Daniel 11:21
in Daniel 11In his place a despicable person will arise; royal honors will not be given to him, but he will come in a time of peace and seize the kingdom by intrigue.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And in his place shall stand up a contemptible person, to whom they had not given the honor of the kingdom: but he shall come in time of security, and shall obtain the kingdom by flatteries.
KJV
And in his estate shall stand up a vile person, to whom they shall not give the honour of the kingdom: but he shall come in peaceably, and obtain the kingdom by flatteries.
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This verse in Daniel 11
Commentary
11 notes on this verseAnd in his estate shall stand up a vile person,.... Upon his basis or stand, in the same place where Seleucus Philopator stood, succeeded Antiochus Epiphanes his brother, called "vile", being a very immoral man, given to drunkenness, lasciviousness, uncleanness, and unnatural lusts, and a violent persecutor of the church of God.
This site's exposition
a despicable person will arise
Barnes takes the despicable person as Antiochus Epiphanes, king from 175 to 163 B.C. Wesley notes the royal honors were his nephew’s by right. Clarke says others had claimed the kingdom, and Antiochus would seize it by flattery of Eumenes.
This site's exposition
a despicable person will arise
on Daniel 11:21-28
A “despicable person” without royal honors seizes the kingdom “by intrigue,” and Keil and Matthew Henry identify him as Antiochus Epiphanes. A broken prince of the covenant, a deceitful alliance, lavished plunder and lies spoken “at the same table” describe a kingdom held by deceit.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers3 voices
He is talking about Antiochus Epiphanes, who on his return from Rome succeeded his brother Seleucus. Seleucus (called Philopator) succeeded Antiochus the Great, since he was his son. When Seleucus died, Antiochus Epiphanes received the throne. He says about the latter, "From his root kingship …
He was in fact not glorious, seeming instead to be an insignificant figure, because he was kept under guard in Rome. "And he will return, and he will gain mastery over a kingdom by his cunning." But, nonetheless, especially since he had been brought down …
In this way after these things happened, Alexander, having heard this, engaged in war with Ptolemy, and having not overpowered him, became a fugitive to the king of the Arabs. But he, removing the head of Alexander, sent it to Ptolemy and that one received it and the two diadems of Syria and Egypt were bestowed on him, which after being bestowed he died on the third day.
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
A vile person - Antiochus, called Epiphanes by his flatterers, but the people of God accounted him infamous, base, and treacherous. They - Neither peers nor people, nor was he the heir, but his nephew; but he crept in by flatteries.
The kingdom of Syria, which was set up by Seleucus Nicanor, or the conqueror; he was one of Alexander's princes, and became stronger than the other, and had the greatest dominion of all, was the most powerful of all Alexander's successors. It was said that he had no fewer than seven-two kingdoms under him.
3 more voices on this verse
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
And in his estate - In his place. See the notes at Dan 11:7, Dan 11:20. Shall stand up a vile person - There shall succeed to the throne. The reference here is to Antiochus Epiphanes, who reigned from 175 b.c. to 163 b.c. The epithet “vile” here given him was one which his subsequent history showed was eminently appropriate to him in all respects, as a man and as a prince. The Hebrew word rendered “vile” - נבזה nı̂bezeh - properly means one despised or held in contempt, Isa 49:7; Psa 22:6 (7).
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
vile--Antiochus called Epiphanes, that is, "the illustrious," for vindicating the claims of the royal line against Heliodorus, was nicknamed, by a play of sounds, Epimanes, that is, "the madman," for his mad freaks beneath the dignity of a king.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
In his estate shall stand up a vile person - This was Antiochus, surnamed Epiphanes - the Illustrious. They did not give him the honor of the kingdom: he was at Athens, on his way from Rome, when his father died; and Heliodorus had declared himself king, as had several others. But Antiochus came in peaceably, for he obtained the kingdom by flatteries. He flattered Eumenes, king of Pergamus, and Attalus his brother, and got their assistance. He flattered the Romans, and sent ambassadors to court their favor, and pay them the arrears of the tribute. He flattered the Syrians, and gained their concurrence; and as he flattered the Syrians, so they flattered him, giving him the epithet of Epiphanes - the Illustrious. But that he was what the prophet here calls him, a vile person, is fully evident from what Polybius says of him, from Athenians, lib. v.: “He was every man’s companion: he resorted to the common shops, and prattled with the workmen: he frequented the common taverns, and ate and drank with the meanest fellows, singing debauched songs,” etc., etc. On this account a contemporary writer, and others after him, instead of Epiphanes, called him Epimanes - the Madman.
The words behind it
14 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְעָמַ֤ד | veamad | and he will arise | H5975 → | 521 times |
| עַל־ | ʾal- | on | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| כַּנּוֹ֙ | kano | place his | H3653 → | 17 times |
| נִבְזֶ֔ה | nivzeh | a despicable [person] | H959 → | |
| וְלֹא־ | velo'- | and not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| נָתְנ֥וּ | natenu | people had given | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| עָלָ֖יו | ʾalav | to him | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| ה֣וֹד | hod | [the] honor of | H1935 → | |
| מַלְכ֑וּת | malkhut | royalty | H4438 → | 91 times |
| וּבָ֣א | uva' | and he will come | H935 → | 2568 times |
| בְשַׁלְוָ֔ה | veshalvah | in quietness | H7962 → | 8 times |
| וְהֶחֱזִ֥יק | vehechezik | and he will take hold of | H2388 → | 291 times |
| מַלְכ֖וּת | malkhut | royalty | H4438 → | 91 times |
| בַּחֲלַקְלַקּֽוֹת׃ | bachalaklakot | by intrigues | H2519 → |
וְעָמַ֤דand he will arise
veamadH5975 →521 times
עַל־on
ʾal-H5921 →5755 times
כַּנּוֹ֙place his
kanoH3653 →17 times
נִבְזֶ֔הa despicable [person]
nivzehH959 →
וְלֹא־and not
velo'-H3808 →5168 times
נָתְנ֥וּpeople had given
natenuH5414 →2011 times
עָלָ֖יוto him
ʾalavH5921 →5755 times
ה֣וֹד[the] honor of
hodH1935 →
מַלְכ֑וּתroyalty
malkhutH4438 →91 times
וּבָ֣אand he will come
uva'H935 →2568 times
בְשַׁלְוָ֔הin quietness
veshalvahH7962 →8 times
וְהֶחֱזִ֥יקand he will take hold of
vehechezikH2388 →291 times
מַלְכ֖וּתroyalty
malkhutH4438 →91 times
בַּחֲלַקְלַקּֽוֹת׃by intrigues
bachalaklakotH2519 →
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Psalms 55:21His speech is smooth as butter, but war is in his heart. His words are softer than oil, yet they are swords unsheathed.
it leads to
- Psalms 57:4
My soul is among the lions; I lie down with ravenous beasts— with men whose teeth are spears and arrows, whose tongues are sharp swords.
- Proverbs 5:3–4
Though the lips of the forbidden woman drip honey and her speech is smoother than oil,
- Proverbs 26:28
A lying tongue hates those it crushes, and a flattering mouth causes ruin.
- Psalms 28:3
Do not drag me away with the wicked, and with the workers of iniquity, who speak peace to their neighbors while malice is in their hearts.
- Psalms 12:2
They lie to one another; they speak with flattering lips and a double heart.
- Psalms 57:4
Through
Daniel 8:25Through his craft and by his hand, he will cause deceit to prosper, and in his own mind he will make himself great. In a time of peace he will destroy many, and he…
it leads to
- Daniel 8:11
It magnified itself, even to the Prince of the host; it removed His daily sacrifice and overthrew the place of His sanctuary.
- Daniel 11:32–33
With flattery he will corrupt those who violate the covenant, but the people who know their God will firmly resist him.
- Daniel 8:11
Through
Daniel 11:34Now when they fall, they will be granted a little help, but many will join them insincerely.
it leads to
- Matthew 7:15
Beware of false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.
- Matthew 7:15
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies8
On this verse
About Daniel
This page draws on 10 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Carl Friedrich Keil, Biblical Commentary on the Book of Daniel; Hippolytus of Rome, Commentary on Daniel 4.47.10; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible; Theodoret of Cyrus, COMMENTARY ON DANIEL 11:20 and Theodoret of Cyrus, COMMENTARY ON DANIEL 11:21.