When Jesus first came to earth, He came as a lamb…a sacrifice. We believe when He returns, He will come as a Lion…a conqueror. But will He? Was He simply a lamb for a time…for a purpose…and will now take His rightful image…that of a lion?
Lambs are associated with gentleness, innocence and dependence. Jesus is pictured as a lamb led to the slaughter without uttering a sound. When He paints a picture of the vulnerability of His disciples, He describes Himself as sending them out as lambs into the midst of wolves. Even more numerous are passages that associate lambs with sacrifice.(1)
Lions, on the other hand, are not weak, gentle, and dependent. They are hunters…bold, fearless, ruthless. Far from being silent, their roar is frightening and is used to declare their territory. Lions symbolize authority and power. Unlike a lamb, their presence commands respect and fear. Genesis 49:9 speaks of Judah as a lion’s cub and it came to be understood as a key Messianic prophesy, the image was of the royal Messiah coming as a military conqueror.(2)
The Jewish people of Jesus’ day were looking for their Messiah as a conqueror who would overthrow the yoke of Roman oppression. He would rise up and lead them to victory! They were looking for the Lion of Judah…the King of the Jews! But, they were badly mistaken. Throughout His ministry, He was repeatedly asked when He would establish His kingdom. And He repeatedly revealed to them a kingdom unlike any other. It was to be a kingdom ruled by love.
In His final days with His disciples, He showed them what this kingdom would be like…in the symbolism of foot washing. Servanthood. He told them the mark of His soldier…would be love…and not just any love…sacrificial love even for one’s enemies. He revealed them the manner in which His disciples deal with offenses…forgiveness….again and again and again.
Servanthood. Sacrificial love. Unconditional forgiveness. Sounds quite meek and mild….gentle…vulnerable. Sounds a lot more like a lamb than a lion. They were understandably confused. And, when the Roman centurion finished nailing Jesus to the cross, the shocked crowd look upon “The King of the Jews” It seemed a mockery.
Oh, but now He’s coming back as a Lion!! He will wrest this world from the powers that be and establish His kingdom! He will trade in His lamb’s appearance for that of a Lion…authority, power, commanding respect and fear…declaring His territory! And, we look for His kingdom led by a Lion and all that a Lion symbolizes.
The Bible does not say Jesus will return as the Lion of Judah. There are only three references to the Lion of Judah, two of which are in the Old Testament and are Messianic prophecies. The third is found in Revelation 5. It is here that He is portrayed as having already conquered. Modern eschatology teaches that Revelation is about the final return of Christ so we assume that He will return as the Lion of Judah. But when we read the text, we realize when the Lion of Judah is introduced, He looks very different than a conquering Lion. John is describing a scene in heaven. He saw a scroll in the right hand of the one who was seated on the throne. It was sealed with seven seals. But no one worthy enough to open the seal…no one “in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or look into it.” And John wept loudly. One of the elders said to him, “Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that He can open the scroll and its seven seals.” The Lion of the Tribe of Judah! Yes!! The Lion that has conquered!! Yes!! So, John looked….
…and saw a Lamb. He didn’t see a lion…He saw a lamb! Church, look at your Lion…the one with authority and power, commanding respect and fear, declaring His territory….the conquering Lion…and you will see a Lamb. This is not a mockery any more than the cross was a mockery. It is a revelation of the Kingdom of God that Jesus died to establish. It is not a Kingdom marked by power and authority, force, respect demanded. It is a Kingdom marked by love…sacrifice…gentleness…servanthood…forgiveness…turning the other cheek. It sounds a lot more like a lamb than a lion.
Two very different pictures of Jesus. Contradictory pictures. The juxtaposition of the two images of a lion and a lamb does not cancel out the former but suggests the idea of conquest…not by power and authority…but by sacrifice, gentleness, and meekness. Let us not make the same mistake the Jews of Jesus’ day made. Let us not miss seeing…or bringing…the Kingdom because we are looking for a Lion. Let us realize that the Lion is still a Lamb…He has conquered…He is worthy…and He asks us to follow Him…as lambs.
Endnotes:
1. L. Rhyken, J.C. Wilhoit, T. Longman III, Dictionary of Biblical Imagery(Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1998), p. 484
2. L. Rhyken, et. al., p. 514