Treading on Lions
“You shall tread upon the lion and the cobra, The young lion and the serpent you shall trample underfoot” (Psalm 91:13, NKJV).
I don’t know how many times I’ve read Psalm 91 and completely missed the part about treading on lions. I whizzed right to the mental picture of stomping on the head of a serpent (a metaphor for whatever seems “out to get me” at the moment). Gross as it may seem, I find pleasure in imagining the squish of its head underfoot. It wasn’t until today I noticed the lion.
Now, a snake, for all its danger, is smaller than me. It’s low to the ground and in range of my foot. Should I step on it, my full weight is sufficient to kill the bugger. A lion, on the other hand, is a whole different challenge. At five foot two, I couldn’t even get my foot high enough in the air to bring it down on his head. Should I manage to get on top of him, even those annoying extra pounds I’m carrying won’t enable me to crush the cat.
So how do I picture this? Is God telling me He’s going to give me bigger feet or make me into a giant compared to the lion (whatever is threatening to attack me)? Is He saying He’s going to make me a weightier opponent to what I face? Perhaps He’s saying I’ll eventually walk right up the back of my nemesis and use it as a stepping stone on the way to something higher.
What do you think? How would you picture yourself treading on lions? What do you think God is trying to say?
I originally posted this blog on February 27, 2018, but I’d love to hear your take on this.
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Terry is a writer and speaker who loves gathering clues about God from His Word and creation. She wants to help God’s people grow in wonder, appreciation and understanding of Him. She loves finding fresh ways to approach Scripture so we all expand our ability to both apply and share what we’ve learned.
Great post, and great points, Terry! With lions, I picture ferocious beasts submitting to authority. Our mild-mannered dogs had to submit to commands, and I had to learn to give commands consistently! These lions symbolize scary things that freeze me in my tracks. Hard to remember my Jesus-given authority in those situations and command the scary things to submit to Him. Thankfully, we’re not faced with real lions–yikes!
Jetta, I like the idea of making the lion submit, bow down. Now I can picture getting him under my feet. What a powerful God we serve who makes sure no scary, growling thing can have its way with us. Thanks for posting your ideas. Now go stand up to your fears!