Ezekiel 19:2

19:2 and say:

“‘What a lioness was your mother among the lions!

She lay among young lions; 1  she reared her cubs.

Ezekiel 22:15

22:15 I will scatter you among the nations and disperse you among various countries; I will remove your impurity from you. 2 

Ezekiel 32:9

32:9 I will disturb 3  many peoples,

when I bring about your destruction among the nations,

among countries you do not know.

Ezekiel 47:22

47:22 You must allot it as an inheritance among yourselves and for the foreigners who reside among you, who have fathered sons among you. You must treat them as native-born among the people of Israel; they will be allotted an inheritance with you among the tribes of Israel. 4 

1 sn Lions probably refer to Judahite royalty and/or nobility. The lioness appears to symbolize the Davidic dynasty, though some see the referent as Hamutal, the wife of Josiah and mother of Jehoahaz and Zedekiah. Gen 49:9 seems to be the background for Judah being compared to lions.

2 sn The ultimate purpose of divine judgment is to purify the covenant community of its sins.

3 tn Heb “I will provoke the heart of.”

4 sn A similar attitude toward non-Israelites is found in Isa 56:3-8.