THE LION OF JUDAH (JULY 7)

"Judah is a lion’s whelp; from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He bows down, he lies down as a lion; and as a lion, who shall rouse him? The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh comes; and to Him shall be the obedience of the people" (Genesis 49:9,10 NKJV).

WHEN JACOB BLESSED HIS SONS BEFORE HE DIED, HE UTTERED A VERY PARTICULAR PROPHECY CONCERNING THE TRIBE OF JUDAH. “Gather together,” he said to his sons, “that I may tell you what shall befall you in the last days” (Genesis 49:1 NKJV). The expression “the last days” is a familiar prophetic expression, so Jacob was being moved by God’s Spirit as he made these pronouncements to his sons. This is seen most clearly in his words concerning Judah: the time would come when a person from Judah would arise and “to Him shall be the obedience of the people.”

Judah was the tribe from which David later came, and it was to David that God made this promise: “When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom . . . your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before you. Your throne shall be established forever” (2 Samuel 7:12-16 NKJV).

Genesis 49:9,10 looked ahead to the kingship of David — and more importantly, it looked beyond that to an even greater King. Jacob’s prophecy meant that Judah would be the royal tribe, the tribe which held the “scepter” (the rod in the hand of a king symbolizing his sovereignty). But there would come another King whose sovereignty would extend far beyond that of any other Davidic king. “To Him shall be the obedience of the people,” said Jacob.

Jacob said that Judah would be a “lion.” It is no coincidence that Jesus is described in Revelation 5:5 as “the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David.” He is the King foretold by Jacob when he blessed his sons. His is an eternal kingdom that overarches every other kingdom that has ever existed. Since this kingdom is not “of this world” (John 18:36), it has no earthly throne or apparatus — yet all the kingdoms of this world rise and fall at the will of this King.

". . . we are more than justified in concluding that [Genesis 49:10] is a messianic text that adds to the Messiah’s credentials the fact that he will govern, not only the nation of Israel, but all the nations of the world. The reason he can claim such a high prerogative is because it is his right to do so, for all rule and authority are derived from him" (Walter C. Kaiser, Jr.).