Alexander the Great and Bible Prophecy
Daniel 8:5 King James Version
"And as I was considering, behold, an he goat came from the west on the face of the whole earth, and touched not the ground: and the goat had a notable horn between his eyes. 6 And he came to the ram that had two horns, which I had seen standing before the river, and ran unto him in the fury of his power. 7 And I saw him come close unto the ram, and he was moved with choler against him, and smote the ram, and brake his two horns: and there was no power in the ram to stand before him, but he cast him down to the ground, and stamped upon him: and there was none that could deliver the ram out of his hand. 8 Therefore the he goat waxed very great: and when he was strong, the great horn was broken; and for it came up four notable ones toward the four winds of heaven."
Daniel 11
2 Behold, there shall stand up yet three kings in Persia; and the fourth shall be far richer than they all: and by his strength through his riches he shall stir up all against the realm of Grecia. 3 And a mighty king shall stand up, that shall rule with great dominion, and do according to his will. 4 And when he shall stand up, his kingdom shall be broken, and shall be divided toward the four winds of heaven; and not to his posterity, nor according to his dominion which he ruled: for his kingdom shall be plucked up, even for others beside those.
In the middle of the 4th century before Christ one of the most interesting and influential human beings came into this world. The mighty Alexander was born the son of the King of Macedonia in 356 BC.King Phillip had already developed his military into one of the best trained and disciplined in the world. Soon after Philip died (murdered by Darius-King of Persia?) Alexander united Greece and launched into a 12 year campaign to conquer much of the known world. His vision was thousands of years ahead of its time-that through the patchwork of conquest- One World...One Nation...One People...living in Peace- as the Brotherhood of Man.
However rather than focus on Alexander's conquests it's far more interesting to see how Biblical prophecy ties into his life and achievements. The most obvious reference the Alexander is Daniel 8 & 11 which were written 200 years before Alexander. These verses are so obvious to be of Alexander because after his death his empire was divided into 4 empires and only Alexander could fulfill these prophecies.The Book of Zecharia Chapter 9:1-8 foretells Alexander's conquests through Syria & Palestine. In particular it describes the destruction of Tyre written roughly 200 years before the events.The accounts describe the events as Alexander's army marched through the Holy Lands. Modern liberal theologians reject this idea as they do all the evidences of a real living Creator but the evidence here and in many other Biblical passages are overwhelming that the Bible is truly God's Word and only God's Word. No other writing on earth comes close to Biblical Revelation.
The noted first-century Jewish historian Josephus recalls the king's visit to Jerusalem and a meeting between Alexander and the high priest, Jaddua. In 332 B.C. Alexander besieged and defeated the coastal cities of Tyre and Gaza in his march toward Egypt. During this campaign he turned toward Jerusalem. Alexander had already demanded men and supplies from the Jews, who were under the rule of Alexander's mortal enemy, the Persian king Darius. The high priest hesitated, saying that while Darius lived they would honor their pledge. Alexander was angry and began a move on the city. Well aware of the danger, Jaddua asked the people to pray to God for His mercy and protection. Then, says Josephus, Jaddua had a dream as to how to entreat the Macedonian king. He and the other priests dressed in their priestly robes and, accompanied by others dressed in white garments, formed a procession that went out of the city to a carefully chosen place to meet the king. Alexander then did the unexpected. Alone, he approached the high priest and members of the procession and greeted them. Josephus records that Alexander then accompanied the priest into Jerusalem and the temple, where he “offered sacrifice to God, according to the high priest's direction, and magnificently treated both the high priest and the priests.” Alexander's visit was capped by a briefing from the book of Daniel, written several centuries earlier, which foretold the rise and conquests of Alexander.
Funny but I always thought the exact thing occured before ever reading Josephus account-and though of all the books on Alexander few recall this event because of its evidence of the supernatural-I cannot imagine the High Priests- as scholars of the prophecies- would do any less. So influential was Alexander even in Jesus' day that I think Jesus' statement "What does it profit a man to gain the whole world but to lose his soul" referred to Alexander. The Greek influence was still strong in that part of the world even after centuries and Roman occupation.
The evidence of prophecy written centuries before the events clearly shows a divine origin and truly supports the view of the divine inspiration of the Holy Bible. No other book or "revelation" has such solid proof that God is real and involved in the affairs of each of us. You don't have to be Alexander for God to take notice of you for Jesus said "For God so loved the world(you and me) that He sent His only begotten Son..." John 3:16. God created all things that He might show His great love and His greatest desire is for us to love Him as He loves us and to become the Holy bride of His Son.