Judea passes from Egypt to Syria
Antiochus III, the Seleucid “king of the north,” defeated Ptolemy's army at Panium near the source of the Jordan, and Judea changed hands after a century of Egyptian rule.
But he who comes against him will do according to his own will, and no one will stand before him. He will stand in the glorious land, and destruction will be in his hand.
Daniel 11:16 (World English Bible)
For a hundred years the Ptolemies had governed Judea fairly gently, collecting taxes through the high priest. At Panium, by the springs of the Jordan River where Caesarea Philippi would later stand (Matthew 16:13), Antiochus III, called “the Great,” defeated the Egyptian general Scopas and took the whole region.
The Jews of Jerusalem welcomed him and helped drive out the Egyptian garrison, and Antiochus rewarded them with tax relief and confirmed their right to live by their own laws. Daniel had foretold that the king of the north would “stand in the glorious land” (Daniel 11:16). The friendly beginning would not last.
Places
Ancient witnesses outside the Bible
Historical sources, not Scripture.
- Antiquities 12.3.3 — Antiochus the Great defeats Scopas near the springs of the Jordan (Panium)
Dating notes
Ussher: 198 BC. Many historians date the battle of Panium to 200 BC and the final Seleucid takeover of Judea to about 198 BC.