15. What two strong kings emerged out of the four Hellenistic kingdoms, and what struggle did they begin?

¹⁵ Thus out of four Hellenistic kingdoms, there emerged two strong kings—Seleucus I Nicator over Syria and Ptolemy I over Egypt. With these two kings began the long struggle between “the king of the north” and “the king of the south,” described in Daniel chapter 11.

“The king of the south will become strong, even one of his [Alexander’s] princes; and he [the king of the north] will prevail against him and will certainly rule with extensive dominion greater than that one’s ruling power.” (Daniel 11:5) The designations “the king of the north” and “the king of the south” refer to kings north and south of Daniel’s people, who were by then freed from Babylonian captivity and restored to the land of Judah. The initial “king of the south” was Ptolemy I of Egypt.

17. Under whose dominion was the land of Judah at the onset of the conflict between the king of the north and the king of the south?

¹⁷ At the onset of the conflict, the land of Judah was under the dominion of the king of the south. From about 320 B.C.E., Ptolemy I influenced Jews to come to Egypt as colonists. A Jewish colony flourished in Alexandria, where Ptolemy I founded a famous library. The Jews in Judah remained under the control of Ptolemaic Egypt, the king of the south, until 198 B.C.E.

[Picture on page 218]

Ptolemy I