Genesis 49.9 says, Judah is a lion's whelp. From the prey, my son, thou art gone up. He stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as an old lion, who shall rouse him up? In previous About Jesus devotionals, we've made reference to Jesus being the Lion of the tribe of Judah. And that symbolism of Jesus being a Lion out of Judah begins right here in our text. Genesis 49.9, three times in one verse, the lion is mentioned. Judah is a lion's whelp. He couched as a lion and as an old lion. Why is Judah referred to as a lion's whelp? John Wesley said, quote, by this it is foretold that the tribe of Judah should become very formidable, end quote. Judah was the fourth son. It would only make sense that Judah would not be the most formidable tribe, since the greater part of the inheritance goes to the firstborn, which would have been Reuben. And if something happened to Reuben, there was Simeon. And if something happened to Simeon, there was Levi. Judah was far from the top of the inheritance list, and yet, as we discussed in an earlier devotional and covered in our Genesis studies, we saw in study number 071 of Genesis chapter 34 that Simeon and Levi were disqualified by their wholesale slaughter of all the men of Prince Hamor the Hivite as they took vengeance for the rape of Dinah in an ungodly manner. So then we saw in Genesis study number 072 of Genesis chapter 35 that Reuben, the firstborn, forfeited his place in the inheritance whenever he committed fornication with his father's concubine named Bilhah. Well, that put the fourth son, Judah, in the place of the inheritance. and he then couched as a lion when he assumed his place for the inheritance as an old lion. He lay in wait until the time appointed when the Messiah would come. You might remember Balaam would actually repeat that prophecy from Jacob in Numbers 24 9, speaking of the lion or Judah as the representative tribe of Israel, and then saying, blessed is he that blesseth thee and cursed is he that curseth thee. And over and over we're told that Judah is the formidable tribe who became the head of the southern kingdom on the throne of King David of the tribe of Judah when the other tribes of the north were taken into captivity by Assyria. And from David's seed, we're told in Isaiah 65, 9, and I will bring forth a seed out of Jacob and out of Judah, an inheritor of my mountains. And mine elect shall inherit it, and my servants shall dwell there. Judah assumed the inheritance. Judah is the formidable tribe spoken of by Jacob in Genesis 49 9 saying Judah is a lion's whelp and when Jesus comes the second time The answer to Jacob's question in his prophecy is answered when he says and as an old lion Who shall rouse him up? the coming Antichrist will rouse him up. And Jesus is then said to be the lion who looses the seven seal judgments as we read in Revelation 5, 5. And one of the elders saith unto me, weep not. Behold, the lion of the tribe of Judah, the root of David, hath prevailed to open the book and to loose the seven seals thereof. And at that point, the Lion of Judah begins the process of completely destroying the whole Antichrist beast system, culminating in his bodily return to the earth when he cast the devil into a bottomless pit, and he cast the beast and the false prophet into the everlasting lake of fire. And that is when Jesus, the Lion of Judah, rules the world as King of Israel and King of all other kings. He's Lord of all other lords. I get excited when I read that. I can't wait for it to all start unfolding. And that begins with the rapture. So we pray, come quickly, Lord Jesus, the Lion of the tribe of Judah.