Antiochus IV Epiphanes and the Ptolemaic Triad: The Three Uprooted Horns in Dan 7:8, 20 and 24 Reconsidered

This article deals with the enigmatic prediction and explanation in Dan 7:8, 20 and 24 concerning the three out of ten horns of the fourth beast that were "uprooted" in front of the eleventh, little horn widely identified with Antiochus IV. Analysing the verses from a historical point of view like the text's first exegete Porphyry in the late third c. C.E. and modifying his thesis as it has been proposed by E. Bickermann the author presents and discusses the evidence for the rule of a Ptolemaic triad at the time of Antiochus' IV reign, still questioned by some scholars, which should be seen as the model for Daniel's visionary report. This identification set on firmer ground allows to critically question the wide range of other interpretations and to confirm the strong parallel in processing certain historical facts in Dan 7 and 11 in yet another special aspect. The relationship between Seleucids and Ptolemies in its final stage witnessed by the author of Daniel, the 6th Syrian War, characterizes Antiochus' total victory over the hated enemy "of the South" as the climax of the Seleucid's foreign success—and glory.