Heart of a Lion

Lions of Judah #1

by Gilbert Morris

The world is spiraling toward destruction, and one man receives a divine mandate...

Young Noah has found life good and wholesome, until he steps outside his village and discovers a world of temptation. Drawn by a beautiful woman yet repulsed by the pagan practices of her tribe's dark worship, his inner struggle keeps him in torment.

Noah strains to hear the voice of God, through the warnings of a prophet, through the kind teachings of his grandfather Methuselah, through the loving concern of his family, and ultimately through personal confrontation. The message he receives is terrifying. Will he find the courage to obey?

Opposition intensifies to the call he has received, but a precious medallion handed down from ancient times reminds him of who he is, a man with a heart of a lion.

Genres: Christian Fiction, Historical Fiction, Biblical Fiction, Christian, Fiction, Audiobook, Christian Historical Fiction

320 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2000

About the author

also published under the name Gilbert L. Morris

Gilbert Morris was one of today's best-known Christian novelists. He lived in Gulf Shores, Alabama, with his wife, Johnnie. He is the father to Lynn Morris and Alan Morris

Series:
* Adventures of Kerrigan Kids
* American Century
* Appomattox Saga
* Barney Buck
* Bonnets and Bugles
* Cheney Duvall, M.D. (with Lynn Morris)
* Cheney and Shiloh: The Inheritance (with Lynn Morris)
* Chronicles of the Golden Frontier
* The Creole (with Lynn Morris)
* Danielle Ross Mystery
* Daystar Voyages
* Dixie Morris Animal Adventures
* Far Fields (with Robert Funderburk)
* House of Winslow
* Jacques and Cleo: Cat Detectives
* Katy Steele Adventures (with Alan Morris)
* Lady Trent Mystery
* Liberty Bell
* Lions of Judah
* Lone Star Legacy
* Omega (with Lynn Morris and Alan Morris)
* The Price of Liberty (with Robert Funderburk)
* Reno Western Saga
* Seven Sleepers
* Seven Sleepers: The Lost Chronicles
* Singing River
* Spirit of Appalachia (with Aaron McCarver)
* Too Smart Jones
*

Reviews

[Debbie · Rating 1 out of 5]

As I read this book, I really began to wonder why Morris felt the need to so wildly depart from the Bible account of Noah. I also wondered if he bothered to research ancient history from a Christian perspective.

There are numerous statements that conflict with the Biblical account. Like the book has Noah barely fitting all the animals in the Ark when research has shown that there would be plenty of room for the animals, food, humans, and then extra room for exercise besides.

Morris states that there were only two sons of Adam (excluding Abel): Seth and Cain. But Gen. 5:4 says, "After Seth was born, Adam lived 800 years and had other SONS and daughters." So Adam has at least two more sons. Jewish tradition has Adam with about 18 sons total.

Morris states that farming was only invented a generation or two before Noah, and herding rarely done in preference of hunting. However, Gen. 4:2b-4 says, "Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the LORD. But Abel brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock." Farming and herding were common from the beginning.

Morris implies that mankind was very primitive in Noah's day, but the second generation of men (Cain) built cities and by the eighth generation, Tubal-Cain was doing complex metal work (bronze is an alloy of copper and tin mixed in specific ratios and iron is a more difficult metal to work). (Noah was 10th generation.) There are numerous mistakes like these.

So Morris' setting and many of the foundations for Noah's motives and actions are based on a world that Noah never knew. I was left wishing Morris had named the characters something else since it's not a story of the Biblical Noah at all.

[Charlene · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this retelling of Noah. It was full of heart! From the beginning to the end Gilbert Morris brought this story alive for me.

I loved how the development of Noah and Gods relationship was demonstrated. In fact I loved reading about all the characters spiritual journey. They were beautiful and captivating.

The time line of events also really stood out to me through this story. For example we know Methuselah is the oldest man to live but reading how he out lived many really helped put into perspective how long he lived.

I give 5 stars to Lloyd Hames for an excellent sudio performance

Recommended for all biblical fiction fans :)

[Loraine · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is not my first read from Gilbert Morris, but it is my first Biblical fiction read by him. I felt from start to finish that he immersed me in the world of Noah and his family from the age of 16 until his death after the flood. The depth of Noah and his family's devotion to "the Strong One" (at this point He was not known as God) permeated the entire story. At the same time, the depravity and idol worship was penetrating the hearts, minds, and souls of the rest of the people. No matter how people jeered and called him crazy, Noah maintained his relationship with God and preached to the people the necessity of changing their ways and the results if they did not. Morris wrote a spellbinding tale that most assuredly brought the story of Noah and his family to life. Morris will continue to trace the line of ancestors to Jesus in the remaining books of this series.

[Rachel N · Rating 1 out of 5]

A fictional account of the patriarch Noah, Gilbert Morris takes liberties with the Biblical account beyond the point of “reasonable.” I finished the book, and part of the story was inspiring; all in all, however, with all the wonderful pieces of literature in circulation, I cannot recommend this series.

[Rosa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was conflicted with this book. As a story in general, it was intriguing and interesting. But as a fictional portrayal of "Noah and the Ark", honestly I thought it was awful.

I was repeatedly disappointed with the author's portrayal of Noah and the lives of those around him. Particularly it bothered me to see Noah portrayed as a man who seemingly had no clear knowledge of God until he was nearly a grown man and then suddenly God is "forced" upon him. And then there was the issue of him never being able to get over his lust for an ungodly woman that was rather disturbing. The author seemed to take the sinful human nature of Noah to an exaggerated level for the sake of drama.

There are also other aspects of this book that I felt were rather inconsistent with Scripture and the nature of God.

However, from strictly a story aspect, it was well-written and interesting.

I don't regret reading this book, but it definitely does not fall into my must-read category.

[Sarita · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting retelling of Noah’s life.

I loved how the author portrayed the challenges Noah had to face with the evil among which he lived, the pull towards it when he was young, but also how he stayed strong once he committed his life to the Lord.

[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

"A Gathering of Eagles" is a very powerful, inspiring, and romantic book. This story takes place in England during the 1600s.
Shayna Wakefield is the daughter of Sir Honor Wakefield. Since Shayna was very beautiful and her family was very wealthy and noble, many men had their eyes on her. However, her family was secretly planning on having Trevor Wakefield, Shayna's cousin, become her husband. One night, Shayna had a ball at her home, where she invited multiple young men. Without a doubt, Trevor was there. However, Shayna paid little attention to him that night. She noticed Cathan Morgan, a brave young man who had been in the army. She talked and danced with Cathan, and by the end of the night, they'd even kissed. Trevor and Shayna's family weren't pleased at all. Trevor was a very studious surgeon and a godly man. Cathan, however, was a mischevious soldier. Shayna's family tried to convince her that Cathan wasn't good enough for her, but Shayna refused to listen. Finally, her father forced her to end the relationship with Cathan. Shayna told Cathan the news outside, in the middle of the night, and he eagerly suggested that they run away together. At that moment when Shayna was hesitantly trying to make her decision, a man walked out of the house and saw them together. Not wanting their secret to get out, Cathan attacked the man, who later died. Cathan was put in prison, and Shayna gave up on him and tried to force herself to love Trevor. Cathan was miserable in prison and became deathly ill. He managed to make a friend though. His friend was a Christian and cared for Cathan when he became sick, and he didnt die, as expected. His friend converted Cathan to Christianity, and Cathan learned to be satisfied with his prison life. A few months later, Cathan and his friend were chosen to work on a navy ship that was going to war against France. Sir Honor Wakefield was the captain of the ship, and Shayna and Trevor were on board as well. Trevor was the doctor on the ship and Shayna asked to go along to be with Trevor. Sir Honor Wakefield treated Cathan unjustly many times because of the bad past they had. Cathan managed to find a time when Shayna was alone and he gave a very geniune apology for the way he treated her in the past, and she accepted his apology a few days later. One day, the ship was battling a French ship. They lost, and the ship sunk in a few minutes. The only survivors who reached land were Cathan, his friend from prison, Shayna, Trevor, and Sir Honor Wakefield. However, they were in France, and they realized they needed to hide immediately. Thankfully, they found a home that very kindly took them in. Trevor was badly injured, so he had to rest for a few days while everyone else tried to plan their escape. Months passed, and Trevor didn't get better. He realized that his foot would have to be cut off, or else he might die. Cathan learned how to do the simple surgery, and performed in on Trevor successfully. After Trevor recovered, they escaped on a small rowboat and managed to get out of France successfully. They found another English navy ship and were able to return home. Trevor and Shayna realized that they weren't meant to be together, but still remained friends. Shayna realized that she truly loved Cathan, and the two got married.
I really loved this book! It was so interesting, had unexpected sharp turns, and had suspense. I felt my heart pounding in the suspenseful parts, and got angry when Cathan was treated unjustly on the navy ship. Gilbert Morris is a very talented author. I got through this book in a few days.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves historical fiction. There are a few battle scenes, and the whole culture of the book is very historical. It's also a Christian fiction book, where you see how radically someone's life can change. Finally, it has lots of romance!
"Heart of a Lion" is a very interesting book that causes you to realize things you never noticed before. It's the Bible story of Noah and the ark written in a more personal style.
In Noah's youth, he had many spiritual struggles. He struggled with avoiding ungodly women and waiting to hear God's will for his life. Having an ungodly father didn't help, either. Noah went to his great-grandfather, Methuselah, for much counsel and advice. One day, Noah's brother is murdered by a man from an enemy tribe. Noah goes through a period of anger and hate. A few years later, Noah encounters the murderer capturing a young girl, named Adah. Noah hears God's voice, and saves the girl by killing the murderer. Adah, an orphan, goes to live with Noah and becomes a servant. A few years later, Noah realizes that it's God's will for him to marry Adah, so he obeys. Soon, Noah had three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japeth. Shem was a very godly man, always composing songs of praise. Ham was a very strong and violent man. Japeth was a very talented builder with a good character. One day, God instructs Noah to build an ark, for He will soon destroy most people on the earth with a Flood, because of their wickedness. God encourages Noah to preach to people and give them chances to repent and go into the ark. At first, Noah's family thinks he's crazy, or maybe interpreted God's message incorrectly. But soon Noah's three sons join him in the construction of the ark. As the ark's construction progresses, all of Noah's sons get married to women that believe Noah's message and are willing to go in the ark. When the ark is completed, Noah and his family are the only ones to go inside, since everyone else only laugh and mock them. As they wait for the Flood to come, most of the family experience periods of doubt, wondering if all this was a big mistake. However, it finally starts to rain. Soon everyone on earth dies except the people in the ark. During the Flood, Noah and his family all go through periods of depression, wondering what will happen after this catastrophe. Finally, after 40 days and nights, Noah and his family leave the ark. God puts a rainbow in the sky, promising to never destroy the earth with a flood again. Noah and his family are prosperous and fill the earth again.
I found this book very interesting. I was able to see what kind of emotions Noah and his family went through during the preparation of the Flood and the Flood itself. It felt like more than a Bible story to me; it felt much more real. I beliveve this book strengthened my faith and helped me to trust God more.
I recommend this book to anyone who is seeking a better relationship with God. It will enhance the classic Bible story and help you relate to it more easily. You'll learn about trust, temptation, and perseverance. I was blessed after reading this, and I'm sure you will be too!

[Wilma Becker · Rating 5 out of 5]

A whole new look at Noah. I loved this book.

[Astrid · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oy, what can I say! For an agnostic like me, assigned "spiritual" reading can be tantamount to torture. Methuselah is hundreds of years old, Noah, his great grandson, has the hots for a woman from another tribe. God tells him not to marry her, but he is gonna do it anyway, so God slays her in her sleep. A long, long time later, after Noah marries a woman he does not really have the hots for, he decides to build the arc. They drug the animals so they don’t kill each other (no dinosaurs or sable tooth tigers mentioned). Everybody who is not on the boat dies when the water comes rushing in. Oh, the suspense of it all. Women bad, bad, bad, they make man turn away from God. Paternalistic bible story nonsense. Couldn’t pay me to read the rest of the books in the series. I'll just take my chances in hell, I think the books will be better.....

[Shelly Stoddard · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this book. I think it is fun when authors come up with stories surrounding historical figures. The one thing I didn't like about this book was how it portrayed Noah as some heart-sick, blubbering fool for some woman he met when he was a boy. I know it was just a story, but I don't think he would have still been pining after this woman when he was 500 years old and about to get on the ark. That bugged me, but the rest of the story was fun and it definitely held my attention while I was washing dishes or what not.

[Briann Hoopes · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was just not good. The writing was blah and the story was pretty lame. It was very very repetitive and I am surprised I finished it. What a waste of an audible credit...

[Judys · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed having the story of Noah brought to life but the dialogue and some of the scenes just seemed so “today” there was too much of a disconnect for me to really love the book.

[Jaret · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting historical fictionalization of Noah's Ark. This is one of the Bible passages that has always fascinated me the most. Gilbert Morris created realistic characters that were very human in their faults. He took the biblical passage and used his story-telling abilities to take Noah from a 16 year old to the end of his life. There were lots of embellishments, but I did not feel any were too distracting from the original.

[Bruce Dinsman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bible History comes to life

Gilbert Morris is well known as a Christian author who is also known for authenticity that is born of intense research that allows him to fictionally flesh out Bible Characters and the historical framework they existed in. Point of fact this is how you should approach studying your Bible. I want to read this series in sequence so I’m looking for the second book

[Rhonda Jayne Robertson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exellent book based on the story of Noah and his family. Gives an understanding of Noahs struggle to remain strong in his faith with the increasing decline in morality and anti God he observes around him. Yet for the Grace of God go we all! Great reminder of our need to seek God's presence, direction and grace to remain strong and true to Him.

[Holly Anne Smith Brown · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was just ok… I appreciated the creativity of thought, especially in the different skills and personalities of Noah’s kids.
But otherwise found it to be dark and long.

🌶️ suggestive content
🪓🪓 violence
🎓🎓 biased biblical scholarship + creative thought
📖 📖📖 narrative was ok
👤👤👤 characters development was ok

[Lacey Louwagie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Abandoned this over my disgust that Noah (God's chosen one for the purposes of this book) was the most White-looking dude in his tribe. The author goes to some pains to describe this in the first couple pages. Purged my collection of the rest of the series, too. I'm so over the whitewashing of Biblical stories.

[Amy · Rating 2 out of 5]

It did make me think about what it much have been like for Noah and his family. However, there was way too much liberty taken from the Biblical account. I DID NOT like how Noah was portrayed as a lustful and sometimes depressed man.

[Mariné Vivier · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoy biblical fiction but this story was a little too far from the truth for my liking. I also sometimes feel as though Gilbert Morris us trying to shove his view of Christianity into a culture that didn't know much about forgiveness and the church as we know it.

[Ted Hinkle · Rating 5 out of 5]

In HEART OF A LION, Gilbert Morris provided a well written Biblical historical fiction portrayal of Noah and the Ark involving fictional and nonfiction accounts through a reverent storyline based on Scripture. Dr. Morris draws on mankind's strength through faith over their moral weaknesses.

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loved it! I gave it only 3 stars though, because some of the things said about the ark weren’t as biblically accurate as I would have preferred. It was an amazing book, showed you what Noah could have went through his life.

[Ashley Hobgood · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had read this e-book out of curiosity. I enjoyed reading this book because I learned more about Noah's life before and after the Great Flood. I loved the story because of the drama and history. I thought the novel was well written. It is a must read.

[Samantha · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this entire series. Very thought provoking and inspiring. A joy to read.

[linda brimmer · Rating 5 out of 5]

You cannot put it down

When you start have plenty of time and no cake to bake because stopping is out of the question. This book will !take you pick up the Bible time over time.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Learned some new things

[Beckynetc (Clark) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have loved any Biblical fiction from Gilbert Morris.

[Pam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Disappointed that the library does not have any more of this series. It was a "great start."

[Linea Winter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read. Biblical historical fiction at its finest.

[Robert Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent handling of THE STORY. Of NOAH

After returning from visiting THE ARK , I could not pause from reading this great BOOK. Now I hope to read more by this author.

[Dawn lawson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A powerful story off Noah‘s life