Is the Lion of Judah Worthy of Our Praise?

Lion and the Lamb is the 10th most sung praise song in the US and 11th in the UK according to CCLI (September 2018). For half the chorus, God is praised as "the Lion of Judah" and the other half as "the Lamb that was slain."

But is this good theology?

Lions appear 118 times in the Bible. Ignoring actual lions, looks-like-a-lion comments, peaceful lion visions, and miscellaneous mentions, we are left with 55 references where someone acts like a lion: empires (14), kings, religious rulers, or other leaders (12), God (12), the wicked (9), and the tribes of Israel (7). And once, Peter even tells us "the Devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for prey."

In nearly all of these 55 references, the context contains devouring, hunting, or tearing apart. For example, in Hosea 5:14, God says he will be "like a great lion to Judah. I will tear them to pieces and go away."

Bible authors predominantly used lions not to show strength like we might imagine but to portray sheer destructive presence.

Is praising God as the Lion of Judah, therefore, praising a militaristic god of destruction?

The song is based upon Revelation 5:5, where John is told, "See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah... has triumphed."

When a Lion and Judah are mentioned together, John would have automatically thought about how lions in Scripture—when linked with tribes or nations or empires or people or divinity—are a destructive force.

John turns to look at this Lion and what does he see?

He sees a Lamb.

He doesn't see a god who tears others to pieces in order to triumph—like human empires would—he instead sees a God who allows himself to be torn to pieces to win.

There is no lion, for the Lion of Judah and the Lamb are opposites. Bowing down to one precludes you from bowing down to the other.

In Revelation, only the lamb who was slain is worthy of worship.