A king's anger is as dangerous as a lion's growl, and the wise learn not to provoke a power they cannot escape.
Solomon turns next to royal authority here in Proverbs 20:2: The terror of a king is like the growling of a lion; he who provokes him to anger forfeits his own life (v. 2). The picture is nearly identical to Proverbs 19:12 and treats a king's anger as a force the wise person learns to read.
The terror of a king is compared to the growling of a lion because both carry the practical effect of overwhelming threat at close quarters. A wise person does not pretend the threat is not there. They recognize that one cannot afford to provoke a power one cannot escape, and that recognition is itself a form of wisdom.
To provoke him to anger over a trivial offense forfeits a life that quiet discretion would have kept. Solomon is teaching the student to discern when restraint is wisdom and when it is cowardice. Reading authority correctly is part of moral maturity, not merely political survival.
Proverbs 20:2
2 The terror of a king is like the growling of a lion;
He who provokes him to anger forfeits his own life.
Set to dark mode
Proverbs 20:2 meaning
Solomon turns next to royal authority here in Proverbs 20:2: The terror of a king is like the growling of a lion; he who provokes him to anger forfeits his own life (v. 2). The picture is nearly identical to Proverbs 19:12 and treats a king's anger as a force the wise person learns to read.
The terror of a king is compared to the growling of a lion because both carry the practical effect of overwhelming threat at close quarters. A wise person does not pretend the threat is not there. They recognize that one cannot afford to provoke a power one cannot escape, and that recognition is itself a form of wisdom.
To provoke him to anger over a trivial offense forfeits a life that quiet discretion would have kept. Solomon is teaching the student to discern when restraint is wisdom and when it is cowardice. Reading authority correctly is part of moral maturity, not merely political survival.