Isaiah 11:7

7 Cows and bears will eat together in peace. Their young will lie down to rest together. Lions will eat hay as oxen do.

Isaiah 11:7 Meaning and Commentary

Isaiah 11:7

And the cow and the bear shall feed
That is, together, in one church state, at one table, or in one pasture, upon the wholesome food of the Gospel, the salutary doctrines of Christ; who though before of different dispositions, the one tame and gentle, useful and profitable, dispensing the milk of the divine word, and gracious experience; the other cruel and voracious, barbarous and inhuman, worrying the lambs and sheep of Christ; but now of the same nature, and having no ill will to one another, and being without fear of each other: their young ones shall lie down together;
those like the calf and the young bear, shall lie in the green pastures of Gospel ordinances, and do no injury, the latter to the former, being of one mind, and agreeing in doctrine and practice: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox;
kings shall be nursing fathers to the church, and feed on the same Gospel provisions; and there shall be a great agreement between them who were before comparable to lions for their strength, power, and cruelty, and ministers of the Gospel, who are compared to oxen, for their strength and laboriousness, ( 1 Corinthians 9:9 1 Corinthians 9:10 ) "straw" here denotes true doctrine, though elsewhere false, see ( 1 Corinthians 3:12 ) . (See Gill on Isaiah 11:6) .

Isaiah 11:7 In-Context

5 Goodness and fairness will give him strength, like a belt around his waist.

6 Then wolves will live in peace with lambs, and leopards will lie down to rest with goats. Calves, lions, and young bulls will eat together, and a little child will lead them.

7 Cows and bears will eat together in peace. Their young will lie down to rest together. Lions will eat hay as oxen do.

8 A baby will be able to play near a cobra's hole, and a child will be able to put his hand into the nest of a poisonous snake.

9 They will not hurt or destroy each other on all my holy mountain, because the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the sea is full of water.