Proverbs 16:14-15

16:14 A king’s wrath ¹  is like ²  a messenger of death, ³ 

but a wise person appeases it. ⁴ 

16:15 In the light of the king’s face ⁵  there is life,

and his favor is like the clouds ⁶  of the spring rain. ⁷ 

Proverbs 20:2

20:2 The king’s terrifying anger ⁸  is like the roar of a lion;

whoever provokes him ⁹  sins against himself. ¹⁰ 

Proverbs 28:15

28:15 Like ¹¹  a roaring lion or a roving bear, ¹² 

so is a wicked ruler over a poor people. ¹³ 

Esther 7:8

7:8 When the king returned from the palace garden to the banquet of wine, Haman was throwing himself down ¹⁴  on the couch where Esther was lying. ¹⁵  The king exclaimed, “Will he also attempt to rape the queen while I am still in the building!”

As these words left the king’s mouth, they covered Haman’s face.

Ecclesiastes 8:4

8:4 Surely the king’s authority ¹⁶  is absolute; ¹⁷ 

no one can say ¹⁸  to him, “What are you doing?”

Daniel 2:12-13

2:12 Because of this the king got furiously angry ¹⁹  and gave orders to destroy all the wise men of Babylon. 2:13 So a decree went out, and the wise men were about ²⁰  to be executed. They also sought ²¹  Daniel and his friends so that they could be executed.

Daniel 3:19-23

3:19 Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with rage, and his disposition changed ²²  toward Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He gave orders ²³  to heat the furnace seven times hotter than it was normally heated. 3:20 He ordered strong ²⁴  soldiers in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and to throw them into the furnace of blazing fire. 3:21 So those men were tied up while still wearing their cloaks, trousers, turbans, and other clothes, ²⁵  and were thrown into the furnace ²⁶  of blazing fire. 3:22 But since the king’s command was so urgent, and the furnace was so excessively hot, the men who escorted ²⁷  Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were killed ²⁸  by the leaping flames. ²⁹  3:23 But those three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell into the furnace ³⁰  of blazing fire while still securely bound. ³¹ 

Daniel 5:19

5:19 Due to the greatness that he bestowed on him, all peoples, nations, and language groups were trembling with fear ³²  before him. He killed whom he wished, he spared ³³  whom he wished, he exalted whom he wished, and he brought low whom he wished.

Daniel 6:24

6:24 The king gave another order, ³⁴  and those men who had maliciously accused ³⁵  Daniel were brought and thrown ³⁶  into the lions’ den – they, their children, and their wives. ³⁷  They did not even reach the bottom of the den before the lions overpowered them and crushed all their bones.

Luke 12:4-5

12:4 “I ³⁸  tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, ³⁹  and after that have nothing more they can do. 12:5 But I will warn ⁴⁰  you whom you should fear: Fear the one who, after the killing, ⁴¹  has authority to throw you ⁴²  into hell. ⁴³  Yes, I tell you, fear him!

[16:14]  ¹ sn This proverb introduces the danger of becoming a victim of the king’s wrath (cf. CEV “if the king becomes angry, someone may die”). A wise person knows how to pacify the unexpected and irrational behavior of a king. The proverb makes the statement, and then gives the response to the subject.

[16:14]  ² tn The comparative “like” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the metaphor; it is supplied for the sake of clarity.

[16:14]  ³ tn The expression uses an implied comparison, comparing “wrath” to a messenger because it will send a message. The qualification is “death,” an objective genitive, meaning the messenger will bring death, or the message will be about death. E.g., 1 Kgs 2:25, 29-34 and 46. Some have suggested a comparison with the two messengers of Baal to the god Mot (“Death”) in the Ugaritic tablets (H. L. Ginsberg, “Baal’s Two Messengers,” BASOR 95 [1944]: 25-30). If there is an allusion, it is a very slight one. The verse simply says that the king’s wrath threatens death.

[16:14]  ⁴ tn The verb is כָּפַּר (kapar), which means “to pacify; to appease” and “to atone; to expiate” in Levitical passages. It would take a wise person to know how to calm or pacify the wrath of a king – especially in the ancient Near East.

[16:15]  ⁵ tn Heb “the light of the face of the king.” This expression is a way of describing the king’s brightened face, his delight in what is taking place. This would mean life for those around him.

[16:15]  ⁶ tn Heb “cloud.”

[16:15]  ⁷ tn Heb “latter rain” (so KJV, ASV). The favor that this expression represents is now compared to the cloud of rain that comes with the “latter” rain or harvest rain. The point is that the rain cloud was necessary for the successful harvest; likewise the king’s pleasure will ensure the success and the productivity of the people under him. E.g., also Psalm 72:15-17; the prosperity of the land is portrayed as a blessing on account of the ideal king.

[20:2]  ⁸ tn Heb “the terror of a king” (so ASV, NASB); The term “terror” is a metonymy of effect for cause: the anger of a king that causes terror among the people. The term “king” functions as a possessive genitive: “a king’s anger” (cf. NIV “A king’s wrath”; NLT “The king’s fury”).

[20:2]  ⁹ tn The verb מִתְעַבְּרוֹ (mit’abbÿro) is problematic; in the MT the form is the Hitpael participle with a pronominal suffix, which is unusual, for the direct object of this verb usually takes a preposition first: “is angry with.” The LXX rendered it “angers [or, irritates].”

[20:2]  ¹⁰ sn The expression “sins against himself” has been taken by some to mean “forfeits his life” (so NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV) or “endangers his life” (cf. NCV, NLT). That may be the implication of getting oneself in trouble with an angry king (cf. TEV “making him angry is suicide”).

[28:15]  ¹¹ tn The term “like” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity and smoothness.

[28:15]  ¹² sn The comparison uses animals that are powerful, terrifying, insensitive, and in search of prey. Because political tyrants are like this, animal imagery of this sort is also used in Dan 7:1-8 for the series of ruthless world powers.

[28:15]  ¹³ sn A poor nation under the control of political tyrants who are dangerous and destructive is helpless. The people of that nation will crumble under them because they cannot meet their demands and are of no use to them.

[7:8]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “falling”; NAB, NRSV “had (+ just TEV) thrown himself (+ down TEV).”

[7:8]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “where Esther was” (so KJV, NASB). The term “lying” has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons; cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT “was reclining.”

[8:4]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “word.”

[8:4]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “supreme.”

[8:4]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “Who can say…?”

[2:12]  ¹⁹ tn Aram “was angry and very furious.” The expression is a hendiadys (two words or phrases expressing a single idea).

[2:13]  ²⁰ tn The Aramaic participle is used here to express the imminent future.

[2:13]  ²¹ tn The impersonal active plural (“they sought”) of the Aramaic verb could also be translated as an English passive: “Daniel and his friends were sought” (cf. NAB).

[3:19]  ²² tn Aram “the appearance of his face was altered”; cf. NLT “his face became distorted with rage”; NAB “[his] face became livid with utter rage.”

[3:19]  ²³ tn Aram “he answered and said.”

[3:20]  ²⁴ tn This is sometimes taken as a comparative: “[some of the] strongest.”

[3:21]  ²⁵ sn There is a great deal of uncertainty with regard to the specific nature of these items of clothing.

[3:21]  ²⁶ tn Aram “into the midst of the furnace.” For stylistic reasons the words “the midst of” have been left untranslated.

[3:22]  ²⁷ tn Aram “caused to go up.”

[3:22]  ²⁸ tn The Aramaic verb is active.

[3:22]  ²⁹ tn Aram “the flame of the fire” (so KJV, ASV, NASB); NRSV “the raging flames.”

[3:23]  ³⁰ tn Aram “into the midst of the furnace.” For stylistic reasons the words “the midst of” have been left untranslated.

[3:23]  ³¹ sn The deuterocanonical writings known as The Prayer of Azariah and The Song of the Three present at this point a confession and petition for God’s forgiveness and a celebration of God’s grace for the three Jewish youths in the fiery furnace. Though not found in the Hebrew/Aramaic text of Daniel, these compositions do appear in the ancient Greek versions.

[5:19]  ³² tn Aram “were trembling and fearing.” This can be treated as a hendiadys, “were trembling with fear.”

[5:19]  ³³ tn Aram “let live.” This Aramaic form is the aphel participle of חַיָה(khayah, “to live”). Theodotion and the Vulgate mistakenly take the form to be from מְחָא (mÿkha’, “to smite”).

[6:24]  ³⁴ tn Aram “said.”

[6:24]  ³⁵ tn Aram “had eaten the pieces of.” The Aramaic expression is ironic, in that the accusers who had figuratively “eaten the pieces of Daniel” are themselves literally devoured by the lions.

[6:24]  ³⁶ tn The Aramaic active impersonal verb is often used as a substitute for the passive.

[6:24]  ³⁷ tc The LXX specifies only the two overseers, together with their families, as those who were cast into the lions’ den.

[12:4]  ³⁸ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[12:4]  ³⁹ sn Judaism had a similar exhortation in 4 Macc 13:14-15.

[12:5]  ⁴⁰ tn Grk “will show,” but in this reflective context such a demonstration is a warning or exhortation.

[12:5]  ⁴¹ sn The actual performer of the killing is not here specified. It could be understood to be God (so NASB, NRSV) but it could simply emphasize that, after a killing has taken place, it is God who casts the person into hell.

[12:5]  ⁴² tn The direct object (“you”) is understood.

[12:5]  ⁴³ sn The word translated hell is “Gehenna” (γέεννα, geenna), a Greek transliteration of the Hebrew words ge hinnom (“Valley of Hinnom”). This was the valley along the south side of Jerusalem. In OT times it was used for human sacrifices to the pagan god Molech (cf. Jer 7:31; 19:5-6; 32:35), and it came to be used as a place where human excrement and rubbish were disposed of and burned. In the intertestamental period, it came to be used symbolically as the place of divine punishment (cf. 1 En. 27:2, 90:26; 4 Ezra 7:36).