Arab History in Daniel?
IS ARAB HISTORY FROM THE 7th CENTURY A.
D.
PROPHESIED IN THE BOOK OF DANIEL 11:5-45?
Chapter 23 of my 1993 book, Not One Stone, is entitled, "Arab History in the Book of Daniel?" and I contended that it is. I still hold the same interpretation.
In Chapter 11 of Daniel, the angel Gabriel, who is giving this prophecy to Daniel as an understanding of the vision in Chapter 10, is obviously giving a summary of future history. This corresponds to Nebuchadnezzar's dream of the statue, recorded in Daniel 2, from the time of Babylon to the end-time.
By the time of Chapter 11, Babylon had already been conquered by Medo-Persia (see Daniel 5:30), so the angel Gabriel begins in 11:1-4 with Medo-Persia which is followed by Greece.
PROPHESIED IN THE BOOK OF DANIEL 11:5-45?
Daniel 10:14, 21:
Gabriel speaking to Daniel about the vision of the
"certain man" (the Antichrist):
14 Now I am come to make thee
understand what shall befall thy people in the latter days: for yet the
vision is for many days. . . .
21 But I will shew thee that which is noted in the
scripture of truth: and there is none that holdeth with me in these things, but
Michael your prince.Chapter 23 of my 1993 book, Not One Stone, is entitled, "Arab History in the Book of Daniel?" and I contended that it is. I still hold the same interpretation.
In Chapter 11 of Daniel, the angel Gabriel, who is giving this prophecy to Daniel as an understanding of the vision in Chapter 10, is obviously giving a summary of future history. This corresponds to Nebuchadnezzar's dream of the statue, recorded in Daniel 2, from the time of Babylon to the end-time.
By the time of Chapter 11, Babylon had already been conquered by Medo-Persia (see Daniel 5:30), so the angel Gabriel begins in 11:1-4 with Medo-Persia which is followed by Greece.
After Greece, the angel goes to "the king of the
south" (11:5) followed by "the king of the north" (11:6).
The "south" and the "north" are not identified by
name in the text. One of the most prevalent theories imposed upon
the passage in "study Bibles" and commentaries is that the south refers to the
Ptolemies of Egypt and the north refers to the Seleucids of Assyria
(332 - 168 BC). There is no scripture for
this.
This theory originated during the years of
pre-Christian history between Malachi and the New Testament. It first appears in
the Maccabees' writings in the uninspired Apocrypha,
and it alleges that the Seleucid king, Antiochus Epiphanies, fulfilled Daniel
11:21 onward.
Of course, I differ with this theory, as I understand
11:5-45 applies to the divided Arab empire from the 7th century
onward.
In my studies of Arab history, Arab ancestry goes back
to Abraham and Haggar in the book of Genesis, chapter
16. The offspring of the "mix" of Abraham,
a Chaldean, and the Egyptian handmaid, Haggar, was ISHMAEL He is the
father of the Arabs and is described as a "wild man" whose "hand will be
against every man" (Genesis 16:12).
Ishmael also took an Egyptian wife (Genesis 21:21).
He fathered twelve sons which dwelt in Havilah and Shur
(Genesis 25:13-18). Havilah is the original name of the desert later to
be called Arabia, and Shur is in the Sinai peninsula. Jeremiah 25:24
refers to the "kings of Arabia," and the "kings of the mingled
[arab] people that dwell in the desert." The word for "mingled" is
"Arab" in the original language (See Strong's Hebrew
Dictionary, #6151).
The Ismaelites dwelt in Arabia until after the death
of Muhammad who managed to make them Muslims. After his death, the
Muslims invaded countries in the Middle East, conquering other people,
and appropriating women for multiple wives to "mingle [arab] with the
seed of men" (Daniel 2:43).
However, soon after Muhammad's death they split up
into two major groups -- northern and southern -- over the issue of who
is qualified to be the head man, the "Caliph." They have been warring over this
ever since the 7th century. The factions became known as Sunni and
Shia. I understand this division to be what is prophesied in Daniel 11
as to the north and south, corresponding to the "two legs" of the statue in chapter 2.
Eventually, out of this division comes the "vile
person" (11:21) who is the "Little Horn" (Antichrist), the Beast of Revelation
13.
-- Bob L. Ross
(713) 477-2329
posted by Bob L. Ross @ 10:58 AM
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