(17) He shall also.--He has further plans for subduing the dominions of the southern king. He brings together all the forces he can amass, and then attempts by means of a political marriage to establish peace; but this also proves a failure.
Upright ones.--Literally, all that is right; hence the words have been explained, "straightforward pleas". If "persons" are intended, it is not impossible that there may be a hint at the Jews taking the part of the northern king in the contest.
Daughter of women--i.e., a woman. (Comp. the phrase "son of man," Ezekiel 2:1.) The rest of the verse is obscure. It seems to mean that the consequence of this marriage was the destruction of the woman mentioned. Or it is possible that "her" refers to the southern kingdom. St. Jerome explains it, "ut evertat Ptolem?um sive regnum ejus." This has been supposed to point to the marriage of Ptolemy Epiphanes with Cleopatra, the daughter of Antiochus the Great. However, the language is very general. (Comp. Daniel 11:6.)
But she shall not stand.--These words form an explanatory clause, meaning that the plan will not answer.
Verse 17. - He shall also set his face to enter with the strength of his whole kingdom, and upright ones with him: thus shall he do: and he shall give him the daughter of women, corrupting her: but she shall not stand on his side, neither be for him. The LXX. renders, "And he shall set (give, δώσει) his face to enter upon (ἐπελθεῖν) his work with violence, and he shall make covenants with him, and shall give him a daughter of man to corrupt her, but she shall not obey, neither shall it be." The translator seems to have had before him מלאכתּו, "work," instead of מלכותו, "kingdom" - a reading not equal to the Massoretic, and מֵישָׁרִים instead of וִישׁרִים, in which case the LXX. reading is preferable. Theodotion is like the Massoretic, "And he shall set (τάξει) his face to enter with the strength of all his kingdom, and he shall make all things straight with him, and shall give him a daughter of the women to corrupt her, but she shall not continue on his side, neither be for him." The Peshitta renders, "And he shall set his face to enter with the force of all his kingdom, and all his people shall pass over, and the daughter of men shall be given to him to corrupt her, but she shall not stand, neither be for him." The Vulgate rendering is independent of the other versions, "And he shall set his face that he may come to lay hold of his whole kingdom, and he shall do right things with him, and he shall give to him the daughter of women that he may overturn it, but she shall not stand, neither be for him." The events portrayed here are well known. Antiochus collected all his forces with a view to the conquest of Egypt, then, alarmed by the progress of Rome and the overthrow of Philip of Macedon, he changed his plan. He now endeavoured to get Ptolemy to be his ally, and gave him his daughter Cleopatra to wife, with Coele-Syria as a dowry. His idea was that she would remain always on his side, would be his spy in the court of her husband, and would always lead the policy of Egypt in the lines he wished. His hopes were frustrated. She was not corrupted so as to be false to her husband. In proof of this, when her father's armies were defeated by the Romans, she joined with her husband in sending congratulations to the Senate of Rome.
11:1-30 The angel shows Daniel the succession of the Persian and Grecian empires. The kings of Egypt and Syria are noticed: Judea was between their dominions, and affected by their contests. From ver. 5-30, is generally considered to relate to the events which came to pass during the continuance of these governments; and from ver. 21, to relate to Antiochus Epiphanes, who was a cruel and violent persecutor of the Jews. See what decaying, perishing things worldly pomp and possessions are, and the power by which they are gotten. God, in his providence, sets up one, and pulls down another, as he pleases. This world is full of wars and fightings, which come from men's lusts. All changes and revolutions of states and kingdoms, and every event, are plainly and perfectly foreseen by God. No word of God shall fall to the ground; but what he has designed, what he has declared, shall infallibly come to pass. While the potsherds of the earth strive with each other, they prevail and are prevailed against, deceive and are deceived; but those who know God will trust in him, and he will enable them to stand their ground, bear their cross, and maintain their conflict.
He shall also set his face to enter with the strength of his whole kingdom,.... Antiochus, having conquered Coelesyria, Phoenicia, and Judea, should set his face towards the land of Egypt, having a greedy desire after it, and bend his mind and forces that way; form a design of invading it, and for that purpose determine to bring all the forces he could master together throughout his dominions. So Justin (b) says, that upon the death of Ptolemy Philopator, Antiochus king of Syria determined to seize on Egypt. The Vulgate Latin version is, "that he might come to lay hold on his whole kingdom"; to seize the whole kingdom of the king of Egypt:
and upright ones with him: meaning, as many think, the Jews, so called to distinguish them from the Heathens, and even from those Jews who had took on the side of Ptolemy, and had changed their religion; but these persevered in it, which Antiochus approved of; and had now a great opinion of them, and had bestowed many favours upon them, as before observed; wherefore he might take some of them, and they might choose to go with him on this expedition, and especially to assist in his intended agreement with the king of Egypt, and the marriage of his daughter to him; in bringing about which they were to have a concern, as being reckoned men of probity and uprightness: or rather the sense is, according to the Vulgate Latin version,
and he shall do right things; in show and appearance: or "he shall make agreement", or peace, as Aben Ezra; enter into covenants of alliance and marriage, upon seeming just conditions, with a great show of sincerity and uprightness:
thus shall he do; in the following manner: or, "and he shall do" (c); that is, succeed in his proposals:
and he shall give him the daughter of women, corrupting her; this was the stratagem he used; finding he could not obtain the kingdom of Egypt by force of arms, for fear of the Romans, who were the guardians of the king of Egypt, he proposed to give his daughter Cleopatra to him in marriage, a beautiful virgin; and therefore called the "daughter of women"; or rather because she was as yet under the care of the women she was first committed to, as Gussetius (d) observes; and so he did marry her, and gave for her dowry Coelesyria, Samaria, Judea, and Phoenicia (e): this was done at Raphia (f), a fortified city of Egypt, where the famous battle had been fought between him and Ptolemy Philopator; see Daniel 11:10 and if the former clause is rendered, as I think it may, "he shall also set his face to enter into the fortress of the whole kingdom"; this is the place intended, where he was desirous of going to meet the king of Egypt, and execute this scheme of his; which, though done under a plausible pretence of peace, and of putting ahead to their quarrels, was with a view to get his kingdom into his hands; "corrupting" his daughter to betray the counsels of her husband; or to put him to death by poison, or otherwise, that he might seize the kingdom on her behalf; or it may be rendered, to "corrupt" or "destroy it" (g), the kingdom; he married his daughter to the king of Egypt with this view, to obtain the kingdom from him:
but she shall not stand on his side, neither be for him; being married, she forgot her own people, and her father's house, and cleaved to her husband; took his part, and not her father's, yea, took part with her husband against her father; for ambassadors were sent out of Egypt by both her husband and herself, congratulating the Romans on the victory Acilius gained over Antiochus her father, and that he had drove him out of Greece, exhorting them to carry their army into Asia (h); and thus he was disappointed of his design in this marriage: and this may be the meaning of the expression here; for it may be rendered, "it shall not stand" (i); his counsel shall not stand, his scheme shall not take place, but fall to the ground, and come to nothing:
and it shall not be for him; the kingdom shall not be his, he shall never possess it, as he did not.
(b) E Trogo, I. 31. c. 1.((c) "et faciet", Pagninus, Montanus, Munster, Gejerus; "efficietque", Junius & Tremellius. (d) Ebr. Comment. p. 540. (e) Joseph. Antiqu. l. 12. c. 4. sect. 1.((f) Liv. Hist. l. 35. c. 13. p. 597. (g) "ad corrumpendum illam", Montanus, Gejerus. (h) Liv. ibid. l. 37. c. 3. p. 633. (i) "et non succedet hoc", Grotius
Upright ones.--Literally, all that is right; hence the words have been explained, "straightforward pleas". If "persons" are intended, it is not impossible that there may be a hint at the Jews taking the part of the northern king in the contest.
Daughter of women--i.e., a woman. (Comp. the phrase "son of man," Ezekiel 2:1.) The rest of the verse is obscure. It seems to mean that the consequence of this marriage was the destruction of the woman mentioned. Or it is possible that "her" refers to the southern kingdom. St. Jerome explains it, "ut evertat Ptolem?um sive regnum ejus." This has been supposed to point to the marriage of Ptolemy Epiphanes with Cleopatra, the daughter of Antiochus the Great. However, the language is very general. (Comp. Daniel 11:6.)
But she shall not stand.--These words form an explanatory clause, meaning that the plan will not answer.
and upright ones with him: meaning, as many think, the Jews, so called to distinguish them from the Heathens, and even from those Jews who had took on the side of Ptolemy, and had changed their religion; but these persevered in it, which Antiochus approved of; and had now a great opinion of them, and had bestowed many favours upon them, as before observed; wherefore he might take some of them, and they might choose to go with him on this expedition, and especially to assist in his intended agreement with the king of Egypt, and the marriage of his daughter to him; in bringing about which they were to have a concern, as being reckoned men of probity and uprightness: or rather the sense is, according to the Vulgate Latin version,
and he shall do right things; in show and appearance: or "he shall make agreement", or peace, as Aben Ezra; enter into covenants of alliance and marriage, upon seeming just conditions, with a great show of sincerity and uprightness:
thus shall he do; in the following manner: or, "and he shall do" (c); that is, succeed in his proposals:
and he shall give him the daughter of women, corrupting her; this was the stratagem he used; finding he could not obtain the kingdom of Egypt by force of arms, for fear of the Romans, who were the guardians of the king of Egypt, he proposed to give his daughter Cleopatra to him in marriage, a beautiful virgin; and therefore called the "daughter of women"; or rather because she was as yet under the care of the women she was first committed to, as Gussetius (d) observes; and so he did marry her, and gave for her dowry Coelesyria, Samaria, Judea, and Phoenicia (e): this was done at Raphia (f), a fortified city of Egypt, where the famous battle had been fought between him and Ptolemy Philopator; see Daniel 11:10 and if the former clause is rendered, as I think it may, "he shall also set his face to enter into the fortress of the whole kingdom"; this is the place intended, where he was desirous of going to meet the king of Egypt, and execute this scheme of his; which, though done under a plausible pretence of peace, and of putting ahead to their quarrels, was with a view to get his kingdom into his hands; "corrupting" his daughter to betray the counsels of her husband; or to put him to death by poison, or otherwise, that he might seize the kingdom on her behalf; or it may be rendered, to "corrupt" or "destroy it" (g), the kingdom; he married his daughter to the king of Egypt with this view, to obtain the kingdom from him:
but she shall not stand on his side, neither be for him; being married, she forgot her own people, and her father's house, and cleaved to her husband; took his part, and not her father's, yea, took part with her husband against her father; for ambassadors were sent out of Egypt by both her husband and herself, congratulating the Romans on the victory Acilius gained over Antiochus her father, and that he had drove him out of Greece, exhorting them to carry their army into Asia (h); and thus he was disappointed of his design in this marriage: and this may be the meaning of the expression here; for it may be rendered, "it shall not stand" (i); his counsel shall not stand, his scheme shall not take place, but fall to the ground, and come to nothing:
and it shall not be for him; the kingdom shall not be his, he shall never possess it, as he did not.
(b) E Trogo, I. 31. c. 1.((c) "et faciet", Pagninus, Montanus, Munster, Gejerus; "efficietque", Junius & Tremellius. (d) Ebr. Comment. p. 540. (e) Joseph. Antiqu. l. 12. c. 4. sect. 1.((f) Liv. Hist. l. 35. c. 13. p. 597. (g) "ad corrumpendum illam", Montanus, Gejerus. (h) Liv. ibid. l. 37. c. 3. p. 633. (i) "et non succedet hoc", Grotius