Reference: Lion
American
The well-known and noble king of beasts, frequently spoken of in Scripture. He often exceeds eight feet in length and four feet in height; and his majestic and dauntless aspect, his prodigious strength and agility, and his peculiar roar, make him the terror of the forests. Lions were common in Palestine, (See JORDAN,) and the Hebrews had seven different names for them, to distinguish the different ages, etc. Five of these occur together in Job 4:10-11. See also Na 2:11-12. The psalmist alludes to the stealthy creeping of the lion till he can spring upon his prey, when he says of the crafty wicked man, "He lieth in wait secretly as a lion in his den;....he croucheth, and humbleth himself, that the poor may fall by his strong ones." The Bible reader will remember the exploits of Samson and of David, Jg 14:5-6; 1Sa 17:34-36, the story of the disobedient prophet slain by a lion, 1Ki 13:28, and of the obedient Daniel, safe in the lion's den, Da 6; also the sublime image of Jehovah's care for his people, in Isa 31:4.
The Lion of the tribe of Judah, Re 5:5, is Jesus Christ, who sprung from the tribe of Judah and the race of David, and overcame death, the world, and the devil. It is supposed that a lion was the device of the tribe of Judah; whence this allusion, Ge 49:9.
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You are a lion's cub, Judah, from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He crouches and lies down like a lion; like a lioness -- who will rouse him?
Samson went down to Timnah. When he approached the vineyards of Timnah, he saw a roaring young lion attacking him. The Lord's spirit empowered him and he tore the lion in two with his bare hands as easily as one would tear a young goat. But he did not tell his father or mother what he had done.
He went and found the corpse lying in the road with the donkey and the lion standing beside it; the lion had neither eaten the corpse nor attacked the donkey.
There is the roaring of the lion and the growling of the young lion, but the teeth of the young lions are broken. The mighty lion perishes for lack of prey, and the cubs of the lioness are scattered.
Indeed, this is what the Lord says to me: "The Lord will be like a growling lion, like a young lion growling over its prey. Though a whole group of shepherds gathers against it, it is not afraid of their shouts or intimidated by their yelling. In this same way the Lord who commands armies will descend to do battle on Mount Zion and on its hill.
Where now is the den of the lions, the feeding place of the young lions, where the lion, lioness, and lion cub once prowled and no one disturbed them? The lion tore apart as much prey as his cubs needed and strangled prey to provide food for his lionesses; he filled his lairs with prey and his dens with torn flesh.
Then one of the elders said to me, "Stop weeping! Look, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the root of David, has conquered; thus he can open the scroll and its seven seals."
Fausets
ariy, 'arieh ("the bearer," Umbreit); guwr, "the whelp" (Ge 49:9); kephir, "the young lion" in adolescent vigour, his "great teeth" grown (Ps 58:6), having his own covert (Jer 25:38); labiy, in adult maturity (Ge 49:9); libyah, "lioness"; la'ish, "an old (rather strong, from an Arabic root) lion": Job 4:11, where the five different terms occur; shachal is "the roaring lion"; labiy appears in the German lowe. The variety of names shows the abundance of lions in the regions of Scripture at that time. Now there are none in Palestine. But the names Lebaoth (Jos 15:32), Arieh (2Ki 15:25), Ariel for Jerusalem (Isa 29:1-2,7), Laish (Jg 18:7), incidentally, and so undesignedly, confirm the Scripture assertions as to their former existence.
The forests and tangled thickets have been almost swept away which were their former lair. Jordan's wooded banks, its "pride" (as some translated, but others "swelling"), gave cover to lions (Jer 49:19), "a lion from the swelling (so Calvin, the overflow forcing the lion from the woody banks) of Jordan." The Asiatic lion has a short curly mane, and is shorter and rounder than the African. It laid waste villages (2Ki 17:25-26; Pr 22:13) and slew men (1Ki 13:24; 20:35-36). Shepherds, as David, sometimes singly encountered it, and prevailed (1Sa 17:34-35; Am 3:12); oftener in bands, frightening him with shouts into a pit covered over with reed or branches lightly, to entrap it (Eze 19:4,8-9). Benaiah slew one in a pit or cistern, in which it had taken refuge in a snowstorm (2Sa 23:20).
Samson slew one at Timnath (Jg 14:5-6). Lion hunting is depicted as the amusement of the Ninevite kings, who followed the great hunter Nimrod's example. Captured lions were caged, which illustrates the image in Eze 19:9. The lion symbolizes bravery, so the faces of the warriors of Gad who joined David are designated "the faces of lions" (1Ch 12:8); also might and royalty, as in the winged lion figures with human heads in the Assyrian palace remains, and in Solomon's steps to his throne (1Ki 10:19-20); so the royal tribe Judah had the lion as its standard. Messiah is "the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the root of David," yet also the Lamb, combining opposites. The first of the four living creatures was like a lion (Re 4:7, compare Eze 1:10), the kingly aspect of Messiah in Matthew.
Nineveh is compared to a lion's den, full of remains of its prey, appropriately, as lion figures abounded in the Assyrian palaces, Na 2:11-12, "where is," etc.? i.e. God will so destroy it that its site will be hard to find; fulfilled to the letter (Na 1:8). Lions haunted dens in Lebanon and Hermon (Song 4:8). Balaam compares Israel to "a great lion (labiy) and a young lion" ('arieh): Nu 23:24; 24:9. Am 3:4, "will a lion roar in the forest when he hath no prey?" i.e., God would not threaten wrath if there were not; a guilty nation, its object (Mt 24:28); "will a young lion cry out of his den if he (the old lion) have taken nothing?" The young lion lies silent until the parent lion brings the prey near, then the scent rouses him; so the prophet would not speak against Israel if God did not reveal to him Israel's sin requiring Israel's punishment.
Satan is the "roaring lion" as well as the subtle serpent (1Pe 5:8). Sha'ag is the lion's roar in seeking prey (Ps 104:21); naham his cry when seizing it (Isa 5:29, compare Pr 19:12); hagah his growl defying any effort to snatch from him his prey (Isa 31:4); na'ar the cry of the young lion (Jer 51:38); rabats is his crouching in his lair (Ge 49:10); shacah and yashab (Job 38:40) his lying in wait; 'arab his secretly doing so (Ps 10:9); ramas his stealthily creeping after prey (Ps 104:20); zinneq his leap, flinging himself on it (De 33:22) (Smith's Bible Dictionary).
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You are a lion's cub, Judah, from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He crouches and lies down like a lion; like a lioness -- who will rouse him?
You are a lion's cub, Judah, from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He crouches and lies down like a lion; like a lioness -- who will rouse him? The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs; the nations will obey him.
Indeed, the people will rise up like a lioness, and like a lion raises himself up; they will not lie down until they eat their prey, and drink the blood of the slain."
They crouch and lie down like a lion, and as a lioness, who can stir him? Blessed is the one who blesses you, and cursed is the one who curses you!'"
Of Dan he said: Dan is a lion's cub; he will leap forth from Bashan.
Lebaoth, Shilhim, Ain, and Rimmon -- a total of twenty-nine cities and their towns.
Samson went down to Timnah. When he approached the vineyards of Timnah, he saw a roaring young lion attacking him. The Lord's spirit empowered him and he tore the lion in two with his bare hands as easily as one would tear a young goat. But he did not tell his father or mother what he had done.
So the five men journeyed on and arrived in Laish. They noticed that the people there were living securely, like the Sidonians do, undisturbed and unsuspecting. No conqueror was troubling them in any way. They lived far from the Sidonians and had no dealings with anyone.
David replied to Saul, "Your servant has been a shepherd for his father's flock. Whenever a lion or bear would come and carry off a sheep from the flock, I would go out after it, strike it down, and rescue the sheep from its mouth. If it rose up against me, I would grab it by its jaw, strike it, and kill it.
Benaiah son of Jehoida was a brave warrior from Kabzeel who performed great exploits. He struck down the two sons of Ariel of Moab. He also went down and killed a lion in a cistern on a snowy day.
There were six steps leading up to the throne, and the back of it was rounded on top. The throne had two armrests with a statue of a lion standing on each side. There were twelve statues of lions on the six steps, one lion at each end of each step. There was nothing like it in any other kingdom.
As the prophet from Judah was traveling, a lion attacked him on the road and killed him. His corpse was lying on the road, and the donkey and the lion just stood there beside it.
One of the members of the prophetic guild, speaking with divine authority, ordered his companion, "Wound me!" But the man refused to wound him. So the prophet said to him, "Because you have disobeyed the Lord, as soon as you leave me a lion will kill you." When he left him, a lion attacked and killed him.
His officer Pekah son of Remaliah conspired against him. He and fifty Gileadites assassinated Pekahiah, as well as Argob and Arieh, in Samaria in the fortress of the royal palace. Pekah then took his place as king.
When they first moved in, they did not worship the Lord. So the Lord sent lions among them and the lions were killing them. The king of Assyria was told, "The nations whom you deported and settled in the cities of Samaria do not know the requirements of the God of the land, so he has sent lions among them. They are killing the people because they do not know the requirements of the God of the land."
Some of the Gadites joined David at the stronghold in the desert. They were warriors who were trained for battle; they carried shields and spears. They were as fierce as lions and could run as quickly as gazelles across the hills.
The mighty lion perishes for lack of prey, and the cubs of the lioness are scattered.
when they crouch in their dens, when they wait in ambush in the thicket?
He lies in ambush in a hidden place, like a lion in a thicket; he lies in ambush, waiting to catch the oppressed; he catches the oppressed by pulling in his net.
O God, break the teeth in their mouths! Smash the jawbones of the lions, O Lord!
You make it dark and night comes, during which all the beasts of the forest prowl around. The lions roar for prey, seeking their food from God.
A king's wrath is like the roar of a lion, but his favor is like dew on the grass.
The sluggard says, "There is a lion outside! I will be killed in the middle of the streets!"
Come with me from Lebanon, my bride, come with me from Lebanon. Descend from the crest of Amana, from the top of Senir, the summit of Hermon, from the lions' dens and the mountain haunts of the leopards.
Their roar is like a lion's; they roar like young lions. They growl and seize their prey; they drag it away and no one can come to the rescue.
Ariel is as good as dead -- Ariel, the town David besieged! Keep observing your annual rituals, celebrate your festivals on schedule. I will threaten Ariel, and she will mourn intensely and become like an altar hearth before me.
It will be like a dream, a night vision. There will be a horde from all the nations that fight against Ariel, those who attack her and her stronghold and besiege her.
Indeed, this is what the Lord says to me: "The Lord will be like a growling lion, like a young lion growling over its prey. Though a whole group of shepherds gathers against it, it is not afraid of their shouts or intimidated by their yelling. In this same way the Lord who commands armies will descend to do battle on Mount Zion and on its hill.
The Lord is like a lion who has left his lair. So their lands will certainly be laid waste by the warfare of the oppressive nation and by the fierce anger of the Lord."
"A lion coming up from the thick undergrowth along the Jordan scatters the sheep in the pastureland around it. So too I will chase the Edomites off their land. Then I will appoint over it whomever I choose. For there is no one like me, and there is no one who can call me to account. There is no ruler who can stand up against me.
The Babylonians are all like lions roaring for prey. They are like lion cubs growling for something to eat.
Their faces had this appearance: Each of the four had the face of a man, with the face of a lion on the right, the face of an ox on the left and also the face of an eagle.
The nations heard about him; he was trapped in their pit. They brought him with hooks to the land of Egypt.
The nations -- the surrounding regions -- attacked him. They threw their net over him; he was caught in their pit. They put him in a collar with hooks; they brought him to the king of Babylon; they brought him to prison so that his voice would not be heard any longer on the mountains of Israel.
They put him in a collar with hooks; they brought him to the king of Babylon; they brought him to prison so that his voice would not be heard any longer on the mountains of Israel.
Does a lion roar in the woods if he has not cornered his prey? Does a young lion bellow from his den if he has not caught something?
This is what the Lord says: "Just as a shepherd salvages from the lion's mouth a couple of leg bones or a piece of an ear, so the Israelites who live in Samaria will be salvaged. They will be left with just a corner of a bed, and a part of a couch."
But with an overwhelming flood he will make a complete end of Nineveh; he will drive his enemies into darkness.
Where now is the den of the lions, the feeding place of the young lions, where the lion, lioness, and lion cub once prowled and no one disturbed them? The lion tore apart as much prey as his cubs needed and strangled prey to provide food for his lionesses; he filled his lairs with prey and his dens with torn flesh.
Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.
Be sober and alert. Your enemy the devil, like a roaring lion, is on the prowl looking for someone to devour.
The first living creature was like a lion, the second creature like an ox, the third creature had a face like a man's, and the fourth creature looked like an eagle flying.
Hastings
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You are a lion's cub, Judah, from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He crouches and lies down like a lion; like a lioness -- who will rouse him?
You are a lion's cub, Judah, from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He crouches and lies down like a lion; like a lioness -- who will rouse him?
You are a lion's cub, Judah, from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He crouches and lies down like a lion; like a lioness -- who will rouse him?
Indeed, the people will rise up like a lioness, and like a lion raises himself up; they will not lie down until they eat their prey, and drink the blood of the slain."
Indeed, the people will rise up like a lioness, and like a lion raises himself up; they will not lie down until they eat their prey, and drink the blood of the slain."
They crouch and lie down like a lion, and as a lioness, who can stir him? Blessed is the one who blesses you, and cursed is the one who curses you!'"
Of Dan he said: Dan is a lion's cub; he will leap forth from Bashan.
When he got home, he told his father and mother, "A Philistine girl in Timnah has caught my eye. Now get her for my wife."
The Lord's spirit empowered him and he tore the lion in two with his bare hands as easily as one would tear a young goat. But he did not tell his father or mother what he had done.
Some time later, when he went back to marry her, he turned aside to see the lion's remains. He saw a swarm of bees in the lion's carcass, as well as some honey.
David replied to Saul, "Your servant has been a shepherd for his father's flock. Whenever a lion or bear would come and carry off a sheep from the flock,
As the prophet from Judah was traveling, a lion attacked him on the road and killed him. His corpse was lying on the road, and the donkey and the lion just stood there beside it.
One of the members of the prophetic guild, speaking with divine authority, ordered his companion, "Wound me!" But the man refused to wound him.
There is the roaring of the lion and the growling of the young lion, but the teeth of the young lions are broken.
There is the roaring of the lion and the growling of the young lion, but the teeth of the young lions are broken. The mighty lion perishes for lack of prey, and the cubs of the lioness are scattered.
The mighty lion perishes for lack of prey, and the cubs of the lioness are scattered.
"Why then did you bring me out from the womb? I should have died and no eye would have seen me!
You will subdue a lion and a snake; you will trample underfoot a young lion and a serpent.
A king's wrath is like the roar of a lion, but his favor is like dew on the grass.
The king's terrifying anger is like the roar of a lion; whoever provokes him sins against himself.
This is a message about the animals in the Negev: Through a land of distress and danger, inhabited by lionesses and roaring lions, by snakes and darting adders, they transport their wealth on the backs of donkeys, their riches on the humps of camels, to a nation that cannot help them.
Indeed, this is what the Lord says to me: "The Lord will be like a growling lion, like a young lion growling over its prey. Though a whole group of shepherds gathers against it, it is not afraid of their shouts or intimidated by their yelling. In this same way the Lord who commands armies will descend to do battle on Mount Zion and on its hill.
"Then, Jeremiah, make the following prophecy against them: 'Like a lion about to attack, the Lord will roar from the heights of heaven; from his holy dwelling on high he will roar loudly. He will roar mightily against his land. He will shout in triumph like those stomping juice from the grapes against all those who live on the earth.
"A lion coming up from the thick undergrowth along the Jordan scatters the sheep in the pastureland around it. So too I will chase the Edomites off their land. Then I will appoint over it whomever I choose. For there is no one like me, and there is no one who can call me to account. There is no ruler who can stand up against me.
"A lion coming up from the thick undergrowth along the Jordan scatters the sheep in the pastureland around it. So too I will chase the Babylonians off of their land. Then I will appoint over it whomever I choose. For there is no one like me. There is no one who can call me to account. There is no ruler that can stand up against me.
and say: "'What a lioness was your mother among the lions! She lay among young lions; she reared her cubs.
and say: "'What a lioness was your mother among the lions! She lay among young lions; she reared her cubs.
I will be like a lion to Ephraim, like a young lion to the house of Judah. I myself will tear them to pieces, then I will carry them off, and no one will be able to rescue them!
The Lord roars from Zion; from Jerusalem his voice bellows out. The heavens and the earth shake. But the Lord is a refuge for his people; he is a stronghold for the citizens of Israel.
A lion has roared! Who is not afraid? The sovereign Lord has spoken! Who can refuse to prophesy?
This is what the Lord says: "Just as a shepherd salvages from the lion's mouth a couple of leg bones or a piece of an ear, so the Israelites who live in Samaria will be salvaged. They will be left with just a corner of a bed, and a part of a couch."
Those survivors from Jacob will live among the nations, in the midst of many peoples. They will be like a lion among the animals of the forest, like a young lion among the flocks of sheep, which attacks when it passes through; it rips its prey and there is no one to stop it.
Listen to the howling of shepherds, because their magnificence has been destroyed. Listen to the roaring of young lions, because the thickets of the Jordan have been devastated.
Be sober and alert. Your enemy the devil, like a roaring lion, is on the prowl looking for someone to devour.
Then one of the elders said to me, "Stop weeping! Look, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the root of David, has conquered; thus he can open the scroll and its seven seals."
Morish
There are several Hebrew words translated 'lion,' the principal of which is ari, from 'to tear.' The lion is declared to be the "strongest among beasts and turneth not away for any." Pr 30:30. This shows that the lion may be taken as a symbol of 'strength,' and as such the Lord is called the lion of the tribe of Judah, to which is attached the symbol of royalty, for Judah held the sceptre. Ge 49:9-10; Re 5:5. Satan also has a kingdom and is called a strong one, Mt 12:26; and he is the 'lion' seeking whom he may devour. He is compared to a 'roaring lion,' because he is like that animal, which roars when it is sure of its prey: cf. Am 3:4. The Lord knows how to deliver His servants even out of the mouth of the lion.
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You are a lion's cub, Judah, from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He crouches and lies down like a lion; like a lioness -- who will rouse him? The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs; the nations will obey him.
Does a lion roar in the woods if he has not cornered his prey? Does a young lion bellow from his den if he has not caught something?
So if Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand?
Then one of the elders said to me, "Stop weeping! Look, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the root of David, has conquered; thus he can open the scroll and its seven seals."
Smith
Lion.
The most powerful, daring and impressive of all carnivorous animals, the most magnificent in aspect and awful in voice. At present lions do not exist in Palestine; but they must in ancient times have been numerous. The lion of Palestine was in all probability the Asiatic variety, described by Aristotle and Pliny as distinguished by its short and curly mane, and by being shorter and rounder in shape, like the sculptured lion found at Arban. It was less daring than the longer named species, but when driven by hunger it not only ventured to attack the flocks in the desert in presence of the shepherd,
but laid waste towns and villages,
and devoured men.
Among the Hebrews, and throughout the Old Testament, the lion was the achievement of the princely tribe of Judah, while in the closing book of the canon it received a deeper significance as the emblem of him who "prevailed to open the book and loose the seven seals thereof."
On the other hand its fierceness and cruelty rendered it an appropriate metaphor for a fierce and malignant enemy.
and hence for the arch-fiend himself.
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David replied to Saul, "Your servant has been a shepherd for his father's flock. Whenever a lion or bear would come and carry off a sheep from the flock,
As the prophet from Judah was traveling, a lion attacked him on the road and killed him. His corpse was lying on the road, and the donkey and the lion just stood there beside it.
So the prophet said to him, "Because you have disobeyed the Lord, as soon as you leave me a lion will kill you." When he left him, a lion attacked and killed him.
When they first moved in, they did not worship the Lord. So the Lord sent lions among them and the lions were killing them. The king of Assyria was told, "The nations whom you deported and settled in the cities of Samaria do not know the requirements of the God of the land, so he has sent lions among them. They are killing the people because they do not know the requirements of the God of the land."
Otherwise they will rip me to shreds like a lion; they will tear me to bits and no one will be able to rescue me.
Rescue me from the mouth of the lion, and from the horns of the wild oxen! You have answered me!
I am surrounded by lions; I lie down among those who want to devour me; men whose teeth are spears and arrows, whose tongues are a sharp sword.
The sluggard says, "There is a lion outside! I will be killed in the middle of the streets!"
The sluggard says, "There is a lion in the road! A lion in the streets!"
Indeed, this is what the Lord says to me: "The Lord will be like a growling lion, like a young lion growling over its prey. Though a whole group of shepherds gathers against it, it is not afraid of their shouts or intimidated by their yelling. In this same way the Lord who commands armies will descend to do battle on Mount Zion and on its hill.
Be sober and alert. Your enemy the devil, like a roaring lion, is on the prowl looking for someone to devour.
Then one of the elders said to me, "Stop weeping! Look, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the root of David, has conquered; thus he can open the scroll and its seven seals."
Watsons
LION, ???, or ???, Ge 49:9; De 33:22; Ps 7:2; 22:13; Ho 13:8; Mic 5:8; a large beast of prey, for his courage and strength called the king of beasts. This animal is produced in Africa, and the hottest parts of Asia. It is found in the greatest numbers in the scorched and desolate regions of the torrid zone, in the deserts of Zaara and Billdulgerid, and in all the interior parts of the vast continent of Africa. In these desert regions, from whence mankind are driven by the rigorous heat of the climate, this animal reigns sole master. His disposition seems to partake of the ardour of his native soil. Inflamed by the influence of a burning sun, his rage is tremendous, and his courage undaunted. Happily, indeed, the species is not numerous, and is said to be greatly diminished; for, if we may credit the testimony of those who have traversed those vast deserts, the number of lions is not nearly so great as formerly. Mr. Shaw observes that the Romans carried more lions from Libya in one year for their public spectacles, than could be found in all that country at this time. The lion was also found in Palestine, and the neighbouring countries. The length of the largest lion is between eight and nine feet, the tail about four, and its height about four feet and a half. The female is about one-fourth part less, and without a mane. As the lion advances in years, his mane grows longer and thicker. The hair on the rest of the body is short and smooth, of a tawny colour, but whitish on the belly. Its roaring is loud and dreadful. When heard in the night it resembles distant thunder. Its cry of anger is much louder and shorter. The attachment of a lioness to her young is remarkably strong. For their support she is more ferocious than the lion himself; makes her incursions with greater boldness; destroys, without distinction, every animal that falls in her way, and carries it reeking to her cubs. She usually brings forth in the most retired and inaccessible places; and when afraid that her retreat should be discovered, endeavours to hide her track by brushing the ground with her tail. When much disturbed or alarmed, she will sometimes transport her young, which are usually three or four in number, from one place to another in her mouth; and, if obstructed in her course, will defend them to the last extremity. The habits of the lion and the lioness afford many spirited, and often sublime, metaphors to the sacred writers.
The lion has several names in Scripture, according to his different ages or character:
1. ???, a little lion, a lion's whelp, De 33:22; Jer 51:38; Eze 19:2; Na 2:13.
2. ????, a young lion that has done sucking the lioness, and, leaving the covert, begins to seek prey. for himself. So Eze 19:2-3: "The lioness hath brought up one of her whelps; it became a chephir; it learned to catch the prey; it devoured men." See Ps 91:13; Pr 19:12.
3. ???, a grown and vigorous lion, having whelps, eager in pursuit of prey for them, Na 2:12; valiant, 2Sa 17:10; arrogantly opposing himself, Nu 23:24. This is, indeed, the general name, and occurs frequently.
4. ??? one in the full strength of his age; a black lion, Job 4:10; 10:16; Ps 91:13; Pr 26:13; Ho 5:14; 13:7.
5. ???, a fierce or enraged lion, Job 4:11; Pr 30:30; Isa 25:6. A regard to these characteristics and distinctions is very important for illustrating the passages of Scripture where the animal is spoken of, and discovering the propriety of the allusions and metaphors which he so often furnishes to the Hebrew poets. The lion of the tribe of Judah, mentioned Re 5:5, is Jesus Christ, who sprung from the tribe of Judah, and overcame death, the world, and the devil. The lion from the swelling of Jordan, Jer 50:44, is Nebuchadnezzar marching against Judea, with the strength and fierceness of a lion. Isaiah, describing the happy time of the Messiah, says, that then the calf, and the young lion, and the fatling should lie down together; and that a little child should lead them; and that the lion should eat straw like the ox, Isa 11:6-7, which is hyberbolical, and signifies the peace and happiness which the church of Christ should enjoy. "The lion hath roared, and who shall not fear?" Am 3:8. "The king's wrath is as the roaring of a lion. Who provoketh him to anger sinneth against his own soul," Pr 19:12; 20:2; that is, he seeketh his own death. Solomon says, "A living dog is better than a dead lion," Ec 10:4; showing that death renders those contemptible who otherwise are the greatest, most powerful, and most terrible.
Then went Samson down, and, behold, a young lion roared against him, and the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him, and he rent him as he would have rent a kid, and he had nothing in his hand, Jg 14:5-6. An instance in quite modern times of an unarmed man attempting to combat a lion is related by Poiret: "In a douar, or a camp of Bedouin Arabs, near La Calle, a French factory, a young lion had seized a cow. A young Moor threw himself upon the savage beast, to tear his booty from him, and as at were to stifle him in his arms, but he would not let go his prey. The father of the young man hastened to him, armed with a kind of hoe; and aiming at the lion, struck his son's hand, and cut off three of his fingers. It cost a great deal of trouble to rescue the prey from the lion. I saw this young man, who was attended by Mr. Gay, at that time surgeon to the hospital of La Calle." David, according to 1Sa 17:34, had, when a shepherd, once fought with a lion, and another time with a bear, and rescued their prey from them. Tellez relates, that an Abyssinian shepherd had once killed a lion of extraordinary size with only two poles. "Behold, he shall come up like a lion from the swelling of Jordan against the habitation of the strong," Jer 49:19. The comparison used by the prophet in these words will be perfectly understood by the account which Mr. Maundrell gives of the river Jordan: "After having descended," says he, "the outermost bank of Jordan, you go about a furlong upon a level strand, before you come to the immediate bank of the river. This second bank is so beset with bushes and trees, such as tamarisks, willows, oleanders, &c, that you can see no water till you have made your way through them. In this thicket anciently, and the same is reported of it at this day, several sorts of wild beasts were wont to harbour themselves, whose being washed out of the covert by the over-flowings of the river gave occasion to that allusion: 'He shall come up like a lion from the swelling of Jordan.'" "He shall be cast into the den of lions," Da 6:7. "In Morocco," says Host, "the king has a lions' den, into which men, particularly Jews, are sometimes thrown; but the latter generally come off unhurt; because the keepers of these animals are Jews, who may safely be with them, with a rod in the hand, if they only take care to go out backward, as the lion does not suffer any one to turn his back upon him. The other Jews do not let their brethren remain longer than a night among the lions, as they might otherwise become too hungry; but ransom them with money, which is, in fact, the king's object." In another place in the same work we find the following description of the construction of this lions' den: "At one end of the royal palace there is a place for ostriches and their young; and beyond the other end, toward the mountains, there is a large lions' den, which consists of a large square hole in the ground, with a partition, in the middle of which there is a door, which the Jews, who are obliged to maintain and keep them for nothing, are able to open and shut from above, and can thus entice the lions, by means of the food, from one division to the other, to clean the other in the mean time. It is all in the open air, and a person may look down over a wall, which is a yard and a quarter high."
See Verses Found in Dictionary
You are a lion's cub, Judah, from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He crouches and lies down like a lion; like a lioness -- who will rouse him?
Indeed, the people will rise up like a lioness, and like a lion raises himself up; they will not lie down until they eat their prey, and drink the blood of the slain."
Of Dan he said: Dan is a lion's cub; he will leap forth from Bashan.
Of Dan he said: Dan is a lion's cub; he will leap forth from Bashan.
Samson went down to Timnah. When he approached the vineyards of Timnah, he saw a roaring young lion attacking him. The Lord's spirit empowered him and he tore the lion in two with his bare hands as easily as one would tear a young goat. But he did not tell his father or mother what he had done.
David replied to Saul, "Your servant has been a shepherd for his father's flock. Whenever a lion or bear would come and carry off a sheep from the flock,
If that happens even the bravest soldier -- one who is lion-hearted -- will virtually melt away. For all Israel knows that your father is a warrior and that those who are with him are brave.
There is the roaring of the lion and the growling of the young lion, but the teeth of the young lions are broken. The mighty lion perishes for lack of prey, and the cubs of the lioness are scattered.
If I lift myself up, you hunt me as a fierce lion, and again you display your power against me.
Otherwise they will rip me to shreds like a lion; they will tear me to bits and no one will be able to rescue me.
They open their mouths to devour me like a roaring lion that rips its prey.
You will subdue a lion and a snake; you will trample underfoot a young lion and a serpent.
You will subdue a lion and a snake; you will trample underfoot a young lion and a serpent.
A king's wrath is like the roar of a lion, but his favor is like dew on the grass.
A king's wrath is like the roar of a lion, but his favor is like dew on the grass.
The king's terrifying anger is like the roar of a lion; whoever provokes him sins against himself.
The sluggard says, "There is a lion in the road! A lion in the streets!"
If the anger of the ruler flares up against you, do not resign from your position, for a calm response can undo great offenses.
A wolf will reside with a lamb, and a leopard will lie down with a young goat; an ox and a young lion will graze together, as a small child leads them along. A cow and a bear will graze together, their young will lie down together. A lion, like an ox, will eat straw.
The Lord who commands armies will hold a banquet for all the nations on this mountain. At this banquet there will be plenty of meat and aged wine -- tender meat and choicest wine.
"A lion coming up from the thick undergrowth along the Jordan scatters the sheep in the pastureland around it. So too I will chase the Edomites off their land. Then I will appoint over it whomever I choose. For there is no one like me, and there is no one who can call me to account. There is no ruler who can stand up against me.
"A lion coming up from the thick undergrowth along the Jordan scatters the sheep in the pastureland around it. So too I will chase the Babylonians off of their land. Then I will appoint over it whomever I choose. For there is no one like me. There is no one who can call me to account. There is no ruler that can stand up against me.
The Babylonians are all like lions roaring for prey. They are like lion cubs growling for something to eat.
and say: "'What a lioness was your mother among the lions! She lay among young lions; she reared her cubs.
and say: "'What a lioness was your mother among the lions! She lay among young lions; she reared her cubs. She reared one of her cubs; he became a young lion. He learned to tear prey; he devoured people.
To all the supervisors of the kingdom, the prefects, satraps, counselors, and governors it seemed like a good idea for a royal edict to be issued and an interdict to be enforced. For the next thirty days anyone who prays to any god or human other than you, O king, should be thrown into a den of lions.
I will be like a lion to Ephraim, like a young lion to the house of Judah. I myself will tear them to pieces, then I will carry them off, and no one will be able to rescue them!
So I will pounce on them like a lion; like a leopard I will lurk by the path. I will attack them like a bear robbed of her cubs -- I will rip open their chests. I will devour them there like a lion -- like a wild animal would tear them apart.
A lion has roared! Who is not afraid? The sovereign Lord has spoken! Who can refuse to prophesy?
Those survivors from Jacob will live among the nations, in the midst of many peoples. They will be like a lion among the animals of the forest, like a young lion among the flocks of sheep, which attacks when it passes through; it rips its prey and there is no one to stop it.
The lion tore apart as much prey as his cubs needed and strangled prey to provide food for his lionesses; he filled his lairs with prey and his dens with torn flesh. "I am against you!" declares the Lord who commands armies: "I will burn your chariots with fire; the sword will devour your young lions; you will no longer prey upon the land; the voices of your messengers will no longer be heard."
Then one of the elders said to me, "Stop weeping! Look, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the root of David, has conquered; thus he can open the scroll and its seven seals."