Daniel 11:5

“Then the king of the south ¹  and one of his subordinates ²  will grow strong. His subordinate ³  will resist ⁴  him and will rule a kingdom greater than his. 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.

"Then the king of the South will grow strong, along with one of his princes who will gain ascendancy over him and obtain dominion; his domain will be a great dominion indeed.

"The king of the south will increase in power, but one of this king’s own officials will become more powerful than he and will rule his kingdom with great strength.

"'Next the king of the south will grow strong, but one of his princes will grow stronger than he and rule an even larger territory.

And the king of the south will be strong, but one of his captains will be stronger than he and will be ruler; and his rule will be a great rule.

"Then the king of the south shall grow strong, but one of his officers shall grow stronger than he and shall rule a realm greater than his own realm.

"Also the king of the South shall become strong, as well as one of his princes; and he shall gain power over him and have dominion. His dominion shall be a great dominion.

“Then the king of the south ¹  and one of his subordinates ²  will grow strong. His subordinate ³  will resist ⁴  him and will rule a kingdom greater than his. ⁵ 

¹ sn The king of the south is Ptolemy I Soter (ca. 323-285 B.C.). The following reference to one of his subordinates apparently has in view Seleucus I Nicator (ca. 311-280 B.C.). Throughout the remainder of chap. 11 the expressions “king of the south” and “king of the north” repeatedly occur. It is clear, however, that these terms are being used generically to describe the Ptolemaic king (i.e., “of the south”) or the Seleucid king (i.e., “of the north”) who happens to be in power at any particular time. The specific identity of these kings can be established more or less successfully by a comparison of this chapter with the available extra-biblical records that discuss the history of the intertestamental period. In the following notes the generally accepted identifications are briefly mentioned.

² tn Heb “princes.”

³ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (the subordinate prince mentioned in the previous clause) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁴ tn Heb “be strong against.”

⁵ tn Heb “greater than his kingdom.”