Genesis 49:9

"Judah is a lion's whelp: from the shoot, my son, you have gone up." With good reason the one who was crucified and resurrected with Christ is called "young lion," as Paul, who was rightly considered to be a Judah, said when he confessed his sin: "For I am the least of the apostles, unfit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God." And Paul asserts that the essence of Christ [lit. "what Christ is"] is in himself when he proclaims, "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me." Therefore a young lion is either the one who sleeps with Christ, because he died for sins, or the one who is resurrected with Christ, because he lives for God.And the son has sprouted from the shoot. Without doubt the reference here is to the one who, being a wild olive tree, was grafted onto the good olive tree. He rejected the vulgar and gross morals of the carnal nature, remaining in Christ, the true vine, through the spirit of adoption, thereby producing much fruit from his precepts. And since he is so, reclining, he sleeps like a lion. The wise man has the confidence of the lion, especially when he can assuredly assert, "I can do all things through him who strengthens me." No fear, no threat, no temptation can awaken him; his decisions are firm, and his mind is stable.

"Having crouched, you slept as a lion and as a whelp." It is evident that the actions of crouching and sleeping signify the passion and death. But let us see why he sleeps as a lion and a whelp. With regard to the sleep of the whelp it has been already said above that it can very conveniently be referred to Christ, who, after being buried for three days and three nights in the heart of the earth, completed, as was expected, the sleep of death. But I believe that the expression "as a lion" must be interpreted in this way: the death of Christ marked the defeat and the triumph over the demons. In fact, our lion captured all the prey that the hostile lion had conquered after destroying and crushing the man. Then, by coming back from the underworld and ascending on high, he made slavery his captive. Therefore in his sleep the lion won and defeated every evil and destroyed the one who had the power of death. And like a whelp he woke up on the third day.

"A lion's whelp is Judah." Isn't it clear that he represented the Father and manifested the Son? Is there any clearer way to teach that God the Son is of one nature with the Father? The one is the lion, the other the lion's whelp. By this paltry comparison, their unity in the same nature and power is perceived. King proceeds from king, a strong one from one who is strong. Because Jacob foresaw that there would be those to claim that the Son was younger in age, he replied to them by adding, "From my seed you have come up to me. Resting you have slept like a lion and like a whelp." And in a different passage you find that the whelp is himself "the lion of the tribe of Judah." … But the Son is not being named in such a way as to be separated from the Father. Jacob, who confesses the Son, also esteems him equal.Moreover, he represented the Son's incarnation in a wonderful fashion when he said, "From my seed you have come up to me." For Christ sprouted in the womb of the Virgin like a shrub upon the earth; like a flower of pleasing fragrance, he was sent forth in the splendor of new light and came up from his mother's vitals for the redemption of the entire world. Just so, Isaiah says, "There shall come forth a rod out of the root of Jesse, and a flower shall come up out of the root." The root is the household of the Jews, the rod is Mary, the flower of Mary is Christ. She is rightly called a rod, for she is of royal lineage, of the house and family of David. Her flower is Christ, who destroyed the stench of worldly pollution and poured out the fragrance of eternal life.

In the mystery of the calling, Christ is symbolized by the two sons of Judah, Zarah and Phares, for of him many things are said in happy remembrance, such as this: "A lion's whelp is Judah; from the prey you have gone up, my son.

By this it is foretold that the tribe of Judah should become very formidable, and should not only obtain great victories but should peaceably enjoy what was got by those victories. Judah is compared not to a lion rampant, always raging but to a lion couching, enjoying the satisfaction of his success, without creating vexation to others.

(2.) He is the lion of the tribe of Judah, as he is called with reference to this prophecy ( Rev. v. 5 ), who, having spoiled principalities and powers, went up a conqueror, and couched so as none can stir him up, when he sat down on the right hand of the Father.

Judah is a lion's whelp,....

Judah is compared, not to a lion rampant, always tearing, always raging, always ranging; but to a lion couchant, enjoying the satisfaction of his power and success, without creating vexation to others: this is to be truly great.