Isaiah 38:13

38:13 I cry out ¹  until morning;

like a lion he shatters all my bones;

you turn day into night and end my life. ² 

Lamentations 3:10

ד (Dalet)

3:10 To me he is like a bear lying in ambush, ³ 

like a hidden lion ⁴  stalking its prey. ⁵ 

Hosea 13:7-8

13:7 So ⁶  I will pounce on them like a lion; ⁷ 

like a leopard I will lurk by the path.

13:8 I will attack them like a bear robbed of her cubs –

I will rip open their chests.

I will devour them there like a lion –

like a wild animal would tear them apart.

Amos 3:8

3:8 A lion has roared! ⁸  Who is not afraid?

The sovereign Lord has spoken! Who can refuse to prophesy? ⁹ 

[38:13]  ¹ tn The verb form in the Hebrew text is a Piel from שָׁוַה (shavah). There are two homonyms שָׁוַה, one meaning in the Piel “level, smooth out,” the other “set, place.” Neither fits in v. 13. It is likely that the original reading was שִׁוַּעְתִּי (shivva’ti, “I cry out”) from the verbal root שָׁוַע (shava’), which occurs exclusively in the Piel.

[38:13]  ² tn Heb “from day to night you bring me to an end.”

[3:10]  ³ tn Heb “he is to me [like] a bear lying in wait.”

[3:10]  ⁴ tc The Kethib is written אַרְיֵה (’aryeh, “lion”), while the Qere is אֲרִי (’ari, “lion”), simply a short spelling of the same term (BDB 71 s.v. אַרְיֵה).

[3:10]  ⁵ tn Heb “a lion in hiding places.”

[13:7]  ⁶ tn The vav consecutive + preterite form וָאֱהִי (va’ehi) introduces a consequential or result clause; cf. NAB “Therefore”; NCV “That is why.”

[13:7]  ⁷ tn Heb “So I will be like a lion to them” (so NASB); NIV “I will come upon them like a lion.”

[3:8]  ⁸ sn The roar of the lion is here a metaphor for impending judgment (see 1:2; cf. 3:4, 12). Verses 7-8 justify Amos’ prophetic ministry and message of warning and judgment. The people should expect a prophetic message prior to divine action.

[3:8]  ⁹ sn Who can refuse to prophesy? When a message is revealed, the prophet must speak, and the news of impending judgment should cause people to fear.