Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by
International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House.
© Copyright 2010 All rights reserved.
The Mongols
Daniel 11: 9-10
Then the king of the North will invade the realm of the king of the South
but will retreat to his own country. (10) His sons will prepare for war and
assemble a great army, which will sweep on like an irresistible flood and
carry the battle as far as his fortress.
Starting here, the ‘king of the north’ becomes the Mongol Empire, which was ruled
by Genghis Khan from 1206-1227. He invaded Eastern Persia and defeated the
Khwarezmian Empire in 1220 but returned before attacking the Abbasids. The most
distinctive element of the Mongol Empire, in regards to this verse, is the successor to
Genghis Khan. Rather than appointing just one heir, he divided his kingdom into
four Khanates or sub-territories and assigned leadership to “his sons”. They were
Ogedei, Chagatai, Tolui, and his grandsons, Batu and Orda (since their father, Jochi,
had died). The individual Khans were expected to obey the Great Khan who was
chosen from among the successors. Under the leadership of the “sons”, the empire
spread like an irresistible flood through Russia, Eastern Europe, China, Persia,
Syria, and Palestine.
In 1256, Hugalu Khan, younger brother to the Great Khan, Mongke, formed
another Khanate called the IlKhanate and entered the Middle East. As Hulagu neared
Baghdad in 1258, he paused to give the Abbasid Caliph a chance to surrender.
The Abbasids not only refused but greatly offended Hulagu with threats and insults.
The resulting destruction of Baghdad was so terrible that it remained in ruins for
several centuries. The Mongols massacred the inhabitants, burned mosques, palaces,
libraries, and hospitals, thus ending the Abbasid Caliphate. In 1260, Hulagu took
Syria from the remaining Ayyubid Caliphate and solidified his position as
“king of the north”.
The Mongols intended to conquer Egypt as well but as they pushed into Gaza,
Hulagu received news of Mongke’s death so he quickly turned for home, as was the
custom for choosing the next Great Khan. Yet, in doing so, he took the majority of his
solders with him and only left about 20,000 men to hold the position. That gave the
“king of the south” a chance to attack (next verse).
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Daniel 11: 11-13
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