Proverbs 30-31
English Standard Version
The Words of Agur
30 The words of Agur son of Jakeh. The oracle.[a]
The man declares, I am weary, O God;
I am weary, O God, and worn out.[b]
2 Surely I am too (A)stupid to be a man.
I have not the understanding of a man.
3 I have not learned wisdom,
nor have I knowledge of (B)the Holy One.
4 Who has (C)ascended to heaven and come down?
Who has (D)gathered the wind in his fists?
Who has (E)wrapped up the waters in a garment?
Who has established all (F)the ends of the earth?
(G)What is his name, and what is his son's name?
Surely you know!
5 (H)Every word of God proves true;
he is (I)a shield to those who take refuge in him.
6 (J)Do not add to his words,
lest he rebuke you and you be found a liar.
7 Two things I ask of you;
deny them not to me (K)before I die:
8 Remove far from me falsehood and lying;
give me neither poverty nor riches;
feed me with the food that is (L)needful for me,
9 lest I be (M)full and (N)deny you
and say, (O)“Who is the Lord?”
or lest I be poor and steal
(P)and profane the name of my God.
11 There are those[c] who (S)curse their fathers
and do not bless their mothers.
12 There are those who are (T)clean in their own eyes
but are not washed of their filth.
13 There are those—how (U)lofty are their eyes,
how high their eyelids lift!
14 There are those whose teeth are (V)swords,
whose (W)fangs are knives,
to (X)devour the poor from off the earth,
the needy from among mankind.
15 The leech has two daughters:
Give and Give.[d]
(Y)Three things are never satisfied;
(Z)four never say, “Enough”:
16 (AA)Sheol, (AB)the barren womb,
the land never satisfied with water,
and the fire that never says, “Enough.”
17 The eye that (AC)mocks a father
and (AD)scorns to obey a mother
will (AE)be picked out by (AF)the ravens of the valley
and eaten by the vultures.
18 (AG)Three things are (AH)too wonderful for me;
(AI)four I do not understand:
19 the way of an eagle in the sky,
the way of a serpent on a rock,
the way of a ship on the high seas,
and the way of a man with a virgin.
20 This is the way of an adulteress:
she eats and wipes her mouth
and says, “I have done no wrong.”
21 Under (AJ)three things (AK)the earth trembles;
under (AL)four it cannot bear up:
22 (AM)a slave when he becomes king,
and a fool when he is (AN)filled with food;
23 (AO)an unloved woman when she (AP)gets a husband,
and a maidservant when she displaces her mistress.
24 (AQ)Four things on earth are small,
but they are exceedingly wise:
25 (AR)the ants are a people not strong,
yet they provide their food in the summer;
26 (AS)the rock badgers are a people not mighty,
yet they make their homes in the cliffs;
27 the locusts have no (AT)king,
yet all of them march in (AU)rank;
28 the lizard you can take in your hands,
yet it is in kings' palaces.
29 (AV)Three things are stately in their tread;
(AW)four are stately in their stride:
30 the lion, which is mightiest among beasts
and (AX)does not turn back before any;
31 the (AY)strutting rooster,[e] the he-goat,
and a king whose army is with him.[f]
32 If you have been foolish, exalting yourself,
or if you have been devising evil,
(AZ)put your hand on your mouth.
33 For pressing milk produces curds,
pressing the nose produces blood,
and pressing anger produces strife.
The Words of King Lemuel
31 The words of King Lemuel. An oracle that his mother taught him:
2 What are you doing, my son?[g] What are you doing, (BA)son of my womb?
What are you doing, (BB)son of my vows?
3 Do (BC)not give your strength to women,
your ways to those (BD)who destroy kings.
4 (BE)It is not for kings, O Lemuel,
it is not for kings (BF)to drink wine,
or for rulers to take (BG)strong drink,
5 lest they drink and forget what has been decreed
and (BH)pervert the rights of all the afflicted.
6 Give strong drink to the one who (BI)is perishing,
and wine to (BJ)those in bitter distress;[h]
7 (BK)let them drink and forget their poverty
and remember their misery no more.
8 (BL)Open your mouth for the mute,
for the rights of all who are destitute.[i]
9 Open your mouth, (BM)judge righteously,
(BN)defend the rights of (BO)the poor and needy.
The Woman Who Fears the Lord
10 [j] (BP)An excellent wife who can find?
She is far more precious than (BQ)jewels.
11 The heart of her husband trusts in her,
and he will have no lack of gain.
12 She does him good, and not harm,
all the days of her life.
13 She (BR)seeks wool and flax,
and works with willing hands.
14 She is like the ships of the merchant;
she brings her food from afar.
15 She (BS)rises while it is yet night
and (BT)provides food for her household
and portions for her maidens.
16 She considers a field and buys it;
with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard.
17 She (BU)dresses herself[k] with strength
and makes her arms strong.
18 She perceives that her merchandise is profitable.
Her lamp does not go out at night.
19 She puts her hands to the distaff,
and her hands hold the spindle.
20 She (BV)opens her hand to (BW)the poor
and reaches out her hands to (BX)the needy.
21 She is not afraid of snow for her household,
for all her household are clothed in (BY)scarlet.[l]
22 She makes (BZ)bed coverings for herself;
her clothing is (CA)fine linen and (CB)purple.
23 Her husband is known in (CC)the gates
when he sits among the elders of the land.
24 She makes (CD)linen garments and sells them;
she delivers sashes to the merchant.
25 (CE)Strength and dignity are her clothing,
and she laughs at the time to come.
26 She opens her mouth with wisdom,
and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.
27 She looks well to the ways of her household
and does not eat the bread of idleness.
28 Her children rise up and call her blessed;
her husband also, and he praises her:
29 “Many (CF)women have done (CG)excellently,
but you surpass them all.”
30 (CH)Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain,
but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.
31 Give her of the fruit of her hands,
and let her works praise her in the gates.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 30:1 Or Jakeh, the man of Massa
- Proverbs 30:1 Revocalization; Hebrew The man declares to Ithiel, to Ithiel and Ucal
- Proverbs 30:11 Hebrew There is a generation; also verses 12, 13, 14
- Proverbs 30:15 Or “Give, give,” they cry
- Proverbs 30:31 Or the magpie, or the greyhound; Hebrew girt-of-loins
- Proverbs 30:31 Or against whom there is no rising up
- Proverbs 31:2 Hebrew What, my son?
- Proverbs 31:6 Hebrew those bitter in soul
- Proverbs 31:8 Hebrew are sons of passing away
- Proverbs 31:10 Verses 10–31 are an acrostic poem, each verse beginning with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet
- Proverbs 31:17 Hebrew She girds her loins
- Proverbs 31:21 Or in double thickness
Revelation 22
English Standard Version
The River of Life
22 Then the angel[a] showed me (A)the river of (B)the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 through the middle of (C)the street of the city; (D)also, on either side of the river, (E)the tree of life[b] with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were (F)for the healing of the nations. 3 (G)No longer will there be anything accursed, but (H)the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and (I)his servants will worship him. 4 (J)They will see his face, and (K)his name will be on their foreheads. 5 And (L)night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp (M)or sun, for (N)the Lord God will be their light, and (O)they will reign forever and ever.
Jesus Is Coming
6 And he said to me, (P)“These words are trustworthy and true. And the Lord, the God of (Q)the spirits of the prophets, (R)has sent his angel to show his servants what must soon take place.”
7 “And behold, (S)I am coming soon. (T)Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.”
8 I, (U)John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw them, (V)I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed them to me, 9 (W)but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers the prophets, and with those (X)who keep the words of this book. Worship God.”
10 And he said to me, (Y)“Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near. 11 (Z)Let the evildoer still do evil, and the filthy still be filthy, and the righteous still do right, and the holy still be holy.”
12 “Behold, (AA)I am coming soon, (AB)bringing my recompense with me, (AC)to repay each one for what he has done. 13 (AD)I am the Alpha and the Omega, (AE)the first and the last, (AF)the beginning and the end.”
14 Blessed are those who (AG)wash their robes,[c] so that they may have the right to (AH)the tree of life and that (AI)they may enter the city by the gates. 15 (AJ)Outside are (AK)the dogs (AL)and sorcerers and the sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.
16 (AM)“I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you about these things (AN)for the churches. I am (AO)the root and (AP)the descendant of David, (AQ)the bright morning star.”
17 The Spirit and (AR)the Bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And (AS)let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the (AT)water of life without price.
18 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: (AU)if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, 19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in (AV)the tree of life and in (AW)the holy city, which are described in this book.
20 He who testifies to these things says, “Surely (AX)I am coming soon.” Amen. (AY)Come, Lord Jesus!
21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all.[d] Amen.
Footnotes
- Revelation 22:1 Greek he
- Revelation 22:2 Or the Lamb. In the midst of the street of the city, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life
- Revelation 22:14 Some manuscripts do his commandments
- Revelation 22:21 Some manuscripts all the saints
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
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