Proverbs 30
Christian Standard Bible
The Words of Agur
30 The words of Agur son of Jakeh. The pronouncement.[a](A)
The man’s oration to Ithiel, to Ithiel and Ucal:[b]
2 I am more stupid than any other person,[c]
and I lack a human’s ability to understand.(B)
3 I have not gained wisdom,
and I have no knowledge of the Holy One.(C)
4 Who has gone up to heaven and come down?(D)
Who has gathered the wind in his hands?
Who has bound up the waters in a cloak?(E)
Who has established all the ends of the earth?(F)
What is his name,
and what is the name of his son—
if you know?(G)
5 Every word of God is pure;[d](H)
he is a shield to those who take refuge in him.(I)
6 Don’t add to his words,(J)
or he will rebuke you, and you will be proved a liar.(K)
7 Two things I ask of you;
don’t deny them to me before I die:
8 Keep falsehood and deceitful words far from me.
Give me neither poverty nor wealth;
feed me with the food I need.(L)
9 Otherwise, I might have too much(M)
and deny you,(N) saying, “Who is the Lord?” (O)
or I might have nothing and steal,(P)
profaning[e] the name of my God.(Q)
10 Don’t slander a servant to his master
or he will curse you,(R) and you will become guilty.
11 There is a generation that curses its father
and does not bless its mother.(S)
12 There is a generation that is pure in its own eyes,(T)
yet is not washed from its filth.
13 There is a generation—how haughty its eyes
and pretentious its looks.[f]
14 There is a generation whose teeth are swords,(U)
whose fangs are knives,(V)
devouring the oppressed from the land(W)
and the needy from among mankind.
15 The leech has two daughters: “Give, Give!”
Three things(X) are never satisfied;
four never say, “Enough!”:
16 Sheol;(Y) a childless womb;(Z)
earth, which is never satisfied with water;
and fire, which never says, “Enough!”
17 As for the eye that ridicules a father(AA)
and despises obedience to a mother,
may ravens of the valley pluck it out
and young vultures eat it.(AB)
18 Three things are too wondrous for me;(AC)
four I can’t understand:
19 the 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.
20 This is the way of an adulteress:
she eats and wipes her mouth
and says, “I’ve done nothing wrong.”(AD)
21 The earth trembles under three things;
it cannot bear up under four:
22 a servant when he becomes king,(AE)
a fool when he is stuffed with food,
23 an unloved woman when she marries,(AF)
and a servant girl when she ousts her queen.
24 Four things on earth are small,
yet they are extremely wise:
25 ants are not a strong people,
yet they store up their food in the summer;(AG)
26 hyraxes are not a mighty people,
yet they make their homes in the cliffs;(AH)
27 locusts have no king,
yet all of them march in ranks;(AI)
28 a lizard[g] can be caught in your hands,
yet it lives in kings’ palaces.
29 Three things are stately in their stride;
four are stately in their walk:
30 a lion, which is mightiest among beasts
and doesn’t retreat before anything;
31 a strutting rooster;[h] a goat;
and a king at the head of his army.[i]
32 If you have been foolish by exalting yourself
or if you’ve been scheming,
put your hand over your mouth.(AJ)
33 For the churning of milk produces butter,
and twisting a nose draws blood,
and stirring up anger produces strife.(AK)
Footnotes
- 30:1 Or son of Jakeh from Massa; Pr 31:1
- 30:1 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.
- 30:2 Lit I am more stupid than a man
- 30:5 Lit refined
- 30:9 Lit grabbing
- 30:13 Lit and its eyelids lifted up
- 30:28 Or spider
- 30:31 Or a greyhound
- 30:31 LXX reads king addressing his people
Proverbs 30
New Life Version
The Wisdom of Agur
30 The words of Agur the son of Jakeh of Massa. The man says to Ithiel and Ucal:
2 For sure, I am more foolish than any man, and I do not have the understanding of a man. 3 I have not learned wisdom, and I do not know much about the Holy One. 4 Who has gone up into heaven and come down? Who has gathered the wind in His hands? Who has gathered the waters in His coat? Who has put in place all the ends of the earth? What is His name, and what is His Son’s name? For sure you know!
5 Every word of God has been proven true. He is a safe-covering to those who trust in Him. 6 Do not add to His words, or He will speak strong words to you and prove you to be a liar.
7 Two things I have asked of You. Do not keep me from having them before I die: 8 Take lies and what is false far from me. Do not let me be poor or rich. Feed me with the food that I need. 9 Then I will not be afraid that I will be full and turn my back against You and say, “Who is the Lord?” And I will not be afraid that I will be poor and steal, and bring shame on the name of my God.
10 Do not speak against a slave while talking with his owner, or he may curse you and you will be found guilty.
11 There are those who curse their fathers, and do not honor their mothers. 12 There are people who are pure in their own eyes, but are not washed from their own dirt. 13 There is a kind, O, how proud are his eyes! His eyes are opened wide with pride. 14 There is a kind of man whose teeth are swords, whose jaws are like knives, who eat up those who are suffering from the earth, and those in need from among men.
15 The one who lives by the blood of another has two daughters, “Give,” “Give.” There are three things that are never filled, four that never say, “Enough”: 16 The place of the dead, the woman who cannot have children, the earth that is always thirsty for water, and fire that never says, “Enough.”
17 The eye that makes fun of a father and hates to obey a mother will be picked out by the ravens of the valley and eaten by the young eagles.
18 There are three things which are too great for me, four which 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 out at sea, and the way of a man with a woman.
20 This is the way of a woman who is not faithful in marriage: She eats and washes her mouth, and says, “I have done no wrong.”
21 Under three things the earth shakes, and under four it cannot stand: 22 Under a servant when he becomes king, under a fool when he is filled with food, 23 under a woman who is not loved when she gets a husband, and under a woman servant when she takes the place of the woman of the house.
24 There are four things that are small on the earth, but they are very wise: 25 The ants are not a strong people, but they store up their food in the summer. 26 The badgers are not a strong people, but they make their houses in the rocks. 27 The locusts have no king, but they go as an army. 28 You can take the lizard in your hands, but it is found in kings’ houses.
29 There are three things which have honor in their steps, even four which show honor in their walk: 30 The lion, which is powerful among wild animals and does not turn away from any, 31 the proud rooster, the male goat, and a king when his army is with him.
32 If you have been foolish in honoring yourself, or if you have planned wrong-doing, put your hand on your mouth. 33 Shaking milk makes butter, and hitting the nose brings blood. So fighting comes because of anger.
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