As a Lion

Micah wrote this about the Lord’s people in the last days: “And the remnant of Jacob shall be among the Gentiles in the midst of many people as a lion among the beasts of the forest, as a young lion among the flocks of sheep: who, if he go through, both treadeth down, and teareth in pieces, and none can deliver. Thine hand shall be lifted up upon thine adversaries, and all thine enemies shall be cut off” (Micah 5:8-9). The Savior used these words to teach the Nephites not once but twice. After telling the Nephites that He had given them their land to them for their inheritance, He spoke of a future day after His people will have been scattered by the Gentiles when they would again be given prominence: “Then shall ye, who are a remnant of the house of Jacob, go forth among them; and ye shall be in the midst of them who shall be many; and ye shall be among them as a lion among the beasts of the forest, and as a young lion among the flocks of sheep, who, if he goeth through both treadeth down and teareth in pieces, and none can deliver. Thy hand shall be lifted up upon thine adversaries, and all thine enemies shall be cut off” (3 Nephi 20:16-17). The same day among them He emphasized again in very similar words, “And my people who are a remnant of Jacob shall be among the Gentiles, yea, in the midst of them as a lion among the beasts of the forest, as a young lion among the flocks of sheep, who, if he go through both treadeth down and teareth in pieces, and none can deliver. Their hand shall be lifted up upon their adversaries, and all their enemies shall be cut off” (3 Nephi 21:12-13). He clearly was using the message of Micah to instruct the Nephites about the status of their posterity and His people in the last days.  

                So what are we to learn by this rather vivid description? I don’t believe that Micah and the Lord were suggesting that the covenant people in the last days would be violent like lions—animals which literally tread down and tear in pieces—but that they would have power over their enemies like lions. The language suggests that if they wanted to they could have power to destroy their enemies, saying “if he go through both treadeth down and teareth in pieces” but not that they would actually do that. The Lord will give power to His covenant people in the last days so that they will no longer be oppressed by their enemies as they have been in the past. This is consistent with Nephi’s famous prophecy: “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, beheld the power of the Lamb of God, that it descended upon the saints of the church of the Lamb, and upon the covenant people of the Lord, who were scattered upon all the face of the earth; and they were armed with righteousness and with the power of God in great glory” (1 Nephi 14:14). I believe that is essentially the same message as Micah’s: the covenant people of the Lord will have power and will be armed not with weapons but with the power of God to overcome their enemies. The Lord wants us to know that if we will covenant with Him, He will give us power to triumph over all our foes—His people will have the power of God.  

                Perhaps an example of this was when Zion’s Camp marched to Missouri with the intent of, with the help of the governor, returning the people to their lands. But when they got there they found out that the governor no longer was willing to help them. The Saints book records what happened as they neared their destination and how the Lord preserved them: “About a day’s journey from their destination, a black woman—possibly a slave—called out to them nervously. ‘There is a company of men here who are calculating to kill you this morning as you pass through,’ she said. The camp marched cautiously on. Plagued by wagon problems, they were forced to stop for the night on a hill overlooking a fork in the Fishing River, still ten miles from the exiled Saints. As they pitched their tents, they heard the rumbling of horse hooves as five men rode into camp. The strangers brandished weapons and boasted that more than three hundred men were on their way to wipe the Saints out. Alarm rippled through the Camp of Israel. Knowing they were outnumbered, Joseph posted guards around the area, certain an attack was imminent. One man begged him to strike the mob first. ‘No,’ Joseph said. ‘Stand still and see the salvation of God.’ Overhead the clouds looked heavy and gray. Twenty minutes later, hard rains tore through camp, driving the men from their tents as they scrambled to find better shelter. The banks of the Fishing River disappeared as the water rose and surged downstream. Wind whipped through the camp, blowing down trees and upending tents. Bright lightning streaked the sky. Wilford Woodruff and others in the camp found a small church nearby and huddled inside while hail pelted the roof. After a moment, Joseph burst into the church, shaking the water from his hat and clothes. ‘Boys, there is some meaning to this,’ he exclaimed. ‘God is in this storm!’” The storm had saved them from their enemies who were bent on their destruction, and even after it was over “the river remained swollen, cutting the camp off from their enemies on the opposite bank.” The Lord had given them power—through His storm—so that their enemies could not overrun them. As we keep our covenants with the Lord and trust in Him, He will give us strength such that we too can stand still and see the salvation of God. As Micah promised, our “enemies shall be cut off” and we will have the “power of the Lamb of God” upon us.