And say, What is thy mother? A lioness: she lay down among lions, she nourished her whelps among young lions.
The lioness is Jerusalem or Israel, pictured as the strongest of beasts. She once possessed strength and glory, and she afterward lost that strength and glory because of sin.
Another teaching identifies the lioness as Spain, with her whelps nourished among young lions as the Latin American nations. This is because Spain conquered the ancient Americans and afterward intermingled with them. The young lions stand aghast at the audacity of Gog, identified as Russia. The verse is also connected with the great wealth of the United States as a potential spoil or indemnity.
The lioness is Jerusalem or Israel, pictured as the strongest of beasts. She once possessed strength and glory, and she afterward lost that strength and glory because of sin.
Another teaching identifies the lioness as Spain, with her whelps nourished among young lions as the Latin American nations. This is because Spain conquered the ancient Americans and afterward intermingled with them. The young lions stand aghast at the audacity of Gog, identified as Russia. The verse is also connected with the great wealth of the United States as a potential spoil or indemnity.