Do not weep. Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed
— Revelation 5:5

When the children of Israel walked through the wilderness and camped around the tabernacle, on each of the four sides a standard was raised, belonging to one of the tribes of Israel. Numbers chapter 2 describes their arrangement around the tabernacle in detail. What are these standards, and what do they symbolise? The Bible says that the tabernacle and its whole arrangement, which the Lord showed Moses on Mount Sinai, were made after the copy of the heavenly things. [Heb.8:5] The Lord and His throne were in the middle of the tabernacle, in the Holy of Holies, where the ark of the covenant stood. If we turn our gaze to heaven and look at what is around God’s throne, we will see that “around the throne, were four living creatures full of eyes in front and in back.” [Rev.4:6] What are these beasts, or, more precisely, living creatures, and why are there four of them? The living creatures symbolise different revelations of Jesus Christ. Why revelations? Because they are full of eyes in front and in back. And why four? Because they reveal the full picture of the Creator, for the number four symbolises creation. It goes on to explain: “You are worthy, O Lord, To receive glory and honor and power; For You created all things, And by Your will they exist and were created.” [Rev.4:11]

Let’s look at each creature separately, and may the Lord reveal what it symbolises. Now let’s look at the standard with the image of the Lion. There are four Gospels, which reveal Jesus Christ in one image or another. The first is the Gospel of Matthew. Here Jesus Christ is portrayed as the Son of David. This is how this Gospel begins: “The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham” [Mat.1:1] Son of David means Jesus is King. Son of Abraham means King of the Hebrews, or of the Jews, for Abraham was promised that kings would come from him. That is why in the Gospel of Matthew, which by the way was written for the Jews, Jesus is revealed as King of the Jews.

In the Old Testament there are many characters, many of whom point to Jesus and to His finished work on the cross. Each character is special and reveals one of the four faces of Jesus, or His glory. The most striking character revealing Jesus as King is, as you have already guessed, King David. When we read about David, we look at the standard with the image of the Lion, at the face of Jesus — King of kings — and are transformed into His image from glory to glory. For example, just as David killed Goliath, so Jesus overcame the devil on the cross. The name David means beloved. The cross, where God’s love was revealed, is revealed most vividly in the life of David. Having gazed at the Lion, we ourselves will become like lions, or will reign in life. For God’s love casts out all fear, so we too, filled with God’s love, will be fearless as lions and, like David, will be able to face any giants in our lives with boldness.

Characters who reveal Jesus as the Lion, or King: [David, Joseph, Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, Samuel, etc.]