American Standard Version ASV
Holman Christian Standard Bible CSB
1 The words of Agur the son of Jakeh; The oracle. The man saith unto Ithiel, unto Ithiel and Ucal:
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The words of Agur son of Jakeh. The oracle. The man's oration to Ithiel, to Ithiel and Ucal:
2 Surely I am more brutish than any man, And have not the understanding of a man;
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I am the least intelligent of men, and I lack man's ability to understand.
3 And I have not learned wisdom, Neither have I the knowledge of the Holy One.
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I have not gained wisdom, and I have no 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?
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Who has gone up to heaven and come down? Who has gathered the wind in His hands? Who has bound up the waters in a cloak? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is His name, and what is the name of His Son- if you know?
5 Every word of God is tried: He is a shield unto them that take refuge in him.
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Every word of God is pure; He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him.
6 Add thou not unto his words, Lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar.
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Don't add to His words, or He will rebuke you, and you will be proved a liar.
7 Two things have I asked of thee; Deny me [them] not before I die:
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Two things I ask of You; don't deny them to me 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:
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Keep falsehood and deceitful words far from me. Give me neither poverty nor wealth; feed me with the food I need.
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.
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Otherwise, I might have too much and deny You, saying, "Who is the Lord?" or I might have nothing and steal, profaning the name of my God.
10 Slander not a servant unto his master, Lest he curse thee, and thou be held guilty.
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Don't slander a servant to his master, or he will curse you, and you will become guilty.
11 There is a generation that curse their father, And bless not their mother.
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There is a generation that curses its father and does not bless its mother.
12 There is a generation that are pure in their own eyes, And [yet] are not washed from their filthiness.
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There is a generation that is pure in its own eyes, yet is not washed from its filth.
13 There is a generation, oh how lofty are their eyes! And their eyelids are lifted up.
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There is a generation-how haughty its eyes and pretentious its looks.
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.
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There is a generation whose teeth are swords, whose fangs are knives, devouring the oppressed from the land and the needy from among mankind.
15 The horseleach hath two daughters, [crying], Give, give. There are three things that are never satisfied, [Yea], four that say not, Enough:
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The leech has two daughters: Give, Give. Three things are never satisfied; four never say, "Enough!":
16 Sheol; And the barren womb; The earth that is not satisfied with water; And the fire that saith not, Enough.
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Sheol; a barren womb; earth, which is never satisfied with water; and fire, which never says, "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.
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As for the eye that ridicules a father and despises obedience to a mother, may ravens of the valley pluck it out and young vultures eat it.
18 There are three things which are too wonderful for me, Yea, four which I know not:
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Three things are beyond me; four I can't understand:
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.
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the way of an eagle in the sky, the way of a snake on a rock, the way of a ship at sea, and the way of a man with a young woman.
20 So is the way of an adulterous woman; She eateth, and wipeth her mouth, And saith, I have done no wickedness.
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This is the way of an adulteress: she eats and wipes her mouth and says, "I've done nothing wrong."
21 For three things the earth doth tremble, And for four, [which] it cannot bear:
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The earth trembles under three things; it cannot bear up under four:
22 For a servant when he is king; And a fool when he is filled with food;
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a servant when he becomes king, a fool when he is stuffed with food,
23 For an odious woman when she is married; And a handmaid that is heir to her mistress.
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an unloved woman when she marries, and a serving girl when she ousts her lady.
24 There are four things which are little upon the earth, But they are exceeding wise:
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Four things on earth are small, yet they are extremely wise:
25 The ants are a people not strong, Yet they provide their food in the summer;
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the ants are not a strong people, yet they store up their food in the summer;
26 The conies are but a feeble folk, Yet make they their houses in the rocks;
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hyraxes are not a mighty people, yet they make their homes in the cliffs;
27 The locusts have no king, Yet go they forth all of them by bands;
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locusts have no king, yet all of them march in ranks;
28 The lizard taketh hold with her hands, Yet is she in kings' palaces.
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a lizard can be caught in your hands, yet it lives in kings' palaces.
29 There are three things which are stately in their march, Yea, four which are stately in going:
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Three things are stately in their stride, even four are stately in their walk:
30 The lion, which is mightiest among beasts, And turneth not away for any;
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a lion, which is mightiest among beasts and doesn't retreat before anything,
31 The greyhound; The he-goat also; And the king against whom there is no rising up.
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a strutting rooster, a goat, and a king at the head of his army.
32 If thou hast done foolishly in lifting up thyself, Or if thou hast thought evil, [Lay] thy hand upon thy mouth.
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If you have been foolish by exalting yourself, or if you've been scheming, put your hand over your 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.
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For the churning of milk produces butter, and twisting a nose draws blood, and stirring up anger produces strife.
The American Standard Version is in the public domain.
Holman Christian Standard Bible ® Copyright © 2003, 2002, 2000, 1999 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.