22 The overwhelming forces shall be overwhelmed from before him, and shall be broken; yes, also the prince of the covenant.
with the force of a flood they shall be swept away – verses 22 to 24, describe the first victory of Antiochus IV Epiphanes over Egypt. He wins “with a small number” in comparison to the ” very great and mighty army” of the King of the South, described in verse 25. Antiochus succeeds by deception.
After Rome attacked Greece in 171 BC, Antiochus made his attack on Egypt, in 170 BC, and Antiochus conquered Egypt “with a flood.”
also the prince of the covenant – even Satan was “swept away” by the attack of Antiochus. It was this behaviour of Antiochus that “came up toward the four winds of heaven,” as described in Daniel 8:8.
How do we know that the “prince of the covenant” is Satan? In the Book of Daniel, the word “nagid” only otherwise appears in the Angel’s explanation of Dan 9:25-27, where the Ruler of the People to come, the Ruler of Rome, the Antichrist, was called “the Ruler” (Nagid) who makes “a covenant with many.”
Indeed, Rome did have a covenant with Egypt. But, the Captain of Rome, Satan, was too busy fighting with the forces of Greece. He was also “swept away” by the initial attack of Antiochus. Our big hint regarding the delayed Captain of Rome, came in Dan 10:13. The Angel, who explained the “scripture of truth” to Daniel, said that he tried to come to Daniel right away, but the Captain of the King of Persia withstood him for 21 days. Likewise, the Antichrist, the Captain of Rome, was unable to come to the aid of Egypt, because he was delayed by his fighting with Greece.