LEB - Proverbs - 30

30:1  The words of Agur, son of Yakeh, the oracle. Thus says the man to Ithiel, to Ithiel, and Ucal:

30:2  Certainly I am more stupid than a man, and the understanding of humankind is not for me.

30:3  And I have not learned wisdom, nor will I know knowledge of the Holy One.

30:4  Who has ascended to heaven and come down? Who has gathered the wind in the hollow of his hand? Who has wrapped water in a garment? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is his name and what is the name of his child? For surely you know.

30:5  Every word of God is flawless; he is a shield for him who takes refuge in him.

30:6  Do not add to his words lest he rebuke you and you be found a liar.

30:7  Two things I ask from you; do not deny me before I die:

30:8  Keep falsehood and a ⌞lying word⌟ far from me; do not give me poverty or wealth; provide me with food only for my need.

30:9  Or else I will be satisfied and will deny him and say “Who is Yahweh?” Or I will be poor and will steal and profane the name of my God.

30:10  Do not slander a servant to his master, or else he will curse you and you will be guilty.

30:11  There is a generation that will curse its father, and its mother it will not bless.

30:12  There is a generation that is pure in its own eyes, but from its filthiness it will not be cleansed.

30:13  There is a generation—how lofty are their eyes! And their eyelids they will lift.

30:14  There is a generation whose teeth are swords, and its jawbones, knives, in order to devour the poor from the earth and the needy from humankind.

30:15  For the leech, there are two daughters; “Give, give!” they cry. As for three of these, they are not satisfied; as for four, they do not say enough.

30:16  Sheol and barrenness of womb, the land is not satisfied with water, and fire does not say “enough!”

30:17  The eye that mocks a father and scorns the obedience of a mother— the ravens of the valley will peck it out, and the offspring of vultures will eat it.

30:18  Three of these are too wonderful for me, and four, I do not understand them:

30:19  the way of the eagle in the sky, the way of a snake on a rock, the way of a ship in the heart of the sea, and the way of a man with a young woman.

30:20  This is the way of a woman committing adultery: she eats and wipes her mouth, and says “I have not done wrong.”

30:21  Under three things the earth trembles, and under four, it is not able to bear up:

30:22  under a slave when he becomes king, and a fool when he is satisfied with food;

30:23  under an unloved woman when she gets married, and a maid when she succeeds her mistress.

30:24  There are four small things on the earth, and they are ⌞exceedingly wise⌟:

30:25  The ants are a people who are not strong, yet they prepare their food in the summer;

30:26  the badgers are a people who are not mighty, yet they set their house on the rock;

30:27  there is no king for the locust, yet it marches in rank;

30:28  a lizard you can seize with hands, yet it is in palaces of kings.

30:29  There are three things that are magnificent of stride, and four that are magnificent when moving:

30:30  a mighty lion among the beasts, but he will not turn back from ⌞any face⌟;

30:31  a strutting rooster or he-goat, and a king whose army is with him.

30:32  If you have been foolish by exalting yourself, and if you have devised evil, put your hand to your mouth.

30:33  For pressing milk produces curd, and pressing the nose produces blood, so pressing ⌞anger⌟ produces strife.