What is the meaning of Isaiah 11:7? The cow will graze with the bear • Isaiah speaks of a future Messianic age in which even natural enemies share the same peaceful pasture. “The cow will graze with the bear” (Isaiah 11:7) pictures literal herbivorous harmony restored to creation. • Cross references: – Isaiah 65:25 “The wolf and the lamb will feed together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox …” confirms the same scene in the same prophet. – Genesis 1:29-30 shows God’s original design: humans and beasts alike ate plants before the fall, illustrating that a return to Eden-like peace is in view. – Romans 8:21-22 speaks of creation being liberated from corruption, explaining why the animal kingdom itself is transformed. • Significance: – Reveals the scope of Christ’s reign—He reconciles all things, not humans only (Colossians 1:20). – Demonstrates that God keeps literal promises about land, animals, and nations. – Encourages believers to long for and live in light of the coming kingdom’s peace. Their young will lie down together • Harmony is generational: “their young will lie down together.” Predator and prey offspring rest side by side, free from fear. • Cross references: – Hosea 2:18 “In that day I will make a covenant for them with the beasts of the field … I will abolish bow and sword and war from the land, so that all may lie down in safety”. – Ezekiel 34:25 promises a “covenant of peace” with beasts, matching Isaiah’s vision. • Implications: – Shows safety at the most vulnerable level—young animals. If the defenseless are safe, all creation is safe. – Illustrates the total removal of the curse’s hostility (Genesis 3:15 repercussions reversed). – Underscores the Messiah’s shepherd-king role in protecting the weakest (Isaiah 40:11). The lion will eat straw like the ox • The fiercest carnivore becomes herbivorous: “the lion will eat straw like the ox.” This is not metaphor; it is a supernatural, literal re-ordering of animal nature under Messiah’s rule. • Cross references: – Daniel 6:22 “My God sent His angel and shut the mouths of the lions” previews God’s power to tame predators. – Psalm 104:21 shows lions depending on God for food; in the coming age He changes the menu entirely. – Isaiah 35:1 describes deserts blooming; likewise, diets of wild beasts bloom into peaceful grazing. • Lessons: – Highlights the comprehensive redemption purchased by Christ—sin’s impact on biology itself is overturned. – Reinforces the certainty of future glory: if lions can eat straw, any present impossibility is no obstacle to God. – Calls believers to trust the literal promises of Scripture and to anticipate God’s creative restoration. summary Isaiah 11:7 pictures the literal peace of Messiah’s forthcoming reign: cows and bears share pasture, their calves rest together, and lions graze like oxen. These images echo Eden, anticipate the millennial kingdom, and assure us that Christ’s redemption heals all creation. The passage invites confidence in God’s faithfulness and stirs hope for the day when the Prince of Peace brings total harmony to earth. |
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