Proverbs 30 (New American Standard)

The Words of Agur

1 The words of Agur the son of Jakeh, the ^aoracle. The man declares to Ithiel, to Ithiel and Ucal : 2 Surely I am more ¹stupid than any man, And I do not have the understanding of a man. 3 Neither have I learned wisdom, Nor do I have the ²knowledge of the Holy One. 4 Who has ³ascended into heaven and descended ? Who has gathered the ⁴wind in His fists ? Who has ⁵wrapped the waters in ^bHis garment ? Who has ⁶established all the ends of the earth ? What is His ⁷name or His son's name ? Surely you know ! 5 Every ⁸word of God is tested ; He is a ⁹shield to those who take refuge in Him. 6 ¹⁰Do not add to His words Or He will reprove you, and you will be proved a liar. 7 Two things I asked of You, Do not refuse me before I die : 8 Keep deception and ^clies far from me, Give me neither poverty nor riches ; Feed me with the ¹¹food that is my portion, 9 That I not be ¹²full and deny ¹³You and say, "Who is the LORD ?" Or that I not be ¹⁴in want and steal, And ¹⁵profane the name of my God. 10 Do not slander a slave to his master, Or he will ¹⁶curse you and you will be found guilty. 11 There is a ^dkind of man who ¹⁷curses his father And does not bless his mother. 12 There is a ^ekind who is ¹⁸pure in his own eyes, Yet is not washed from his filthiness. 13 There is a ^fkind -oh how ¹⁹lofty are his eyes ! And his eyelids are raised in arrogance. 14 There is a ^gkind of man whose ²⁰teeth are like swords And his ²¹jaw teeth like knives, To ²²devour the afflicted from the earth And the needy from among men. 15 The leech has two daughters, "Give," "Give." There are three things that will not be satisfied, Four that will not say, "Enough ": 16 ^h23Sheol, and the ²⁴barren womb, Earth that is never satisfied with water, And fire that never says, "Enough." 17 The eye that ²⁵mocks a father And ⁱ²⁶scorns a mother, The ²⁷ravens of the valley will pick it out, And the young ²⁸eagles will eat it. 18 There are three things which are too wonderful for me, Four which I do not understand : 19 The way of an ²⁹eagle in the sky, The way of a serpent on a rock, The way of a ship in the middle of the sea, And the way of a man with a maid. 20 This is the way of an ³⁰adulterous woman : She eats and wipes her mouth, And says, "I have done no wrong." 21 Under three things the earth quakes, And under four, it cannot bear up: 22 Under a ³¹slave when he becomes king, And a fool when he is satisfied with food, 23 Under an unloved woman when she gets a husband, And a maidservant when she supplants her mistress. 24 Four things are small on the earth, But they are exceedingly wise : 25 The ³²ants are not a strong people, But they prepare their food in the summer ; 26 The ^j33shephanim are not mighty people, Yet they make their houses in the rocks ; 27 The locusts have no king, Yet all of them go out in ³⁴ranks ; 28 The lizard you may grasp with the hands, Yet it is in kings' palaces. 29 There are three things which are stately in their march, Even four which are stately when they walk : 30 The lion which is ³⁵mighty among beasts And does not ^k36retreat before any, 31 The ^lstrutting rooster, the male goat also, And a king when his army is with him. 32 If you have been foolish in exalting yourself Or if you have plotted evil, ³⁷put your hand on your mouth. 33 For the ^mchurning of milk produces butter, And pressing the nose brings forth blood ; So the ⁿchurning of ³⁸anger produces strife.