Pro 30-31 | ESV | STEP | The words of Agur son of Jakeh . The oracle. The man declares , I am weary, O God ; I am weary, O God , and worn out .

1 The words of Agur son of Jakeh. The oracle. ^{▼▼Or Jakeh, the man of Massa}

The man declares, I am weary, O God;
I am weary, O God, and worn out. ^{▼▼Revocalization; Hebrew The man declares to Ithiel, to Ithiel and Ucal}
2 Surely I am too ^cstupid to be a man.
I have not the understanding of a man.
3 I have not learned wisdom,
nor have I knowledge of ^dthe Holy One.
4 Who has ^eascended to heaven and come down?
Who has ^fgathered the wind in his fists?
Who has ^gwrapped up the waters in a garment?
Who has established all ^hthe ends of the earth?
ⁱWhat is his name, and what is his son’s name?
Surely you know!
5 ^jEvery word of God proves true;
he is ^ka shield to those who take refuge in him.
6 ^lDo not add to his words,
lest he rebuke you and you be found a liar.
7 Two things I ask of you;
deny them not to me ^mbefore I die:
8 Remove far from me falsehood and lying;
give me neither poverty nor riches;
feed me with the food that is ⁿneedful for me,
9 lest I be ^ofull and ^pdeny you
and say, ^q“Who is the Lord?”
or lest I be poor and steal
^rand profane the name of my God.
10 ^sDo not slander a servant to his master,
^tlest he curse you, and you be held guilty.
11 There are those ^{▼▼Hebrew There is a generation; also verses 12, 13, 14} who ^vcurse their fathers
and do not bless their mothers.
12 There are those who are ^wclean in their own eyes
but are not washed of their filth.
13 There are those—how ^xlofty are their eyes,
how high their eyelids lift!
14 There are those whose teeth are ^yswords,
whose ^zfangs are knives,
to ^aadevour the poor from off the earth,
the needy from among mankind.
15 The leech has two daughters:
Give and Give. ^{▼▼Or “ Give, give,” they cry}
^acThree things are never satisfied;
^adfour never say, “Enough”:
16 ^aeSheol, ^afthe barren womb,
the land never satisfied with water,
and the fire that never says, “Enough.”
17 The eye that ^agmocks a father
and ^ahscorns to obey a mother
will ^aibe picked out by ^ajthe ravens of the valley
and eaten by the vultures.
18 ^akThree things are ^altoo wonderful for me;
^amfour I do not understand:
19 the way of an eagle in the sky,
the way of a serpent on a rock,
the way of a ship on the high seas,
and the way of a man with a virgin.
20 This is the way of an adulteress:
she eats and wipes her mouth
and says, “I have done no wrong.”
21 Under ^anthree things ^aothe earth trembles;
under ^apfour it cannot bear up:
22 ^aqa slave when he becomes king,
and a fool when he is ^arfilled with food;
23 ^asan unloved woman when she ^atgets a husband,
and a maidservant when she displaces her mistress.
24 ^auFour things on earth are small,
but they are exceedingly wise:
25 ^avthe ants are a people not strong,
yet they provide their food in the summer;
26 ^awthe rock badgers are a people not mighty,
yet they make their homes in the cliffs;
27 the locusts have no ^axking,
yet all of them march in ^ayrank;
28 the lizard you can take in your hands,
yet it is in kings’ palaces.
29 ^azThree things are stately in their tread;
^bafour are stately in their stride:
30 the lion, which is mightiest among beasts
and ^bbdoes not turn back before any;
31 the ^bcstrutting rooster, ^{▼▼Or the magpie, or the greyhound; Hebrew girt-of-loins} the he-goat,
and a king whose army is with him. ^{▼▼Or against whom there is no rising up}
32 If you have been foolish, exalting yourself,
or if you have been devising evil,
^bfput your hand on your mouth.
33 For pressing milk produces curds,
pressing the nose produces blood,
and pressing anger produces strife.

Proverbs 31

The Words of King Lemuel

1 The words of King Lemuel. An oracle that his mother taught him:

2 What are you doing, my son? ^{▼▼Hebrew What, my son?} What are you doing, ^bhson of my womb?
What are you doing, ^bison of my vows?
3 Do ^bjnot give your strength to women,
your ways to those ^bkwho destroy kings.
4 ^blIt is not for kings, O Lemuel,
it is not for kings ^bmto drink wine,
or for rulers to take ^bnstrong drink,
5 lest they drink and forget what has been decreed
and ^bopervert the rights of all the afflicted.
6 Give strong drink to the one who ^bpis perishing,
and wine to ^bqthose in bitter distress; ^{▼▼Hebrew those bitter in soul}
7 ^bslet them drink and forget their poverty
and remember their misery no more.
8 ^btOpen your mouth for the mute,
for the rights of all who are destitute. ^{▼▼Hebrew are sons of passing away}
9 Open your mouth, ^bvjudge righteously,
^bwdefend the rights of ^bxthe poor and needy.

The Woman Who Fears the Lord

10 ^{▼▼Verses 10–31 are an acrostic poem, each verse beginning with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet} ^bzAn excellent wife who can find?
She is far more precious than ^cajewels.
11 The heart of her husband trusts in her,
and he will have no lack of gain.
12 She does him good, and not harm,
all the days of her life.
13 She ^cbseeks wool and flax,
and works with willing hands.
14 She is like the ships of the merchant;
she brings her food from afar.
15 She ^ccrises while it is yet night
and ^cdprovides food for her household
and portions for her maidens.
16 She considers a field and buys it;
with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard.
17 She ^cedresses herself ^{▼▼Hebrew She girds her loins} with strength
and makes her arms strong.
18 She perceives that her merchandise is profitable.
Her lamp does not go out at night.
19 She puts her hands to the distaff,
and her hands hold the spindle.
20 She ^cgopens her hand to ^chthe poor
and reaches out her hands to ^cithe needy.
21 She is not afraid of snow for her household,
for all her household are clothed in ^cjscarlet. ^{▼▼Or in double thickness}
22 She makes ^clbed coverings for herself;
her clothing is ^cmfine linen and ^cnpurple.
23 Her husband is known in ^cothe gates
when he sits among the elders of the land.
24 She makes ^cplinen garments and sells them;
she delivers sashes to the merchant.
25 ^cqStrength and dignity are her clothing,
and she laughs at the time to come.
26 She opens her mouth with wisdom,
and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.
27 She looks well to the ways of her household
and does not eat the bread of idleness.
28 Her children rise up and call her blessed;
her husband also, and he praises her:
29 “Many ^crwomen have done ^csexcellently,
but you surpass them all.”
30 ^ctCharm is deceitful, and beauty is vain,
but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.
31 Give her of the fruit of her hands,
and let her works praise her in the gates.