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Proverbs 30
New International Version
Proverbs 30
New International Version
Sayings of Agur
30 The sayings(A) of Agur son of Jakeh—an inspired utterance.
This man’s utterance to Ithiel:
“I am weary, God,
but I can prevail.[a]
2 Surely I am only a brute, not a man;
I do not have human understanding.
3 I have not learned wisdom,
nor have I attained to the knowledge of the Holy One.(B)
4 Who has gone up(C) to heaven and come down?
Whose hands(D) have gathered up the wind?
Who has wrapped up the waters(E) in a cloak?(F)
Who has established all the ends of the earth?
What is his name,(G) and what is the name of his son?
Surely you know!
5 “Every word of God is flawless;(H)
he is a shield(I) to those who take refuge in him.
6 Do not add(J) to his words,
or he will rebuke you and prove you a liar.
7 “Two things I ask of you, Lord;
do not refuse me before I die:
8 Keep falsehood and lies far from me;
give me neither poverty nor riches,
but give me only my daily bread.(K)
9 Otherwise, I may have too much and disown(L) you
and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’(M)
Or I may become poor and steal,
and so dishonor the name of my God.(N)
10 “Do not slander a servant to their master,
or they will curse you, and you will pay for it.
11 “There are those who curse their fathers
and do not bless their mothers;(O)
12 those who are pure in their own eyes(P)
and yet are not cleansed of their filth;(Q)
13 those whose eyes are ever so haughty,(R)
whose glances are so disdainful;
14 those whose teeth(S) are swords
and whose jaws are set with knives(T)
to devour(U) the poor(V) from the earth
and the needy from among mankind.(W)
15 “The leech has two daughters.
‘Give! Give!’ they cry.
“There are three things that are never satisfied,(X)
four that never say, ‘Enough!’:
16 the grave,(Y) the barren womb,
land, which is never satisfied with water,
and fire, which never says, ‘Enough!’
17 “The eye that mocks(Z) a father,
that scorns an aged mother,
will be pecked out by the ravens of the valley,
will be eaten by the vultures.(AA)
18 “There are three things that are too amazing for me,
four that I do not understand:
19 the way of an eagle in the sky,
the way of a snake on a rock,
the way of a ship on the high seas,
and the way of a man with a young woman.
20 “This is the way of an adulterous woman:
She eats and wipes her mouth
and says, ‘I’ve done nothing wrong.’(AB)
21 “Under three things the earth trembles,
under four it cannot bear up:
22 a servant who becomes king,(AC)
a godless fool who gets plenty to eat,
23 a contemptible woman who gets married,
and a servant who displaces her mistress.
24 “Four things on earth are small,
yet they are extremely wise:
25 Ants are creatures of little strength,
yet they store up their food in the summer;(AD)
26 hyraxes(AE) are creatures of little power,
yet they make their home in the crags;
27 locusts(AF) have no king,
yet they advance together in ranks;
28 a lizard can be caught with the hand,
yet it is found in kings’ palaces.
29 “There are three things that are stately in their stride,
four that move with stately bearing:
30 a lion, mighty among beasts,
who retreats before nothing;
31 a strutting rooster, a he-goat,
and a king secure against revolt.[b]
32 “If you play the fool and exalt yourself,
or if you plan evil,
clap your hand over your mouth!(AG)
33 For as churning cream produces butter,
and as twisting the nose produces blood,
so stirring up anger produces strife.”
Footnotes
- Proverbs 30:1 With a different word division of the Hebrew; Masoretic Text utterance to Ithiel, / to Ithiel and Ukal:
- Proverbs 30:31 The meaning of the Hebrew for this phrase is uncertain.
Proverbs 30
New American Standard Bible
Proverbs 30
New American Standard Bible
The Words of Agur
30 The words of Agur the son of Jakeh, the pronouncement.
The man declares to Ithiel, to Ithiel and Ucal:
2 I am certainly more (A)stupid than any man,
And I do not have the understanding of a man;
3 Nor have I learned wisdom,
Nor do I have the (B)knowledge of the Holy One.
4 Who has (C)ascended into heaven and descended?
Who has gathered the (D)wind in His fists?
Who has (E)wrapped the waters in [a]His garment?
Who has (F)established all the ends of the earth?
What is His (G)name or His [b]Son’s name?
Surely you know!
5 Every (H)word of God is [c]pure;
He is a (I)shield to those who take refuge in Him.
6 (J)Do not add to His words
Or He will rebuke you, and you will be proved a liar.
7 Two things I have asked of You;
Do not refuse me before I die:
8 Keep deception and [d]lies far from me,
Give me neither poverty nor riches;
Feed me with the (K)food that is my portion,
9 So that I will not be (L)full and deny (M)You and say, “Who is the Lord?”
And that I will not become (N)impoverished and steal,
And (O)profane the name of my God.
10 Do not slander a slave to his master,
Or he will (P)curse you and you will be found guilty.
11 There is a [e]kind of person who (Q)curses his father
And does not bless his mother.
12 There is a [f]kind who is (R)pure in his own eyes,
Yet is not washed from his filthiness.
13 There is a [g]kind—oh how (S)lofty are his eyes!
And his eyelids are raised in arrogance.
14 There is a [h]kind of person whose (T)teeth are like swords
And his (U)jaw teeth like knives,
To (V)devour the poor from the earth
And the needy from among mankind.
15 The leech has two daughters:
“Give” and “Give.”
There are three things that will not be satisfied,
Four that will not say, “Enough”:
16 [i](W)Sheol, the (X)infertile womb,
Earth that is never satisfied with water,
And fire that never says, “Enough.”
17 The eye that (Y)mocks a father
And [j](Z)scorns a mother,
The (AA)ravens of the valley will pick it out,
And the young (AB)eagles will eat it.
18 There are three things which are too wonderful for me,
Four which I do not understand:
19 The way of the (AC)eagle in the sky,
The way of a snake on a rock,
The way of a ship in the middle of the sea,
And the way of a man with a [k]virgin.
20 This is the way of an (AD)adulterous woman:
She eats and wipes her mouth,
And says, “I have done no wrong.”
21 Under three things the earth quakes,
And under four, it cannot endure:
22 Under a (AE)slave when he becomes king,
And a fool when he is satisfied with food,
23 Under an unloved woman when she gets a husband,
And a female servant when she dispossesses her mistress.
24 Four things are small on the earth,
But they are exceedingly wise:
25 The (AF)ants are not a strong people,
But they prepare their food in the summer;
26 The (AG)rock hyraxes are not a mighty people,
Yet they make their houses in the rocks;
27 The locusts have no king,
Yet all of them go out in (AH)ranks;
28 The lizard you may grasp with the hands,
Yet it is in kings’ palaces.
29 There are three things which are stately in their march,
Even four which are stately when they walk:
30 The lion, which is (AI)mighty among animals
And does not [l](AJ)retreat from anything,
31 The [m]strutting rooster or the male goat,
And a king when his army is with him.
32 If you have been foolish in exalting yourself,
Or if you have plotted evil, (AK)put your hand on your mouth.
33 For the [n]churning of milk produces butter,
And pressing the nose produces blood;
So the [o]churning of (AL)anger produces strife.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 30:4 Lit the
- Proverbs 30:4 Or son’s
- Proverbs 30:5 Lit refined
- Proverbs 30:8 Lit words of falsehood
- Proverbs 30:11 Or generation
- Proverbs 30:12 Or generation
- Proverbs 30:13 Or generation
- Proverbs 30:14 Or generation
- Proverbs 30:16 I.e., The netherworld
- Proverbs 30:17 Lit despises to obey
- Proverbs 30:19 Lit young unmarried woman
- Proverbs 30:30 Lit turn back
- Proverbs 30:31 Lit girt in the loins
- Proverbs 30:33 Lit pressing
- Proverbs 30:33 Lit pressing
Proverbs 30
King James Version
Proverbs 30
King James Version
30 The words of Agur the son of Jakeh, even the prophecy: the man spake unto Ithiel, even unto Ithiel and Ucal,
2 Surely I am more brutish than any man, and have not the understanding of a man.
3 I neither learned wisdom, nor have the knowledge of the holy.
4 Who 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?
5 Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him.
6 Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar.
7 Two things have I required of thee; deny me them not before I die:
8 Remove far from me vanity and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me:
9 Lest 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.
10 Accuse 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.
15 The horseleach hath two daughters, crying, Give, give. There are three things that are never satisfied, yea, four things say not, It is enough:
16 The grave; and the barren womb; the earth that is not filled with water; and the fire that saith not, It is enough.
17 The 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.
18 There be three things which are too wonderful for me, yea, four which I know not:
19 The 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.
20 Such is the way of an adulterous woman; she eateth, and wipeth her mouth, and saith, I have done no wickedness.
21 For three things the earth is disquieted, and for four which it cannot bear:
22 For a servant when he reigneth; and a fool when he is filled with meat;
23 For an odious woman when she is married; and an handmaid that is heir to her mistress.
24 There be four things which are little upon the earth, but they are exceeding wise:
25 The ants are a people not strong, yet they prepare their meat in the summer;
26 The conies are but a feeble folk, yet make they their houses in the rocks;
27 The locusts have no king, yet go they forth all of them by bands;
28 The spider taketh hold with her hands, and is in kings' palaces.
29 There be three things which go well, yea, four are comely in going:
30 A lion which is strongest among beasts, and turneth not away for any;
31 A greyhound; an he goat also; and a king, against whom there is no rising up.
32 If thou hast done foolishly in lifting up thyself, or if thou hast thought evil, lay thine hand upon thy mouth.
33 Surely the churning of milk bringeth forth butter, and the wringing of the nose bringeth forth blood: so the forcing of wrath bringeth forth strife.
Proverbs 30
Contemporary English Version
Proverbs 30
Contemporary English Version
The Sayings of Agur
30 These are the sayings
and the message
of Agur son of Jakeh.
Someone cries out to God,
“I am completely worn out!
How can I last?[a]
2 I am far too stupid
to be considered human.
3 I never was wise,
and I don't understand
what God is like.”
4 (A) Has anyone gone up to heaven
and come back down?
Has anyone grabbed hold
of the wind?
Has anyone wrapped up the sea
or marked out boundaries
for the earth?
If you know of any
who have done such things,
then tell me their names
and their children's names.
5 Everything God says is true—
and it's a shield for all
who come to him for safety.
6 Don't change what God has said!
He will correct you and show
that you are a liar.
7 There are two things, Lord,
I want you to do for me
before I die:
8 Make me absolutely honest
and don't let me be too poor
or too rich.
Give me just what I need.
9 If I have too much to eat,
I might forget about you;
if I don't have enough,
I might steal
and disgrace your name.
10 Don't tell a slave owner
something bad about one
of the slaves.
That slave will curse you,
and you will be in trouble.
11 Some people curse their father
and even their mother;
12 others think they are perfect,
but they are stained by sin.
13 Some people are stuck-up
and act like snobs;
14 others are so greedy
that they gobble up
the poor and homeless.
15 Greed[b] has twins,
each named “Give me!”
There are three or four things
that are never satisfied:
16 The world of the dead
and a childless wife,
the thirsty earth
and a flaming fire.
17 Don't make fun of your father
or disobey your mother—
crows will peck out your eyes,
and buzzards will eat
the rest of you.
18 There are three or four things
I cannot understand:
19 (B) How eagles fly so high
or snakes crawl on rocks,
how ships sail the ocean
or people fall in love.
20 An unfaithful wife says,
“Sleeping with another man
is as natural as eating.”
21 There are three or four things
that make the earth tremble
and are unbearable:
22 A slave who becomes king,
a fool who eats too much,
23 a hateful woman
who finds a husband,
and a slave who takes the place
of the woman who owns her.
24 On this earth four things
are small but very wise:
25 Ants, who seem to be feeble,
but store up food
all summer long;
26 badgers, who seem to be weak,
but live among the rocks;
27 locusts, who have no king,
but march like an army;
28 lizards,[c] which can be caught
in your hand,
but sneak into palaces.
29 Three or four creatures
really strut around:
30 Those fearless lions
who rule the jungle,
31 those proud roosters,
those mountain goats,
and those rulers
who have no enemies.[d]
32 If you are foolishly bragging
or planning something evil,
then stop it now!
33 If you churn milk
you get butter;
if you pound on your nose,
you get blood—
and if you stay angry,
you get in trouble.
New International Version (NIV) 
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New American Standard Bible (NASB) 
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Contemporary English Version (CEV) 
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