Augustine of Hippo

So the true victory of our Lord Jesus Christ was achieved when he rose again and ascended into heaven. Then was fulfilled what you heard when the Apocalypse was read, "The lion from the tribe of Judah has conquered." It is he that is called a lion, he that is called a lamb. He is called a lion for courage, a lamb for innocence. A lion because unconquered, a lamb because gentle. And when this lamb was slain, he conquered by his death the lion "who prowls around seeking whom he may devour." The devil, you see, is called a lion for his ferocity, not for any virtue. Thus the apostle Peter says we must be on the watch against temptations, "because your adversary the devil is prowling around seeking whom he may devour"; but he did say how he prowls around: "Like a roaring lion he is prowling around, seeking whom he may devour." Who could avoid encountering the teeth of this lion, if the lion from the tribe of Judah had not conquered? Against the lion fights a lion, against the world a lamb. The devil was exultant when Christ died, and by that very death of Christ was the devil conquered. It's as though he took the bait in a mousetrap. He was delighted at the death, as being the commander of death. What he delighted in, that's where the trap was set for him. The mousetrap for the devil was the cross of the Lord. The bait he would be caught by, the death of the Lord. And our Lord Jesus Christ rose again.