Lion of Judah to refer to Emperor Haile Selassie I. Rastafari hail Haile Selassie I with the titles "KING of Kings, LORD of lords, Conquering Lion of Judah, Elect of God, the Light of the World". The phrase appears in the New Testament in : "And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof." This is widely regarded as a reference to Jesus among Christians. Many Christian organizations and ministries use the lion of Judah as their
Judah & the Lion Best of the Best competitions. Their first EP, "First Fruits" released by the band was a Christian worship collection, but the band knew that they did not want to exclude a wider audience and decided to stray from being strictly a Christian group. According to Judah Akers, the band received their name from a passage in the bible about "The Lion of the Tribe of Judah." The name fits the band since the lead singer is named Judah and because of their Christian backgrounds. The band wrote that their music has the "grit of Run DMC or Beastie Boys" but