Alexander, Antiochus, and Antichrist
The precision of prophecy
Aug 29, 2025
Alexander died in June of 323 BC, at the age of just thirty-two years, leaving no heir. His empire was then divided amongst his four generals, becoming the Ptolemaic (called the “king of the south” in Daniel), Seleucid (the north), Pergamon, and Macedonian empires.
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Now, continuing with the prophecy:
Then the king of the south [Ptolemy] shall be strong, but one of his princes shall be stronger than he and shall rule, and his authority shall be a great authority. After some years they shall make an alliance, and the daughter of the king of the south shall come to the king of the north to make an agreement .
This happened when Antiochus II, a Seleucid, married Berenice, the daughter of Ptolemy II.
But she shall not retain the strength of her arm, and he and his arm shall not endure, but she shall be given up, and her attendants, he who fathered her, and he who supported her in those times.
After Ptolemy II died, Antiochus II divorced Berenice in favor of his former wife, ruthless Laodice, who was reputed to be quite a schemer. In fact, Queen Laodice was such a schemer that she devised a joint plan to poison her husband in Asia Minor while her co-conspirators murdered Berenice and her infant son in Antioch. Then Laodice placed her son, Seleucus II, on the throne. Nice family.
This remarkable and very detailed prophecy goes on:
And from a branch from her roots one shall arise in his place. He shall come against the army and enter the fortress of the king of the north, and he shall deal with them and shall prevail. He shall also carry off to Egypt their gods with their metal images and their precious vessels of silver and gold, and for some years he shall refrain from attacking the king of the north. Then the latter shall come into the realm of the king of the south but shall return to his own land.
The branch of Berenice’s roots is Ptolemy III, her brother, who invaded Syria to avenge his sister’s murder. It’s starting to sound a bit like a soap opera now, isn’t it?
His sons [of the northern king] shall wage war and assemble a multitude of great forces, which shall keep coming and overflow and pass through, and again shall carry the war as far as his fortress. Then the king of the south, moved with rage, shall come out and fight against the king of the north. And he shall raise a great multitude, but it shall be given into his hand. And when the multitude is taken away, his heart shall be exalted, and he shall cast down tens of thousands, but he shall not prevail. For the king of the north shall again raise a multitude, greater than the first. And after some years he shall come on with a great army and abundant supplies.
Here, we see the fine details of the six Syrian Wars, as waged by the Seleucids against the Ptolemies.
In those times many shall rise against the king of the south, and the violent among your own people shall lift themselves up in order to fulfill the vision, but they shall fail. Then the king of the north shall come and throw up siege works and take a well-fortified city. And the forces of the south shall not stand, or even his best troops, for there shall be no strength to stand. But he who comes against him shall do as he wills, and none shall stand before him. And he shall stand in the glorious land, with destruction in his hand.
He shall set his face to come with the strength of his whole kingdom, and he shall bring terms of an agreement and perform them. He shall give him the daughter of women to destroy the kingdom , but it shall not stand or be to his advantage.
In 195 BC, Antiochus III gave his daughter Cleopatra to Ptolemy V of Egypt, and she became the first Syrian queen of Egypt. Antiochus, “king of the north,” did this hoping to gain permanent influence, and eventually control, in Egypt. To the great disappointment of Antiochus III, the plan did not succeed because Cleopatra was unfaithful.
By the way, this Cleopatra is but the first in a long line of princesses with the same name. The famous Cleopatra who loved Mark Antony ruled about a hundred years after this one.
Afterward he shall turn his face to the coastlands and shall capture many of them, but a commander shall put an end to his insolence . Indeed, he shall turn his insolence back upon him. Then he shall turn his face back toward the fortresses of his own land, but he shall stumble and fall, and shall not be found.
Antiochus III invaded Asia Minor and Greece, receiving help from Hannibal, the infamous Carthaginian general. But this northern king’s success was short lived, for another famous general, the Roman Lucius Cornelius Scipio, defeated Antiochus in Greece. So, tucking his metaphorical tail twixt his legs, Antiochus III returned to his home base, having lost nearly all that he’d gained, dying shortly after, killed by a mob of local citizens.
Then shall arise in his place one who shall send an exactor of tribute [referring to Seleucus III, who raises taxes—war is expensive] for the glory of the kingdom. But within a few days he shall be broken, neither in anger nor in battle. [Seleucus III was assassinated.] In his place shall arise a contemptible person [Antiochus IV, called Epiphanes] to whom royal majesty has not been given. He shall come in without warning and obtain the kingdom by flatteries.
According to Adam Clarke’s 1831 Bible commentary,[i] Antiochus:
…flattered Eumenes, king of Pergamus, and Attalus his brother, and got their assistance. He flattered the Romans, and sent ambassadors to court their favour, and pay them the arrears of the tribute. He flattered the Syrians, and gained their concurrence.
We will stop here, but you get the point. Every prophecy given to Daniel regarding the coming Gentile rulers came true—right down to the intrigues and schemes. But this begs the question: Since God’s prophecies to Daniel and others are often somewhat generic in scope, why is this one so very specific?
This is an excerpt from our 2020 book Giants, Gods & Dragons . Over the coming weeks, we’ll publish it here at no charge. If you want to own a copy, it’s available in paperback, as a Kindle e-book, and as an audiobook at Amazon and Audible.
Daniel didn’t live to see most of this happen, which means it wasn’t to convince him of the words’ authenticity. He didn’t know Xerxes or Alexander or Ptolemy. Yet, he faithfully wrote all of the angel’s words for us.
Perhaps that is why this section contains such fine detail, so that history could record immediate or very soon fulfillment of parts of it—making the portions not yet fulfilled reliable and truthful.
All that occurs in our natural world has a source in the spirit world. The archons who direct the actions of the generals and foot soldiers in the Fallen Realm’s demonic army looked upon Jerusalem with envious eyes and wanted to destroy the Temple and control the Mount.
The devil and his minions are fully aware of all prophecy, but even they don’t completely understand when God’s promises will be fulfilled. Seeing any chance, they can’t help rushing in to desecrate God’s Holy of Holies. We see this throughout the prophecies of the Gentile nations that have ruled and continue to oversee matters within Israel.
But God allows the fallen realm only so much rope before He yanks it taught and strangles their efforts. Antiochus Epiphanes almost fulfilled the prophecy of Daniel 11, but not completely. Remember that he set up a statue of Zeus—not a statue of Antiochus, but the Greeks’ chief deity. When the future Antichrist does arise, he will set up an image of himself as the god in the Temple, and he will command that all the world should worship him —not Zeus.
As we near the return of the True Christ, our world is becoming more and more paganized, and it won’t take much of a push to convince many to worship a prideful “god” who pretends to be inclusive and generous. The Antichrist may even claim that he is Zeus, or Odin, or any number of ancient deities. He might convince the world that he fulfills all end-times prophecies, no matter the origin, no matter the nation.
The language of the angel in Daniel 11:40 is explicit; he tells us that:
At the time of the end, the king of the south shall attack him, but the king of the north shall rush upon him like a whirlwind, with chariots and horsemen, and with many ships. And he shall come into countries and shall overflow and pass through.
“The time of the end” refers to the very last days of God’s prophetic timeline, and as we write this book, it is in our future—but probably our immediate future. Perhaps, this verse means that we will see a revision of the Syrian Wars: the king of the North versus the king of the South. If so, then expect to see Rome—or rather the revived Roman Empire—become involved again. And if we’re right in our theory that the hybrid toes of iron and miry clay in the king’s statue dream of Daniel 2 refer to those countries inspired and populated by “Rome,” then the US and England will most likely enter a Middle East war very soon.
Or maybe we’ve been there for years waging a proxy war. This future war might even be cyber.
But there are clues, if you know where to look.
Those paying attention to news from the Middle East have noticed that Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is attempting to restore the Ottoman Empire to its former glory, with himself as the new caliph. Syria is suffering from a crippling internal war and sees Turkey as an enemy. The internationally recognized government in the chaotic, failed state of Libya has just asked Egypt to come to its aid to fend off hegemonial advances from Turkey; all of this is happening as Israel claims sovereignty over the Golan Heights.
This last is important, because the Golan includes the fertile area at the foot of Mount Hermon, as well as a huge necropolis of ancient dolmans. These stone markers once served a part in rituals involving the Avarim, or “Travelers,” of the underworld.
As with the kings and queens of the Syrian Wars, the Fallen Realm are staking claims to Bible lands and lining up both their human and spirit armies in preparation for one last invasion of the “glorious land.”
The book of Daniel is central to understanding end-times prophecy and the plans of the giants, whom we now battle as demons; the small-g gods, those fallen spirits once worshiped by adulterous Israel and her neighbors; and the dragons, an upper-echelon class of elohim that probably includes the nachash and archons, who rule over the lessers in the spirit realm.
Is it any wonder that the Fallen Realm dispatched the prince of Persia to prevent the angel (possibly Gabriel) from delivering such a vital message? You can just picture the battle that must have ensued! Gabriel against the archon of Persia, swords clashing in multiple dimensions—a battle that continued for twenty-one days in the natural realm but may have lasted much longer in the supernatural domain. Only Michael’s arrival allowed Gabriel to complete his mission. And after doing so, the angel returned to relieve Michael, called the “prince of Israel.”
And every almost word of the prophecy has been fulfilled—to the letter. Those that haven’t yet found fulfillment await the arrival of the Man of Sin.
Daniel had been praying for wisdom regarding the ending of his people’s banishment from the land of Israel. Seventy years had been decreed, and the prophet realized this period was nearing its end. Therefore, the opening of Daniel 12:1 presents tantalizing clues as to when the “times of the Gentiles” would finally be concluded, and it’s a thrilling, action-packed portion of Scripture, worthy of any hero film:
At that time shall arise Michael, the great prince who has charge of your people. And there shall be a time of trouble, such as never has been since there was a nation till that time. But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone whose name shall be found written in the book. And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. And those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever. But you, Daniel, shut up the words and seal the book, until the time of the end. Many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase.
Then I, Daniel, looked, and behold, two others stood, one on this bank of the stream and one on that bank of the stream. And someone said to the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the stream, “How long shall it be till the end of these wonders ?” And I heard the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the stream; he raised his right hand and his left hand toward heaven and swore by him who lives forever that it would be fora time, times, and half a time , and that when the shattering of the power of the holy people comes to an end all these things would be finished. I heard, but I did not understand. Then I said, “O my lord, what shall be the outcome of these things?” He said, “Go your way, Daniel, for the words are shut up and sealed until the time of the end. Many shall purify themselves and make themselves white and be refined, but the wicked shall act wickedly. And none of the wicked shall understand, but those who are wise shall understand. And from the time that the regular burnt offering is taken away and the abomination that makes desolate is set up, there shall be 1,290 days. Blessed is he who waits and arrives at the 1,335 days. But go your way till the end. And you shall rest and shall stand in your allotted place at the end of the days. (Daniel 12:1–13, emphasis added)
[i] Adam Clarke. Bible Commentary on Book of Daniel (1831). Daniel 11 - Clarke's Commentary - Bible Commentaries - StudyLight.org, accessed August 1, 2020.