WE will look together at some of the things which the Bible tells us oboe the “strongest among beasts, and that turneth not away for any.” In the days of the Old Testament the lion was both familiar and terrible to the people of Palestine, for long ago there used to be numbers of them in the “Holy Land,” though now none are to be found.
The strength of the lion is very great: he will gallop across the country with an ox in his mouth, and jump over a ditch without letting his burden drag upon the ground, while with one tap of his mighty paw he will crush a dog to death, or kill a man. The muscles of his limbs are like steel bands, so hard and strong are they. His name in the Bible is the “strong one”; and who among the beast which God has made is like unto him?
The strong one is a type or figure in the Bible, which sets before us sometimes Christ, sometimes Satan, or mighty earthly powers, so that, whether we listen to the stories of Samson, David, Daniel, or of the prophecies of Isaiah which bring in the lion, we shall have much to interest and to learn. Nor shall we forget the New Testament references to him, either as figuring the Lord or the adversary.
When you remember that the lion is hardly discernible as he moves about in the night, and add to this the thought of his vast strength, I feel sure you would say, “Let me be in a secure place when he ‘goeth about seeking whom he may devour.’”
The oldest riddle upon record is respecting a lion! Do you remember what it is? “Out of the eater came forth meat, and out of the strong came forth sweetness.” He who gave this riddle promised a fine prize to those who should find it out; and they only discovered it by threatening to burn his friend and her parents, unless she told them what it meant it is about this riddle that we will now speak.
God, who made the lions, once made a man stronger than the strong one―his name was Samson. One day as Samson went to the vineyard, and was at a little distance from the high road, “a young lion roared against him.” Samson had no weapon in his hand, but “the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him, and he rent the lion as he would have rent a kid.” He did not boast of what he had done, nor indeed mention it, but he let the lion lie where he had killed it.
After Samson had slain his foe, the numerous birds of the country which feed upon flesh, swooped down to the carcass. Carrion birds by day and hyaenas by night did not, we may be sure, allow many hours to pass before every large piece of flesh was stripped from the lion’s bones. The countless insects, too, which, with their tiny jaws, pick off what the large animals leave, were busy; so that as the hot sun of Palestine poured down its rays upon the lion’s skin and bones, they became so thoroughly clean and dry, that even the sweetness-loving bee did not shun the strange shelter for a home! A swarm of wandering bees in search of a home flew by; they saw the shady hollow in the carcass of the dead king of beasts, and there they made their dwelling. After a few days’ work, these eager, earnest workers had filled their waxen cells with honey, little aware that some thousands of years after, we should be wondering why God had written their doings in His sacred Word.
Not long after slaying the lion, Samson came with his father and mother near the place of his victory, so he left the highway to look at the carcass, and behold, the nest of bees! He took of their honey and ate it, and filling his hands with the spoil, shared it with his parents. Within the eater was meat. Out of the strongest of beasts came forth the sweetest thing there is. But Samson kept his secret.
Now, this ancient riddle, and the way Samson overcame the strong one, is written for our instruction and our good. There is a strong one, who prowls about unseen, both night and day; he is feared upon every side; his voice is more terrible than the lion’s roar, and with one stroke the mightiest of men fall before him. His name is Death. “What is stronger than a lion?” asked the men as they answered Samson’s riddle. He might have replied, “The man who slew him with his bare hands.” What is stronger than death? We ask, and bow our heads with reverence as we reply, “Jesus, the Resurrection and the Life.” “And,” said they, “what is sweeter than honey?” Do you know, dear young reader? Think a moment. You reply, “The love of Christ.” Yes, indeed, and it is in His victory over death for us that we discover the sweetness of His love. Sweet indeed is His love to little children as He took them up in His arms and blessed them. Sweet His love as He brought back to life again the little girl of twelve years old, the Ruler’s only daughter; and all His wonderful ways of kindness are as honey to the souls of His people; but it is in His victory over death that the sinner learns the love of Jesus.
Death was ready to devour the poor sinner. The strong one rose up against us, but Jesus overcame for us. He overcame by dying and by rising again. Death is now to the Christian a dead thing; its power is gone; its strength is weakness; for the strength of Christ’s love to sinners is found there. Once upon a time, through fear of death, God’s people were all their lifetime subject to bondage; but since Jesus has shown Himself to them as the Resurrection and the Life, they know Him as stronger than death and the grave. God’s people can now by faith, say of the strong one, “Death is ours!” for they live in Christ, who is in glory above.
Think well over this riddle and its answer, dear young reader. None but those who love the Lord can answer it from their hearts, and may you be amongst that happy company. May you know Him, who is coming to take His people home to be with Himself. Believe in Jesus, and you shall be safe for time and for eternity, and you shall find delight los your young hearts in Him.
“What is sweeter than honey? What is stronger than a lion?”