DANIEL 11:2-19 THEY WILL NOT PREVAIL

Written by , Rector of St. Matthew's Episcopal Church, Richmond, Virginia
 

² “Now then, I tell you the truth: Three more kings will appear in Persia, and then a fourth, who will be far richer than all the others. When he has gained power by his wealth, he will stir up everyone against the kingdom of Greece. ³ Then a mighty king will appear, who will rule with great power and do as he pleases. ⁴ After he has appeared, his empire will be broken up and parceled out toward the four winds of heaven. It will not go to his descendants, nor will it have the power he exercised, because his empire will be uprooted and given to others.
⁵ “The king of the South will become strong, but one of his commanders will become even stronger than he and will rule his own kingdom with great power. ⁶ After some years, they will become allies. The daughter of the king of the South will go to the king of the North to make an alliance, but she will not retain her power, and he and his power will not last. In those days she will be handed over, together with her royal escort and her father and the one who supported her.
⁷ “One from her family line will arise to take her place. He will attack the forces of the king of the North and enter his fortress; he will fight against them and be victorious. ⁸ He will also seize their gods, their metal images and their valuable articles of silver and gold and carry them off to Egypt. For some years he will leave the king of the North alone. ⁹ Then the king of the North will invade the realm of the king of the South but will retreat to his own country. ¹⁰ His sons will prepare for war and assemble a great army, which will sweep on like an irresistible flood and carry the battle as far as his fortress.
¹¹ “Then the king of the South will march out in a rage and fight against the king of the North, who will raise a large army, but it will be defeated. ¹² When the army is carried off, the king of the South will be filled with pride and will slaughter many thousands, yet he will not remain triumphant. ¹³ For the king of the North will muster another army, larger than the first; and after several years, he will advance with a huge army fully equipped.
¹⁴ “In those times many will rise against the king of the South. The violent men among your own people will rebel in fulfillment of the vision, but without success. ¹⁵ Then the king of the North will come and build up siege ramps and will capture a fortified city. The forces of the South will be powerless to resist; even their best troops will not have the strength to stand. ¹⁶ The invader will do as he pleases; no one will be able to stand against him. He will establish himself in the Beautiful Land and will have the power to destroy it. ¹⁷ He will determine to come with the might of his entire kingdom and will make an alliance with the king of the South. And he will give him a daughter in marriage in order to overthrow the kingdom, but his plans will not succeed or help him. ¹⁸ Then he will turn his attention to the coastlands and will take many of them, but a commander will put an end to his insolence and will turn his insolence back upon him. ¹⁹ After this, he will turn back toward the fortresses of his own country but will stumble and fall, to be seen no more.

Every victorious ruler has his or her moment in the sun, and then quickly, like the refrain of a song, judgment is pronounced upon them; failure, defeat, annihilation. Those who exalt themselves shall be laid low, as nothing. Powers come and powers go, but the reign of our God is forever. Even the irresistible power of the king of the North cannot succeed in his plans against God’s will and people. In the end, all the powers of the world “will stumble and fall, to be seen no more.”

There is only one ultimate victorious ruler of all creation and he is God, the Creator and Sustainer of all there is. All other powers that stand in opposition to his rule will not long stand. Between the hill of Calvary and the Garden Tomb, God defeated death. His victory has already been won over sin, death and the devil. We experience only the skirmishes of a desperate and vanquished foe. Therefore, in the midst of our battles and suffering we can take encouragement that there is an end, a glorious end, to our dis-ease and oppression.

You are the Victor, O God, and my deliverer. In the midst of all my struggles I will keep by eyes on you in faith knowing the eternal nature of your victory and the temporary season of my sufferings. Amen.

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