Proverbs 19:12 - Clarke's commentary and critical notes on the Bible

The king's wrath is as the roaring of a lion; but his favour is as dew upon the grass. The king's wrath is as the roaring of a lion - There is nothing more dreadful than the roaring of this tyrant of the forest. At the sound of it all other animals tremble, flee away, and hide themselves. The king who is above law, and rules without law, and whose will is his own law, is like the lion. This is strongly descriptive of the character of Asiatic sovereigns.