Daniel 11

Daniel · Chapter 11

Daniel 11:45

1Also I in the first year of Darius the Mede, even I, stood to confirm and to strengthen him.2And now will I shew thee the truth. Behold, there shall stand up yet three kings in Persia; and the fourth shall be far richer than they all: and by his strength through his riches he shall stir up all against the realm of Grecia.3And a mighty king shall stand up, that shall rule with great dominion, and do according to his will.4And when he shall stand up, his kingdom shall be broken, and shall be divided toward the four winds of heaven; and not to his posterity, nor according to his dominion which he ruled: for his kingdom shall be plucked up, even for others beside those.5And the king of the south shall be strong, and one of his princes; and he shall be strong above him, and have dominion; his dominion shall be a great dominion.6And in the end of years they shall join themselves together; for the king’s daughter of the south shall come to the king of the north to make an agreement: but she shall not retain the power of the arm; neither shall he stand, nor his arm: but she shall be given up, and they that brought her, and he that begat her, and he that strengthened her in these times.7But out of a branch of her roots shall one stand up in his estate, which shall come with an army, and shall enter into the fortress of the king of the north, and shall deal against them, and shall prevail:8And shall also carry captives into Egypt their gods, with their princes, and with their precious vessels of silver and of gold; and he shall continue more years than the king of the north.9So the king of the south shall come into his kingdom, and shall return into his own land.10But his sons shall be stirred up, and shall assemble a multitude of great forces: and one shall certainly come, and overflow, and pass through: then shall he return, and be stirred up, even to his fortress.11And the king of the south shall be moved with choler, and shall come forth and fight with him, even with the king of the north: and he shall set forth a great multitude; but the multitude shall be given into his hand.12And when he hath taken away the multitude, his heart shall be lifted up; and he shall cast down many ten thousands: but he shall not be strengthened by it.13For the king of the north shall return, and shall set forth a multitude greater than the former, and shall certainly come after certain years with a great army and with much riches.14And in those times there shall many stand up against the king of the south: also the robbers of thy people shall exalt themselves to establish the vision; but they shall fall.15So 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.16But he that cometh against him shall do according to his own will, and none shall stand before him: and he shall stand in the glorious land, which by his hand shall be consumed.17He 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, corrupting her: but she shall not stand on his side, neither be for him.18After this shall he turn his face unto the isles, and shall take many: but a prince for his own behalf shall cause the reproach offered by him to cease; without his own reproach he shall cause it to turn upon him.19Then he shall turn his face toward the fort of his own land: but he shall stumble and fall, and not be found.20Then shall stand up in his estate a raiser of taxes in the glory of the kingdom: but within few days he shall be destroyed, neither in anger, nor in battle.21And in his estate shall stand up a vile person, to whom they shall not give the honour of the kingdom: but he shall come in peaceably, and obtain the kingdom by flatteries.22And with the arms of a flood shall they be overflown from before him, and shall be broken; yea, also the prince of the covenant.23And after the league made with him he shall work deceitfully: for he shall come up, and shall become strong with a small people.24He shall enter peaceably even upon the fattest places of the province; and he shall do that which his fathers have not done, nor his fathers’ fathers; he shall scatter among them the prey, and spoil, and riches: yea, and he shall forecast his devices against the strong holds, even for a time.25And he shall stir up his power and his courage against the king of the south with a great army; and the king of the south shall be stirred up to battle with a very great and mighty army; but he shall not stand: for they shall forecast devices against him.26Yea, they that feed of the portion of his meat shall destroy him, and his army shall overflow: and many shall fall down slain.27And both these kings’ hearts shall be to do mischief, and they shall speak lies at one table; but it shall not prosper: for yet the end shall be at the time appointed.28Then shall he return into his land with great riches; and his heart shall be against the holy covenant; and he shall do exploits, and return to his own land.29At the time appointed he shall return, and come toward the south; but it shall not be as the former, or as the latter.30For the ships of Chittim shall come against him: therefore he shall be grieved, and return, and have indignation against the holy covenant: so shall he do; he shall even return, and have intelligence with them that forsake the holy covenant.31And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate.32And such as do wickedly against the covenant shall he corrupt by flatteries: but the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits.33And they that understand among the people shall instruct many: yet they shall fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil, many days.34Now when they shall fall, they shall be holpen with a little help: but many shall cleave to them with flatteries.35And some of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and to purge, and to make them white, even to the time of the end: because it is yet for a time appointed.36And the king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be done.37Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all.38But in his estate shall he honour the God of forces: and a god whom his fathers knew not shall he honour with gold, and silver, and with precious stones, and pleasant things.39Thus shall he do in the most strong holds with a strange god, whom he shall acknowledge and increase with glory: and he shall cause them to rule over many, and shall divide the land for gain.40And at the time of the end shall the king of the south push at him: and the king of the north shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over.41He shall enter also into the glorious land, and many countries shall be overthrown: but these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon.42He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape.43But he shall have power over the treasures of gold and of silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt: and the Libyans and the Ethiopians shall be at his steps.44But tidings out of the east and out of the north shall trouble him: therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to make away many.45And he shall plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him.

King James Version (1769)

Other translations

VerseKJVBSBASV
45And he shall plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him.He will pitch his royal tents between the sea and the beautiful holy mountain, but he will meet his end with no one to help him.And he shall plant the tents of his palace between the sea and the glorious holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him.

In context

AI-assisted, sourced

This is the last scene of a long vision about the kings of the north and the south. After sweeping through the glorious land and Egypt, and troubled by news from the east and the north, the king plants the tents of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain. Yet he comes to his end, and no one helps him. Daniel 11:40Daniel 11:41Daniel 11:42Daniel 11:43Daniel 11:44Daniel 11:45

SpeakingThe speaker says he stood to confirm and strengthen Darius the Mede (11:1) and now shows Daniel the truth (11:2). Daniel records these chapters in the first person. Daniel 11:1Daniel 11:2Daniel overview

ToDaniel hears the vision ("will I shew thee"). The book is written for God's people in exile and after it, and is sealed "to the time of the end." Daniel 11:2Daniel overview

Also involvedThe king whose campaign is described in 11:40-44 is the one who falls here. The glorious land, Egypt, and many countries lie in his path. Daniel 11:40Daniel 11:41Daniel 11:42Daniel 11:43Daniel 11:45

The king pitches the tents of his palace in a place marked by beauty and holiness. After gaining power over the treasures of Egypt, he comes to his end with no helper. The verse does not say how he dies, only that his end comes and no one saves him. Daniel 11:43Daniel 11:45Strong's H5193Strong's H0168GStrong's H0643Strong's H6643AStrong's H6944GStrong's H7093Strong's H5826

The camp stands "between the seas in the glorious holy mountain." The word for seas can mean the Mediterranean, the Dead Sea, or other seas, and the verse does not say which. "The glorious land" is named earlier in the chapter as land the king enters (11:16, 11:41); the book was written from Babylon. Daniel 11:45Strong's H3220GStrong's H6944GStrong's H6643ADaniel 11:16Daniel 11:41Daniel overview

BABYLONIAMEDIABabylon 1SusaUlai

The eventsThe text places these events "at the time of the end" (11:40). The chapter says the end shall be "at the time appointed" (11:27, 11:35). The vision speaks of them as still to come. Daniel 11:40Daniel 11:27Daniel 11:35Daniel 11:2

WrittenTraditional: Daniel wrote in the 500s BC; the book's events run to the third year of Cyrus, about 536 BC. Scholarly: many critical scholars date the final form to about 167-164 BC under Antiochus IV, while others keep the 500s BC date. Daniel overview

HereThe verse shows that this king's power has a fixed limit. The chapter says the proud king prospers only "till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be done." Daniel 11:36Daniel 11:45

In the whole of ScriptureDaniel teaches that God sets up and removes kings and that his kingdom will never be destroyed. Daniel 8:25 says a proud king who stands against the Prince of princes "shall be broken without hand." Ezekiel 38:22-23 shows God judging an enemy and his bands so that nations know he is the LORD, and Joel 2:20 shows God driving off "the northern army." Daniel overviewDaniel 8:25Ezekiel 38:22Ezekiel 38:23Joel 2:20

For readersNo ruler who sets himself against God lasts, however strong he seems. In the same chapter, "the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits." Daniel 11:32Daniel 11:36Daniel 11:45

Christians read this differently

The text does not name this king, and no cited Scripture does. One reading takes 11:36-45 as continuing the story of the northern king described from 11:21 on. Another holds that from 11:36 or 11:40 the vision turns to a ruler at "the time of the end," linked with the man of 2 Thessalonians 2:4 who exalts himself above all that is called God; some combine the two, seeing the earlier king as a first picture of the later one. Daniel 11:21Daniel 11:36Daniel 11:402 Thessalonians 2:4

  • Hebrew · o.hel · H0168G

    The word means tent, and the lexicon notes a nomad's tent can picture wilderness life and transience. Joined with "palace," it shows the king's royal dwelling pitched as tents. Strong's H0168GStrong's H0643Strong's H5193

  • endקֵץ
    Hebrew · qets · H7093

    The word means end, of time or of space. Here it marks the king's own finish, though the verse does not say how it comes. Strong's H7093Daniel 11:45

  • helpעָזַר
    Hebrew · a.zar · H5826

    The word means to help, succour, or support. Earlier in the chapter God's suffering people were "holpen with a little help" (11:34), but this mighty king has no helper at all. Strong's H5826Daniel 11:34Daniel 11:45

Takeaway

The king in Daniel's vision plants his tents in the glorious holy mountain and still comes to his end with no one to help him. God has set the limit, and "that that is determined shall be done." Daniel 11:45Daniel 11:36

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
  1. 612 BC
    WarNineveh 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)

  2. 605 BC
    WarBattle 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)

  3. 597 BC
    WarJerusalem 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)

  4. 586 BC
    WarJerusalem 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

  5. c. 575 BC
    BuildingBabylon 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

  6. 562 BC
    RulersNebuchadnezzar dies

    His son Evil-merodach became king and released Jehoiachin of Judah from prison. 2 Kings 25:27-30Jeremiah 52:31-34

  7. c. 553-543 BC
    RulersNabonidus 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

  8. 550 BC
    WarCyrus 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

  9. October 539 BC
    WarBabylon 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

  10. 538 BC
    God'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

  11. c. 536 BC
    God'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

  12. 334-331 BC
    WarAlexander 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

  13. 323-301 BC
    WarAlexander'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

  14. 167 BC
    WarAntiochus 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

EnglishHebrewSay itStrong'sMeaning
so he may pitchוְיִטַּע֙ve-yi-TA'H5193
to plant

נָטַע (na.ta) 1) to plant, fasten, fix, establish 1a) (Qal) 1a1) to plant 1a2) to plant, establish (fig.) 1b) (Niphal) 1b1) to be planted 1b2) to be established (fig.)

[the] tents ofאָהֳלֶ֣י'o-ho-LEIH0168G
tent

אֹ֫הֶל (o.hel) : tent 1) tent 1a) nomad's tent, and thus symbolic of wilderness life, transience 1b) dwelling, home, habitation 1c) the sacred tent of Jehovah (the tabernacle) Also means: o.hel (אֹ֫הֶל ": home" H0168H)

palace hisאַפַּדְנ֔וֹ'a-pad-NOH0643
palace

אַפֶּ֫דֶן (ap.pe.den) palace

betweenבֵּ֥יןbeinH0996G
between

בַּ֫יִן (ba.yin) : between between, among, in the midst of (with other preps), from between

[the] seasיַמִּ֖יםya-MIMH3220G
sea

יָם (yam) : sea 1) sea 1a) Mediterranean Sea 1b) Red Sea 1c) Dead Sea 1d) Sea of Galilee 1e) sea (general) 1f) mighty river (Nile) 1g) the sea (the great basin in the temple court) 1h) seaward, west, westward

and [the] mountain ofלְהַר־le-har-H2022G
mountain: mount

הַר (har) : mount/hill hill, mountain, hill country, mount

[the] beauty ofצְבִי־tze-vi-H6643A
beauty

צְבִי (tse.vi) 1) beauty, glory, honour 1a) beauty, decoration 1b) honour

holinessקֹ֑דֶשׁKO-deshH6944G
holiness

קֹ֫דֶשׁ (qo.desh) 1) apartness, holiness, sacredness, separateness 1a) apartness, sacredness, holiness 1a1) of God 1a2) of places 1a3) of things 1b) set-apartness, separateness

and he will comeוּבָא֙u-VA'H0935G
to come (in): come

בּוֹא (bo) : come/go_in 1) to go in, enter, come, go, come in 1a) (Qal) 1a1) to enter, come in 1a2) to come 1a2a) to come with 1a2b) to come upon, fall or light upon, attack (enemy) 1a2c) to come to pass 1a3) to attain to 1a4) to be enumerated 1a5) to go 1b) (Hiphil) 1b1) to lead in 1b2) to carry in 1b3) to bring in, cause to come in, gather, cause to come, bring near, bring against, bring upon 1b4) to bring to pass 1c) (Hophal) 1c1) to be brought, brought in 1c2) to be introduced, be put

toעַד־'ad-H5704
till

עַד (ad) prep 1) as far as, even to, until, up to, while, as far as 1a) of space 1a1) as far as, up to, even to 1b) in combination 1b1) from...as far as, both...and (with 'min' -from) 1c) of time 1c1) even to, until, unto, till, during, end 1d) of degree 1d1) even to, to the degree of, even like conj 2) until, while, to the point that, so that even Aramaic equivalent: ad (עַד "till" H5705)

end hisקִצּ֔וֹki-TZOH7093
end

קֵץ (qets) 1) end 1a) end, at the end of (of time) 1b) end (of space)

and notוְאֵ֥יןve-'EINH0369
nothing

אַ֫יִן (a.yin) 1) nothing, not, nought n 1a) nothing, nought neg 1b) not 1c) to have not (of possession) adv 1d) without w/prep 1e) for lack of

a helperעוֹזֵ֖רo-ZERH5826
to help

עָזַר (a.zar) 1) to help, succour, support 1a) (Qal) to help 1b) (Niphal) to be helped 1c) (Hiphil) to help

Words and meanings from STEPBible data (Tyndale House, Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). The capitalized syllable is the stressed one.