LION
The “Felis leo” of the naturalists.
This beast is spread throughout Africa, and in some parts of South Asia, as far as the Indian province of Gujarat. It existed in Greece, but is no longer found there or in the rest of Europe.
In biblical times, the lion was not uncommon in Palestine. The Israelites designated them with six different terms, which corresponded to different states or different periods of growth.
The current terms, “‘aryeh” and “‘ari” appear 80 times in the OT. It is mentioned:
the strength of the lion (2 Sam. 17:10; Prov. 30:30);
his worth (2 Sam. 17:10; Prov. 28:1);
his teeth and molars (Joel 1:6);
his habit of crouching before attacking (Gen. 49:9);
the victims he causes among lambs, calves and other animals (1 Sam. 17:34; Is. 11: 6, 7) or among human beings (1 Kings 13:24; Jer. 2:30);
his roar (Jb. 4:10; Pr. 20:2; 1 Pet. 5:8).
He is represented lying in wait:
in the thicket (Jer. 4:7),
in the forests (Jer. 5:6) or
in other places (Jer. 25:38).
It especially infested the thickets on the banks of the Jordan (Jer. 49:19).
The living creatures in Ezekiel’s vision all had a lion’s face on the right (Ez. 1:10; cf. Ez. 10:14). The first living creature John saw looked like a lion (Rev. 4:7).
Our Lord Jesus is called “Lion of the tribe of Judah,” to which the symbol of royalty is attached, since the scepter was assigned to Judah (Gen. 49:9, 10; Rev. 5:5). Satan also has his kingdom and is called “mighty” (Mt. 12:26), and is compared to the “lion” that seeks whom it may devour, rampant and roaring (1 Pet. 5:8).