Discovery BoxEzekiel 19:2-3 
Context19:2 and say:
“‘What a lioness was your mother among the lions!
She lay among young lions; 1 she reared her cubs.
19:3 She reared one of her cubs; he became a young lion.
He learned to tear prey; he devoured people. 2
Ezekiel 19:5
Context19:5 “‘When she realized that she waited in vain, her hope was lost.
She took another of her cubs 3 and made him a young lion.
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 tn Heb “a man.”
3 sn The identity of this second lion is unclear; the referent is probably Jehoiakim or Zedekiah. If the lioness is Hamutal, then Zedekiah is the lion described here.
