Paul McKenzie

Memory Verse, Thursday, December 4, Daniel 11:2a

"And now I will show you the truth."

Chapter 11 is so meticulous, sometimes it feels like a royal soap opera. And the uncanny thing is that all of it occurred years after Daniel passed into heaven!

It begins with a rich Persian king stirring "up all against the kingdom of Greece" (v2b) History shows this to be Xerxes, who invaded Athens, first successfully, then not so much. And Greece never forgot it.

The next set of verses "a mighty king shall arise, who shall rule with great dominion and do as he wills. And as soon as he has arisen, his kingdom shall be broken and divided toward the four winds of heaven, but not to his posterity…" (3-4a) This all refers to Alexander the Great, who died young with no heir, and the kingdom was passed on, and it is recorded that he may have said: "To the strongest".

History proves these to be Cassander, Lysimachus, Ptolemy I, and Seleucus. Since the Bible is concerned primarily with the Holy Land, we find that it concentrates on the latter two, Ptolemy I south of Israel in Egypt, with Seleucus north in Syria.

Now, we could get into all of that mess, but we won't for time's sake. It is well worth reading, and as the chapter progresses we see the "near/far" of the spirit of antichrist take place again. This describes the cruelty of both Antiochus and the one to come.

It's just amazing to see how God reveals His plan, first for those who through the centuries watched the words given to Daniel fulfilled in real time, and to us who can verify in hindsight, and look to the future for the conclusion of His purposes on earth.

We wonder as to why all this must take place, but we as believers know that God's thoughts are far above the thoughts of those He formed from the dust of the earth. He knows exactly the perfect way to bring glory to His name, and call a Kingdom to Himself.

And He centered it upon a little land in the Middle East, surrounded by huge swaths of those who hate Him. And the whole world is clawing their evil fingers after this little land, for some insane reason having a compulsion to destroy it.

But we have "inside information", because we know that God is laying out in that little place the preparation for the Son to return in glory, claim His kingdom and sit on the throne of David. And He will reign on that throne for 1000 years, fulfilling all promises and preparing it to hand back to His Father. And a New Heaven and New Earth will commence.

We celebrate His birth during this season, singing "Joy To The World, The Lord Is Come". But our mindset shouldn't be a simple remembrance of the First Coming, but joyful anticipation of His Return, which could be very soon. I hope it occurs this Christmas season!

Today if you hear His voice, harden not your heart.

*ESV used unless noted*

Memory Helps:

After looking it over, I didn't care for the title I initially used, so I modified it. I do this a lot the more I go over chapters to help me remember better. The "1 on 1" reminds me of 11. I use "football team", because both American and European "football" puts 11 players on the field, which helps remind me of 11. Putting it in the title makes it both odd and "memorizable". At least for me.

"Many "1 on 1's": Persia, Greece, North vs South football teams, and the Beast"