Daniel 11:35 · Bible study
Daniel 11:35 Commentary: The Refining Fall of the Wise
Hebrew · 10 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
The wise fall for refining, purifying, and making white until the appointed end. Commentators debate whether martyrdom or personal suffering is in view.
Research Summary
- Meaning: The fall of the wise serves God’s refining purpose for the community, with a fixed limit at his appointed time.
- Key words: Fall (kashal, stumble), refine (tsaraph, smelt), purge (barar, select/cleanse), make white (laban, bleach), appointed time (moed).
- Main debate: Does the fall primarily purify the community through martyrdom (Calvin, Cambridge) or personally refine individuals (Gill, JFB)? Both are attested.
- Theological theme: Divine sovereignty over persecution and purification; suffering as purposeful, not random.
- Best use: Comfort for faithful believers under prolonged trial; perspective that suffering can be a furnace that strengthens faith.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
Some of the wise will fall, so that they may be refined, purified, and made spotless until the time of the end, for it will still come at the appointed time.
WEB World English Bible 2000
Some of those who are wise will fall—to refine them, and to purify, and to make them white, even to the time of the end, because it is yet for the time appointed.
KJV King James Version 1769
And some of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and to purge, and to make them white, even to the time of the end: because it is yet for a time appointed.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
And some of them that are wise shall fall, to refine them, and to purify, and to make them white, even to the time of the end; because it is yet for the time appointed.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
And some of the teachers do stumble for refining by them, and for purifying, and for making white--till the end of the time, for it is yet for a time appointed.
Darby Darby Bible 1890
And [some] of the wise shall fall, to try them, and to purge and to make them white, to the time of the end: for it shall yet be for the time appointed.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
And some of the learned shall fall, that they may be tried, and may be chosen, and made white, even to the appointed time: because yet there shall be another time.
Translations in other languages (10 available)
Y algunos de los sabios caerán para ser purgados, y limpiados, y emblanquecidos, hasta el tiempo determinado: porque aun para esto hay plazo.
E alguns dos sábios cairão para serem refinados, purificados e limpos, até o tempo do fim; porque isto ainda será para o tempo determinado.
Quelques-uns des hommes sages succomberont, afin qu’ ils soient épurés, purifiés et blanchis, jusqu’ au temps de la fin, car elle n’arrivera qu’ au temps marqué.
Und der Verständigen werden etliche fallen, auf daß sie bewährt, rein und lauter werden, bis daß es ein Ende habe; denn es ist noch eine andere Zeit vorhanden.
En van de leraars zullen er sommigen vallen, om hen te louteren en te reinigen, en wit te maken, tot den tijd van het einde toe; want het zal nog zijn voor een bestemden tijd.
E di que’ savi ne saranno abbattuti alcuni, per affinarli, per purificarli e per imbiancarli sino al tempo della fine, perché questa non avverrà che al tempo stabilito.
A z tych, którzy innych nauczają, padać będą, aby doświadczeni i oczyszczeni, i wybieleni byli aż do czasu zamierzonego; bo to jeszcze potrwa aż do czasu zamierzonego.
Пострадают некоторые и из разумных для испытания их, очищения и для убеления к последнему времени; ибо есть еще время до срока.
智慧人 中有些 仆倒的，為要熬煉 其餘的人，使他們清淨 潔白，直到 末了；因為 到了定期，事就了結。
And some of those who are wise will have wisdom in testing themselves and making themselves clean, till the time of the end: for it is still for the fixed time.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · Daniel 11:35
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators agree that the ‘fall’ (Hebrew kashal, to stumble) of the wise in Daniel 11:35 serves a divine refining purpose. The three verbs, ‘refine’ (tsaraph, smelting metals), ‘purge’ (barar, selecting or cleansing), and ‘make white’ (laban, like fuller’s bleach), are metallurgical and domestic images of purification (Gill, Keil & Delitzsch). All see an appointed limit: the refining lasts only until the ‘time of the end,’ a moment fixed by God (moed, appointed time). Where they part ways is on how the fall accomplishes its goal. Barnes argues the fall tests the sincerity of others still standing; the wise being slain thins out those who joined for selfish gain. Calvin sees the ‘flower of the Church’ perishing by sword and flame, a martyrdom that purifies the community through witness. Gill and Jamieson-Fausset-Brown emphasise personal purification: even the best have dross that affliction refines away. Both readings are present in the text, held together by the conviction that God’s sovereignty works through the suffering of the faithful.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Medium
Main views:
- Martyrdom refining the community: The fall of the wise tests the sincerity of remaining believers (Barnes) and purges the community of false followers (Cambridge).
- Personal purification through suffering: Affliction removes dross and spots from the individual believer, like metal in a furnace or cloth under the fuller’s brush (Gill, JFB).
What is clear: The fall of the wise serves God’s refining purpose and is bounded by an appointed end that God alone sets.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose of the fall | The fall (death/suffering) of the wise is permitted by God to refine and purify. | Barnes and Cambridge emphasise refining the wider community through the example and test of martyrdom; Gill and JFB stress personal purification of the individuals who suffer. |
| Identity of the wise | The wise are the faithful who know God and teach others (v.32-33). | Clarke expands to include faithful Christians resisting state-sponsored error; most see a direct reference to faithful Jews under Antiochus. |
| Timing of 'the end' | The end refers to the appointed limit of the persecution. | Some read it as the end of Antiochus’ reign specifically (Cambridge); others see a type of the final consummation of history (Keil). |
| Nature of refinement | Refinement uses images of fire, winnowing, and bleaching to show intensity and purpose. | Whether the refinement is primarily a test for others (Barnes) or a cleansing of dross from the sufferer (Gill). Both aspects are present. |
Historical & Cultural Context
Daniel 11:35 sits inside the longest prophecy in the book, a detailed account of conflicts between the ‘king of the North’ and the ‘king of the South’, the Seleucid and Ptolemaic empires. The immediate referent is Antiochus IV Epiphanes, who desecrated the Jerusalem temple in 167 BC, set up an ‘abomination that makes desolate’ (v.31), and launched a brutal campaign to erase Jewish religious identity (Calvin, Cambridge Bible). Surrounding verses (32-34) describe two groups: those who abandon the covenant by flattery, and ‘the people who know their God’, the wise (maskilim) who instruct many and suffer ‘by the sword and by flame, by captivity and by plunder’ (v.33).
The ‘fall’ in v.35 is not a moral stumble but a violent collapse under persecution. The Hebrew verb kashal can mean tottering or being overthrown; in context it means martyrdom (Cambridge). The three refining terms, smelting, selecting, bleaching, come from the ancient crafts of the refiner, the winnower, and the fuller. The refiner heats ore to separate dross from silver; the fuller beats and whitens cloth. These were everyday images, pointing to a costly but purposeful process. The phrase ‘until the time of the end’ (v.35) echoes Daniel 8:17, where the angel tells Daniel that the vision ‘belongs to the time of the end.’ For the original readers, that end was the close of Antiochus’ reign, and the appointed time (mo‘ed) assured them God had set a limit on suffering. Aemilius Sura, quoted by Gill, traces the succession of world empires from Assyrian to Roman, confirming that the prophetic timeline was taken seriously by pagan historians.
This context makes the verse deeply pastoral: it interprets the darkest moment of Jewish persecution as a divine refining project, not random cruelty.
Textual Notes
The supplied commentaries note no significant textual variants for Daniel 11:35. The Hebrew text is stable across the major manuscripts (Masoretic, LXX, Vulgate). Translations differ only in how they render the refining verbs (KJV “try, purge, make white”; BSB “refined, purified, made spotless”), which represent the same original Hebrew terms. The verse presents no text-critical issues.
Reception History
In the early church, Daniel 11:35 was read as a prophecy of martyrdom that would refine the faithful. During the Maccabean period, the verse directly described the death of those who resisted Antiochus. Later, Reformed commentators such as Calvin applied it to persecutions of the church in his own day: ‘the children of God ... should be subject to many grievous persecutions.’ The Geneva Bible notes connect the wise to those who teach truth at the cost of their lives. The verse has been a source of comfort for believers in every era when faithful leaders suffer, reminding them that such suffering is neither pointless nor endless. The ‘time appointed’ gave hope to Huguenots, Puritans and confessors under totalitarian regimes that God alone sets the bounds of persecution.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- The fall of the wise is not wasted. The wise fall so the community can be refined. Their seeming defeat is the furnace God uses to remove impurities from his people (Barnes, Gill).
- God refines through trial. Each verb, refine, purge, make white, describes a different facet of the same painful grace. The refiner heats; the fuller scrubs; the winnower tosses. All are uncomfortable, all are necessary.
- There is an appointed end. The limit is set by God, not by the persecutor. The phrase ‘time appointed’ (moed) appears throughout Daniel (8:19; 11:27) as a guarantee that suffering has boundaries only God knows.
Five-point outline
- Who is wise? The maskilim, those who know God and instruct others (v.32-33). They are not the clever but the faithful.
- What does the fall mean? Not sin, but falling under persecution, death or severe suffering in the service of the covenant.
- Why does God permit it? For ‘refining among them’ (Cambridge: ‘among the people at large’). The community is tested and purified by the example of the martyrs.
- What are the tools? Fire (refining), wind (winnowing), fuller’s soap (whitening), all intense agents of change.
- What is the time limit? The ‘time of the end’ is the appointed moment when the present order ends and God’s purpose is complete.
Illustration hooks
- The silversmith’s fire: A refiner knows the silver is pure when he can see his reflection in it. The process is hot and long, but the goal is a clear image (Proverbs 17:3).
- A fuller at work: In ancient times, whitening cloth required beating and chemical treatments. The process looks destructive, but it restores colour and cleanliness.
- Waiting for the scheduled surgery: A planned operation has a set start and end time. The patient endures the discomfort knowing the surgeon controls both.
Questions your congregation is asking
- Why would God let his most faithful servants die while the unfaithful seem to prosper?
- How can I tell if my own suffering is refining or just destructive?
- Is there really an ‘appointed time’ for my trial to end? How do I find peace while waiting?
Leading a Discussion
Daniel 11:35 confronts a hard truth: the most faithful people are not exempt from falling. But the verse renames their fall as refinement. In your group, let the text push you past the question ‘Why do good people suffer?’ to ‘What might God be doing through our suffering?’
Discussion questions
- Read Daniel 11:33-35 together. What does the phrase ‘the wise’ (the maskilim) suggest about their role in the community? How does verse 33 describe their work and their fate?
- The verse says the wise ‘fall.’ From the context of verses 31-34, what kind of falling is in view? Is it moral failure, defeat in battle, or something else?
- Three refining verbs are stacked: refine, purge, make white. Each comes from a different trade (metalworker, winnower, fuller). What does each image add to our understanding of the purpose of persecution?
- Barnes says the fall tests the sincerity of others. Calvin says the flower of the church perishes to purify the whole. Which reading do you find more compelling, and why?
- The verse twice marks a limit: ‘until the time of the end’ and ‘the time appointed.’ How does the idea of a fixed end point change how you endure a long trial?
- Cross-reference Proverbs 17:3: ‘The refining pot is for silver, and the furnace for gold, but Yahweh tests the hearts.’ What does the proverb add to Daniel 11:35?
- In your own life, when have you experienced a ‘fall’ that later looked more like a refining? What helped you trust the process?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Deuteronomy 8:2 | You shall remember all the way which Yahweh your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, to test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not. |
| Deuteronomy 8:3 | He humbled you, allowed you to be hungry, and fed you with manna, which you didn’t know, neither did your fathers know, that he might teach you that man does not live by bread only, but man lives by every word that proceeds out of Yahweh’s mouth. |
| Deuteronomy 8:16 | who fed you in the wilderness with manna, which your fathers didn’t know, that he might humble you, and that he might prove you, to do you good at your latter end; |
| II Chronicles 32:31 | However, concerning the ambassadors of the princes of Babylon, who sent to him to inquire of the wonder that was done in the land, God left him to test him, that he might know all that was in his heart. |
| Proverbs 17:3 | The refining pot is for silver, and the furnace for gold, but Yahweh tests the hearts. |
| Daniel 8:10 | It grew great, even to the army of the sky; and it cast down some of the army and of the stars to the ground and trampled on them. |
| Daniel 8:17 | So he came near where I stood; and when he came, I was frightened, and fell on my face; but he said to me, “Understand, son of man, for the vision belongs to the time of the end.” |
| Daniel 8:19 | He said, “Behold, I will make you know what will be in the latter time of the indignation, for it belongs to the appointed time of the end. |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
Read the devotional page — prayer, application, and "for families"
What the Commentators Say
10 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke observes that after outward persecution ceased, the church turned inward and persecuted those who refused to adopt state-imposed errors. This internal conflict was permitted to test, refine, and purify believers until God's appointed time for pure religion to triumph everywhere.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible Protestant 1832
Barnes sees the fall of some wise believers as a deliberate refining process, not a random tragedy. Their defeat tests the sincerity of the whole army, separating those who joined from pure motives from those with selfish ones. This purifying work is limited in duration, designed to bring the conflict to its appointed end.
Calvin's Commentaries Reformed 1564
Calvin defines "the learned" not as the intellectually gifted but as those so forgetful of self-interest that they offer themselves as sacrifices to God. Their falling, he says, means the perishing of the church's flower, so the persecution seemed to threaten the very existence of God's name on earth.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
The commentator interprets the falling of wise leaders as martyrdom that serves to test, strengthen, and purify the faith of the wider community. He explains the refining process as smelting ore to remove impurities, applied figuratively to severe discipline. The suffering continues until God's appointed time for the end.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
The Geneva note highlights that even the wisest believers will fall under persecution during hard times. This falling is not accidental but serves to test, purify, and refine them. God has set a fixed limit on how long this trial will last.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill clarifies that the "fall" of the wise is not into sin but into persecution for their faith. These trials act like a refiner's fire, a winnowing fan, and fuller's soap, intended to purify and separate the sincere from hypocrites until the appointed end.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary Protestant 1871
JFB reads affliction as God's refining fire with a clear purpose: to test believers, purge impurities, and make them white. Even the faithful have dregs that need removal, and God sets a fixed time limit on every trial so that they can wait patiently for the appointed end.
Keil & Delitzsch OT Commentary Protestant 1876
Keil-Delitzsch distinguish "sinning against the covenant" from full apostasy, treating it as insolent violation of covenant law. The "little help" through the pious uprising is not final deliverance but temporary preservation that purifies God's people through affliction until the appointed end.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange treats the four Persian kings as a symbolic number, not a historical count, indicating the kingdom's completed development parallel to the four heads of the leopard. The fourth king's great wealth and expedition against Greece point to Xerxes, whose campaign marks both Persia's peak and its beginning decline.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry focuses on the character of Antiochus Epiphanes as a "vile person" who seizes power through flattery and deceit rather than rightful honor. He observes that Antiochus directs his treachery especially against the holy covenant, using lies and betrayal to attack God's people, yet all his schemes remain under God's sovereign timetable and ultimately do not prosper.