Why Jesus Is the Lion and the Lamb: Jonathan Edwards on Christ’s Power and Humility
What makes Jesus Christ uniquely glorious?
Jonathan Edwards answers that question in “The Excellency of Christ” by showing that qualities we often imagine as opposites meet perfectly in Him. Jesus is the Lion of the tribe of Judah and the Lamb who was slain. He is infinitely majestic, yet infinitely meek. He conquers His enemies, yet condescends to save sinners. He rules all things, yet tenderly feeds His people.
In part two of the sermon, Edwards turns from the doctrine itself to Christ’s actions. He asks: where do we see this “admirable conjunction of excellencies” in what Jesus actually does?
His answer unfolds across the whole work of Christ: His incarnation, His earthly life, His sacrificial death, His heavenly exaltation, and His final return.
The Incarnation Reveals Infinite Condescension and Divine Dignity
Edwards begins with Christ taking human nature.
The eternal Son of God became man. The Word was made flesh. That alone reveals astonishing humility: the One who is God took to Himself a nature “infinitely below His original nature.” But Edwards presses the point further. Christ did not merely become human in general; He entered the world in lowliness.
He was conceived in the womb of a poor young woman. Mary’s poverty is seen in the offering described in Luke 2:24, where she brings the sacrifice permitted for those unable to afford a lamb. Jesus was born not into earthly prestige but into humble circumstances.
Yet even here His divine dignity shines.
Edwards points to the angel’s words in Luke 1:35: Christ was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born “that holy thing” called the Son of God. The humility is real, but so is the majesty.
Then Edwards lingers over the manger. Christ was born in a stable because there was no room in the inn. He was wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid where animals fed. There, Edwards says, He appears as a lamb.
But this infant in the manger was also born to triumph over Satan, restore peace, reveal God’s goodwill toward men, and bring glory to God in the highest. The angels’ praise over Bethlehem announces that the lowly child is the victorious King.
Christ’s Earthly Life Veiled Glory Without Hiding It
During His earthly ministry, Jesus often appeared in “mean outward circumstances.” He lived in poverty, depended on the charity of others, and had nowhere to lay His head. He treated His disciples with meekness and familiarity, bearing reproach and injury with patience.
In these things, Edwards says, Christ appeared as a lamb.
But His glory kept breaking through the veil.
As a child, He submitted to Mary and Joseph. Yet at twelve years old, He sat among the teachers in the temple, revealing wisdom beyond ordinary childhood. In His public ministry, He was meek and accessible, yet His miracles displayed omnipotent power.
Edwards highlights several signs of Christ’s divine authority:
He healed the sick, opened blind eyes, unstopped deaf ears, and strengthened the lame.
He raised the dead, showing Himself to be the fountain of life.
He walked on the sea and calmed the storm, revealing His authority over creation.
He cast out demons, proving Himself stronger than the roaring lion who seeks to devour.
He knew the thoughts of men, displaying divine knowledge.
He was transfigured in glory, with the Father declaring Him the beloved Son.
Christ’s earthly humility did not contradict His majesty. It made His majesty more wondrous. The glory of God shone through the life of One who was gentle, patient, and lowly.
The Cross Is the Greatest Display of the Lion and the Lamb
For Edwards, the clearest display of Christ’s excellency is His sacrificial death.
“Christ never so much appeared as a lamb as when He was slain,” Edwards says. He connects the cross to Isaiah 53:7, where the servant is led like a lamb to the slaughter, and to 1 Corinthians 5:7, where Christ is called “our Passover.”
Yet Edwards insists that in the very act where Christ most appears as Lamb, He also appears most clearly as Lion.
The cross reveals Christ in His deepest humiliation. From Gethsemane to Calvary, He endured shame, bodily pain, sorrow of soul, betrayal, desertion, false accusation, and death. His divine glory was covered by a dark veil. He emptied Himself and made Himself of no reputation.
And yet, Edwards says, no act of Christ ever manifested His glory more.
The reason is that the cross reveals what heaven praises. Revelation 5 celebrates the Lamb who was slain as worthy to receive power, riches, wisdom, strength, honor, glory, and blessing. The glory of Christ’s death becomes clear when the purpose and fruit of it are seen: by His blood He redeems people for God from every tribe, tongue, people, and nation.
At the Cross, Justice and Mercy Meet
Edwards gives several reasons the cross displays Christ’s diverse excellencies.
First, Christ never showed greater love to the Father than when He obeyed unto death. He upheld God’s honor, authority, and justice. Yet He never showed greater love to sinners than when He shed His blood for God’s enemies.
This is the heart of gospel clarity in the sermon: the cross is not sentimental suffering. It is the place where Christ honors divine justice and saves rebels by grace.
Second, Christ never appeared more holy, and yet He was never treated as more guilty. He was bound as a criminal, falsely accused, mocked, crucified among the wicked, and made a curse for us. He who knew no sin was made sin for us. In His sufferings, Christ displayed His hatred of sin and His love for sinners at the same time.
Third, Christ suffered at the hands of those He came to save. His disciples failed Him. His enemies mocked Him. Some who cried for His death may later have been brought to repentance through apostolic preaching. Edwards sees here a stunning meeting of justice and grace.
Christ Conquered by Being Slain
One of Edwards’s most powerful points is that Christ was never more delivered into the hands of His enemies than at His passion — and never more victorious over them.
At the cross, wicked men and the powers of darkness did their worst. Jesus Himself said, “This is your hour, and the power of darkness” (Luke 22:53). Yet by that very suffering, He overthrew His enemies.
Edwards draws on Colossians 2:14–15: Christ triumphed over principalities and powers by the cross. Satan bruised Christ’s heel, but Christ crushed Satan’s head. The weapon Satan thought would destroy Christ became the instrument of Satan’s defeat.
Edwards compares this to David cutting off Goliath’s head with Goliath’s own sword. Christ conquered His enemy with the very cross His enemy used against Him.
That is why the crucified Christ is both Lamb and Lion. In His greatest weakness, He displayed unconquerable strength. In being slain, He destroyed death.
The Exalted Christ Is Still the Lamb
Edwards then turns to Christ’s present exaltation in heaven.
Christ is enthroned at the right hand of God. He is King of heaven and Lord of the universe. Every knee will bow to Him. Yet Edwards emphasizes that even in exaltation, Christ still appears as a Lamb.
Revelation pictures the Lamb in the midst of the throne. Edwards notes that Christ remains tender toward His people. He feeds them, leads them to living waters, wipes away tears, intercedes for them, and treats them with condescending love.
The exalted Christ has not forgotten affliction or temptation. He remembers what it is to suffer. He supports, comforts, supplies, and communes with His saints on earth. The wounds of the Lamb remain part of the glory of the King.
This is deeply pastoral. Christ’s majesty is not cold distance. His throne is not a barrier to His compassion. The One who reigns is the One who was slain.
The Returning Christ Will Be Terrible to the Wicked and Sweet to His Saints
Finally, Edwards looks to the last judgment.
At Christ’s return, He will appear in infinite greatness and majesty. The wicked will face “the wrath of the Lamb,” borrowing the language of Revelation. Kings, great men, and mighty men will tremble before Him.
But to His people, Edwards says, Christ will appear as a Lamb. He will receive them as friends, brethren, and bride. There will be nothing terrible in Him toward them. He will clothe Himself with sweetness and endearment, invite them into the kingdom, and bring them to reign with Him forever.
The same Christ will be dreadful to His enemies and tender to His redeemed. That is not contradiction. It is the full glory of His righteousness, power, holiness, mercy, and covenant love.
Why Edwards’s Vision of Christ Still Matters
Many modern presentations of Jesus flatten Him. Some emphasize gentleness but lose majesty. Others emphasize authority but lose tenderness. Edwards refuses to choose.
The biblical Christ is both.
He is meek enough to be born in poverty and laid in a manger. He is mighty enough to command the sea. He is humble enough to be slain as a sacrifice. He is strong enough to conquer Satan by dying. He is exalted enough to rule heaven and earth. He is compassionate enough to feed His flock and wipe away their tears.
That vision guards us from shallow Christianity. It invites reverence without despair, comfort without casualness, and worship rooted in the whole glory of Christ.
If you want to know why Jesus is worthy, Edwards points you to the manger, the miracles, the cross, the throne, and the coming judgment. In all of them, behold the Lion who is the Lamb.
Watch the Full Sermon
This article summarizes part two of Jonathan Edwards’s “The Excellency of Christ.” Watch the full Sermon Academy video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6NGebSsGII
Then explore the related Sermon Academy page: https://www.sermonacademy.com/videos/v/jonathanedwards/excellency/part2
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