Proverbs 30
30
The Words of Agur
1The words of Agur son of Jakeh. The oracle. # Or son of Jakeh from Massa ; Pr 31:1 # Nm 24:3; Pr 31:1; Nah 1:1; Hab 1:1; Zch 9:1; Mal 1:1
The man’s oration to Ithiel, to Ithiel and Ucal: # Hb uncertain. Sometimes read with different word division as oration: I am weary, God, I am weary, God, and I am exhausted, or oration: I am not God, I am not God, that I should prevail. LXX reads My son, fear my words and when you have received them repent. The man says these things to the believers in God, and I pause.
2I am more stupid than any other man, # Lit I am more stupid than a man
and I lack man’s ability to understand. # 1Kg 3:7
3I have not gained wisdom,
and I have no knowledge of the Holy One. # Pr 9:10
4Who has gone up to heaven and come down? # Jn 3:13; Eph 4:9-10
Who has gathered the wind in His hands?
Who has bound up the waters in a cloak? # Jb 26:8; 38:9
Who has established all the ends of the earth? # Jb 38:4-5; Ps 93:1; 119:90; Is 45:18
What is His name,
and what is the name of His Son —
if you know? # Mt 11:27; Rv 19:12-13
5Every word of God is pure; # Lit refined # Ps 12:6; 18:30
He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him. # Ps 3:3
6Don’t add to His words, # Dt 4:2; 12:32; Rv 22:18
or He will rebuke you, and you will be proved a liar. # Dt 18:22
7Two things I ask of You;
don’t deny them to me before I die:
8Keep falsehood and deceitful words far from me.
Give me neither poverty nor wealth;
feed me with the food I need. # Jb 23:12; Mt 6:11; Php 4:11-12
9Otherwise, I might have too much # Dt 6:10-12; 8:11-14
and deny You, # Jos 24:27; Jb 31:28 saying, “Who is the Lord? ” # Ex 5:2
or I might have nothing and steal, # Ex 20:5; Eph 4:28
profaning # Lit grabbing the name of my God. # Lv 19:11-12
10Don’t slander a servant to his master
or he will curse you, # Ec 7:21 and you will become guilty.
11There is a generation that curses its father
and does not bless its mother. # Ex 21:17; Pr 20:20
12There is a generation that is pure in its own eyes, # Pr 16:2; Lk 18:11
yet is not washed from its filth.
13There is a generation — how haughty its eyes
and pretentious its looks. # Lit and its eyelids lifted up
14There is a generation whose teeth are swords, # Ps 57:4
whose fangs are knives, # Jb 29:17
devouring the oppressed from the land # Ps 14:4
and the needy from among mankind.
15The leech has two daughters: “Give, Give!”
Three things # Pr 6:16; 30:18,21,29 are never satisfied;
four never say, “Enough! ”:
16Sheol; # Pr 27:20; Hab 2:5 a childless womb; # Gn 30:1
earth, which is never satisfied with water;
and fire, which never says, “Enough! ”
17As for the eye that ridicules a father # Gn 9:22
and despises obedience to a mother,
may ravens of the valley pluck it out
and young vultures eat it. # Dt 28:26
18Three things are beyond me;
four I can’t understand:
19the way of an eagle in the sky,
the way of a snake on a rock,
the way of a ship at sea,
and the way of a man with a young woman.
20This is the way of an adulteress:
she eats and wipes her mouth
and says, “I’ve done nothing wrong.” # Pr 28:24; 1Jn 1:8
21The earth trembles under three things;
it cannot bear up under four:
22a servant when he becomes king, # Pr 19:10; Ec 10:7
a fool when he is stuffed with food,
23an unloved woman when she marries, # Gn 29:30-31; Dt 21:15
and a servant girl when she ousts her queen.
24Four things on earth are small,
yet they are extremely wise:
25the ants are not a strong people,
yet they store up their food in the summer; # Pr 6:6-8
26hyraxes are not a mighty people,
yet they make their homes in the cliffs; # Lv 11:5; Ps 104:18
27locusts have no king,
yet all of them march in ranks; # Jl 2:7-8
28a lizard # Or spider can be caught in your hands,
yet it lives in kings’ palaces.
29Three things are stately in their stride,
even four are stately in their walk:
30a lion, which is mightiest among beasts
and doesn’t retreat before anything,
31a strutting rooster, # Or a greyhound a goat,
and a king at the head of his army. # LXX reads king addressing his people
32If you have been foolish by exalting yourself
or if you’ve been scheming,
put your hand over your mouth. # Jb 21:5; Mc 7:16
33For the churning of milk produces butter,
and twisting a nose draws blood,
and stirring up anger produces strife. # Pr 10:12; 29:22
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Proverbs 30: HCSB
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© 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville, Tennessee. All rights reserved.
Proverbs 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.