Christ the Lion is Ruler

When was the lion first spoken of in the scripture? When Jacob gave his blessings to his sons, specifically to Judah. “Judah, your brothers shall praise you; Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; Your father's sons shall bow down to you. Judah is a lion's whelp; From the prey, my son, you have gone up. He couches, he lies down as a lion, And as a lion , who dares rouse him up? The scepter shall not depart from Judah."