John Gill Commentary Proverbs 20:2

"The terror of a king is as the roaring of a lion: He that provoketh him to anger sinneth [against] his own life." — Proverbs 20:2 (ASV)

The fear of a king [is] as the roaring of a lion
The wrath and displeasure of a king, which causes fear; see (Proverbs 19:12) ; kings should be terrors to evil works and workers, though not to good ones, (Romans 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" ^F1 ; he is guilty of sin, as well as is in danger of punishment; see (Proverbs 8:36) .

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FOOTNOTES:

• F1: (wvpn ajwx) .