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In I Samuel 22 we read of the cave of Adullam (located between Judah and the sea), a cave wherein David (type of the faithful on the King's business) could hide from the enemy and recouperate when needed (cf. I Chronicles 11:15).  (Saul tried to hide in such a place and lost his shirt tail [See I Samuel 24.].)

In Joshua 10:27, Joshua (type of Christ) slew Israel's enemies and threw them into the caves in which they had been hiding--making them into graves.

In I Kings 18:4-18, Obadiah hid 100 prophets of the Lord in caves (50 per cave) when Jezebel tried to have them killed.  Also, in I King 19, Elijah hid in a cave on Mt. Horeb when fleeing for his life from this same Jezebel.

In Genesis 19:30, Lot (a worldly Jew of the Age of Promise--type of the worldly Believer) fled to a cave in a mountain with his two daughters (types of the worldly Jew under the Law and the worldy Christian under Grace?)  Spiritually, the "caves" in the "mountain" are a place of refuge for the believer (for the prophets of God-I Kings 18:4; 19:9 cf. Moses' cleft in the rock-Ex. 33:22 and for a rebellious Israel brought to repentance by the troubles brought on by her sins-Jos 10:16-27; Jud 6:2); however for those who would do the believer harm, they afford no protection from the judgments of God (Isa 2:19; Eze 33:27).

Psa. 104:16-22
The trees of the LORD are full of sap; the cedars of Lebanon, which he hath planted;
Where the birds make their nests: as for the stork, the fir trees are her house.
The high hills are a refuge for the wild goats; and the rocks for the conies.
He appointed the moon for seasons: the sun knoweth his going down.
Thou makest darkness, and it is night: wherein all the beasts of the forest do creep forth.
The young lions roar after their prey, and seek their meat from God.
The sun ariseth, they gather themselves together, and lay them down in their dens.

Psalms 104 is chock full of prophetic symbolism, but for our study of dens we'll look only at verses 21 and 22."The young lions roar after their prey, and seek their meat from God. The sun ariseth, they gather themselves together, and lay them down in their dens." The young lions of Israel were their young soldiers of valor; and of course, their meat was to do the will of God and defend the Hebrew nation.   For these young soldiers, the dens were a place of safety in the hills/mountains where they could rest and recoup from their battles.

But sadly, the young lions of Israel were not the only ones in the dens of Israel.   Although in Psalms 10:9 it is hard to discern if the psalmist is speaking of evil people in general or of Israel in particular, the Prophet Jeremiah leaves us no doubt about whom he is talking.

Psalms 10:9
He lieth in wait secretly as a lion in his den: he lieth in wait to catch the poor: he doth catch the poor, when he draweth him into his net.

Jeremiah 7:11
Is this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, even I have seen it, saith the LORD.

Consequently, the wicked (religious of Israel) lay in wait as a lion in his den, ready to devour the innocent and needy assigned to their watchcare (Nahum 2:12).   As a result, the nation chosen of God became unfruitful to Him (Amos 3:4).  In response, God told Jeremiah,

Jeremiah 9:6-11
Thine habitation is in the midst of deceit; through deceit they refuse to know me, saith the LORD.
Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts, Behold, I will melt them, and try them; for how shall I do for the daughter of my people?
Their tongue is as an arrow shot out; it speaketh deceit: one speaketh peaceably to his neighbour with his mouth, but in heart he layeth his wait.
shall I not visit them for these things? saith the LORD: shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?
For the mountains will I take up a weeping and wailing, and for the habitations of the wilderness a
lamentation, because they are burned up, so that none can pass through them; neither can men hear the voice of the cattle; both the fowl of the heavens and the beast are fled; they are gone.
And I will make Jerusalem heaps, and a den of dragons*; and I will make the cities of Judah desolate,
without an inhabitant.

(*We don’t know if the Hebrews adopted the Greek’s mythological characters such as dragon and satyr or if the Greeks copied and caricaturized the creatures that represented the devil and the hypocrites in the Hebrew nation; but regardless of which came first, we do know that the representation was of God; for Jesus brought forward in his teaching the concept of men having the nature of a goat and the Holy Spirit had John used the word "dragon" to refer to the devil in his Book of Revelation [Mt. 25:32-33; Rev.Rev. 12:9].)

Unfortunately, when Jesus visited His creation, it seemed that nothing had changed.

Mark 11:17
And he taught, saying unto them, Is it not written, My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer? but ye have made it a den of thieves.

(For some interesting reading, go to Daniel 6:7-24 and read how Daniel serves as a type for Christ thrown into the lions den [the Visitation], but the mouths of the lions were shut [John 10:17-18].)

The last two mentionings of "dens" in the Bible are found in Hebrews and Revelation.  They illustrate the Lord's promise to those persecuted for His name's sake.  "Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord" (Romans 12:19).

Hebrews 11:35-38
Women received their dead raised to life again: and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection:
And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment:
They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered
about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented;
(Of whom the world was not worthy:) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth.

Revelation 6:15-16
And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains;
And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: 

This takes us back to our study of Revelation.  To return to where you were, hit the "back" button.

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