Proverbs 30
1 These are sayings/messages that God gave to Agur, the son of Jakeh. [Agur wrote them] for Ithiel and Ucal.
Words of Agur, son of Jakeh, the burden, a declaration of the man to Ithiel—to Ithiel and Ucal: I have wearied myself [for] God, I have wearied myself [for] God, and am consumed.
2 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.
For I am more brutish than anyone, And do not have the understanding of a man.
3 I have not learned [how to become] wise and I do not know [much] about God.
Nor have I learned wisdom, Yet I know the knowledge of the Holy Ones.
4 [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].
Who went up to the heavens, and comes down? Who has gathered the wind in His fists? Who has bound waters in a garment? Who established all ends of the earth? What [is] His Name? And what [is] His Son’s Name? Surely you know!
5 Everything that God has said is true; he is [like] a shield [MET] for all those who request him to protect them.
Every saying of God [is] tried, He [is] a shield to those trusting in Him.
6 Do not add to (OR, change) what God has said; if you do that, he will rebuke you and show that you are lying.
Do not add to His words, lest He reason with you, And you have been found false.
7 [God], I ask you to do two things for me; [please] do them before I die:
Two things I have asked from You, Do not withhold from me before I die.
8 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;
Put vanity and a lying word far from me, Do not give poverty or wealth to me, Cause me to eat the bread of my portion,
9 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.
Lest I become satiated, and have denied, And have said, “Who [is] YHWH?” And lest I am poor, and have stolen, And have laid hold of the Name of my God.
10 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.
Do not accuse a servant to his lord, Lest he disapprove of you, and you are found guilty.
11 [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.
A generation lightly esteems their father, And does not bless their mother.
12 Some people think that they are perfect, but [really] they have never been cleansed from their guilt for committing disgusting sins.
A generation—pure in their own eyes, But not washed from their own filth.
13 Some people are very proud; they think that they are very good and they despise others.
A generation—how high are their eyes, Indeed, their eyelids are lifted up.
14 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.
A generation—their teeth [are] swords, And their jaw-teeth [are] knives, To consume the poor from earth, And the needy from [among] men.
15 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]:
To the leech [are] two daughters—Give! Give! Behold, three things are not satisfied, Four have not said “Sufficiency”;
16 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)
Sheol, and a restrained womb, Earth—it [is] not satisfied [with] water, And fire—it has not said, “Sufficiency,” (Sheol h7585)
17 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.
An eye that mocks at a father, And despises to obey a mother, Ravens of the valley dig it out, And young eagles eat it.
18 There are four things that are wonderful to me, [but] I do not understand any of them:
Three things have been too wonderful for me, Indeed, four that I have not known:
19 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.
The way of the eagle in the heavens, The way of a serpent on a rock, The way of a ship in the heart of the sea, And the way of a man in youth.
20 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!”
So—the way of an adulterous woman, She has eaten and has wiped her mouth, And has said, “I have not done iniquity.”
21 There are four things that no [one in] the world can tolerate:
For three things has earth been troubled, And for four—it is not able to bear:
22 [What] a slave [does who] becomes a king, a foolish person eating [too much] food,
For a servant when he reigns, And a fool when he is satisfied with bread,
23 [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.
For a hated one when she rules, And a maidservant when she succeeds her mistress.
24 [There are] four animals on the earth that are small, but they are very wise:
Four [are] little ones of earth, And they are made wiser than the wise:
25 Ants are not strong, but they store up food during the summer [in order to have it during the winter].
The ants [are] a people not strong, And they prepare their food in summer,
26 Rock badgers [also] are not strong, but they make their homes among the rocks [where they will be safe].
hyraxes [are] a people not strong, And they place their house in a rock,
27 Locusts do not have a king, but they march like [the soldiers in] an army.
There is no king to the locust, And it goes out—each one shouting,
28 Lizards/Geckos [are very small and] you can hold them in your hand, but they are [cleverly able to get] inside kings’ palaces.
A spider with two hands takes hold, And is in the palaces of a king.
29 [There are] four animals that strut around and look very impressive while they walk [DOU]:
There are three going well, Indeed, four are good in going:
30 Lions, which are stronger than all other animals and are not afraid of any of them;
An old lion—mighty among beasts, That does not turn back from the face of any,
31 male goats, strutting roosters, and kings who (parade/walk proudly back and forth) in front of the people whom they rule.
A girt one of the loins, Also a male goat, And a king—troops with him.
32 If you have acted foolishly, exalting yourself, or if you been planning [to do something] evil, stop it immediately [IDM]!
If you have been foolish in lifting yourself up, And if you have devised evil—hand to mouth!
33 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.
For the churning of milk brings out butter, And the wringing of the nose brings out blood, And the forcing of anger brings out strife!
