Daniel 11 is a long prophecy of rulers to come and how they will rise and fall. We read that none shall stand before one of the rulers and how another shall magnify himself above all.

But we also read phrases like: “but only for a time,” and that “he shall stumble and fall and shall not be found,” and “he shall come to his end with none to help him.”

The rulers can sound fearsome, but God knows just when they will come, what they are going to do, and knows their end. It is just for a time. The end will come. The end of their rules are promised by God.

The boundaries of their reigns are set by God. The boundaries of what they can do are set by God. God, however, does not plot evil. Satan will be plotting what evil these rulers will do, but they will always have to be within God’s boundaries to be carrying out God’s ultimate purposes.

Satan is called the ruler of this world. Think of rulers in places like Assyria and Babylon. God lets them rule. He allows these kingdoms to be raised up, sets boundaries enabling their rise to great power, but it is always for the sake of His children. God’s working out His redemptive purposes.

God will punish these evil rulers for the evil they do, even if God uses their destruction to turn things around for the good of His children.

Satan has a part to play in God’s grand, perfect, loving scheme. He is allowed to be raised up for a time and for a purpose, and then his end will come. It is foreseen. It is promised.