A living dog

In Ecclesiastes, we are told that "a living dog is better than a dead lion".  In the Bible, dogs represent the despised, the unclean, the evil enemy devouring the innocent.  But lions are like the warrior's heart, like the Messiah.  Which would we rather be, a dead lion or a living dog?  In our society, we are taught to revere the lions of society, while many of are reduced to the level of dogs.  As the faithful, we are far, far better off as live dogs with God walking beside us, than dead, once-powerful lions.