Amsal 19:12-13

19:12 A king’s wrath is like ¹  the roar of a lion, ² 

but his favor is like dew on the grass. ³ 

19:13 A foolish child ⁴  is the ruin of his father,

and a contentious wife ⁵  is like ⁶  a constant dripping. ⁷ 

[19:12]  ¹ sn The verse contrasts the “rage” of the king with his “favor” by using two similes. The first simile presents the king at his most dangerous – his anger (e.g., 20:2; Amos 3:4). The second simile presents his favor as beneficial for life (e.g., 16:14-15; 28:15).

[19:12]  ² tn Heb “is a roaring like a lion.”

[19:12]  ³ sn The proverb makes an observation about a king’s power to terrify or to refresh. It advises people to use tact with a king.

[19:13]  ⁴ tn Heb “a foolish son” (so KJV, NAB, NIV, CEV); NRSV “a stupid child.”

[19:13]  ⁵ tn Heb “the contentions of a wife” (so KJV, NASB); NAB “the nagging of a wife.” The genitive could be interpreted (1) as genitive of source or subjective genitive – she is quarreling; or (2) it could be a genitive of specification, making the word “contentions” a modifier, as in the present translation.

[19:13]  ⁶ tn Heb “is a constant dripping.” The term “like” does not appear in the Hebrew but is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity. The metaphor pictures water dropping (perhaps rain through the roof, cf. NRSV, CEV) in a continuous flow: It is annoying and irritating (e.g., Prov 27:15-16).

[19:13]  ⁷ tc The LXX makes this moralistic statement for 13b: “vows paid out of hire of a harlot are not pure.” It is not based on the MT and attempts to reconstruct a text using this have been unsuccessful.