Proverbs 30

1 The words of Agur the son of Jakeh; The oracle. The man saith unto Ithiel, unto Ithiel and Ucal:

2 Surely I am more brutish than any man, And have not the understanding of a man;

3 And I have not learned wisdom, Neither have I the knowledge of the Holy One.

4 Who hath ascended up into heaven, and descended? Who hath gathered the wind in his fists? Who hath bound the waters in his garment? Who hath established all the ends of the earth? What is his name, and what is his son’s name, if thou knowest?

5 Every word of God is tried: He is a shield unto them that take refuge in him.

6 Add thou not unto his words, Lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar.

7 Two things have I asked of thee; Deny me them not before I die:

8 Remove far from me falsehood and lies; Give me neither poverty nor riches; Feed me with the food that is needful for me:

9 Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is Jehovah? Or lest I be poor, and steal, And use profanely the name of my God.

10 Slander not a servant unto his master, Lest he curse thee, and thou be held guilty.

11 There is a generation that curse their father, And bless not their mother.

12 There is a generation that are pure in their own eyes, And yet are not washed from their filthiness.

13 There is a generation, oh 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 that say not, Enough:

16 Sheol; and the barren womb; The earth that is not satisfied with water; And the fire that saith not, 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 are 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 maiden.

20 So 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 doth tremble, And for four, which it cannot bear:

22 For a servant when he is king; And a fool when he is filled with food;

23 For an odious woman when she is married; And a handmaid that is heir to her mistress.

24 There are four things which are little upon the earth, But they are exceeding wise:

25 The ants are a people not strong, Yet they provide their food 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 lizard taketh hold with her hands, Yet is she in kings’ palaces.

29 There are three things which are stately in their march, Yea, four which are stately in going:

30 The lion, which is mightiest among beasts, And turneth not away for any;

31 The greyhound; the he-goat also; And the 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 thy hand upon thy mouth.

33 For 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

The sayings of Agur

1 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?t

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 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 Greedt 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 vultures will eat
the rest of you.

18 There are three or four things
I cannot understand:

19 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,t 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 cocks,
those mountain goats,
and those rulers
who have no enemies.t

32 If you are foolishly boasting
or planning something evil,
then stop it now!

33 If you churn milk
you get butter;
if you hit your nose,
you get blood—
and if you stay angry,
you get in trouble.