The Lion and Ancient Rulers

Alice C. Linsley

Akar

The twin lions face east and west on the banks of the Nile. The Sun rests at high noon over the life-giving waters. This is the time of no shadows when the earth is divinely overshadowed (James 1:17). Reflecting on the fact that the Sun was the emblem of the Creator and his son Horus, this is a Proto-Eucharistic image.

Rulers in the ancient world were identified with the lion. The lion was the animal totem of the ruling caste that are identified in Genesis as the "mighty men of old." Thus, many rulers named in the Bible have the AR affix, signifying both the lion and the ruler. Ari was used in Hebrew as an honorific for a man if distinction and power.

The Hebrew Ari or Aryeh is cognate with Akkadian aria, Aramaic arya, and the Sanskrit aryeh means "noble." Other names include Aroch (1 Chr 7:39, Ezr 2:5, Neh 6:18, Neh 7:10) and Ariel (Ezr 8:16, Isa 29:1, Isa 29:1, Isa 29:2, Isa 29:2, Isa 29:7). High ranking officials and rulers with the AR title include Arshem, Artix, and Araxes, all named in historical texts.

Arpacshad is one of the rulers named in Genesis with the AR affix. He was the son by Asshur's daughter. His name means "happy ruler" or "happy lion." He ruled during the time of the 7th- 10th Egyptian Dynasties (2445–2160 BC).

Two royal scribe castes are listed in Genesis 10: the Arvadites and the Arkaites. The Igbo of Nigeria call their scribes the Ar or Aro. The late Dr. Catherine Acholonu explained, "In Nigeria the caste under reference is the Ar/Aro caste of Igbo Eri priest-kings, who were highly militarized in their philosophy."

The association of the name Ar with the royal scribal caste is further demonstrated by the discovery of Aramaic scrolls written by the satrap Arsames to his Egyptian administrator Psamshek and to an Egyptian ruler named Nekht-hor. 

Another Bible name with the honorific title is Arba, the son of Anak. Hebron was called Kiriath-Arba.

In Genesis 49:9, Jacob refers to his son Judah as Gur Aryeh גּוּר אַרְיֵה יְהוּדָה, a "young lion."

The totem of Shobal's clan was the lion fierce in its youthful strength. Shobal is associated with the Zorites of Judah. 1 Chronicles 4:2 notes that there were multiple Zorites clans: "Reaiah the son of Shobal fathered Jahath, and Jahath fathered Ahumai and Lahad. These were the clans of the Zorathites." The Zorites or Zorathites are connected to Salma and Bethlehem, but not isolated to Bethlehem. Matthew 2 explains that the title "Nazarene" is derived from the prophecy "He will be called a Nazorean", but this has no Old Testament source. The source is likely from the much older Akkadian language. Na-Zor means "one belonging to the Zorites". In 1 Chronicles 2:54, Salma of Judah is called the father of the צרעי (Zorites). Salma is also called the "father of Bethlehem" in 1 Chronicles 2:51. So, the prophecy probably speaks of one born in Bethlehem, which was home to the Zorites.

Related reading: The Lion and Judah; Righteous Rulers and the Resurrection; Lions, Rams, and Royal Ladies

Was the Giza Sphinx a recumbent lion?

Alice C. Linsley


Robert M. Schoch makes a good argument here for the Sphinx at Giza to be about 2000 years older than generally held by Egyptologists. He reconstructs the outline of the Sphinx and shows that it was a lion resting with its face to the east.

I agree that the Giza Sphinx older than 2200 BC. It must date to the time of the Horite priesthood of Nekhen (Sudan), about 4000-5000 BC. Twin lions facing east and west were one of their religious motifs.

Another sphinx was recently discovered west of Dan Baki in Zinder Province in Niger. I was the first to provide an English report on this here.

I suspect that this sphinx, which Dr. Garba describes as having the shape of a lion, faces west. The two sphinxes perhaps flanked a well watered Sahara on the east and west. This was common imagery among the ancient Horites.

Between the lions is the solar symbol of the Creator. In a fascinating conversation with Laouali Yahaya, an administrator from Niger, I learned that the Niger sphinx is at a place called Ta-nout, which means "belongs to Nout." Nojut is an ancient Egyptian term for sky.

The lion and serpent connection

The totem of David’s Bethlehem clan was the lion which appears to have connections to the clan of Nahash. Nahash is the Hebrew word for serpent. Nahash was the father of Shobi, Abigail and Zeruiah, the mother of Joab and Abishai (II Sam. 17:25). David had a sister named Abigail and a wife named Abigail. These may have been the same person. It was the Horite custom to take a half-sister for the first wife and a cousin wife shortly before ascending to the throne. Bethlehem was a Horite settlement where such customs would have been observed. I Chronicles 4:4 lists Hur (Hor) as the "father of Bethlehem."

The close association between the lion totem and the serpent totem suggest that Abigail might have been a patrilineal cousin and the “daughter of Nahash” (II Sam. 17:25). It this is the case, taking Abigail as his wife signaled David's intention to rule.


Related reading: Orientations of Nilo-Saharan Monuments; Solar Imagery of the Proto-Gospel; Using Totems to Trace Ancestry; The Horite Marriage and Ascendancy Pattern; The Afro-Asiatic Dominion