Verse 11
11. The old lion Layish, (the Homeric λις ,) not indicative of decrepitude, but maturity of strength; the root of the word signifying “to be strong.”
The stout lion Labi, the lioness, whose fierceness when with her whelps very properly furnishes the climax of the description. Gallius calls her the boldest and fiercest of animals. There are now two distinct species of lions in Mesopotamia, the one maneless and the other with a long, black, and shaggy mane. Layard, 3:487. Here, as is frequently the case in the Scriptures, evil-doers are represented by the lion. Psalms 10:9; Psalms 58:6. He is everywhere regarded as the king of beasts, and a symbol of bloodthirstiness, and on this account is employed by the apostle to represent another king the prince of fallen spirits. But the roar of the lion has an end, and even the teeth of young lions, proverbially sharp and terrible, are broken. The wicked, however they may pride themselves upon their leonine strength, are in like manner brought low.
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