Scripture
â€â€Ezekiel‬ â€19‬:â€1‬-â€9‬ (â€ESV)‬‬
"And you, take up a lamentation for the princes of Israel, and say: What was your mother? A lioness! Among lions she crouched; in the midst of young lions she reared her cubs. And she brought up one of her cubs; he became a young lion, and he learned to catch prey; he devoured men. The nations heard about him; he was caught in their pit, and they brought him with hooks to the land of Egypt. When she saw that she waited in vain, that her hope was lost, she took another of her cubs and made him a young lion. He prowled among the lions; he became a young lion, and he learned to catch prey; he devoured men, and seized their widows. He laid waste their cities, and the land was appalled and all who were in it at the sound of his roaring. Then the nations set against him from provinces on every side; they spread their net over him; he was taken in their pit. With hooks they put him in a cage and brought him to the king of Babylon; they brought him into custody, that his voice should no more be heard on the mountains of Israel.“
AI Prompt
A long shot image of a lion in a cage, placed in the middle of an ancient Near Eastern throne room, with a darker mood. The lighting of the throne room should be dimmer, creating a more somber and mysterious atmosphere. The grand and elaborately decorated throne room, with ornate pillars and intricate carvings, now has shadows and subdued tones, enhancing the dramatic contrast between the room's opulence and the caged lion's plight. The lion's natural colors and expression of melancholy and longing are more pronounced in this darker, more poignant setting.
Process/Reflection
I started here by asking AI to generate an image of a sad-looking lion in a cage. As I've noted before, AI images can often have problems in their logic/cohesion. I was given several variations that had the cage bars traveling through the lion's head. After experimenting a bit, I adjusted my prompt by asking for a long (wide) shot and by including the setting detail of a royal palace. To get the final image, I just asked AI to make the mood a little darker. Had to fix a distracting blue highlight in Photoshop. Overall, I really like the image. It's a great visual expression of a once proud creature that's been captured and made into a trophy. A sobering image that is directly taken from the text.