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 - 2025   All rights reserved. Events leading to the ‘Abomination’ (& Rapture) Daniel 11:28-31  (previous page: Daniel 11:24-27)  Daniel 11:29 29 At the appointed time he will invade the South again, but this time the outcome will be different from what it was before.   From previous verses, starting with Daniel 11:21, it’s almost 100% certain that the current kings of the North and South are Iran and Saudi Arabia, respectively.  This verse uses the term “again”, so it must be referring to a previous verse.  The only possibility I see is Daniel 11:25, when “he stirred up his strength and courage against the king of the South” and the “South waged war,” which was obviously talking about the Houthi’s coup in Yemen (Jan 20, 2015) [stirring their strength] and Saudi Arabia waging war on the Houthis, Mar 15, 2015.  The Houthis are an ally of Iran, so they are part of the ‘north’.  The fact that Saudi Arabia has not defeated the Houthis supports this theory of verse 25 because it says that the South will “not be able to stand because of the plots devised against him.”  Those plots were likely weapon shipments and advice from the king of the North, Iran.  To this day (Oct-2025), the Houthis are still in power in northern Yemen.  “He will invade the South again, but this time the outcome will be different from what it was before.”   The Houthis held their position in Yemen, but were mainly on the defensive against Saudi Arabia.  I think the new invasion that had a ‘different outcome’ happened on Sept. 11, 2016 (15^th anniversary of the World Trade Center attack) the Houthis stopped just defending and went on the offensive, taking a hilltop post in the Jizan region, inside Saudi Arabia.  To show that the new invasion involved the ‘North’ invading the ‘South’, General Falaki of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced the formation of the Shiite liberation army, on Aug 18, 2016, which was initially led by General Soleimani, who was later assassinated.  He said that the Shia were currently fighting in Iraq, Syria, and Yemen.  He also said that they were hoping to open new fronts, which is what the Houthis did by taking a hilltop.  Plus, a week after the announcement, between Aug 27 and Sept 1, a high-ranking Houthi delegation went to Baghdad, seeking support against Saudi Arabia.  Among other people, they met with members of the Shia militias, supported by Iran.  The evidence may be circumstantial but I don’t think there’s any doubt that Iran had something to do with the new “invasion” of the ‘South’.  Other pages of interest:  Daniel 11 Explained (condensed ‘one page’ commentary) ‘Matthew 24’ Explained (must match Revelation) The ‘Seals’ Explained (Revelation’s timeline revealed) Seven Churches Explained (Past & Present Church Prophecy) See Sitemap for complete listing (by category). Home Daniel 11:28 The king of the North will return to his own country with great wealth, but his heart will be set against the holy covenant.  He will take action against it and then return to his own country. Introduction    To make a long story short, I think this verse was fulfilled during the 71^st UN General Assembly, which took place in New York between September 13-30, 2016.  It was the first general assembly since Iran completed the requirements of the P5+1 nuclear agreement, January 2016, paving the way for sanctions to be lifted.  That was supposed to ease banking restrictions so foreign countries could do business in Iran, but America wasn’t fulfilling their end of the nuclear agreement, such as letting Iran trade in dollars.  Rouhani addressed the issue in his UN speech, as well as in a special sideline meeting of the P5+1 countries on Sept 22, 2016.  In the end, all countries agreed that America wasn’t fulfilling their requirements of the JPCOA nuclear agreement and America agreed to rectify to problem.  How much was at stake?    In May 2015, before the nuclear agreement was signed, Obama speculated that Iran had $150 billion in frozen assets but he stressed that they wouldn’t become available all at once.  In an interview with the Atlantic, Obama said that Iran would first have to deliver on their obligations under any agreement, which Iran completed in January 2016.  Then, Obama pointed out that there are mechanics of unwinding the existing restraints, which takes a certain amount of time.  That was the part in which America was dragging their feet on but it seems that they can’t get away with it any longer, especially after the recent UN General Assembly and World Bank summit (below).  That means that Iran eventually got their $150 billion, which is a lot of wealth. Subsequent Events and Rouhani Returning Home    On October 7, 2016, the US Treasury announced that Iran could legally gain access to dollars  through non-U.S. banks and institutions.  Note: They still couldn’t have direct contact with the U.S. financial system but transactions and accounts in ‘foreign-incorporated subsidiaries’ of U.S. financial institutions were now legal.  That was an important breakthrough, which was likely caused by the proceedings at the UN General Assembly in New York.     Plus, on October 11, 2016, Iran’s Economy Minister, Ali Tayebnia, met with the President of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Christine Lagarde, for the first time in two decades, on the sidelines of the World Bank summit in Washington DC, where she promised to launch consultations with US authorities to remove barriers between international and Iranian banks.     Also on October 11, 2016, Rouhani returned from a six-day tour of Vietnam, Malaysia, and Thailand, all members of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), where he spoke at the second Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) summit, which comprises 34 Asian states, where he stressed the opportunities that were emerging after the implementation of the JCPOA nuclear agreement and relaxation of banking restrictions, achieved at the UN General Assembly in New York.  So, the activities of Rouhani in New York, as well as his tours of other nations, following the release of frozen assets and relaxation of banking restrictions gave Iran a significant influx of wealth.  That was an important development because it gave Iran the cash to support their proxies in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Yemen, which greatly increased their power in the region as King of the North in Daniel 11.  The implementation of the JCPOA was vital to that influx of wealth, but it wasn’t until his speech and various meetings at the 2016 UN General Assembly in New York that everything started to unfold in Iran’s favor.  Action against the Holy Covenant    Daniel 11:28 also mentions that the King of the North takes action against the “holy covenant,” which is Israel.  It’s impossible to know exactly what that was, but Rouhani’s speech mentioned the suffering of the Palestinians and the need to resolve the problem, which was a clear reference to the two-state solution.  On September 23, 2016, the international "quartet" of diplomatic Mideast peacemakers (the EU, UN, US, and Russia) met on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly and urged the parties to create conditions for restarting "meaningful" negotiations toward a two-state solution.  According to the Associated Press, the meeting was also attended by the foreign ministers of Egypt and France, whose countries have each proposed ideas on restarting talks.  At the end, all participants agreed on the importance of coordinating peace efforts, which can mean different things, but my point is: action was taken, possibly due to Rouhani’s speech.  Salvation to Maturity (a simple guide) Previous page: Recent Prophecies (ISIS, Saudi Arabia, & Turkey) Daniel 11:24-27 Next page: Abomination that causes Desolation Daniel 11:31  Jesus said, “It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them.”  (Luke 12:37)   Praise Jesus.   *Current Events    updated below:    10-12-2025 - Daniel 11:30 “Ships of the western coastlands will oppose him, and he will lose heart.  Then he will turn back and vent his fury against the holy covenant. He will return and show favor to those who forsake the holy covenant.”   a. “Ships of the western coastlands will oppose him, and he will lose heart.”   September 18, 2016 – Just one week after the new offensive, Saudi Arabia asked the UN Security Council (UNSC) for help in controlling weapon shipments to the Houthis, which served to increase western ship opposition.  At that point, significant events started to happen.   October 1, 2016 - The Houthis sank a ship in the Rea Sea, being used by UAE, around the territorial waters of Mokha.  (The above link has a map.) The Houthis control most of the coast of the Red Sea, north of the Bab Al-Mandeb Strait, which narrows to about 10 miles and separates the Red Sea from the Gulf of Aden.  The Houthis warned of such an encounter, if ships entered their territorial waters, but the incident prompted an escalation nonetheless.  The US sent two destroyers and a ‘staging base’ to the Gulf of Aden, in addition to the ships from the 6th fleet, already there.     October 8, 2016, a Yemeni funeral was bombed, killing over 140 people and wounding over 500.  It was one of the single worst acts of aggression since the war started and it may have been in retaliation for the sinking of the UAE ship.  In any event, it was a new low in the war and it turned a spotlight on America’s involvement because they continued to help Saudi Arabia.     October 9, 2016 – Two missiles were fired at a US Navy warship, the USS Mason, a destroyer in the Red Sea, just north of the Bab al Mandeb strait.  The ship was not hit and the Houthis denied the attack.     October 12, 2016 – A second missile attack was staged upon the USS Mason, while it was in international waters, but the ship was not hit.  The US Navy claimed that the missiles came from Houthi held territory but the Houthis denied it again.  Nevertheless, Obama approved a retaliatory strike on three Houthi radar sites, on October 13, as a “self-defense” measure.  The Tomahawk cruise missiles were fired from a second destroyer, the USS Nitze, in the same carrier group.  In my opinion, the ‘western ship opposition’ was satisfied by the destruction of the radar sites because the Houthis began making gestures of peace [losing heart], in the days and weeks following the attack.  However, a formal cease-fire never really took hold for any significant length of time.    Jump to 2025: Over the years, I’ve noticed that some prophecies in Daniel 11, the Seals, or elsewhere can be covered by one, isolated incident, but others are vague and extended over a longer period of time.  For example, the gospel being preached throughout the world, in Matthew 24:14, is an extended period before the abomination (rapture) in Matthew 24:15.  Similarly, the 5^th Seal is the same spreading of the gospel, which is extended before the 6^th Seal (also rapture).  In a way, prophecies are extended before the abomination and 6th Seal to keep the timing a mystery, which is God’s intention.  In other words, a particular series of events can technically satisfy a prophecy, but a later series of events can satisfy the same prophecy even more, thus extending it. Yet, a person can’t know in advance that other events will fulfill the prophecy more, so one must assume that a prophecy is ‘satisfied’ but ‘ongoing’, until the next verse takes place.  That being said, I think Trump has put a lid on the Western ship opposition, at least for now, and fulfilled the verse.   To explain further, the Western ship opposition turned out to be an extended period because the Houthis stepped up their attacks in the Rea Sea following Hamas’ attack on Oct 7^th, 2023.  After Israel went to war in Gaza, the Houthis started firing missiles at ships in the Red Sea and also at Israel.  During the Biden administration, the US and UK retaliated to maintain navigation, but the tit for tat exchanges continued.    On March 15, 2025, Trump announced a campaign of strikes against the Houthis, which killed at least 53 people in the next five days.    On April 17, 2025, a strike killed at least 74 people.    On April 28, 2025, a strike killed at least 68 people.   On May 6, 2025, Trump announced a deal where the Houthis agreed to stop firing at ships in the Red Sea if the US would stop firing at them.  Yet, they specifically said that Israel was not part of the deal, so they would continue to fire missiles at Israel.  Trump thought that was acceptable and signed off on the deal.  I think the intensified bombing by the US, and the Houthis’ agreement to stop firing at ships (likely also decided by Iran), satisfies the first part of verse 30.         Daniel 11:30 con’t  b. “Then he will turn back and vent his fury against the holy covenant.”   One could argue that Iran has been ‘venting their fury against the holy covenant’ (Israel’s possession of Palestine) for decades, but in the context of the Western ship opposition, I think it’s more recent.  If they didn’t “lose heart” before, I think they certainly did after Israel attacked them for 12-days, followed by the US dropping at least a dozen “bunker busting bombs” on their nuclear sites.  Following the 12-Day War, it seems that the focus has shifted from Iran’s nuclear sites to Israel’s War in Gaza, where various countries are now ‘venting their fury against the holy covenant’.    One thing currently driving the fury was Israel’s Security Cabinet, on August 8, 2025, adopted a plan to complete the takeover of the final 25% of Gaza, which includes Gaza City.  Update: On September 16, 2025, Israel launched its invasion of Gaza city.  There has been widespread international condemnation of this plan, which is possibly the most ‘fury against the holy covenant’ that I’ve seen yet.  Iran’s spokesman called the plan ‘ethnic cleansing and genocide’.  Germany, which is Israel’s 2^nd largest source of weapons behind the US, has discontinued arms sales  that can be used in Gaza.  A whole host of others have demanded a stop to the plan.  Update: As of October 10, 2025, Israel has indeed entered a ceasefire arrangement to get the hostages out, which is supposed to happen Monday or Tuesday, Oct 13^th or 14^th.  More on that arrangement below. UNGA - 2025 c. “He will return and show favor to those who forsake the holy covenant.”   I think this sentence was fulfilled at the UNGA-2025 because several prominent western countries made a point in recognizing a Palestinian state.  The countries included France, UK, Canada, and Australia.  The move was largely symbolic and staged to object to Israel’s continued war in Gaza, but I think it was “forsaking the holy covenant” because God gave that land to Israel, which includes Gaza and the West Bank.  In other words, any efforts to force Israel into a ‘two-state’ solution is forsaking the holy covenant.  Granted, about 140 other countries in the UN had already recognized Palestine, since 1988 when the Palestinian National Council declared a state, but it was a huge symbolic gesture for the western countries to join the group.    The UNGA-2025 also fits verse 30 because of the keyword: “return.”  Return from where?  The reference makes perfect sense because I think verse 30 is related to verse 28 (at the top of this page).  In verse 28, UNGA-2016 played a critical role because that’s where Iranian President Rouhani made a speech that resulted in ‘great wealth’, specifically from JCPOA sanctions relief that the US had been dragging their feet and wrongly keeping.  Verse 28 says twice that the king of the north will “return to his own country,” which supports the idea that Rouhani’s speech fulfilled that verse, since it was not his own country and he had to return there.  So, if Iran’s president returned ‘from’ the UNGA to his own country, then it makes sense that verse 30 is Iran’s new president returning ‘to’ the UNGA to show favor to those countries who joined the group forsaking the holy covenant.  Daniel 11 Explained  Condensed “one page” Commentary (verse by verse) Timeline of 37’s Timeline of 19’s Updated to bottom: 10-12-2025 Daniel 11:30 30 Ships of the western coastlands will oppose him, and he will lose heart. Then he will turn back and vent his fury against the holy covenant. He will return and show favor to those who forsake the holy covenant.  Daniel 11:31 31 "His armed forces will rise up to desecrate the temple fortress and will abolish the daily sacrifice. Then they will set up the abomination that causes desolation. Daniel 11:32 32 With flattery he will corrupt those who have violated the covenant, but the people who know their God will firmly resist him. UNGA-2025 Rapture Post-Rapture The million dollar question is: How long will this take?  Daniel prophesied, “The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed.” (Daniel 9:26)     The first thing to notice is that the same ‘covenant’ is mentioned ‘before and after’ the uprising and abomination in verse 31.  That makes me think that it all happens relatively fast, so the “forsaking of the covenant” is still fresh on people’s minds.  Of course, I don’t know how long that will be because there are two ways to interpret Daniel’s reference to a flood.  A person could take it literally because I think the earthquake in the 6^th Seal will cause a tsunami, which is like a flood.  Amos described it very vividly, “Will not the land tremble for this, and all who live in it mourn? The whole land will rise like the Nile; it will be stirred up and then sink like the river of Egypt.”  (Amos 8:8)  Jesus said, “There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea.” (Luke 21:25)  Plus, Jesus urged Judea to “flee to the mountains” when the abomination that causes desolation is set up (Matt 24:16), which is a wise thing to do when a tsunami is coming.  Then again, the phrase “come like a flood” can be used figuratively to mean ‘very quickly’.    As I’ve always said, the armed uprising in Daniel 11:31 doesn’t have to be an all-out war.  It could be something like a 3^rd Intifada, which literally means “armed uprising.”  Historically, there have already been two intifadas (1987-1993 and 2000-2005), so another is certainly possible.  It will likely originate from the West Bank because of its proximity to Jerusalem and the Temple Mount.  For the record, I think the “daily sacrifice” has nothing to do with animals but is actually Israel’s devotion to ‘daily prayer’ at the Western Wall, which would naturally be ‘abolished’ (at least temporarily) if the Muslims could ‘desecrate it’.  Then, they will set up something symbolic that God sees as an ‘abomination’, at which time Jesus will appear in the sky and the rapture will happen.  The uprising would likely come as a last resort for the Palestinians, but with settler violence as it is in the West Bank, and Netanyahu saying that there’s no chance for a two state solution, then they may see no other choice.  I know it sounds like a long-shot, but I just read an article that told how the wall between the West Bank and Jerusalem was never finished and has many flaws, so the Palestinians know how to get around, over and under the wall.  If God is ready for it to happen, they will find a way.    Then, as verse 32 says, the Muslim antichrist will use flattery to corrupt those who violated the covenant.  In other words, the rapture will happen immediately after the uprising and abomination, and it will be a shock to those left behind, but the Muslim antichrist will ‘corrupt’ people by stepping in and blaming Israel rather than the Palestinians.  After all, during the post-rapture trumpet plagues, the antichrist will be rising in power (Rev 13) and in direct conflict with God’s two witnesses who will be prophesying in Jerusalem and supervising the building of the Third Temple (Rev 11).  After 1260-days or 42-months, the antichrist will invade Israel, kill the two witnesses (Rev 11:7), and briefly occupy the Third Temple (2 Thess 2:4).  I say ‘briefly’ because the antichrist suffers a fatal wound (but survives), which leads to the false prophet taking over and enacting the ‘mark of the beast’ on his behalf (Rev 13:12-18).  The antichrist will actually be hailed as a hero because people will hate the two witnesses (Rev 11:10).  I think that hatred will stem from the fact that the two witnesses will break the news that gentiles don’t get a second chance after the rapture.  That mistaken concept was derived from a misinterpretation of Revelation, but that misinterpretation was not God’s fault.  It should have been easy to see that it was wrong (see homepage), but people regularly ignore facts and believe what they want.  Anyway, when the antichrist occupies the Third Temple, he will be at the peak of his power (Dan 11:36), but it will start by corrupting those who have violated the covenant in Dan 11:32. Trump’s 20-Point Peace Plan   So you see, many Biblical prophecies take place after the 6^th Seal rapture, which are important to understand, but not things that we need to watch for right now.  Even the uprising and abomination in Daniel 11:31 cannot be watched for as indicators because the rapture will happen too quickly afterwards for people to be saved.  The uprising in Daniel 11:31 will obviously be a surprise, so people must rely on signs leading to the ‘armed uprising’.  That could happen at any time, especially since Daniel 11:30 has been fulfilled.  One prophecy from Paul gives an important indicator of what might be happening before that uprising. 1 Thessalonians 5: 1-5 Now, brothers, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3 While people are saying, "Peace and safety," destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.  4 But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. 5 You are all sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness.   I’ve said before that the sudden destruction could have been Hamas’ attack on Oct 7, 2023, which started a period of labor pains before the rapture (day of the Lord).  That could still be true because Hamas’ attack was definitely an event of Biblical proportions.  I mean, that kicked off a period where Israel went to war against Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and Iran, which could be thought of as labor pains that have brought us to where we are today.  Before that attack, Israel was in ‘normalization talks’ with Saudi Arabia, which could loosely fulfill the part about people saying ‘peace and safety’.  Yet, as I said in verse 30 above, things can happen to satisfy a verse, and then more things can happen later to satisfy it even more, which I think is the case now.  I’m talking about Trump’s 20-point peace plan that was agreed upon Oct 8, 2025, almost exactly two-years after Hamas’ attack and the start of the Gaza War.    I think Trump’s plan fulfills the part about “peace and safety” even better because Trump is touting his plan as not just a cease fire in Gaza, but as a monumental accomplishment that brings unprecedented “peace to the Middle East.”  Of course, Trump thinks everything he does is the greatest thing ever, but something about the way he’s touting this, and the way it’s being accepted makes me think this could be an event of Biblical proportions like Hamas’ previous attack.  I think lightning could strike twice and destruction come suddenly again, but this time it will be the armed uprising from Daniel 11:31, which takes place on the Temple Mount and results in the abomination that causes desolation and the rapture.  I don’t know when, but it could be fairly soon, while people are saying “peace and safety.”    Looking back, God uses normal events to bring about his planned scenario in fulfillment of His prophecies, but I think He leaves subtle clues for those who are watching and waiting.  I think one such event that God used was on September 8, 2025, just one day before the UNGA, when there was a shooting at a bus stop in Jerusalem, which killed six people.  An event like that has not happened in Jerusalem in quite some time.  I think it was significant because of the timing and series of events that it triggered such as Israel bombing a meeting in Qatar, on Sept 9^th, between Hamas and mediators, who were supposed to be discussing a ceasefire in Gaza.  That was a huge deal because Qatar is an ally of the US, where a major US military base is located.  Three days later, on Sept 11^th, Netanyahu signed a controversial settlement expansion plan that will cut the West Bank in half and basically end all Palestinian hopes for a two-state solution.  In fact, Netanyahu said, “We are going to fulfill our promise that there will be no Palestinian state; this place belongs to us.”   On Sept 15^th, there was an emergency joint session of the Arab League and OIC (Organization of Islamic Cooperation), which brought together the heads of state for almost 60 countries who issued a joint statement against Israel.  The next day, on Sept 16^th, while the UNGA was ongoing, Israel launched its ground offensive into Gaza City  with an overnight areal bombardment that was described as “relentless” and could be heard 44 miles away in Tel Aviv.  As you can see, a lot happened in the 8-days following the shooting in Jerusalem, which I think was an event of Biblical proportion because I think this series of events, especially the bombing in Qatar, led directly to Trump’s 20-point plan, signed one month later, which could be the “peace and safety” preceding the destruction in 2 Thess 2:3, as noted above.    Yet, that was not the only ‘timing’ that I was talking about as being a clue from God.  The shooting on Sept 8^th happened just hours from a lunar eclipse, commonly called a blood moon.  Since Jews officially start their day at 6pm the previous evening, the shooting was technically on the same day (for Jews) as the Sept 7^th lunar eclipse.  The prophet Joel wrote, “The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.” (Joel 2:31)  The moon also turns red during the 6^th Seal, which God could do by other means, but I think the lunar eclipse just hours from the shooting could be a clue from God.   Another clue that links the shooting to Hamas’ attack in 2023 was that it happened on day-703  of the Gaza War.  That may not mean much to others, but long-time readers of this website will know that God allowed me to discover His Timeline of 37’s, which starts at the beginning of Dan 11 and contains several key Muslim events such as Muhammad’s vision that started Islam (v 5), Osman’s vision that led to the Ottoman Empire (v 14), and the Islamic Revolution of Iran (v 21), which started the final empire.  God also allowed me to discover His Timeline of 19’s, which includes Creation, the Resurrection, and several key Jewish events such as their Independence (1948), the unification of Jerusalem (1967), withdrawal from Gaza (2005), and the re-taking of Gaza (2024).  Granted, those timelines are in years, but I found it interesting that the shooting was on day-703 of the Gaza War, which was 19x37 days.  For the record, I’m not into numerology that relies on calendar dates or assigning numbers to letters or anything like that because there are many man-made calendars and alphabets.  However, I do think God uses time-periods such as days, months, or years because they depend only on the earth, moon, and sun, which God created “to serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years.” (Gen 1:14)  There are plenty of time periods and ages in the Bible that do not rely on a calendar.  I just think God’s clues in the timing, such as the lunar eclipse and 19x37 days, are not only His way of showing the significance of the shooting and subsequent events, which led to Trump’s plan, but also that He is firmly in control and things are happening on His schedule.  Praise God.  So, What’s Next?   The next verse due in Daniel 11 is the most important because it contains the ‘abomination that causes desolation’, which is when the rapture will happen according to Matthew 24:15-31.  It’s always important to note that Matthew 24:15-31 supports ‘pre-tribulation’ because it contains ‘two groups’, just like Revelation 7, after the 6^th Seal rapture.  One group is the 144,000 Israelites who remain on earth during the Trumpet plagues, and the other group is the great multitude of Christians from every nation who arrive immediately in heaven for the Wedding Supper of the Lamb.  I explain this fully on the homepage.