Isaiah 31:4-5 -- The Lion and the Birds

Introduction

Our men's group studied Isaiah 31 around Easter time and the allusions to Passover stood out to me. Isaiah 31 has two similes comparing God's care and protection of his people to the behaviors of two very disparate animals: lions and birds. The context of the passage is a recurring theme in Isaiah. God promises to punish Israel's idolatry and sinful behaviors by sending the Assyrian army to capture Jerusalem. Israel panics and wants to enter into a treaty with the weak, but obliging Egypt. God points out through Isaiah that a partnership with Egypt not only violates God's command, but is a rejection of Him for the the gods of Egypt, which is even more idolatry. God's promises protection for Israel if only they would repent and return to him.
Here is the first figure of speech:

Isaiah 31:4
For thus the LORD said to me,
“As a lion or a young lion growls over his prey,
    and when a band of shepherds is called out against him
he is not terrified by their shouting
    or daunted at their noise,
so the LORD of hosts will come down
    to fight on Mount Zion and on its hill.

The Lion

The first image uses the behavior of a lion protecting his fallen prey. Nothing will distract a lion from protecting his meal from perceived threats. Even shepherds shouting at the lion will not scare it off. Please don't make this an allegory: God is not a lion consuming Jerusalem as his meal. Rather, the point is the laser focus of the lion for his prey illustrates how God wants to protect Israel from the invaders. Let us look at another example of this type of figure of speech. Luther also used animal imagery to illustrate focus. Luther noticed his dog's undivided attention on the piece of meat he was eating. Luther said, “Ah, if I could only pray the way that dog looks at meat.” Luther was not saying he wanted to be a dog to pray better, he made an observation that he wanted the same undeterred focus in prayer that his dog was exhibiting on the piece of meat.

God wanted Israel to know that carefully protecting Israel was the desire of his heart. God was not a god like the pagan gods. Elijah mocked the prophets of Baal when their god was not responding to their sacrifices by saying, “Cry aloud, for he is a god. Either he is musing, or he is relieving himself, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is asleep and must be awakened.” (I Kings 18:28). Israel had God's full attention because he cared for them.

The Birds

The second image uses birds.

Isaiah 31:5
Like birds hovering, so the LORD of hosts will protect Jerusalem; he will protect and deliver it; he will spare and rescue it.” (ESV)

I found this imagery confusing. My first thought was of carrion birds hovering over a carcass. I did some digging and a commentator, John N. Oswalt suggested the imagery was referencing a mother bird protecting her nest.

John N. Oswalt
This verse varies the figure by comparing God to a mother bird which flies back and forth over her nest when a predator is near, both to distract the enemy and, if necessary, to offer herself as a victim to save her little ones. As noted above, this verse presents another side of God’s relationship to Judah. Not only is he strong and determined, he is also personally attached to his people and will defend (or shield, as this is the verb from which that noun is derived ) them, if need be, with himself.

passing over is parallel to "defending," and this suggests that the meaning is "protect," even "hover over." This meaning applies very well to Exodus 12. (p. 574)

Another commentator on this passage, Alec Motyer, took special notice of the verbs. He pointed out that Isaiah used four verbs: protect [or shield as in a garden wall protecting a garden], deliver, spare, and rescue. He wrote that "four is often the number symbolic of 'on every side'. Here four verbs pointed to sufficient, surrounding help." (Motyer, p. 255, [brackets mine])

I noticed this behavior in birds. In the spring when I rode my bike alongside some fields, small birds flew out aggressively toward me. They then flew ahead of me and landed on the next fence post. When I approached that fence post they chirped loudly and flew to the next post ahead of me. They did this for a couple of hundred of yards and then left me alone. I assumed they were protecting their nests. The mother birds were trying to distract me, a possible predator, from their nests. They were interposing themselves between me and their nests and then tried to lure me away. Of course, this motif is in the gospels. Christ interposed himself to protect us from God's wrath. He became the victim of God's wrath to protect believers from that wrath. He continues to protect us from the world and Satan's stratagems.

This figure of speech would have been powerful imagery to Israel, Isaiah's original audience. Oswalt pointed out in the quote above that the word protect is the Hebrew word "pass over". The mother bird tried to distract me by hovering above the nests so that I would pass over the nest, and thus protect her nestlings. Likewise, in the passover, God did not call Israel to arms to overthrow Pharoah; God called Israel to trust in the sacrifice. God passed over the houses of Israel during Passover in Egypt because of the blood from the sacrifices painted on the doorways (Exodus 12:23). In one sense the mother birds were offering themselves as a sacrifice to protect their young.

Sparrow Strength

Motyer comments that Israel wanted the visible power of warriors, horses and chariots from Egypt to protect them. They did not want a God who seemed to be passively protecting them as a garden wall or hovering sparrows. Israel wanted a massive show of strength. Motyer points out that God wanted Israel to depend on God's strength and wisdom because his weakness is greater than man's strength.

Alec Motyer
Zion had despised the Lord and his power in favour of Egypt. Did they say ‘About as much use as a sparrow’? But the ‘sparrow-strength’ of the Lord is stronger than men (1 Cor. 1:25), and it represents here his gentleness towards his errant people, sufficient to shield, deliver, ‘pass over’, and ‘rescue’. (p. 255)

Philosophers like Nietzche mocked Christians for having a dying God as their savior. Nietzche could not understand why people participated in a religion which stresses faith and humility over power and boldness. Paul wrote in 1 Corintians 1:25,

For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. (ESV)

God's wisdom is far superior to ours. We need to trust to his purposes and ways if we want true safety. God is not glorified through missles and tanks. He is glorified in his people trusting in him.

God's Call to Israel

God uses "sparrow strength" at times to guard and protect us. Furthermore, Christ calls to us repentence in his meekness. Israel's application of the two figures of speech is in Isaiah 31 is in the subsequent verses.

Isaiah 31:6–7
Turn to him from whom people have deeply revolted, O children of Israel. For in that day everyone shall cast away his idols of silver and his idols of gold, which your hands have sinfully made for you. (ESV)

The following comments explain the full impact of Isaiah's warning to Israel.

John N. Oswalt
they have deepened turning away is a graphic phrase. Not only have people turned aside from following God, they have intentionally deepened that turning away.
(p. 375)

God was calling Israel back from trusting in the idols of their own making and the idols of Egypt. Israel needed to realize they were going deeper into sin. Turning to Egypt means they were switching from being passive followers into active rebels. They might not see a display his power, but like the lions with their prey, God cares for them assidously. His attention will not be drawn away. His will not be thwarted. He will protect them from their enemies.

Like the sparrows, God was willing sacrifice himself to make the enemies to pass over them. Isaiah, in verse 31:7 even made a vague reference to the New Covenant: there will be a time in that day where the people of Israel will of themselves throw away their idols. God promises "in that day" that he will give them a new heart to worship him alone. God wanted Israel to join him now in living that future reality.

Applications

God is a mighty warrior, but he uses "sparrow strength" at times to guard and protect us. Furthermore, Christ calls to us repentence in his meekness. His ministry on earth was unpretentious. He even called himself meek and lowly.

Matthew 11:28–30
Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (ESV)

In the tumult of life, we want displays of power, but God works in His wisdom. The Lord declared in Isaiah 55:8, "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways." We have to trust God to work in his own timing and ways. When we not only doubt God's promises, but turn to alternate solutions, we deepen the sin of distrust and insult God.

A puritan, Thomas Goodwin, wrote how we may take comfort in Christ's strength in meekness.

Thomas Goodwin (1600-1679)
So, says Christ, injuries and unkindnesses do not so work upon me as to make me irreconcilable; it is my nature to forgive: "I am meek." Yes, but (may we think) he being the Son of God and heir of heaven, and especially being now filled with glory, and sitting at God's right hand, he may now despise the lowliness of us here below; though not out of anger, yet out of that height of his greatness and distance that he is advanced unto, in that we are too mean for him to marry, or be familiar with. He surely has higher thoughts than to regard such poor, low things as we are. And so though indeed we conceive him meek, and not prejudiced with injuries, yet he may be too high and lofty to condescend so far as to regard, or take to heart, the condition of poor creatures. No, says Christ; "I am lowly" also, willing to bestow my love and favour upon the poorest and meanest. (The Heart of Christ in Heaven Towards Sinners on Earth (Kindle))

Christ loves his people. He will protect us in ways we can't even imagine. I see three applications of this passage.  

• He calls unbelievers to repent of their sin and follow him. There is no one who is so great a sinner that Christ in his meekness will not accept him. As Christians, we must share the Gospel with everyone especially sinners.
• He calls Christians to discard our idols such as money, entertainment, and power. God wants us to trust in His sparrow strength in working through providence to protect us. We may not see his hand in our tribulations but God is working in his sparrow strength to "work all things together for good for those called according to his purpose." (Romans 8:28). Like the lion with his prey he will not be distracted. Because God has already sacrificed himself for us, we know that he will not withhold any good thing from us. (Romans 8:32)
• Christian leaders must model Christ's servant-leadership. Leaders must be willing to sacrifice themselves for their flock and serve in humility. Leaders must trust in God's sparrow-strength in making decisions in leading the flock.

Bibliography

Motyer, J. Alec, The Prophecy of Isaiah: An Introduction and Commentary, Intervarsity Press, 1993
Oswalt, John N., The Book of Isaiah Chapters 1-39, The New International Commentary on the Old Testament, Wm., B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1986