Commentary - Daniel 11:36-39

Bird's-eye view

In this section of Daniel's prophecy, the lens focuses with remarkable clarity on a figure of ultimate hubris and self-deification. This is the man who stands as a type, a forerunner, of all godless rulers who set themselves against the throne of the Almighty. While many throughout history have seen in this figure a future Antichrist at the end of time, a consistent reading of Scripture, particularly in light of the New Testament's own inspired commentary, points us to a fulfillment much closer to the time of Christ. This king is a man drunk on his own sovereignty, a cheap imitation of the true King. He is the epitome of pride, which is the primordial sin, the desire to be as God. The passage details the nature of his rebellion: his political willfulness, his blasphemous arrogance, his rejection of all traditional pieties, and his invention of a new religion centered on raw power. This is not just a political profile; it is a theological diagnosis of the carnal mind at war with God. And yet, even in his rampage, he operates within the fixed boundaries of God's decree. He will succeed, but only "until the indignation is finished." His leash is long, but it is held firmly in the hand of the God he blasphemes.

What we are reading here is a portrait of the man of sin in his full flower. He is a man who has made himself the measure of all things. He discards the gods of his fathers, not out of some newfound atheistic enlightenment, but because they are competition. He has no room for any god but himself. His only real worship is directed toward military might, a "god of fortresses," because power is the only attribute of divinity he comprehends or covets. This is the essence of all tyranny, ancient and modern. It is the state, or the man who embodies the state, making totalizing claims. And as he does this, he is simply acting out the script written for him. "For that which is decreed will be done." This is a profound comfort to the saints. Even the most monstrous rebels are but pawns in the unfolding drama of redemption, their fury and pride ultimately serving the purposes of the God of gods whom they despise.

Outline

Context In Daniel

Daniel 11 is one of the most detailed and chronologically specific prophecies in all of Scripture. The chapter begins with the Persian kingdom and flows seamlessly through the conquests of Alexander the Great and the subsequent division of his empire, focusing particularly on the Ptolemaic kings of the south (Egypt) and the Seleucid kings of the north (Syria). The prophecy is so precise that liberal critics, who cannot abide the thought of genuine predictive prophecy, have insisted it must have been written after the events it describes. But for those of us who believe the Bible, this is simply God demonstrating His absolute sovereignty over the course of human empires.

The verses immediately preceding our text describe the career of Antiochus IV Epiphanes, a Seleucid king who is a clear and undeniable fulfillment of much of the prophecy. He desecrated the temple in Jerusalem and set up an "abomination of desolation," a key phrase Jesus himself picks up in the Olivet Discourse (Matthew 24:15). However, the description beginning in verse 36 seems to intensify and escalate, pointing to a figure who embodies the spirit of Antiochus but magnifies it. This is where a preterist understanding is crucial. The prophecy is telescoping. Just as a prophet might see two mountain peaks in the distance and describe them as one, Daniel sees Antiochus and, through him, a greater and more significant tyrant who would arise in the era of the Messiah. This points us directly to the first-century Roman power, and specifically to the emperor who set himself up in opposition to Christ and His church, culminating in the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70. This "willful king" is not some far-future bogeyman, but a historical player in the great conflict between the kingdom of God and the kingdoms of men that defined the apostolic age.

Verse by Verse Commentary

v. 36 “Then the king will do as he pleases, and he will exalt and magnify himself above every god and will speak astonishing things against the God of gods; and he will succeed until the indignation is finished, for that which is decreed will be done.”

The prophecy now shifts to a king who acts with absolute autonomy, or so he thinks. "He will do as he pleases." This is the very definition of sin. It is the creature declaring independence from the Creator. This is the language of Nebuchadnezzar before his sanity was taken away, the language of Pharaoh, the language of Caesar. It is the political expression of the lie whispered in the Garden: "you will be like God."

And what is the first action of a man who does as he pleases? He deifies himself. "He will exalt and magnify himself above every god." This is not just garden-variety pride; it is a declaration of war on Heaven. He doesn't just ignore the gods, he places himself above them. This was the precise sin of the Roman emperors who demanded worship and carried the title divus, or divine. He speaks "astonishing things against the God of gods." The word is marvelous, or wonderful, things, but in a perverse sense. These are blasphemies of an epic proportion, not muttered curses but public, state-sanctioned pronouncements against Jehovah. Think of Caligula wanting his statue in the Temple, or Nero's persecution of the saints. These are not small sins.

And yet, look at the text. "He will succeed." This is hard for us, but it is central to a biblical worldview. God gives wicked men success. He gives them a long rope. But notice the limit: "until the indignation is finished." His success is on a divine timetable. The "indignation" refers to God's covenantal wrath against apostate Israel, a central theme of the Old Testament prophets. This king is an instrument of that wrath. And when the purpose for which he was raised up is complete, his success will evaporate. Why? "For that which is decreed will be done." The king thinks he is doing his own will, but he is merely a character actor speaking lines written for him by the great Playwright. God's sovereignty is absolute, even over the most rebellious hearts.

v. 37 “He will show no regard for the gods of his fathers or for the desire of women, nor will he show regard for any other god; for he will magnify himself above them all.”

A tyrant who seeks total power cannot abide any rival loyalties. First, he has no regard "for the gods of his fathers." He is a revolutionary. He despises tradition and heritage because they represent an authority outside of himself. The established religion, with its customs and priests, is a check on his power, so it must go. He is a modernist, a secularist in the truest sense, clearing the ground of all old loyalties to make room for the new cult of the state, with himself as high priest.

Next, he has no regard "for the desire of women." This is a fascinating phrase. Some have seen it as a reference to a particular deity, like Tammuz. Others have suggested it means he will be a homosexual, or perhaps celibate. But it is more likely a broader statement about his character. He is contemptuous of the foundational structures of human society. He has no regard for family, for hearth and home, for the affections and bonds that create a healthy culture. The family is the first and most basic government, and a tyrant who wants to be the only government must undermine it. He despises the tenderness, the fruitfulness, the legacy represented by "the desire of women." He is a man of iron and blood, not of flesh and family.

The verse concludes with the summary reason for all this: "for he will magnify himself above them all." He is not an atheist. An atheist simply doesn't believe in God. This man believes in a god, and that god is himself. All other deities, all other loyalties, all other affections must be subordinated to his grand project of self-exaltation. This is the very heart of the antichrist spirit, which is not simply against Christ, but seeks to be instead of Christ.

v. 38 “But instead he will honor a god of fortresses, a god whom his fathers did not know; he will honor him with gold, silver, costly stones, and desirable things.”

Every man worships. It is not a question of if but what. Having rejected all the old gods, this king invents a new one. He honors a "god of fortresses." His god is military power, brute force, strategic might. This is the only deity he truly respects because it is the only one that delivers the goods he craves: control, dominion, and the subjugation of his enemies. This is a god his fathers did not know, meaning this is a new kind of totalizing, militaristic statism. The old gods might have been patrons of the nation, but this new god is the nation's might, personified in the king.

And he is a devout worshiper. He lavishes upon this god the best of his wealth: "gold, silver, costly stones, and desirable things." What does this look like in practice? It looks like a bloated military budget. It looks like endless parades of weaponry. It looks like the nation's treasure being poured into the machinery of war and control, rather than into the things that bring life. He builds his security on his own strength, and he worships that strength. This is the religion of secular man. He trusts in chariots and horses, in tanks and missiles, and he pours his treasure into them as a votive offering.

v. 39 “And he will take action against the strongest of fortresses with the help of a foreign god; he will give great honor to those who recognize him and will cause them to rule over the many and will apportion land for a price.”

His worship is not just theoretical; it is practical. He acts "with the help of a foreign god." This is likely another reference to his god of fortresses, a power that is alien to the covenant people of God. Empowered by this demonic trust in his own might, he moves against "the strongest of fortresses." No opposition will be tolerated. He believes his power is ultimate and irresistible.

And here we see the machinery of tyranny at work. He creates a new aristocracy based on loyalty to him. "He will give great honor to those who recognize him." To recognize him is to acknowledge his blasphemous claims, to bow the knee to his self-made divinity. For those who do, there are rewards. He will "cause them to rule over the many." He sets up a system of patronage, with loyal sycophants given positions of power. And he will "apportion land for a price." This is cronyism. The wealth of the nation is carved up and handed out to those who collaborate with the regime. He buys loyalty. He rewards wickedness. This is how godless empires are built and maintained, through a combination of brute force against their enemies and lavish rewards for their friends. It is a picture of the world system, a system that the saints are called to resist, not by taking up the sword, but by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony.

Application

We are not to read a passage like this and immediately start scanning the headlines for a man who fits the description. The spirit of this willful king is a perennial temptation for fallen man, and it manifests in every generation. The fundamental sin described here is pride, the desire to be one's own god and to remake the world in one's own image. This is the sin that drives godless statism, the belief that the government is our savior and that political power is the ultimate power.

This king rejected the gods of his fathers. We live in a time when our own leaders show open contempt for the Christian faith that built our civilization. This king honored a god of fortresses. We live in a time when men place their ultimate trust in military might and economic power. This king rewarded those who "recognized" him and punished all others. We are seeing the rise of a soft totalitarianism that demands conformity to its new secular orthodoxies and seeks to marginalize all who dissent.

The application for the Christian is threefold. First, we must see that God is utterly sovereign over all of this. The king only succeeds "until the indignation is finished." God is using even the rebellion of wicked men to accomplish His good purposes. This should fill us with confidence, not fear. Second, we must refuse to worship the god of fortresses. Our trust is not in princes or in political solutions, but in the name of the Lord who made heaven and earth. We must not be seduced into thinking that the weapons of the world can build the kingdom of God. Third, we must be prepared to be among those who do not "recognize" the claims of the willful king. We must be a people whose ultimate loyalty is to the God of gods, Jesus Christ. This may cost us. It may mean we are not given a share of the apportioned land. But our citizenship is in heaven, and we look for a city whose builder and maker is God.