Brothers: Beware of the Animals (V)

"...who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, 

stopped the mouths of lions..." 

(Heb. 11: 33 nkjv)

In this posting we will continue our look at the various kinds of enemies of the people of God and who are described as certain kinds of animals. In the first chapter we cited Paul's statement that he "fought with beasts at Ephesus." (See these links for the previous chapters; here, here, here, here) In those previous chapters we spoke of those who were called "dogs," and "wolves," and "foxes," and generally as "natural brute beasts." Today we look at how these enemies of God and his people are compared to lions who prey on souls. The above text from the apostle Peter speaks of the Devil as being such a lion. He is the chief lion among the pride of lions who oppose God and his people. He is also the chief or alpha dog, the leader of the wolf pack, and the top fox. 

As I have stated previously in regard to lions in the bible, sometimes they are symbols of courage, strength, and royalty. So Christ is called "the lion of the tribe of Judah" (Rev. 5: 5). The prophet Joel also prophesied of the Lord saying "The LORD also will roar from Zion, And utter His voice from Jerusalem; The heavens and earth will shake..." (Joel 3: 16 nkjv) Hosea also similarly says "They shall walk after the LORD: he shall roar like a lion: when he shall roar, then the children shall tremble from the west." (Hosea 11: 10 kjv) That lions are associated with royalty is seen when we say that the lion is "the king of beasts." Naves topical Bible says:

"The lion, often referred to as the "king of beasts," holds a significant place in biblical literature and symbolism. Known for its strength, majesty, and fearsome nature, the lion is frequently mentioned throughout the Scriptures, serving as a powerful metaphor for both divine and earthly authority, as well as a symbol of danger and destruction."

Solomon wrote:

"The wrath of a king is like the roaring of a lion..." (Prov. 20: 2 nkjv)

"The king’s wrath is like the roaring of a lion, But his favor is like dew on the grass." (Prov. 19: 12 nkjv)

That lions are symbols of royalty is seen in the following description of Solomon's throne.

"Moreover the king made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with pure gold. The throne had six steps, and the top of the throne was round at the back; there were armrests on either side of the place of the seat, and two lions stood beside the armrests. Twelve lions stood there, one on each side of the six steps; nothing like this had been made for any other kingdom." (I Kings 10: 18-20 nkjv)

One of the four heavenly creatures seen by John and Ezekiel had the face of a lion. (Eze. 1: 10; Rev. 4: 7)

Satan is a king or prince in several Bible passages. So we read of Satan as king over all the demons of the bottomless pit.

"And they had as king over them the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon, but in Greek he has the name Apollyon." (Rev. 9: 11 nkjv)

So, he is a lion, but he is a lion in the bad sense, because he "seeks to devour" the souls of men, especially the souls of the redeemed. This "lion king" is a destroyer, and therefore called Abaddon or Apollyon.

In the above text from the apostle Peter, we are told that Satan is on the prowl and is like a "roaring lion." Why the roaring? A lion roars when he has caught his prey. So we read:

"Will a lion roar in the forest, when he has no prey? Will a young lion cry out of his den, if he has caught nothing?" (Amos 3: 4 nkjv)

"For thus the Lord has spoken to me: “As a lion roars, And a young lion over his prey (When a multitude of shepherds is summoned against him, He will not be afraid of their voice Nor be disturbed by their noise), So the Lord of hosts will come down To fight for Mount Zion and for its hill." (Isa. 31: 4 nkjv; see also 5: 29)

Satan roars when he has caught men. So, he is constantly roaring because he is constantly catching prey.

So too will the Lord roar when he catches Satan himself and all his pride of lions at his return from glory, as the texts cited above foretell. 

While Satan is hunting he does not roar, for that would alert his prey. Before he roars, he hunts by stealth, like tigers and cheetahs, etc. He "lies in wait," and sneaks up on his prey. So too does Satan and evil men. Wrote the prophet Jeremiah:

"For among My people are found wicked men; They lie in wait as one who sets snares; They set a trap; They catch men." (5: 26)

Paul warned of those who teach false doctrine by "cunning craftiness" and who "lie in wait to deceive" (Eph. 4: 14). 

All evil men who murder and destroy others are lions in Satan's pack or pride. So wrote the Psalmist:

"Lord, how long will You look on? Rescue me from their destructions, My precious life from the lions." (Psa. 35: 17 nkjv)

"My soul is among lions; I lie among the sons of men Who are set on fire, Whose teeth are spears and arrows, And their tongue a sharp sword." (Psa. 57: 4 nkjv)

Here the man of God views his enemies, the wicked, as being "lions," men who seek and devour other men. So he prays to God saying "Break their teeth, O God, in their mouth: break out the great teeth of the young lions, O LORD." (Psa. 58: 6 kjv) So we read in Jeremiah:

"Israel is a scattered sheep; the lions have driven him away: first the king of Assyria hath devoured him; and last this Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon hath broken his bones." (Jer. 50: 17 kjv)

Both the king of Assyria and Babylon were lions who attacked and scattered the sheep of Israel. Ezekiel also writes:

"Moreover take thou up a lamentation for the princes of Israel, And say, What is thy mother? A lioness: she lay down among lions, she nourished her whelps among young lions. And she brought up one of her whelps: it became a young lion, and it learned to catch the prey; it devoured men. The nations also heard of him; he was taken in their pit, and they brought him with chains unto the land of Egypt. Now when she saw that she had waited, and her hope was lost, then she took another of her whelps, and made him a young lion. And he went up and down among the lions, he became a young lion, and learned to catch the prey, and devoured men. And he knew their desolate palaces, and he laid waste their cities; and the land was desolate, and the fulness thereof, by the noise of his roaring." (Eze. 1: 1-7; kjv)

The prophet Zephaniah also writes:

"Her princes within her are roaring lions; her judges are evening wolves; they gnaw not the bones till the morrow. Her prophets are light and treacherous persons: her priests have polluted the sanctuary, they have done violence to the law." (Zeph. 3: 3-4 kjv)

It is sad that many churches have such lions and wolves as their leaders. Every Christian is to be on guard for these prowling lions. Sometimes, by the strength of the Lord, they will need to kill such lions, not necessarily taking their lives, but killing their influence, by breaking their teeth and declawing them, metaphorically speaking.

Overcoming the Evil Lions

"Saul and Jonathan were lovely and pleasant in their lives, and in their death they were not divided: they were swifter than eagles, they were stronger than lions." (II Sam. 1: 23 kjv)

Believers need God's strength and wisdom in fighting the evil lions. They need to be "stronger than lions." They need the courage of the lion, and God's spiritual weapons, in order to defeat them. (See II Cor. 10: 3-6) The text at the head of this posting says that old testament believers "stopped the mouths of lions" by their "faith." King David, the man after God's own heart, and Samson, were also by faith lion slayers.

"And Saul said to David, “You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are a youth, and he a man of war from his youth.” But David said to Saul, “Your servant used to keep his father’s sheep, and when a lion or a bear came and took a lamb out of the flock, I went out after it and struck it, and delivered the lamb from its mouth; and when it arose against me, I caught it by its beard, and struck and killed it. Your servant has killed both lion and bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, seeing he has defied the armies of the living God.” Moreover David said, “The Lord, who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” (I Sam. 17: 33-37 nkjv)

"So Samson went down to Timnah with his father and mother, and came to the vineyards of Timnah. Now to his surprise, a young lion came roaring against him. And the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him, and he tore the lion apart as one would have torn apart a young goat, though he had nothing in his hand. But he did not tell his father or his mother what he had done." (Judges 14: 5-6 nkjv)

These texts tell us that it takes the strength, wisdom, and Spirit of the Lord to fight off the lions who attack men and the Lord's flock. Paul warned of professing Christians about behaving as lions and wolves, saying "But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another!" (Gal. 5: 15 nkjv) Oh the harm such lions have done when they have come among the churches!

"Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you." 

(James 4: 7 nkjv)