The Meaning of Daniel 11:17 Explained

Daniel 11:17

KJV: He shall also set his face to enter with the strength of his whole kingdom, and upright ones with him; thus shall he do: and he shall give him the daughter of women, corrupting her: but she shall not stand on his side, neither be for him.

YLT: And he setteth his face to go in with the strength of his whole kingdom, and upright ones with him; and he hath wrought, and the daughter of women he giveth to him, to corrupt her; and she doth not stand, nor is for him.

Darby: And he shall set his face to come with the strength of his whole kingdom, and upright ones with him; and he shall practise; and he shall give him the daughter of women, to corrupt her; but she shall not stand, neither shall she be for him.

ASV: And he shall set his face to come with the strength of his whole kingdom, and with him equitable conditions; and he shall perform them: and he shall give him the daughter of women, to corrupt her; but she shall not stand, neither be for him.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

He shall also set  his face  to enter  with the strength  of his whole kingdom,  and upright ones  with him; thus shall he do:  and he shall give  him the daughter  of women,  corrupting  her: but she shall not stand  [on his side], neither be for him. 

What does Daniel 11:17 Mean?

Study Notes

daughter of women
Probably a reference to the marriage of Cleopatra to an Egyptian king, Ptolemy Philometor.

Verse Meaning

Antiochus III, under threat from Rome, then initiated peace with Egypt and offered his daughter Cleopatra to Ptolemy V in marriage to cement their alliance. He hoped that Cleopatra would remain Proverbs -Syrian and that her loyalty to him would give him control over Egypt. This attempt failed, however. Cleopatra consistently sided with her husband against her father, even though Ptolemy V was then only a boy.

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 11:17 mean?

And He shall set his face to enter with the strength of whole his kingdom and upright ones with him thus shall he do and the daughter of women he shall give him to destroy it but not she shall stand [with him] or for him be
וְיָשֵׂ֣ם ׀ פָּ֠נָיו לָב֞וֹא בְּתֹ֧קֶף כָּל־ מַלְכוּת֛וֹ וִישָׁרִ֥ים עִמּ֖וֹ וְעָשָׂ֑ה וּבַ֤ת הַנָּשִׁים֙ יִתֶּן־ ל֣וֹ לְהַשְׁחִיתָ֔הּ וְלֹ֥א תַעֲמֹ֖ד וְלֹא־ ל֥וֹ תִהְיֶֽה

וְיָשֵׂ֣ם ׀  And  He  shall  set 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive imperfect Jussive, third person masculine singular
Root: שׂוּמָה 
Sense: to put, place, set, appoint, make.
פָּ֠נָיו  his  face 
Parse: Noun, common plural construct, third person masculine singular
Root: לִפְנֵי 
Sense: face.
לָב֞וֹא  to  enter 
Parse: Preposition-l, Verb, Qal, Infinitive construct
Root: בֹּוא 
Sense: to go in, enter, come, go, come in.
בְּתֹ֧קֶף  with  the  strength 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: תֹּקֶף  
Sense: authority, power, strength, energy.
כָּל־  of  whole 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: כֹּל  
Sense: all, the whole.
מַלְכוּת֛וֹ  his  kingdom 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: מַלְכוּת  
Sense: royalty, royal power, reign, kingdom, sovereign power.
וִישָׁרִ֥ים  and  upright  ones 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adjective, masculine plural
Root: יָשָׁר 
Sense: straight, upright, correct, right.
עִמּ֖וֹ  with  him 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine singular
Root: עִם  
Sense: with.
וְעָשָׂ֑ה  thus  shall  he  do 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: עָשָׂה 
Sense: to do, fashion, accomplish, make.
וּבַ֤ת  and  the  daughter 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: בַּת  
Sense: daughter.
הַנָּשִׁים֙  of  women 
Parse: Article, Noun, feminine plural
Root: אִשָּׁה  
Sense: woman, wife, female.
יִתֶּן־  he  shall  give 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: יָתַן 
Sense: to give, put, set.
לְהַשְׁחִיתָ֔הּ  to  destroy  it 
Parse: Preposition-l, Verb, Hifil, Infinitive construct, third person feminine singular
Root: שָׁחַת  
Sense: to destroy, corrupt, go to ruin, decay.
וְלֹ֥א  but  not 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adverb, Negative particle
Root: הֲלֹא 
Sense: not, no.
תַעֲמֹ֖ד  she  shall  stand  [with  him] 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: עָמַד  
Sense: to stand, remain, endure, take one’s stand.
ל֥וֹ  for  him 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine singular