As written in the book of Genesis, Jacob bestows a blessing on each of his twelve sons. When he comes to his son Judah, Jacob blesses him and prophesies that “Judah,[b] your brothers will praise you; your hand will be on the neck of your enemies; your father’s sons will bow down to you. You are a lion’s cub, Judah; you return from the prey, my son. Like a lion he crouches and lies down, like a lioness—who dares to rouse him?”
So, a royal progeny occurred that produced a lineage of kings including King David and eventually Jesus Christ. Jesus is proclaimed “the Lion of the tribe of Judah in Revelation 5:5, this Scripture verse was the inspiration for William Hallmark’s painting, The Lion Of Judah, and others.
After completing the piece, the canvas literally sat against William’s wall because he felt that his artistic depiction was really quite dismal. He was seriously considering painting over the canvas and trying again with a fresh approach.
Fortunately, several of his friends and family members saw his work and insisted that he display it at several upcoming art events to properly gauge the public’s response. He tentatively agreed to listen to those who believed in him and his work. The Lion Of Judah was shown to the public initially in the early 1990s.
The painting received a remarkable amount of positive attention at various art shows and William was blessed with many hugs and tears from many admirers that were deeply touched by his depiction of Christ. Based on the public’s strong positive reaction, he felt confident in going to print in large quantities for the first time. The print received national attention and has been sold and distributed throughout the United States since. As time went on, William produced similar paintings featuring the same mild and gentle Lion in depictions of various other Bible Scriptures.
In the end, this was obviously a life altering experience for him. Looking back, he recalls his simple pleading prayer to the Lord before the Lion Of Judah was ever painted. A yearning prayer for God to bless him with a work of art that would touch people’s hearts. God responded and the painting that sat against the wall and was almost destroyed remained His way and unchanged.
