Season 5 Podcast 96 Book of Revelation Ch 4 C vs 7, “The Images of Christ.”

Season 5 Podcast 96 Book of Revelation Ch 4 C vs 7, “The Images of Christ.”

In verse 6 the beast was described as being ‘full of eyes before and behind,’ which suggest all-seeing or omniscience. Beginning with verse 7, John gives us further details of his extraordinary vision.

Revelation 4:7

“And the first beast was like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle.”

We have four classes. Lion suggests king of beasts. It is referenced many times in the Holy Bible and symbolizes power, authority, strength, boldness, and royalty.

·      What is stronger than a lion, Judges 14:18

·      He lieth in wait secretly as a lion in his den, Psalm 10:9

·      Righteous are bold as a lion, Proverbs 28:1

·      As a young lion in the house of Judah, Hosea 5:14

·      He shall roar like a lion, Hosea 11:10

The lion is used as the symbol of kings. The lion, of course, is a symbol of Christ.

Revelation 5:5

5 And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.

Satan, the anti-Christ, the counterfeit of Christ, is also compared to a lion.

1 Peter 5:8

8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:

In the rich ambiguity of scriptural poetry, we are able to make connections through parallelism. For example, the following scripture relates the miracle of Daniel in the Lion’s den. The mouths of the lions were shut.

Daniel 6:22

22 My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions’ mouths, that they have not hurt me: forasmuch as before him innocency was found in me; and also before thee, O king, have I done no hurt.

The story of Daniel and the Lion’s Den can also be read on another level. For example, Christ is our judge. Only the law of mercy can overpower the law of justice. If you read the above scripture in that context, then when the innocent stand before Christ to be judged, Christ will not speak as a lion, but as a lamb. Daniel, whose name is written in the Book of Life, is not hurt by the second death. The law of justice is silent, and the law of mercy invites Daniel into the Kingdom of God to live with Christ forever. The same can be said for the following allusion.

Daniel 6:20

20 And when he came to the den, he cried with a lamentable voice unto Daniel: and the king spake and said to Daniel, O Daniel, servant of the living God, is thy God, whom thou servest continually, able to deliver thee from the lions?

If you consider the lion as symbolizing justice, the king is asking the following question, “Is thy God, whom thou serve continually, able to deliver thee from the law of justice?’ The answer, of course, is yes for Daniel is delivered from the lions. That is also in harmony with the following verse.

Daniel 6:23

23 Then was the king exceeding glad for him, and commanded that they should take Daniel up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no manner of hurt was found upon him, because he believed in his God.

What follows suggests the hell that the wicked will suffer because they did not believe in God.

Daniel 6:24

“And the king commanded, and they brought those men which had accused Daniel, and they cast them into the den of lions, them, their children, and their wives; and the lions had the mastery of them, and brake all their bones in pieces or ever they came at the bottom of the den.”