“KING of beasts" the lion is rightly named. Not that he is the largest of all animals by any means; but his courage, his great strength and valor have earned for him this name. When a lion roars in the forest every animal trembles, and either hides itself or flees away. Solomon says:
He is "king" among the animals.
To see a lion in captivity, like the one in our picture, is quite another thing. Shut in with iron bars, well fed and cared for, he loses much of his ferocity. We can watch him quietly and admire his splendid mane, his massive head and forelegs, his claws hidden away in his softly padded feet, like a cat's. Only now and then when he gets hungry, and we see him pacing up and down in front of the bars, do we realize a little of what he might be if let loose.
Yet even a lion has been known to respond to kindness, and a story is told of Roman times that will illustrate this. Androcles, a slave who had run away from his master, lost his way and when evening came on, took refuge in a cave. To his horror he saw a lion approaching, and realized he was in the lion's den.
As the lion was limping badly and growling with pain, he boldly went up to it. Speaking gently, he lifted up its foot, extracted a large thorn, and then bound it up. The lion plainly showed its gratitude, and shared its food with him.
A few weeks later Androcles was captured, and thrown into the arena to be devoured by wild beasts, which was the punishment for runaway slaves. A lion which had been caged for some days without food was let loose and sprang into the arena. Imagine the surprise of the crowds of spectators when instead of leaping on the trembling figure, it lay down at his feet, and fawned on him. It was the very same lion!
When the story was told, Androcles was given his freedom, and the lion taken back to his forest home.
Lions were common in the land of Canaan, and are often mentioned in the Bible. Do you remember how Samson killed a young lion? and how the disobedient prophet was slain by a lion? David, too, says, "There came a lion... and took a lamb out of the flock." They are also used as pictures, or types, of men, both good and bad. "The righteous are bold as a lion." (Prov. 28 it; and then of the wicked man it says, "He lieth in wait secretly as a lion in his den." (Psa. 10:99He lieth in wait secretly as a lion in his den: he lieth in wait to catch the poor: he doth catch the poor, when he draweth him into his net. (Psalm 10:9).)
But the verse you will remember best, I expect, is in Peter's first epistle. (Chapter 5) He is writing to the "flock of God," of which Jesus is "the chief Shepherd." Do you belong to God's flock, I wonder? Are you one of His lambs? I hope so. Then listen to what Peter says:
“Be sober, be vigilant; because your
adversary, the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about,
seeking whom he may devour.”
Satan is a dangerous and treacherous enemy, and we need to keep near the good Shepherd if we are to be kept from his clutches. A great African hunter tells us that after he had hunted many wild and dangerous animals he soon found out what they would do when wounded or closely chased; but not so a lion-you never know what he is going to do. That is like our enemy the devil; he will attack us when we are least thinking of it, and in a way we do not expect. Then let us be always on our guard, and by daily prayer get strength and wisdom to meet his attacks. "RESIST the devil, and he will flee from you.”
Courtesy of BibleTruthPublishers.com. Most likely this text has not been proofread. Any suggestions for spelling or punctuation corrections would be warmly received. Please email them to: BTPmail@bibletruthpublishers.com.