The Words of Agur

1The words of [a]Agur the son of Jakeh, the oracle:

The man says to Ithiel, to Ithiel and to Ucal:

2Surely [b]I am more brutish and stupid than any man,

And I do not have the understanding of a man [for I do not know what I do not know].

3I have not learned [skillful and godly] wisdom,

Nor do I have knowledge of the Holy One [who is the source of wisdom].

4Who has ascended into heaven and descended?

Who has gathered the wind in His fists?

Who has bound the waters in His garment?

Who has established all the ends of the earth?

What is His name, and what is His Son’s name?

Certainly you know!

5Every word of God is tested and refined [like silver];

He is a shield to those who trust and take refuge in Him.

6Do not add to His words,

Or He will reprove you, and you will be found a liar.

7Two things I have asked of You;

Do not deny them to me before I die:

8Keep deception and lies far from me;

Give me neither poverty nor riches;

Feed me with the food that is my portion,

9So that I will not be full and deny You and say, “Who is the LORD?”

Or that I will not be poor and steal,

And so profane the name of my God.

10Do not slander or malign a servant before his master [stay out of another’s personal life],

Or he will curse you [for your interference], and you will be found guilty.

11There is a generation (class of people) that curses its father

And does not bless its mother.

12There is a generation (class of people) that is pure in its own eyes,

Yet is not washed from its filthiness.

13There is a generation (class of people)--oh, how lofty are their eyes!

And their eyelids are raised in arrogance.

14There is a generation (class of people) whose teeth are like swords

And whose jaw teeth are like knives,

To devour the afflicted from the earth

And the needy from among men.

15The leech has two daughters,

“Give, give!”

There are three things that are never satisfied,

Four that do not say, “It is enough”:

16[c]Sheol, and the barren womb,

Earth that is never satisfied with water,

And fire that never says, “It is enough.”

17The eye that mocks a father

And scorns a mother,

The ravens of the valley will pick it out,

And the young vultures will devour it.

18There are three things which are too astounding and unexpectedly wonderful for me,

Four which I do not understand:

19The way of an eagle in the air,

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.

20This is the way of an adulterous woman:

She eats and wipes her mouth

And says, “I have done no wrong.”

21Under three things the earth is disquieted and quakes,

And under four it cannot bear up:

22Under a servant when he reigns,

Under a [spiritually blind] fool when he is filled with food,

23Under an unloved woman when she gets married,

And under a maidservant when she supplants her mistress.

24There are four things that are small on the earth,

But they are exceedingly wise:

25The ants are not a strong people,

Yet they prepare their food in the summer;

26The [d]shephanim are not a mighty folk,

Yet they make their houses in the rocks;

27The locusts have no king,

Yet all of them go out in groups;

28You may grasp the lizard with your hands,

Yet it is in kings’ palaces.

29There are three things which are stately in step,

Even four which are stately in their stride:

30The lion, which is mighty among beasts

And does not turn back before any;

31The [e]strutting rooster, the male goat also,

And the king when his army is with him.

32If you have foolishly exalted yourself,

Or if you have plotted evil, put your hand on your mouth.

33Surely the churning of milk produces butter,

And wringing the nose produces blood;

So the churning of anger produces strife.

[a] 1 The identity of Agur, author of this chapter, is uncertain.
[b] 2 This may be viewed as either a sarcastic response to an unknown critic, or simply the sincere reflections of a humble man.
[c] 16 Hades, the nether world, the place of the dead.
[d] 26 Small, shy, furry animals, (Hyrax syriacus) found in the peninsula of the Sinai, northern Israel, and in the region around the Dead Sea; KJV coney, orig NASB badgers.
[e] 31 Lit girt in the loins. The meaning of the Hebrew is unclear. Other translations propose greyhound.