Jeremiah 5:6

5:6 So like a lion from the thicket their enemies will kill them.

Like a wolf from the desert they will destroy them.

Like a leopard they will lie in wait outside their cities

and totally destroy anyone who ventures out. ¹ 

For they have rebelled so much

and done so many unfaithful things. ² 

Ezekiel 22:25

22:25 Her princes ³  within her are like a roaring lion tearing its prey; they have devoured lives. They take away riches and valuable things; they have made many women widows ⁴  within it.

Ezekiel 22:27

22:27 Her officials are like wolves in her midst rending their prey – shedding blood and destroying lives – so they can get dishonest profit.

Hosea 13:7-8

13:7 So ⁵  I will pounce on them like a lion; ⁶ 

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.

Zephaniah 3:3

3:3 Her princes ⁷  are as fierce as roaring lions; ⁸ 

her rulers ⁹  are as hungry as wolves in the desert, ¹⁰ 

who completely devour their prey by morning. ¹¹ 

Matthew 7:15

A Tree and Its Fruit

7:15 “Watch out for false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are voracious wolves. ¹² 

Matthew 10:16

Persecution of Disciples

10:16 “I ¹³  am sending you out like sheep surrounded by wolves, ¹⁴  so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.

Acts 20:29

20:29 I know that after I am gone ¹⁵  fierce wolves ¹⁶  will come in among you, not sparing the flock.

[5:6]  ¹ tn Heb “So a lion from the thicket will kill them. A wolf from the desert will destroy them. A leopard will watch outside their cities. Anyone who goes out from them will be torn in pieces.” However, it is unlikely that, in the context of judgment that Jeremiah has previously been describing, literal lions are meant. The animals are metaphorical for their enemies. Compare Jer 4:7.

[5:6]  ² tn Heb “their rebellions are so many and their unfaithful acts so numerous.”

[22:25]  ³ tn Heb “a conspiracy of her prophets is in her midst.” The LXX reads “whose princes” rather than “a conspiracy of prophets.” The prophets are mentioned later in the paragraph (v. 28). If one follows the LXX in verse 25, then five distinct groups are mentioned in vv. 25-29: princes, priests, officials, prophets, and the people of the land. For a defense of the Septuagintal reading, see L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:32, and D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 1:720, n. 4.

[22:25]  ⁴ tn Heb “her widows they have multiplied.” The statement alludes to their murderous acts.

[13:7]  ⁵ tn The vav consecutive + preterite form וָאֱהִי (va’ehi) introduces a consequential or result clause; cf. NAB “Therefore”; NCV “That is why.”

[13:7]  ⁶ tn Heb “So I will be like a lion to them” (so NASB); NIV “I will come upon them like a lion.”

[3:3]  ⁷ tn Or “officials.”

[3:3]  ⁸ tn Heb “her princes in her midst are roaring lions.” The metaphor has been translated as a simile (“as fierce as”) for clarity.

[3:3]  ⁹ tn Traditionally “judges.”

[3:3]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “her judges [are] wolves of the evening,” that is, wolves that prowl at night. The translation assumes an emendation to עֲרָבָה (’aravah, “desert”). For a discussion of this and other options, see Adele Berlin, Zephaniah (AB 25A), 128. The metaphor has been translated as a simile (“as hungry as”) for clarity.

[3:3]  ¹¹ tn Heb “they do not gnaw [a bone] at morning.” The precise meaning of the line is unclear. The statement may mean these wolves devour their prey so completely that not even a bone is left to gnaw by the time morning arrives. For a discussion of this and other options, see Adele Berlin, Zephaniah (AB 25A), 129.

[7:15]  ¹² sn Sheep’s clothing…voracious wolves. Jesus uses a metaphor here to point out that these false prophets appear to be one thing, but in reality they are something quite different and dangerous.

[10:16]  ¹³ tn Grk “Behold I.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

[10:16]  ¹⁴ sn This imagery of wolves is found in intertestamental Judaism; see Pss. Sol. 8:23, 30.

[20:29]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “after my departure.”

[20:29]  ¹⁶ tn That is, people like fierce wolves. See BDAG 167-68 s.v. βαρύς 4 on the term translated “fierce.” The battle that will follow would be a savage one.