Study: John MacArthur's The Reign of Rebellion

I've just spent a couple of hours listening to & researching John MacArthur's brilliant sermon, The Reign of Rebellion Part 1. It is a study of Daniel 11:1-35. This prophecy, which has since been fulfilled, is so detailed and so fascinating that I thought I'd share it here, with my notes so that you too can benefit from God's amazing words!

You can listen to and/or read John MacArthur's sermon by clicking here: The Reign of Rebellion Part 1

Below are my notes from the sermon + some details that I researched on the internet.

Summary Notes on John MacArthur’s

The Reign of Rebellion Part 1

(Daniel 11: 1:35)

[Daniel lived ± 607BC)

The key kings mentioned in Daniel 11:

3 prominent kings before the rise of the 5 “A” kings:

• Cambyses (son of Cyrus)
• Pseudo-Smerdis (was an usurper & impostor)
• Darius Hystaspes

1. Xerxes aka Ahasuerus [486 – 465 BC] (verse 2)

·         Found in Book of Esther

·         One of greatest oriental rulers

·         Very wealthy

·         Commanded largest army in Ancient World

·         Wanted to attack Greece

·         Defeated by Power of Greece

·         150 years later, the Greeks retaliated & came led by Alexander the Great (verse 3)

Xerxes aka Ahasurerus (486 - 465 BC)

2. Alexander the Great of Macedon (Greece) [336 – 323BC](verse 3)

·         Seized entire Persian Empire

·         By age of 33, he had conquered the known world & changed the course of history

·         He overran Israel

·         He died at 33 with no legitimate descendants (verse 4)

·         His kingdom was divided into 4 parts:

v      Cassandra took Macedonia

v      Lysimachus took Thrace & Asia Minor

v      Ptolemy took Egypt (i.e. south of Israel)

v      Seleucus took Syria (i.e. north of Israel)    (verse 5)

·         Egypt & Syria warred with each other for ± 200 years on Israeli soil. (verse 20)

·         Antiochus Theos of Syria divorced his wife to marry Berenice, daughter of Ptolemy Philadelphus of Egypt. Antiochus’s 1^st wife murdered Berenice by poison. (verse 7)

Alexander The Great of Macedon (Greece) (336 - 323 BC)

3. Antiochus III The Great of Greece [223 – 187BC](verse 10)

·         King of North

·         Conquered by Ptolemy of Egypt & ruled Israel

·         Son of Callinicus

·         Had 75,000 soldiers

·         Attacked Egypt (verse 11)

·         Gave his daughter, Cleopatra, to Ptolemy in marriage (verse 17)

·         Attacked Greece, which was then ruled by Rome (verse 18)

·         Syria then had to pay taxes to Rome (verse 20)

Antiochus III The Great of Greece (223 - 187 BC)

4. Antiochus IV Epiphanes of Greece [175 – 164BC](verse 21)

   (brother of Cleopatra)

·         Gained power through intrigue

·         Devastated Egypt (verse 22)

·         Broke friendship with Egypt (verse 23)

·      Committed “Abomination of Desolation”, i.e. with help of apostate Jews he attacked Jerusalem (verse 28), slayed women & children & slaughtered a pig on the temple alter & made the priests eat the pork. (verse 31). In 3 days he killed 40,000 Jews & sold 40,000 into slavery.

·         Israel helped by Hasidic Jews (Judas Maccabeus) (verse 34) [also see First Maccabees 2)

Antiochus IV Epiphanes of Greece (175 - 164 BC)

    

5.            Anti-Christ [Still to come sometime in the future!]

The Anti-Christ (Still to Come)

You can listen to and/or read the equally brilliant The Reign of Rebellion Part 2 by clicking here:  http://www.gty.org/resources/Sermons/27-29#.Tko91GG6nlg

A Call for Mercy: Help Free Asia Bibi Now!

“Our Christ sacrificed His life on the cross for our sins. ... Our Christ is alive.”

Asia Bibi, a wife and mother, used these words to defend her faith against mocking co-workers who tried to make her convert to Islam. She was later convicted of blasphemy and sentenced to death.
In Pakistan, more than 150,000 Christians have signed a petition demanding justice for persecution victims, including Asia Bibi. Now you can join with The Voice of the Martyrs and our Pakistani brothers and sisters in a call for mercy. We hope to gather 1 million signatures on behalf of our sister Asia, who now sits in prison awaiting the Lahore High Court's ruling on her appeal.
Invite your friends to visit www.CallForMercy.com and add their names to the petition as well. VOM will deliver the petition, along with the list of signers, to the Pakistani Embassy in Washington DC.

Every signature is a call for mercy.

Please also keep Asia Bibi in your prayers!