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6 his eyes. And he came to the ram that had two horns, which I had seen standing before the river, and ran unto him in the fury of his power. And I saw him come close unto the ram, and he was moved with choler against him, and smote the ram, and brake his two horns: and there was no power in the ram to stand before him, but he cast him down to the ground, and stamped upon him: and there was none that could deliver the ram out of his hand. 8 Therefore the he goat waxed very great: and when he was strong, the great horn was broken; and for it came up four notable ones toward the four winds of heaven. subjugated the country; and then, with a large fleet, sailed down the Indus to its mouth. Thence (326) he returned through Gedrosia and Carmania (N. of the Persian Gulf) to Persepolis; and afterwards (325) to Susa. In 324 he was again in Babylon. There ainbassadors from Greece and other parts were waiting to salute him, and greet him as the conqueror of Asia. He was planning further conquests,-in particular, an expedition into Arabia,-when he was seized with a fever, which after 11 days carried him off (June 28, B.C. 323), at the early age of 32.

6.

Alexander's attack upon Persia.

that had two horns] that had the two horns (v. 3).

the river] the stream (v. 2).

ran unto him] at or (R.V.) upon him (Job xv. 26).

7. The collapse of the Persian power before Alexander, especially in the two great defeats of Issus and Arbela.

was moved with choler] an effective rendering; so xi. II. The Heb. is lit. embitter himself, or be embittered, i.e. be maddened, enraged: cf. in Syriac, Euseb. v. 1, 50 for nypiwoŋ, and elsewhere for μaivóμevos (Payne Smith, col. 2200).

stamped] trampled (R.V.), viz. in contempt: so v. 10. Cf. Is. xxvi. 6, lxiii. 3. Not the word used in vii. 7, 19.

and there was none, &c.] The 'ram' was now as defenceless before the 'he-goat,' as others had once (v. 4) been before it.

8. Therefore, &c.] And the he goat did very greatly (v. 4) i.e. performed great exploits.

and when he was strong, the great horn-the 'conspicuous horn' of v. 5-was broken] Alexander was struck down by his fatal malady, just when he had risen to the summit of his power.

and instead of it came up four notable ones] lit. a sight of four, which is explained to mean 'four conspicuous ones' (cf. v. 5, though the expression there is not quite the same). But the explanation is forced: and from v. 22, end, it would seem also that these four horns were by no means so 'conspicuous,' or 'notable,' as the original horn; so that very probably LXX and Theod. are right in reading, with a slight change (18 for Nin), four other ones.

toward the four winds of heaven] cf. Jer. xlix. 36; Ez. xlii. 20; 1 Chr. ix. 24; and esp. (in the same connexion) ch. xi. 4. See also vii. 2.

And out of one of them came forth a little horn, which 9 waxed exceeding great, toward the south, and toward the east, and toward the pleasant land. And it waxed great, 10

Alexander left no legitimate heir (though his widow, Roxana, gave birth to a son shortly after his death); and hence his empire became the prey of rivalries and disputes between his generals. A division of the provinces was agreed upon at a military council held the day after his death; but the only permanent elements in this were the allotment of Egypt to Ptolemy Lagi, and Thrace to Lysimachus. After the death of Perdikkas (who had acted as regent) in 321, a fresh distribution took place at a meeting of generals held at Triparadisus in Syria; and another one, after a four years' war, undertaken for the purpose of checking the ambitious designs of Alexander's veteran general Antigonus, in 311. The final settlement was brought about by the battle of Ipsus (in Phrygia), in 301, in which Antigonus was defeated and slain by Ptolemy, Seleucus, and Lysimachus, who had coalesced against him. The result of this victory was that Cassander obtained Macedonia and Greece, Lysimachus Thrace and Bithynia, Seleucus Syria, Babylonia, and other Eastern countries as far as the Indus, while Ptolemy remained in possession of Egypt. These are the four kingdoms (cf. v. 22) denoted here by the four 'horns.'

9-14. Antiochus Epiphanes (B.C. 175—164), and his assaults upon the religion of the Jews (cf. vv. 23—25).

9. out of one of them] The history of Seleucus himself and his immediate successors is passed over: and the prophecy proceeds at once to Antiochus Epiphanes (B.C. 175—164), whose reign was fraught with such momentous consequences for the Jews.

a little horn] cf. vii. 8. The general sense is, no doubt, given correctly; but the exact meaning of the Heb. (which is very peculiar) is far from clear. The explanation which is least forced is a horn (arising) out of (being) a small one.' It is quite possible, however, that the text is slightly in error: by omitting one letter, we should obtain the ordinary Hebrew for a little horn'; and by altering two letters, we should get another horn, a little one' (cf. vii. 8). Probably one of these is the true reading: LXX. Theod. support the former.

toward the south] i.e. Egypt, as in ch. xi. (v. 5, &c.). On the wars of Antiochus against Egypt, see more fully on ch. xi. 21 ff.

toward the cast] Antiochus led an expedition into Elymais (on the E. of Babylonia) in the last year of his life (see on xi. 40).

and toward the beauteous (land)] lit. the beauty; but the full expression land of beauty,' or 'beauteous land,' occurs in xi. 16, 41. It is a title of honour for the land of Israel, based upon Jer. iii. 19, where Canaan is called 'the heritage of beauty (i.e. the most beauteous heritage) of the hosts of the nations,' and Ez. xx. 6, 9, 'the land flowing with milk and honey, which is the beauty of all lands' (or, as we might say, the crown of all lands).

10. The horn 'waxed great,' in the vision, not only over the surface of the earth (v. 9); it even towered up to heaven, struck and hurled

even to the host of heaven; and it cast down some of the host and of the stars to the ground, and stamped 11 upon them. Yea, he magnified himself even to the prince

of the host, and by him the daily sacrifice was taken 12 away, and the place of his sanctuary was cast down. And

down to the earth some of the stars, and then trampled contumeliously upon them.

even to] as far as, so as even to reach. Cf. Is. xiv. 13-14; Job xx. 6; and 2 Macc. ix. 10, 'the man (Ant. Ep.) that a little afore supposed himself to touch the stars of heaven.' The 'host of heaven' are the stars (as Deut. iv. 19, Jer. viii. 2, xxxiii. 22, and elsewhere1). Antiochus did not merely (cf. the passages quoted) touch heaven in his pride: he is represented further, with allusion to his insolent assaults upon the religion of the Jews, and to the martyrs who fell in consequence (v. 24; cf. 1 Macc. i. 24, 30, 57, 63, &c.), as audaciously attacking it, and hurling down some of the stars to the earth.

and it cast, &c.] better, R. V. and some of the host and of the stars it cast down to the ground, and trampled (v. 7) upon them. The stars are intended to symbolize the faithful Israelites: cf. Enoch xlvi. 7.

11. And even unto the prince of the host it magnified itself] it not only mounted to the stars, but in impious defiance it shewed greatness (vv. 4, 25), i.e. continued its acts of pride and presumption, even to the throne of the prince of the host, i.e. of God himself.

and it took away from him (i.e. from the prince of the host) the continual (burnt-offering)] So the Heb. text (K'tib): the Heb. marg. (Qre) has, and by it the continual (burnt-offering) was taken away. The allusion is to Antiochus' suspension of the temple-services for three years (1 Macc. i. 45, 59, iv. 52 f.); see further on xi. 31.

The daily burnt-offering is called in Ex. xxix. 42 and elsewhere the 'continual (i.e. daily recurring) burnt-offering,' lit. 'the burnt-offering of continuance (Heb. tāmīd)': from this expression, the daily burntoffering came in later Heb. to be spoken of simply as 'the tāmīd'; and this usage is found here, and in vv. 12, 13, xi. 31, xii. 11. It does not occur elsewhere in the O.T., but it is common in the Mishna, &c., where the word is even used in the plural, 'the tāmīds' (TDN). and the place of his sanctuary was cast down] or, by a change of points, which has the effect of improving the sentence, and cast down the place, &c. The Temple does not seem to have been literally 'cast down' by Antiochus: but it suffered severely at his hands: its sacred vessels were carried away (1 Macc. i. 21-23); the sanctuary is described as being laid waste like a wilderness' (v. 39), and 'trampled down (καTажαтоúμevov)' (iii. 45); and in I Macc. iv. 38 we read that when Judas and his brethren went up to mount Zion for the purpose of re-dedicating it, they saw the sanctuary laid desolate, and the altar profaned, and the gates burned up, and shrubs growing

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1 See HOST OF HEAVEN in Hastings' Dict. of the Bible. It denotes them as a disciplined army, obedient to the commands of its leader (Is. xl. 26).

a host was given him against the daily sacrifice by reason of transgression, and it cast down the truth to the ground; and it practised and prospered. Then I heard one saint 13

in the court as in a forest or in one of the mountains, and the priests' chambers pulled down' (cf. v. 48, and they built the holy place (rà aya), and the inner parts of the house').

place] not the usual word, but a rarer word, chiefly poetical, and meaning properly fixed or established place, used mostly of God's abode, whether on earth, Ex. xv. 17, 1 Ki. viii. 13, or in heaven, Is. xviii. 4, I Ki. viii. 39, 43, 49, Ps. xxxiii. 14, al.

12. And a host, &c.] The first part of this verse is difficult and uncertain; but the most natural rendering is, 'And a host was appointed [or, a warfare (Is. xl. 2) was undertaken] against1 the continual (burnt-offering), with transgression (i.e. wickedly).' The allusion, with this rendering, will be to the violent measures adopted by Antiochus for the purpose of suppressing the sacred rites of the Jews-in particular, perhaps, to the armed garrison established by him in the city of David' with the object of overawing the worshippers, which remained there for many years (1 Macc. i. 33-38; cf. v. 51, ii. 15, 31 f., iv. 41). R.V. has 'And the host [better, with Meinhold, Keil, &c. an host]-i.e. an army of Israelites, the figure of vv. 10, II being kept up-was given over to it (i.e. into the power of the horn) together with the continual (burnt-offering) through transgression (i.e. on account of the apostasy of the Hellenizing Jews): this has the advantage of taking 'host,' 'give' (i.e. give up, abandon2), and 'transgression,' in the same senses as in v. 13; but the rendering together with is not here very natural.

and it cast down truth to the ground] i. e. overthrew the true religion. 'Truth' is commonly used in Heb. subjectively of a moral quality; but here it denotes that which is true objectively, a body of true principles, i.e. true religion. So ix. 13, Ps. xxv. 5.

As pointed, the verb 'and it cast down' ought strictly to be construed as a future; but the rest of the description is in the past time; and probably the punctuation should be altered accordingly. The other two verbs in the verse may denote either future or past time; they must be rendered, therefore, so as to agree with the tense of 'cast down.'

and it did, and prospered] cf. v. 24. 'Did' is used in a pregnant sense, acted (viz. with effect), carried through his purpose; hence R.V. 'did (its pleasure)'. Cf. 2 Chr. xxxi. 21 ‘And in every work that he

1 A.V. and the first marg. of R.V. do not differ in general sense; but 'was appointed' (absolutely) is better than 'was given (to it).' The 2nd marg. of R.V. renders (nearly as Ewald) 'was set over the continual (burnt-offering) '-viz. to lay compulsion upon it, or to suppress it-also with no difference in the general sense. For the rendering appoint (or set) see 2 Ch. xx. 22, Neh. ix. 17; and with over, 2 Ch. xxxii. 6, Neh. ix. 37.

2 In Heb. to give may mean, according to the context, either to set, place (as Gen. i. 17, and frequently), or to give over, deliver (Deut. i. 27, &c.), and abs. (though this usage is rare) to give up, abandon, Numb. xxi. 3; 1 Ki. xiv. 16; Mic. v. 3; Dan. xi. 6.

speaking, and another saint said unto that certain saint which spake, How long shall be the vision concerning the

began..., he did (i.e. acted) with all his heart, and prospered;' also the absolute use of 'do' of God, Ps. xxii. 31 and lii. 9 (there is no 'it' in the Heb.), xxxvii. 5 (lit. 'and he will do'). Comp. ch. xi. 28, 30, 32. 13, 14. A dialogue between two angels, which is overheard by Daniel, and the object of which is evidently to inform Daniel how long the suspension of the daily sacrifices and the desecration of the Temple are to continue.

13. one saint] a holy one, i.e. an angel, as iv. 13 (where see the note). So in the next line, and another holy one. In A. V. 'saint' is used, in an application which is now obsolete, of the angels: see Deut. xxxiii. 2, Job v. 1, xv. 15, Ps. lxxxix. 5, 7, Zech. xiv. 5, Jude 14, and probably Thess. iii. 13. But the term, as limited by modern usage, yields an incorrect sense; and hence, in all the passages quoted, except the last, 'holy one(s)' has been substituted in R.V.

speaking] What was said is not stated: but the question which follows shews that it had some reference to the vision which Daniel had just seen.

unto that certain one which spake] The indef. expression is used (cf. 1 Sam. xxi. 3; Ruth iv. 1), as the speaker could not be specified more closely.

How long (shall be) the vision? the continual (burnt-offering), and the transgression causing appalment, the giving both the sanctuary and the host (to be) trampled under foot?] The sentence (if the text is correct) is harshly constructed; but the words following 'vision' must be understood to be in apposition with that word, and to indicate the contents of the vision. The rendering of LXX. might suggest that 'taken away' had dropped out after 'continual (burnt-offering)'; at any rate, whether actually read by the translators or not, this is a correct interpretation of the sense. The transgression causing appalment' is the heathen worship established by Antiochus in the Temple, with special reference, perhaps (cf. xi. 31, xii. 11), to the heathen altar erected by him on the altar of burnt-offering in the Temple court, which was naturally an object of extreme abhorrence to the pious Jews (see 1 Macc. i. 47, 51, 54, 59).

causing appalment] Except in Daniel, the word used means either laid waste, desolated1 (Is. xlix. 8; Lam. i. 4, 13, 16, iii. 11), or appalled1 (2 Sam. xiii. 20): but the passive sense is unsuitable both here, and in ix. 27 (last word), xii. II; and the active, whether causing appalment, or causing desolation, being defensible (see Ges.-Kautzsch, S$ 55, f; 52s; König, Lehrgebäude, ii. p. 106), must be adopted. Comp. ix. 27, xi. 31 (where a probable explanation of the expression is mentioned in the note), xii. 11: and the note on p. 151.

1 On the connexion between these two senses, see the note on iv. 19. In the corresponding verb, the sense to be appalled, horror-struck, is common, as Jer. ii. 12, xviii. 16, Ez. xxvi. 16, xxvii. 35 (A.V., R.V., be astonished).

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