Proverbs 30
1 The words of Agur, son of Jakeh, [even] the oracle, —The utterance of the man, for Ithiel, for Ithiel and Ucal.
These are sayings/messages that God gave to Agur, the son of Jakeh. [Agur wrote them] for Ithiel and Ucal.
2 Surely, more brutish, am, I, than any man, nor doth, the understanding of a son of earth, pertain to me;
It seems that I am very stupid; I do not deserve to be considered to be a human; I do not have the good sense that humans should have.
3 Neither have I learned wisdom, nor, the knowledge of the Holy Ones, can I acquire.
I have not learned [how to become] wise and I do not know [much] about God.
4 Who hath ascended the heavens and then descended? Who hath gathered the wind into his two hands? Who hath wrapped up the waters in a mantle? Who hath set up all the ends of the earth? What is his name and what the name of his son, when thou knowest?
[But let me say this]: No one [RHQ] has ascended to heaven [to find out what God is like] and returned [to tell us]. No one [RHQ] has gathered/held the wind in his hand. No one [RHQ] has wrapped the water [in the ocean] in [a piece of] cloth, and no one [RHQ] has established the boundaries of the earth. [If you know who has done those things, tell me] [RHQ] his name, and the names of his children [SAR]! [But you do not know who has done those things, so you cannot speak with authority about what God is like].
5 Every saying of God is refined, A shield, is, he, to them who seek refuge in him.
Everything that God has said is true; he is [like] a shield [MET] for all those who request him to protect them.
6 Do not add unto his words, lest he convict thee, and thou be found false.
Do not add to (OR, change) what God has said; if you do that, he will rebuke you and show that you are lying.
7 Two things, have I asked of thee, withhold them not from me, ere yet I die:
[God], I ask you to do two things for me; [please] do them before I die:
8 Vanity and falsehood, remove far from me, Neither poverty nor riches, give me, Feed me with the food appointed me:
Help me never to lie or deceive [people] and do not cause me to become poor or to become rich. [Just] give me the food that I need;
9 Lest I be full, and deny, and say—Who is Yahweh? or lest I be impoverished and steal, and do violence to the Name of my God.
because if I become rich, I might say that I do not [RHQ] know you and that I do not need you; and if I become poor, I might dishonor you by stealing things.
10 Do not slander a servant to his master, lest he revile thee, and thou be found guilty.
Do not (slander/say bad things about) a worker to his boss; if you do that, the worker will curse you, and cause you to have trouble.
11 A generation! Its father, it revileth, and, its mother, it doth not bless.
[I will list four kinds of evil things that people do]: Some people curse their fathers and do not [ask God to] bless their mothers.
12 A generation! Pure in its own eyes, yet, from its filth, hath it not been bathed,
Some people think that they are perfect, but [really] they have never been cleansed from their guilt for committing disgusting sins.
13 A generation! How lofty are its eyes, and its eyelashes uplifted.
Some people are very proud; they think that they are very good and they despise others.
14 A generation! Swords, are its teeth, and, knives, its incisors, —to devour the humbled out of the earth, and the needy, from among men.
Some people [act very cruelly toward others]; [it is as though] [MET] they have teeth that are [like] sharp knives; they severely oppress poor [people] and try to cause them to disappear from the land.
15 The vampire, hath two daughters, Give! Give! Three, there are will not be satisfied, four, have not said, Enough!
Leeches [are always wanting more blood to suck]; [similarly, greedy people are always] saying “Give [me some]!” or “Give [me more]!” [MET] There are four things that are never (satisfied/content with what they have); they always want more [LIT]:
16 Hades, and barrenness, —A land not satisfied with water, and fire, that saith not, Enough! (Sheol h7585)
The place where the dead people are; women who do not have any children; ground that needs water/rain; and a fire that always needs more wood. (Sheol h7585)
17 The eye that mocketh a father, and despiseth to obey a mother, the ravens of the valley shall pick it out, and the young of the eagle shall eat it.
Those who [SYN] make fun of their fathers or refuse to obey their mothers (OR, despise their aged mothers) should [die and] have their eyes pecked out by crows, and the [rest of their corpses should be] fed to the vultures.
18 Three, things there are, too difficult for me, yea, four, which I do not understand:
There are four things that are wonderful to me, [but] I do not understand any of them:
19 The way of an eagle in the heavens, the way of a serpent on the rock, —the way of a ship in the heart of the sea, and the way of a man with a maid.
How eagles fly in the sky, how snakes [are able to] move/crawl across a big rock, how ships sail on the seas, and how a man falls in love with a woman.
20 So, is the way of a woman committing adultery, —she eateth, and wipeth her mouth, and saith, I have done no iniquity!
This is what a woman who (is not faithful to/does not have sex only with) her husband does: She commits adultery [EUP], and [then] bathes and says, “I have not done anything that is wrong!”
21 Under three things, a land is stirred, yea, under four, she cannot bear up:
There are four things that no [one in] the world can tolerate:
22 Under a servant, when he reigneth, and a base man, when he is surfeited with food;
[What] a slave [does who] becomes a king, a foolish person eating [too much] food,
23 Under a hateful woman, when she is married, and a handmaid when she driveth out her mistress.
[what] a woman who is hated [does when she] gets married, and [what] a female servant [does when she] becomes the boss instead of her mistress.
24 Four, things there are, the small of the earth, —yet, they, are wiser than the wise:
[There are] four animals on the earth that are small, but they are very wise:
25 The ants, a people, not strong, —yet prepare they, in summer, their food;
Ants are not strong, but they store up food during the summer [in order to have it during the winter].
26 The conies, a people of, no power, yet set they, among the crags, their house;
Rock badgers [also] are not strong, but they make their homes among the rocks [where they will be safe].
27 King, is there none, to, the locusts, —yet go forth in swarms, do they all;
Locusts do not have a king, but they march like [the soldiers in] an army.
28 The lizard, with hands, reneweth its hold, —yet, the same, is in the palaces of the king.
Lizards/Geckos [are very small and] you can hold them in your hand, but they are [cleverly able to get] inside kings’ palaces.
29 Three, things there are which step along well, ye, four, which excel in going:
[There are] four animals that strut around and look very impressive while they walk [DOU]:
30 The lion, hero among beasts, which turneth aside from the face of no one;
Lions, which are stronger than all other animals and are not afraid of any of them;
31 The greyhound, or the he-goat, —and a king, having a band of soldiers with him.
male goats, strutting roosters, and kings who (parade/walk proudly back and forth) in front of the people whom they rule.
32 If thou hast acted basely by lifting thyself up, —if thou hast plotted evil, [put thy] hand to [thy] mouth!
If you have acted foolishly, exalting yourself, or if you been planning [to do something] evil, stop it immediately [IDM]!
33 Surely, the pressing of milk, bringeth forth curd, and, the pressing of the nose, bringeth forth blood, and, the pressing of wrath, bringeth forth strife.
If you churn milk, it produces butter/curds, and if you hit [someone hard on his] nose, [his nose] bleeds; similarly, if you do something to cause [people to become] angry, strife [usually] results.
