Proverbs 30
30
Words of Agur
1The words of Agur the son of Jakeh, even the prophecy:
The man spake unto Ithiel,
even unto Ithiel and Ucal,
2Surely I am more brutish than any man,
And have not the understanding of a man.
3I neither learned wisdom,
Nor have the knowledge of the holy.
4Who hath ascended up into heaven, or descended?
Who hath gathered the wind in his fists?
Who hath bound the waters in a garment?
Who hath established all the ends of the earth?
What is his name, and what is his son's name,
If thou canst tell?
5Every word of God is pure:
He is a shield unto them that put their trust in him.
6Add thou not unto his words,
Lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar.
7Two things have I required of thee;
Deny me them not before I die:
8Remove far from me vanity and lies:
Give me neither poverty nor riches;
Feed me with food convenient for me:
9Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say,
Who is the LORD?
Or lest I be poor, and steal,
And take the name of my God in vain.
10Accuse not a servant unto his master,
Lest he curse thee, and thou be found guilty.
11 There is a generation that curseth their father,
And doth not bless their mother.
12 There is a generation that are pure in their own eyes,
And yet is not washed from their filthiness.
13 There is a generation, O how lofty are their eyes!
And their eyelids are lifted up.
14 There is a generation, whose teeth are as swords, and their jaw teeth as knives,
To devour the poor from off the earth, and the needy from among men.
15The horseleach hath two daughters, crying, Give, give.
There are three things that are never satisfied,
Yea, four things say not,
It is enough:
16The grave; and the barren womb;
The earth that is not filled with water;
And the fire that saith not, It is enough.
17The eye that mocketh at his father,
And despiseth to obey his mother,
The ravens of the valley shall pick it out,
And the young eagles shall eat it.
18There be three things which are too wonderful for me,
Yea, four which I know not:
19The way of an eagle in the air;
The way of a serpent upon a rock;
The way of a ship in the midst of the sea;
And the way of a man with a maid.
20Such is the way of an adulterous woman;
She eateth, and wipeth her mouth,
And saith, I have done no wickedness.
21For three things the earth is disquieted,
And for four which it cannot bear:
22For a servant when he reigneth;
And a fool when he is filled with meat;
23For an odious woman when she is married;
And an handmaid that is heir to her mistress.
24There be four things which are little upon the earth,
But they are exceeding wise:
25The ants are a people not strong,
Yet they prepare their meat in the summer;
26The conies are but a feeble folk,
Yet make they their houses in the rocks;
27The locusts have no king,
Yet go they forth all of them by bands;
28The spider taketh hold with her hands,
And is in kings' palaces.
29There be three things which go well,
Yea, four are comely in going:
30A lion which is strongest among beasts,
And turneth not away for any;
31An greyhound; an he goat also;
And a king, against whom there is no rising up.
32If thou hast done foolishly in lifting up thyself,
Or if thou hast thought evil,
Lay thine hand upon thy mouth.
33Surely the churning of milk bringeth forth butter,
And the wringing of the nose bringeth forth blood:
So the forcing of wrath bringeth forth strife.
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Proverbs 30: KJV
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Rights in the Authorized (King James) Version in the United Kingdom are vested in the Crown. Published by permission of the Crown’s patentee, Cambridge University Press.
Learn More About King James VersionProverbs 30
30
The Words of Agur
1These are the solemn words of Agur son of Jakeh:
“God is not with me, God is not with me,
and I am helpless.#30.1 Probable text “God… helpless; Hebrew unclear.
2I am more like an animal than a human being;
I do not have the sense a human being should have.
3I have never learned any wisdom,
and I know nothing at all about God.
4Who has ever mastered heavenly knowledge?
Who has ever caught the wind in his hand?
Or wrapped up water in a piece of cloth?
Or fixed the boundaries of the earth?
Who is he, if you know? Who is his son?
5“God keeps every promise he makes. He is like a shield for all who seek his protection. 6If you claim that he said something that he never said, he will reprimand you and show that you are a liar.”
More Proverbs
7I ask you, God, to let me have two things before I die: 8keep me from lying, and let me be neither rich nor poor. So give me only as much food as I need. 9If I have more, I might say that I do not need you. But if I am poor, I might steal and bring disgrace on my God.
10Never criticize servants to their master. You will be cursed and suffer for it.
11There are people who curse their fathers and do not show their appreciation for their mothers.
12There are people who think they are pure when they are as filthy as they can be.
13There are people who think they are so good — oh, how good they think they are!
14There are people who take cruel advantage of the poor and needy; that is the way they make their living.
15A leech has two daughters, and both are named “Give me!”
There are four things that are never satisfied:
16the world of the dead,
a woman without children,
dry ground that needs rain,
and a fire burning out of control.
17Those who make fun of their father or despise their mother in her old age#30.17 One ancient translation mother in her old age; Hebrew mother's obedience. ought to be eaten by vultures or have their eyes picked out by wild ravens.
18There are four things that are too mysterious for me to understand:
19an eagle flying in the sky,
a snake moving on a rock,
a ship finding its way over the sea,
and a man and a woman falling in love.
20This is how an unfaithful wife acts: she commits adultery, has a bath, and says, “But I haven't done anything wrong!”
21There are four things that the earth itself cannot tolerate:
22a slave who becomes a king,
a fool who has all he wants to eat,
23a hateful woman who gets married,
and a servant woman who takes the place of her mistress.
24There are four animals in the world that are small, but very, very clever:
25Ants: they are weak, but they store up their food in the summer.
26Rock-badgers: they are not strong either, but they make their homes among the rocks.
27Locusts: they have no king, but they move in formation.
28Lizards: you can hold one in your hand, but you can find them in palaces.
29There are four things that are impressive to watch as they walk:
30lions, strongest of all animals and afraid of none;
31goats,
strutting cocks,
and kings in front of their people.#30.31 Verse 31 in Hebrew is unclear.
32If you have been foolish enough to be arrogant and plan evil, stop and think! 33If you churn milk, you get butter. If you hit someone's nose, it bleeds. If you stir up anger, you get into trouble.
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Good News Bible with Deuterocanonicals/Apocrypha. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.