Proverbs 30

Agur, a humble and little-known sage, begins by confessing how little he knows of God, then rests on God’s pure word. He prays for honest living and neither too much nor too little. The rest is a set of number-sayings that look at pride, greed, wonders, and wisdom in small things, and end with a warning about anger.

Proverbs 30:1

Agur is otherwise unknown to us. He calls his words a burden, a weighty message he has to deliver. Yet he opens with weariness and honesty, not boasting. He speaks to Ithiel, and the name means God is with me. Real wisdom begins with admitting how heavy and hard the search is.

BSA: weary (“exhausted”): Agur is spent from wrestling with questions too big for him, and he says so openly.

Hebrew: מַשָּׂא (massā, H4853) — “burden, something lifted up.” The word can mean a load carried or a message lifted up and spoken aloud. Agur’s words are both: a weight on him and a word to pass on.

Proverbs 30:2-3

Agur calls himself the most ignorant of men. This is not false modesty. Next to God’s greatness, human understanding looks small. He has not mastered wisdom, and he does not claim to know the Holy One fully. That honesty is the right place to begin.

BSA: wisdom (“skill”): Wisdom is practical skill in living, and Agur says he has not mastered it.

See also: Proverbs 9:10; Psalm 73:22.

Proverbs 30:4

Agur asks a series of questions that only God can answer. Who rules heaven, wind, waters, and the whole earth? Then he asks about God’s name and His Son’s name. The question points beyond human reach to the Creator, and Christians have long heard in it a hint of the Son of God.

BSA: name (“His identity, His character”): In Scripture a name tells who someone truly is, so Agur is asking to know God’s very nature.

Hebrew: שֵׁם (shēm, H8034) — “name.” A Hebrew name stands for a person’s whole character and reputation. To ask for God’s name is to ask who He really is.

See also: John 3:13; Isaiah 40:12.

Proverbs 30:5-6

After his questions, Agur finds firm ground in what God has spoken. God’s word is tested and pure, and He shelters those who run to Him. So nothing may be added to it. Human additions put our words in God’s mouth and make us liars.

BSA: flawless (“pure, refined”): God’s word is like metal purified in the fire, with nothing false mixed in. add (“increase, continue”): Piling on to what God said, bit by bit, corrupts it.

Hebrew: צְרוּפָה (ṣerûpâ, H6884) — “refined, smelted.” This is the word for silver or gold purified in a furnace. God’s word has passed every test and no impurity remains.

See also: Psalm 18:30; Deuteronomy 4:2.

Proverbs 30:7

Agur brings two requests to God and asks Him not to refuse them while he lives. The prayer is simple and direct. He wants what matters most for a whole lifetime, not a passing wish.

BSA: refuse (“deny, withhold”): Agur asks God not to hold back what he needs, trusting that God gives.

Proverbs 30:8

First, Agur asks for truthfulness: no lies in him and no lying words around him. Second, he asks for enough, neither poverty nor riches. He wants only the food God measures out for him. It is a prayer for daily bread and an honest heart.

BSA: portion (“what is needful for me, my daily provision”): He asks only for what he actually needs, day by day.

Hebrew: חֻקִּי (ḥuqqî, H2706) — “my appointed share.” The word means something set aside or decreed for a person. Agur trusts God to decide his measure and asks for no more.

See also: Matthew 6:11; 1 Timothy 6:8.

Proverbs 30:9

Agur knows his own heart. Plenty can make us feel we do not need God, and we may say, Who is the LORD? Poverty can push us to steal and shame God’s name. Both extremes are spiritual dangers, so he asks for the middle path.

BSA: deny (“reject, turn away from”): Abundance can slowly lead a person to turn away from God without noticing.

See also: Deuteronomy 8:12-14.

Proverbs 30:10

Do not whisper accusations about a servant to his master. The servant has little power and cannot answer back, but he may curse you, and the harm you caused will come back on you. The proverb warns us not to use our influence to hurt the weak.

BSA: slander (“accuse falsely, speak evil of”): The warning is about false or malicious talk that damages someone unable to defend himself.

Proverbs 30:11

Agur begins a list of kinds of people, each called a generation. The first kind curses a father and withholds blessing from a mother. A home where parents are dishonored shows a deep rot, since parents are the first people we owe thanks to.

BSA: curse (“lightly esteem, bring into contempt”): Cursing parents begins with treating them as of little worth.

See also: Exodus 20:12.

Proverbs 30:12

Some people think themselves clean while they are still dirty. They judge by their own eyes, not by God’s. Self-deception is dangerous because it blocks any wish to be washed. Only honesty before God can lead to real cleansing.

BSA: pure (“clean, morally upright”): They count themselves morally clean, though their lives show otherwise.

See also: Proverbs 16:2.

Proverbs 30:13

A third kind is proud in looks. Their eyes are lifted high and their glances look down on others. Pride shows on the face before a word is said. The Bible treats this arrogant look as something God dislikes.

See also: Psalm 101:5.

Proverbs 30:14

The fourth kind is cruel. Their teeth and jaws are pictured as swords and knives that devour the poor. These are people who grow rich by consuming the weak. The picture is painful, and it shows how seriously Scripture takes cruelty to the needy.

BSA: oppressed (“aniyim, afflicted and humble”): These are people crushed down by hardship who cannot protect themselves.

Proverbs 30:15

The leech has two daughters who cry only Give! and Give! It is a picture of endless craving. Then Agur begins a list of things that never say Enough. Greed is never satisfied by getting more.

BSA: satisfied (“filled with enough”): These things take in without end and never reach a point of fullness.

Hebrew: עֲלוּקָה (ʿălûqâ, H5936) — “leech.” The word is thought to echo the sound of the creature’s craving. It is the picture of an appetite that only takes.

Proverbs 30:16

Four things are never full: the grave, the barren womb, thirsty ground, and fire. Each one only takes and then wants more. The grave keeps receiving, the childless woman longs for a child, dry land drinks every rain, and fire eats whatever it is given.

BSA: Sheol (“the underworld, grave”): This is the place of the dead, which keeps receiving people and never says it is full.

Hebrew: שְׁאוֹל (šeʾôl, H7585) — “the realm of the dead.” Sheol is the Old Testament name for the place all the dead go. It pictures death as always taking.

Proverbs 30:17

This is a stern warning to the child who mocks and despises a parent. The eye that looks down on them is shown being plucked out by birds. Dishonoring parents leads to a shameful end, and the verse reminds us how much God values respect in the home.

BSA: mocks (“derides, scoffs at”): The sin is not only disobeying but sneering at a parent.

See also: Proverbs 20:20.

Proverbs 30:18-19

Four things leave Agur amazed. An eagle leaves no track in the air, a snake leaves none on rock, and a ship leaves none on the sea. The fourth is the mystery of love between a man and a young woman. Each shows a wonder that cannot be fully explained.

BSA: way (“path or journey”): Each wonder is a path that cannot be traced, yet it clearly goes somewhere.

Hebrew: דֶּרֶךְ (derek, H1870) — “way, path, manner of life.” The word means both a road and a way of living. Agur uses it for four paths we cannot trace, and then in verse 20 for a path of sin.

Proverbs 30:20

After the wonder of love comes its twisted opposite. The adulteress acts as if nothing happened. She is as calm as someone who has just eaten a meal. The saying shows how sin dulls the conscience until wrong feels like nothing at all.

BSA: wipes (“erases, cleanses”): She wipes away every sign of the act, as though she could wipe away guilt too.

Proverbs 30:21-23

Four things upset the order of life when they get power they cannot handle. They are a slave who becomes king, a fool who is stuffed with food, an unloved woman who marries, and a servant girl who replaces her mistress. The point is that character matters more than rank. Sudden position without wisdom brings trouble.

BSA: trembles (“shakes, quakes, is disquieted”): The whole earth is shaken, so these situations cause trouble far beyond one household.

Proverbs 30:24

Now Agur turns from warnings to encouragement. Four creatures are small and weak, yet they are wiser than many who are great. God gives wisdom to the humble and the little, and we can learn from them.

BSA: wise (“intelligent, having good judgment, skilled”): Their wisdom is practical skill, shown in how they live.

Proverbs 30:25-26

Ants are weak, but they gather food in summer for the lean season. Rock badgers are not strong, but they build their homes in rocky cliffs where enemies cannot easily reach. Both are wise because they plan ahead and find safe shelter. Weakness is no excuse for foolishness.

BSA: rock badgers (“hyraxes, conies, or feeble folk”): These small, furry animals are defenseless on their own but safe in the rocks.

See also: Proverbs 6:6-8.

Proverbs 30:27-28

Locusts have no king, yet they move together in orderly ranks. A lizard can be caught in the hand, yet it gets into the palaces of kings. Small creatures work together and go where they could not be expected to. Cooperation and boldness need not depend on rank or strength.

BSA: advance (“march, go forth”): Without any commander, locusts move together like an army.

Proverbs 30:29-31

Four things walk with a stately step: the lion, the strutting rooster, the he-goat, and a king with his army. Each moves with confidence and authority. The lion is the picture of boldness that does not back down for anything.

BSA: stately (“glorious to watch, majestic”): These creatures are impressive to watch, as their walk shows their dignity.

Proverbs 30:32

If you have been foolishly proud or have been planning something evil, stop. Put your hand on your mouth. It is better to be silent than to say what will only make things worse. It is also a call to turn from the plan before it grows.

BSA: exalted (“lifted yourself up, puffed up with pride”): The fool has raised himself above where he belongs, and silence is the first step down.

See also: Proverbs 10:19.

Proverbs 30:33

Churn milk and you get butter. Twist a nose and blood comes. Stir up anger and you get a fight. The Hebrew uses one word for churning, twisting, and stirring, so the pattern is the same. Pressure produces its natural result, so keeping anger calm keeps peace.

BSA: anger (“strong emotion, wrath”): Anger that is kept stirred up will produce conflict.

Hebrew: מִיץ (mîṣ, H4330) — “pressing, squeezing.” The same word is used three times in the verse, for pressing milk, wringing a nose, and stirring up anger. It shows that each act brings forth its own result.

See also: Proverbs 15:1; James 1:19-20.