(42) He shall stretch forth.--He seizes various countries through which he passes, and among them Egypt is especially selected for mention, representing, as it does, the most powerful of them. The king has at last attained his object. He has frequently been partially successful in his attempts (see Daniel 11:12-13; Daniel 11:15; Daniel 11:29), but now Egypt is completely overthrown.

Verse 42. - He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape. The Septuagint rendering is, "And he shall send forth his hand upon the countries, and in the land of Egypt there shall not be a saviour in it." The first part of this verse is marked with an asterisk. Evidently the text before the translators had לָה פְלֵטָה (lah pelaytah), "to her deliverance," and "deliverance" in the abstract became "deliverer" in the concrete. Theodotion renders in a different sense, "And he shall stretch his hand upon the land, and the land of Egypt shall not be for salvation." The idea here is that for the land of Palestine, Egypt shall not be a deliverer. This, probably, is the true reading. The Peshitta agrees with the Massoretic pretty closely, "He shall stretch his hand over the countries, and the land of Egypt shall escape from his hands." The Vulgate has nothing to justify remark. Probably this verse, in the way it is rendered by Theodotion, is a portion of the lost vision of Daniel. The vagueness of "countries" stands in contrast to the definiteness of Edom, Moab, and Ammon, and is thus suspicious. Help was always expected from Egypt in the time when Assyria and Babylonia successively claimed the subjection of the Holy Land.

11:31-45 The remainder of this prophecy is very difficult, and commentators differ much respecting it. From Antiochus the account seems to pass to antichrist. Reference seems to be made to the Roman empire, the fourth monarchy, in its pagan, early Christian, and papal states. The end of the Lord's anger against his people approaches, as well as the end of his patience towards his enemies. If we would escape the ruin of the infidel, the idolater, the superstitious and cruel persecutor, as well as that of the profane, let us make the oracles of God our standard of truth and of duty, the foundation of our hope, and the light of our paths through this dark world, to the glorious inheritance above.He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries,.... Before mentioned, and take possession of them and rule over them, as the Turk does to this day:

and the land of Egypt shall not escape; the hands of the Turk by whom it was taken from the Mamalucs; and is now a province of the Turkish empire, and governed by a Turkish basha, with twenty four princes under him (a). This was not true of Antiochus, who, after he had been checked by the Romans, never entered into Egypt, and much less became master of it, as the Turk now is.

(a) Ibid. (See Dr. Newton's Dissertations on the Prophecies) p. 394.