year over Babylon, Cyrus proclaimed that the Jews could go back and build the LORD's house in Jerusalem. Daniel "continued even unto the first year of king Cyrus." Ezra 1:1-42 Chronicles 36:22-23Daniel 1:21Cyrus Cylinder
- c. 536 BCGod's peopleThe temple's foundation is laid
The returned exiles rebuilt the altar and laid the foundation of the temple. In the third year of Cyrus, Daniel was still in the east, mourning and praying. Ezra 3:1-11Daniel 10:1-3
- 334-331 BCWarAlexander the Great conquers Persia
Alexander of Macedon crossed into Asia and overthrew the Persian empire within four years. Daniel 8:21 names the rough goat as "the king of Grecia" and its great horn as "the first king." Daniel 8:5-8Daniel 8:21Arrian, Anabasis of Alexander 1-3
- 323-301 BCWarAlexander's empire is divided
Alexander died young, and after twenty years of war his generals divided his empire, chiefly into four kingdoms. Daniel 8:22 says "four kingdoms shall stand up out of the nation, but not in his power." Daniel 8:8Daniel 8:22Daniel 11:4Diodorus Siculus, Library 18-20Plutarch, Demetrius 28-30
- 167 BCWarAntiochus IV defiles the temple
The Greek king Antiochus IV banned Jewish worship and set up a pagan altar on the altar of burnt offering. 1 Maccabees calls it "the abomination of desolation." Two centuries later Jesus spoke of "the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet" as still to come. 1 Maccabees 1:54-59Josephus, Antiquities 12.5.4Matthew 24:15
The full picture: places, culture and daily life. Scripture first, then ancient records of these years (the Babylonian Chronicles, the Cyrus Cylinder, Nebuchadnezzar's inscriptions) and ancient writers (Herodotus, Arrian, Diodorus, Josephus). Drafted by Claude and not yet reviewed by a person.
Original Hebrew words
| English | Hebrew | Say it | Strong's | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| and I | וַאֲנִי֙ | va-'a-NI | H0589 | meאֲנָא (a.na) I (first pers. sing. -usually used for emphasis) Aramaic of a.ni (אֲנִי, אָֽנֹכִ֫י "I" H0589) |
| in year | בִּשְׁנַ֣ת | bish-NAT | H8141 | yearשְׁנָה (she.nah) year Aramaic of sha.neh (שָׁנָה "year" H8141) |
| one | אַחַ֔ת | 'a-CHAT | H0259 | oneאֶחָד (e.chad) 1) one (number) 1a) one (number) 1b) each, every 1c) a certain 1d) an (indefinite article) 1e) only, once, once for all 1f) one...another, the one...the other, one after another, one by one 1g) first 1h) eleven (in combination), eleventh (ordinal) |
| of Darius | לְדָרְיָ֖וֶשׁ | le-da-re-YA-vesh | H1867I | Dariusדָּֽרְיָ֫וֶשׁ (dar.ya.vesh) A man living at the time of Exile and Return, first mentioned at Dan.5.31; son of: Ahasuerus (H0325) Also named: dar.ya.vesh (דָּֽרְיָ֫וֶשׁ "Darius" H1868H) § Darius = "lord" 1) Darius the Mede, the son of Ahasuerus, king of the Chaldeans, who succeeded to the Babylonian kingdom on the death of Belshazzar; probably the same as "Astyages" the last king of the Medes (538 BC) 2) Darius, the son of Hystaspes, the founder of the Perso-Arian dynasty (521 BC) 3) Darius II or Darius III … |
| the Mede | הַמָּדִ֑י | ha-ma-DI | H4075 | Medeמָדָאָה (ma.da.ah) also called Mede frequently Another spelling of me.dan (מְדָן "Medan" H4091) § Mede = "middle land" 1) an inhabitant of Media 1a) located northwest of Persia proper, south and southwest of the Caspian Sea, east of Armenia and Assyria, and west and northwest of the great salt desert of Iram |
| standing my | עָמְדִ֛י | 'a-me-DI | H5975G | to stand: standעָמַד (a.mad) : stand/stop/establish 1) to stand, remain, endure, take one's stand 1a) (Qal) 1a1) to stand, take one's stand, be in a standing attitude, stand forth, take a stand, present oneself, attend upon, be or become servant of 1a2) to stand still, stop (moving or doing), cease 1a3) to tarry, delay, remain, continue, abide, endure, persist, be steadfast 1a4) to make a stand, hold one's ground 1a5) to stand upright, remain standing, stand up, rise, be erect, be upright 1a6) to arise, appear, come on the scene, stand forth, appear, rise up or against … |
| [was] to a strengthener | לְמַחֲזִ֥יק | le-ma-cha-ZIK | H2388G | to strengthen: strengthenחָזַק (cha.zaq) : strengthen/support/encourage 1) to strengthen, prevail, harden, be strong, become strong, be courageous, be firm, grow firm, be resolute, be sore 1a) (Qal) 1a1) to be strong, grow strong 1a1a) to prevail, prevail upon 1a1b) to be firm, be caught fast, be secure 1a1c) to press, be urgent 1a1d) to grow stout, grow rigid, grow hard (bad sense) 1a1e) to be severe, be grievous 1a2) to strengthen 1b) (Piel) 1b1) to make strong 1b2) to restore to strength, give strength 1b3) to strengthen, sustain, encourage 1b4) to make strong, make bold, encourage 1b5) to make firm 1b6) to make rigid, make hard … |
| and to a protection | וּלְמָע֖וֹז | u-le-ma-'oz | H4581 | securityמָעוֹז (ma.oz) 1) place or means of safety, protection, refuge, stronghold 1a) place of safety, fastness, harbour, stronghold 1b) refuge (of God) (fig.) 1c) human protection (fig.) |
Words and meanings from STEPBible data (Tyndale House, Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). The capitalized syllable is the stressed one.