Psalms 104:20

You have set darkness, and it became night: in it all the beasts of the forest shall pass through. And according to the letter it has its own order: for night was made for this reason, that men might rest from their works, and that the beasts might go out to their feeding. But according to the figurative interpretation, when the sun of righteousness has set upon us, all things are dark to us, and then the beasts pass through against us, and the roaring lion, wishing to seize and devour us.

Then, even if anger boils up, it is easily cooled. If passion flares forth, the flames are readily quenched. If envy consumes us, it is not difficult to drive it away. The same thing happens that the prophet says happens when the sun rises. What did he say? "You made the darkness, and it was night. In it all the wild beasts of the forest will go forth, even young lions roaring for prey and to seek meat for themselves from God. The sun arose, and they were gathered together and shall lie down in their dens." At sunrise, then, every wild beast is driven off and slinks away to its lair. So, too, when a prayer, like a ray of the sun, arises from our tongue and comes forth from our mouth, our mind is enlightened, all the savage passions that destroy our reason slink away and flee to their own lairs, if only our prayer is diligent, if only it comes from a watchful soul and sober mind. Should the devil be on hand when we pray, he is driven off; should a demon be there, he slinks away.

What then, when the sun went down, when our Lord suffered? There was a sort of darkness with the Apostles, hope failed, in those to whom He at first seemed great, and the Redeemer of all men. How so? "Thou didst make darkness, and it became night; wherein all the beasts of the forest shall move" (ver. 20). ...Here the beasts of the forest are used in different ways: for these things are always understood in varying senses; as our Lord Himself is at one time termed a lion, at another a lamb. What is so different as a lion and a lamb? But what sort of lamb? One that could overcome the wolf, overcome the lion. He is the Rock, He the Shepherd, He the Gate. The Shepherd entereth by the gate: and He saith, "I am the good Shepherd:" and, "I am the Door of the Sheep." ...Learn thus to understand, when these things are spoken figuratively; lest perchance when ye have read that the Rock signifieth Christ, ye may understand it to mean Him in every passage. In one place it meaneth one thing, another in another, just as we can only understand the meaning of a letter by seeing its position. "The lion's whelps roaring after their prey, do seek their meat from God" (ver. 21). Justly then our Lord, when nigh unto His going down, the very Sun of Righteousness recognising His going down, said to His disciples, as if darkness being about to come, the lion would roam about to seek whom he might devour, that that lion could devour no man, unless with leave: "Simon," said He, "this night Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not." When Peter thrice denied, was he not already between the lion's teeth? ...