Yehezkiel 19:2-3

19:2 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 

Yehezkiel 19:5

19:5 “‘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.

[19:2]  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.

[19:3]  ² tn Heb “a man.”

[19:5]  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.