In 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.
Parallel translations
- WEB 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.
- NKJV And in his place shall arise a vile person, to whom they will not give the honor of royalty; but he shall come in peaceably, and seize the kingdom by intrigue.
- NASB And in his place a despicable person will arise, on whom the majesty of kingship has not been conferred; but he will come in a time of tranquility and seize the kingdom by intrigue.
- NLT “The next to come to power will be a despicable man who is not in line for royal succession. He will slip in when least expected and take over the kingdom by flattery and intrigue.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
A contemptible person, not given royal honor, seizes the kingdom by flattery and intrigue rather than legitimate succession. A deceitful tyrant rises to power.
Overview
This introduces a figure widely identified as Antiochus IV Epiphanes, who gained the Seleucid throne by cunning rather than rightful claim. His career of arrogance and persecution against the Jews dominates the next section. As a notorious enemy of God's people who profaned the temple, he becomes in Scripture a type or foreshadowing of the final antichrist.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 16
- Dan 11:34Now when they fall, they will be granted a little help, but many will join them insincerely.
- Ps 55:21His speech is smooth as butter, but war is in his heart. His words are softer than oil, yet they are swords unsheathed.
- Dan 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 will even stand against the Prince of princes. Yet he will be broken off, but not by human hands.
- Judg 9:1–20Now Abimelech son of Jerubbaal went to his mother’s brothers at Shechem and said to them and to all the clan of his mother,
- Nah 1:14The LORD has issued a command concerning you, O Nineveh: “There will be no descendants to carry on your name. I will cut off the carved image and cast idol from the house of your gods; I will prepare your grave, for you are contemptible.”
- Dan 8:9From one of these horns a little horn emerged and grew extensively toward the south and the east and toward the Beautiful Land.
- Dan 8:23In the latter part of their reign, when the rebellion has reached its full measure, an insolent king, skilled in intrigue, will come to the throne.
- Dan 11:20In his place one will arise who will send out a tax collector for the glory of the kingdom; but within a few days he will be destroyed, though not in anger or in battle.
- Isa 32:5No longer will a fool be called noble, nor a scoundrel be respected.
- Ps 12:8The wicked wander freely, and vileness is exalted among men.
- 1 Sam 3:13I told him that I would judge his house forever for the iniquity of which he knows, because his sons blasphemed God and he did not restrain them.
- 2 Sam 15:2–6He would get up early and stand beside the road leading to the city gate. Whenever anyone had a grievance to bring before the king for a decision, Absalom would call out and ask, “What city are you from?” And if he replied, “Your servant is from one of the tribes of Israel,”
- Dan 11:32With flattery he will corrupt those who violate the covenant, but the people who know their God will firmly resist him.
- Dan 7:8While I was contemplating the horns, suddenly another horn, a little one, came up among them, and three of the first horns were uprooted before it. This horn had eyes like those of a man and a mouth that spoke words of arrogance.
- Dan 11:7But one from her family line will rise up in his place, come against the army of the king of the North, and enter his fortress, fighting and prevailing.
- Ps 15:4who despises the vile but honors those who fear the LORD, who does not revise a costly oath,
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Christ at the center
Daniel sees the stone cut without hands that shatters the kingdoms, and 'one like a son of man' given everlasting dominion — titles and visions Jesus claims as his own.
How Daniel 11:21 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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