“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.
5 Like birds flying about,
So will the Lord of hosts defend Jerusalem.
Defending, He will also deliver it;
Passing over, He will preserve it.” vv.4-5
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.
5 Like birds flying about,
So will the Lord of hosts defend Jerusalem.
Defending, He will also deliver it;
Passing over, He will preserve it.” vv.4-5
Read chapter 31.
The lion as the symbol of the Lord is not of destruction but of protection. As the king of beasts stands haughtily defiant over the prey which he has made his own against the shepherds who seek to rob him of it, so will Jehovah, in His character as the Lord of hosts, refuse to surrender Jerusalem, His peculiar possession, to the armies of the Assyrians (Comp. Homer, Il., 18:161.).
The Lord came down to fight for Israel and will also come down to fight against the rebellious in the tribulation to protect His people. "To fight for Mount Zion" can also be translated "against". This would be understood that the Lord is still using Assryia as His rod for caring out His chastisement against Israel and not let Egypt get in the way of who Israel was turning to and trusting in (v.1). Yet the Lord will defend Jerusalem and delivering them from captivity and from Satan. The phrase "passing over" is the same used in Exodus of the Angel of the Lord passing over the homes of Israelites who put the blood on the doorpost. Perhaps a connection here with the bondage they were in yet delivered.
How as the Lord been a lion of protection for you?
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