MESSIAH: THE LION OF PRAISE
The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the staff from between his feet, until ShilohH7886 comes and the allegiance of the nations is his.
Genesis 49:10 (BSB)
Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers. Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram.
Matthew 1:2-3
For it is clear that our Lord descended from Judah, . . .
Hebrews 7:14a
Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed to open the scroll and its seven seals.
Revelation 5:5
H7886 shee-lo’ – a masculine proper name meaning Shiloh. It is a noun meaning whose it is or he whose it is (Genesis 40:10).
Baker, Warren and Carpenter, Eugene,eds., The Complete Word Study Dictionary: Old Testament, H7886.
Shiloh—He whose it is—is Jesus since “All things were created through Him and for Him” (Colossians 1:16b). Jesus is the creator and owner of everything on earth. Why do we call Jesus the “Lion of Praise” in our title? Judah’s name meant “praise.” Judah was not the most upright character in the lineage of Christ. He intermarried with Canaanite women. He refused to give his third son Shelah in levirate marriage to his daughter-in-law Tamar after his first two sons died (Genesis 38). Then he unwittingly hired Tamar who was disguised as a prostitute, had relations with her, and fathered the twins Perez and Zerah. It was through Perez, the son Judah had with his daughter-in-law, that the Messianic line continued. Tamar is one of the five women listed in Matthew’s genealogy of Jesus. Judah and Tamar both messed up and broke the Law. However, God still used them in the earthly lineage of His Son, Jesus!
You may argue that God could not possibly use you for His glory because of some heinous sin in your past. Not true! Once you have trusted Jesus as your Savior and Lord and committed the rest of your life to His service, God will glorify Himself through you. The night Susie’s husband left her, she thought, “God can never use me again because I will be divorced.” WRONG! God led her to teach in a Christian school and now she is working in full-time ministry as the Vice-President and Secretary of Precious Jewels Ministries. Ask the Lord how He wants to use you. Then pursue that goal wholeheartedly trusting that He will bring it about!
Father, thank You for not abandoning us when we fall short of Your glory. Thank You for forgiving and cleansing us when we confess our sins to You (1 John 1:9).