Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Proverbs 20:2

The fear of a king [is] as the roaring of a lion: [whoso] provoketh him to anger sinneth [against] his own soul.

2. is as ] The terror inspired by a king is like that caused by the roaring of a lion in act to spring upon its prey. See 1Pe 5:8.

soul ] i.e. life, as R.V. with “Heb. soul,” in the marg. Comp. Hab 2:10.

Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

Sinneth against his own soul – i. e., Against his own life (compare Hab 2:10).

Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible

Verse 2. The fear of a king] Almost the same with Pr 19:12, which see.

Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible

The fear of a king, passively taken, the terror which the wrath of a king causeth, by comparing this with Pro 19:12.

Sinneth against his own soul; exposeth himself to manifest danger of death.

Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole

2. (Compare Pr19:12). Men who resist authority injure themselves (Ro13:2).

Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible

The fear of a king [is] as the roaring of a lion,…. The wrath and displeasure of a king, which causes fear; see Pr 19:12; kings should be terrors to evil works and workers, though not to good ones, Ro 13:3. This is true of the King of kings, who one day will be terrible to the drunkards, the mockers, and murderers of his people, before spoken of;

[whoso] provoketh him to anger sinneth [against] his own soul; he exposes his life to danger: the Targum supplies it as we do. It may be rendered, his “soul sinneth” a; he is guilty of sin, as well as is in danger of punishment; see Pr 8:36.

a .

Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible

2 A roaring as of a lion is the terror of the king;

And he that provoketh him forfeiteth his life.

Line first is a variation of Pro 19:12. The terror which a king spreads around ( , gen. subjecti., as, e.g., at Job 9:34 and generally) is like the growling of a lion which threatens danger. The thought here suggested is that it is dangerous to arouse a lion. Thus does not mean: he who is angry at him ( Venet.: ), but he who provokes him (lxx, Syr., Targ., Jerome, Luther). signifies, as we saw at Pro 14:16, to be in a state of excessive displeasure, extreme anger. Here the meaning must be: he who puts him into a state of anger (lxx, , in other versions with the addition of , who conducts himself familiarly towards him = ). But can mitharvo have this meaning? That the Hithpa. of transitive stems, e.g., (1Ki 8:59) and (Mic 6:16), is construed with the accus. of that which any one performs for himself (cf. Ewald’s Gramm. Arab. 180), is not unusual; but can the Hithpa. of the intrans. , which signifies to fall into a passion, “express with the accusative the passion of another excited thereby” (Ewald, 282a)? There is no evidence for this; and Hitzig’s conjecture, ( Tiphel of the Targ. = ), is thus not without occasion. But one might suppose that , as the reflexive of a Piel or Hiphil which meant to be put into a state of anger, may mean to draw forth the anger of any one, as in Arab., the VIIIth form ( Hithpa.) of hadr , to be present, with the accus. as reflexive of the IVth form, may mean: sibi aliquid praesens sistere . Not so difficult is with the accus. of that which is missing, vid., Pro 8:36 and Hab 2:10.

Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament

      2 The fear of a king is as the roaring of a lion: whoso provoketh him to anger sinneth against his own soul.

      See here, 1. How formidable kings are, and what a terror they strike upon those they are angry with. Their fear, with which (especially when they are absolute and their will is a law) they keep their subjects in awe, is as the roaring of a lion, which is very dreadful to the creatures he preys upon, and makes them tremble so that they cannot escape from him. Those princes that rule by wisdom and love rule like God himself, and bear his image; but those that rule merely by terror, and with a high hand, do but rule like a lion in the forest, with a brutal power. Oderint, dum metuant—Let them hate, provided they fear. 2. How unwise therefore those are that quarrel with them, that are angry at them, and so provoke them to anger. They sin against their own lives. Much more do those do so that provoke the King of kings to anger. Nemo me impune lacesset—No one shall provoke me with impunity.

Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary