The Meaning of Daniel 11:15 Explained

Daniel 11:15

KJV: So the king of the north shall come, and cast up a mount, and take the most fenced cities: and the arms of the south shall not withstand, neither his chosen people, neither shall there be any strength to withstand.

YLT: 'And the king of the north cometh in, and poureth out a mount, and hath captured fenced cities; and the arms of the south do not stand, nor the people of his choice, yea, there is no power to stand.

Darby: And the king of the north shall come, and cast up a mound, and take the well-fenced city; and the arms of the south shall not withstand, neither his chosen people, for there shall be no strength to withstand.

ASV: So the king of the north shall come, and cast up a mound, and take a well-fortified city: and the forces of the south shall not stand, neither his chosen people, neither shall there be any strength to stand.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

So the king  of the north  shall come,  and cast up  a mount,  and take  the most fenced  cities:  and the arms  of the south  shall not withstand,  neither his chosen  people,  neither [shall there be any] strength  to withstand. 

What does Daniel 11:15 Mean?

Study Notes

king of the north
Antiochus the Great, B.C. 198.

Verse Meaning

The fortified city that Antiochus III besieged and took was Sidon, which he defeated about200 B.C. There he forced the Egyptian General Scopas, whom he had recently defeated at Paneas (biblical Dan), near the headwaters of the Jordan River, to surrender. Three other Egyptian commanders tried to free Scopas from Sidon, but they failed. The king of the north in this instance was Seleucus IV Philopator (187-175 B.C.).

Context Summary

Daniel 11:15-29 - The Despoiler Triumphs For A Time
What a picture is presented in this paragraph of the tangled web of earthly politics. They have been too much, and for too long, in the hands of those who sought only their own aggrandizement to attain which they have been willing to sacrifice their honor, their families, their daughters, their people. The time has arrived when the people themselves, at first hand, must determine their destinies. These intrigues between the kings of Syria on the north and the kings of Egypt on the south have little interest for us, and are recorded here only as affecting the history of the Chosen People. This enables us to realize that the events of the present hour are being overruled by divine Providence in the interests of the Church of Christ. This alone abides; all else is of secondary importance and is rapidly passing away. The eternal purpose stands forever sure-that the Father has committed the empire of the world to our Lord, and is about to sum all things up in Him, who is the Head. [source]

Chapter Summary: Daniel 11

1  The overthrow of Persia by the king of Grecia
5  Leagues and conflicts between the kings of the south and of the north
30  The invasion and tyranny of the Romans

What do the individual words in Daniel 11:15 mean?

So shall come the king of the North and build a siege mound and take a city fortified and the forces of the south not shall withstand [him] and Even troops his choice and [shall have] no strength to resist
וְיָבֹא֙ מֶ֣לֶךְ הַצָּפ֔וֹן וְיִשְׁפֹּךְ֙ סֽוֹלֲלָ֔ה וְלָכַ֖ד עִ֣יר מִבְצָר֑וֹת וּזְרֹע֤וֹת הַנֶּ֙גֶב֙ לֹ֣א יַעֲמֹ֔דוּ וְעַם֙ מִבְחָרָ֔יו וְאֵ֥ין כֹּ֖חַ לַעֲמֹֽד

וְיָבֹא֙  So  shall  come 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: בֹּוא 
Sense: to go in, enter, come, go, come in.
מֶ֣לֶךְ  the  king 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: מֶלֶךְ 
Sense: king.
הַצָּפ֔וֹן  of  the  North 
Parse: Article, Noun, feminine singular
Root: צָפֹון  
Sense: north (of direction), northward.
וְיִשְׁפֹּךְ֙  and  build 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: שֶׂפֶק 
Sense: to pour, pour out, spill.
סֽוֹלֲלָ֔ה  a  siege  mound 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular
Root: סׄלְלָה  
Sense: mound.
וְלָכַ֖ד  and  take 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: לָכַד  
Sense: to capture, take, seize.
עִ֣יר  a  city 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: עִיר 
Sense: excitement, anguish.
מִבְצָר֑וֹת  fortified 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: מִבְצָר 
Sense: fortification, fortress, fortified city, stronghold.
וּזְרֹע֤וֹת  and  the  forces 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, feminine plural construct
Root: זְרֹועַ  
Sense: arm, forearm, shoulder, strength.
הַנֶּ֙גֶב֙  of  the  south 
Parse: Article, Noun, feminine singular
Root: נֶגֶב  
Sense: south-country, Nekeb, south.
יַעֲמֹ֔דוּ  shall  withstand  [him] 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: עָמַד  
Sense: to stand, remain, endure, take one’s stand.
וְעַם֙  and  Even  troops 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: עַם 
Sense: nation, people.
מִבְחָרָ֔יו  his  choice 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, third person masculine singular
Root: מִבְחָר  
Sense: choicest, best.
וְאֵ֥ין  and  [shall  have]  no 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adverb
Root: אַיִן 
Sense: nothing, not, nought n.
כֹּ֖חַ  strength 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: כֹּחַ 
Sense: strength, power, might.
לַעֲמֹֽד  to  resist 
Parse: Preposition-l, Verb, Qal, Infinitive construct
Root: עָמַד  
Sense: to stand, remain, endure, take one’s stand.