According to the WTS, 'the power struggle between these two kings stretches into our day' - Pay Attention To Daniel's Prophecy chapter 13, paragraph 2 (PATDP). Here's my take on their current 'understanding' of Daniel 11. From verses 5-19, the WTS more or less follows The Lion Handbook To The Bible's (TLHTTB) understanding that the 'king of the north' refers to Syria, and the 'king of the south' refers to Egypt. Both lands are, from the viewpoint of Israel, set thus geographically. From verses 20-35, TLHTT identifies the actions as pertaining to the continuing struggle between the previously mentioned 'kings', whereas PATDP jumps ahead in time (identifying the 'king of the north') starting with the Romans Augustus, Tiberius, and Aurelian, through to the German 'empire' and Third Reich of WWI and WWII, and ending up with the 'communist bloc', with Britain and the Anglo-American world powers representing 'the king of the south'. Its interesting that TLHTTB, with reference to verses 36-45, says, "They may refer to the end of Syrian domination at the hand of Rome, the new king from the north. I think that the WTS has got its north and south mixed up when it refers to the Anglo-American powers as the king of the south. My personal opinion is that if one insists that these verses deal with events now or in the near future, it would be more logical to see America as the ultimate extension of the Roman empire, 'the king of the north'. It gets its religion from Roman (4th century) Christianity, has a number of Roman symbols such as the eagle and the senate, and has a warlike mentality as can be seen from its numerous invasions. The 'king of the north' is described as one who would attack with 'many ships', so this 'king' is known to have a large naval capability. This certainly is true of America. The ancient Hebrew word NEGEB which is translated from these scriptures as south, 'comes from an unused root meaning to be parched' (Strongs), and to me aptly applies to the middle east. Whereas the Hebrew word for north (ie TSAPHOWN) has the underlying meaning of 'hidden, ie dark, used only of the north as a quarter (gloomy and unknown)' (Strongs). As such, I see the middle eastern (Muslim) countries as more likely to fit the title 'the king of the south'. Of course, the WTS spiritualises most things and doesn't see the connection between a literal Israel and prophecy. They imagine that somehow JWs will as a group hold so much world attention that they will end up fulfilling Bible prophecy. However, in my opinion, the clash between 'Christian' and Muslim civilisations (with literal Israel in the middle) looks like a far more realistic contender for a precursor to Armageddon. If, of course, you believe in Bible prophecy!
