and furious. It is usual in scripture to describe powerful princes, and especially persecuting ones, by the name of lions, Pro 28:15 . Achilles, in Homer (o), is compared to a lion for his cruelty. The soul of Christ was among such, when he was apprehended by the band of men that came with Judas to take him; when he was in the high priest's hall buffeted and spit upon; and when he was in the common hall of Pilate, surrounded by the Roman soldiers; and when he was encircled on the cross with the crowd of the common people, priests and elders, Mat 26:55 ; and so the souls of his people are often among lions, persecuting men, and Satan and his principalities, who is compared to a roaring lion, Pe1 5:8 ; and among whom they are as wonderfully preserved as Daniel in the lion's den; and I lie even among them that are set on fire; of hell, as the tongue is said to be in Jam 3:6 ; by the devil, who stirred up Saul against David, filled him with wrath and fury, so that he breathed out nothing but flaming vengeance, threatening and slaughter, against him; and by wicked men his courtiers, who kindled and stirred up the fire of contention between them; among these incendiaries, as Junius renders the word (p), David was, who inflamed the mind of Saul against him, which he suggests in Sa1 24:10 ; even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows; whose words, formed by means of their teeth, were very devouring ones, Psa 52:4 ; were very piercing and wounding; calumnies, detractions, and backbitings, speaking against him when absent and at a distance, may be meant; see Pro 30:14 ; and their tongue a sharp sword; See Gill on Psa 52:2 ; and there was a sort of swords called "lingulae", because in the shape of a tongue (q). (o) Iliad. 24. v. 40, 41. (p) "incendiarios", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator; "flammantes", Gejerus, Michaelis; so Ainsworth, Cocceius, Vatablus, Musculus. (q) A. Gell. Noct. Attic. l. 10. c. 25.