Daniel 11:9
King James Version (1769)
Other translations
| Verse | KJV | BSB | ASV |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | So the king of the south shall come into his kingdom, and shall return into his own land. | who will invade the realm of the king of the South and then return to his own land. | And he shall come into the realm of the king of the south, but he shall return into his own land. |
In context
AI-assisted, sourcedDaniel 11 is a vision of wars between "the king of the south" and "the king of the north." After a ruler from the south storms the north's fortress and carries captives, gods and treasure "into Egypt" (11:7-8), this verse closes that campaign: the king of the south comes into his kingdom and goes back to his own land. The next verse begins a counterattack from the north (11:10). Daniel 11:7Daniel 11:8Daniel 11:9Daniel 11:10
SpeakingAn unnamed speaker says "I" stood "in the first year of Darius the Mede" and now will "shew thee the truth" (11:1-2). This chapter does not name him. Daniel records his visions in the first person. Daniel 11:1Daniel 11:2Daniel overview
ToDaniel hears it first. The book is written for God's people in exile and after it, and for readers looking to "the time of the end" (12:4). Daniel overview
Also involvedThe king of the south and the king of the north, and their lands. The chapter does not name these kings. It ties the south's victory to Egypt, where the captives and treasure are carried (11:8). Daniel 11:8Daniel 11:9
The verse tells of a campaign ending. The king of the south comes into his kingdom and then returns to his own land. This back-and-forth pattern repeats through the chapter, as kings advance and "return" again (11:10, 11:13, 11:28, 11:29). Daniel 11:9Daniel 11:10Daniel 11:13Daniel 11:28Daniel 11:29
The action moves between the realm of the north and the realm of the south, which this passage links with Egypt (11:8). Daniel served in Babylon under Babylonian and then Persian kings. NorthSouth 3Daniel 11:8Daniel overview
The eventsThe text does not give a date for these events. It places them after a mighty king whose kingdom is broken and divided "toward the four winds of heaven," following a mention of "the realm of Grecia" (11:2-4). Daniel 11:2Daniel 11:3Daniel 11:4
WrittenTraditional: written by Daniel in the 500s BC; the book's events run to the third year of Cyrus, about 536 BC (10:1). Scholarly: many critical scholars date the final form to about 167-164 BC under Antiochus IV, because chapter 11 is so detailed; others keep the 500s BC date, citing Matthew 24:15. Daniel overview
HereThe verse marks the limit of one campaign. The victor takes his spoil and goes home, but the conflict is not over, for the north soon strikes back (11:10-11). Daniel 11:8Daniel 11:9Daniel 11:10Daniel 11:11
In the whole of ScriptureDaniel shows that "the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men" and that God sets up and removes kings. In this chapter kings rise and fall, but "the end shall be at the time appointed" and "that that is determined shall be done" (11:27, 11:36). Daniel overviewDaniel 11:27Daniel 11:36
For readersVictories in this chapter do not last: the south wins and goes home, then the north returns, and the king of the south who wins next "shall not be strengthened" by it (11:9-12). Readers can see that earthly power keeps shifting, while God's kingdom "shall never be destroyed." Daniel 11:9Daniel 11:10Daniel 11:12Daniel overviewDaniel 11:11
- comeבּוֹא
The word means to go in, enter, or come, and can also mean to come upon or attack an enemy. Here it describes a king coming into a kingdom. Strong's H0935GDaniel 11:9
- returnשׁוּב
The word means to turn back or go back. The chapter uses "return" again and again for kings pulling back home or coming back to fight (11:10, 11:13, 11:28, 11:29). Strong's H7725GDaniel 11:10Daniel 11:13Daniel 11:28Daniel 11:29
Takeaway
This verse is a small step in a long prophecy of rival kings: a conqueror goes home with his spoil, but the fighting soon resumes. Daniel's point is that through all these shifts God rules, and what he has determined will be done. Daniel 11:9Daniel 11:10Daniel 11:36Daniel 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 he will go | וּבָ֗א | u-VA' | H0935G | to come (in): comeבּוֹא (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 |
| in [the] kingdom of | בְּמַלְכוּת֙ | be-mal-KHUT | H4438 | kingdomמַלְכוּ (mal.khu) 1) royalty, reign, kingdom 1a) royalty, kingship, kingly authority 1b) kingdom 1c) realm (of territory) 1d) reign (of time) |
| [the] king of | מֶ֣לֶךְ | ME-lekh | H4428G | kingמֶ֫לֶךְ (me.lekh) 1) king Aramaic equivalent: me.lekh (מֶ֫לֶךְ "king" H4430) |
| the south | הַנֶּ֔גֶב | ha-NE-gev | H5045H | Negebנֶ֫גֶב (ne.gev) region of southern Judah Also named: ne.gev (נֶ֫גֶב "south" H5045H) This name means south-country |
| and he will return | וְשָׁ֖ב | ve-SHAV | H7725G | to return: returnשׁוּב (shuv) : return 1) to return, turn back 1a) (Qal) 1a1) to turn back, return 1a1a) to turn back 1a1b) to return, come or go back 1a1c) to return unto, go back, come back 1a1d) of dying 1a1e) of human relations (fig) 1a1f) of spiritual relations (fig) 1a1f1) to turn back (from God), apostatise 1a1f2) to turn away (of God) 1a1f3) to turn back (to God), repent 1a1f4) turn back (from evil) 1a1g) of inanimate things 1a1h) in repetition 1b) (Polel) 1b1) to bring back 1b2) to restore, refresh, repair (fig) 1b3) to lead away (enticingly) 1b4) to show turning, apostatise 1c) (Pual) restored (participle) … |
| to | אֶל־ | 'el- | H0413 | to(wards)אֶל (el) 1) to, toward, unto (of motion) 2) into (limit is actually entered) 2a) in among 3) toward (of direction, not necessarily physical motion) 4) against (motion or direction of a hostile character) 5) in addition to, to 6) concerning, in regard to, in reference to, on account of 7) according to (rule or standard) 8) at, by, against (of one's presence) 9) in between, in within, to within, unto (idea of motion to) |
| own land his | אַדְמָתֽוֹ׃ | 'ad-ma-TO | H0127G | land: soilאֲדָמָה (a.da.mah) : soil 1) ground, land 1a) ground (as general, tilled, yielding sustenance) 1b) piece of ground, a specific plot of land 1c) earth substance (for building or constructing) 1d) ground as earth's visible surface 1e) land, territory, country 1f) whole inhabited earth 1g) city in Naphtali |
Words and meanings from STEPBible data (Tyndale House, Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). The capitalized syllable is the stressed one.