‘When she saw, as she waited, That her hope was lost, She took another of her cubs And made him a young lion.
Parallel translations
- WEB “‘Now when she saw that she had waited, and her hope was lost, then she took another of her cubs, and made him a young lion.
- KJV Now when she saw that she had waited, and her hope was lost, then she took another of her whelps, and made him a young lion.
- BSB When she saw that she had waited in vain, that her hope was lost, she took another of her cubs and made him a young lion.
- NKJV ‘When she saw that she waited, that her hope was lost, She took another of her cubs and made him a young lion.
- NLT “When the lioness saw that her hopes for him were gone, she took another of her cubs and taught him to be a strong young lion.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The lioness, having lost hope in her first cub, raises up another young lion. It points to a second king set up after the first was taken away.
Overview
The 'mother' is the royal house of Judah (or the nation), and the second cub likely represents King Jehoiachin (or Zedekiah). After one king is lost, another is raised up, yet the pattern of judgment continues rather than breaking. The verse exposes the futility of relying on a succession of kings while persisting in rebellion against God, anticipating the need for a true and lasting King in Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 2
- 2 Kgs 23:34–37Pharaoh Necoh made Eliakim the son of Josiah king in the place of Josiah his father, and changed his name to Jehoiakim; but he took Jehoahaz away, and he came to Egypt and died there.
- Ezek 19:3She brought up one of her cubs. He became a young lion, and he learned to catch the prey. He devoured men.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
The promise of one Shepherd-King David, a new heart and new Spirit, and the river of life flowing from the temple all stream toward Christ, the good Shepherd who gives the Spirit.
How Ezekiel 19:5 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.