Daniel 11:44Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

Afterward, he will proceed to confront Artaxias, king of the Armenians, who will come from the east, and after inflicting heavy casualties on his forces, Antiochus will encamp at Apedna, nestled between two major rivers, the Tigris and the Euphrates. However, Porphyry cannot specify which esteemed and sacred mountain Antiochus occupied when he arrived there, nor can he convincingly argue that he was between the two seas since it would be illogical to interpret the two Mesopotamian rivers as seas. The noteworthy mountain was omitted as Porphyry adhered to Theodotion's translation, which mentions being between the two seas on the holy mountain Saba. Recognizing "Saba" as a name tied to an Armenian or Mesopotamian highland, Porphyry, in his blatant falsehood, fails to clarify its holiness, which we could note is attributed to idols as per Armenian beliefs. When he attempted to plunder the temple of Diana, renowned for its countless offerings, he was repelled by the locals deeply reverent of the shrine, ultimately dying in the Persian city of Tabah, worn out by despair. Porphyry presented this as a clever retort against our views. Yet, even if he could establish that these descriptions refer to Antiochus and not the Antichrist, how does that impact our faith? Are we not equipped by the entirety of Scripture to validate the coming of Christ and the deception of the Antichrist? If it is spoken of Antiochus, what harm does it do to our beliefs? Does the prior vision, concluding the prophecy about Antiochus, indicate anything about the Antichrist? Let him focus on the evident and address inquiries such as the identity of the stone that, detached from the mountain without human intervention, grew into a mighty mountain filling the earth and shattered the four-part statue. Who is the Son of man who will arrive with the clouds, standing before the Ancient of Days, to whom an everlasting kingdom will be granted and whom all nations, tribes, and tongues will serve? He avoids the clear revelations and claims they pertain to the Jews, who, as we understand, remain under subjugation, asserting that the author of Daniel concocted falsehoods to rekindle their hopes. Not due to comprehensive knowledge of future events, but because he references past occurrences, he distorts the last vision, replacing the sea with rivers, failing to cite any historical evidence supporting the existence of the glorious and holy mountain in Apedna. Our interpretation of the final segment of this vision concerning the Antichrist suggests that after waging war on Egypt, Libya, and Ethiopia, and after uprooting three of the ten horns, the Antichrist will learn of hostilities brewing against him from northern and eastern territories. He will set out with a formidable legion to annihilate many, encamping at Apedna, near Nicopolis, previously known as Emmaus, where the highland of Judea begins to ascend. From this point toward the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem, the landscape gradually rises. When he camps at the foot of the hill country between the two seas, which include the sea now referred to as the Dead Sea on the eastern side, and the Great Sea, along whose shores lie Caesarea, Joppa, Ascalon, and Gaza, he will ascend to the heights of that mountain, that is, the hill country—specifically, the summit of the Mount of Olives, exalted because this is where the Lord and Savior ascended to the Father. No one shall aid the Antichrist when he unleashes his wrath against the Lord, and it is foretold that the Antichrist will meet his end at the very location from which the Lord ascended to heaven. The term Aredpo is complex, and if parsed, can be interpreted as the one of his throne. The implication is that he will pitch his tent and establish his throne—essentially, the tent of his throne—between the two seas upon the holy and glorious mountain. Simmachus translated this: “and shall pitch the tents of his cavalry between the seas, on the holy mountain of strength, and shall ascend to the peak of the mountain.” Theodotion stated: “and he shall pitch his tent in Aphedano, between the mountains, upon the holy mountain of Saba, and shall reach a portion of it.” Aquila claimed: “and shall pitch his commander’s tent in Aphedan, between the seas, on the glorious and holy mountain, and shall reach a part of it.” Some translations of the Septuagint, avoiding the issue of naming, rendered the text as “and he shall pitch his tent between the seas and the holy mountain of will, and the hour of his end shall come.” Following this, Apollinarius remained reticent regarding the term Apendo. This exposition aims to underscore both Porphyry's ignorance or pretended ignorance regarding these matters and the complexities of sacred Scripture, whose understanding is attributed by the most uninformed to sheer intellect rather than the grace of God or the guidance of elders. It should be noted that the letter ne (p) is absent from the Hebrew language, which instead employs phe (phe), sounding like the Greek φ. In this instance, although phe is written as such in Hebrew, it is pronounced as ne. Isaiah elaborates that the Antichrist will ascend the heights of the holy and glorious mountain and ultimately be brought low there. "The Lord will cast down on the holy mountain the face of the ruler of darkness over all tribes and the ruler over all nations."