¹The words of Agur the son of Jakeh , the revelation:

the man says to Ithiel,

to Ithiel and Ucal:

²“Surely I am the most ignorant man,

and don’t have a man’s understanding.

³I have not learnt wisdom ,

neither do I have the knowledge of the Holy One .

⁴Who has ascended up 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 , if you know ?

⁵“Every word of God is flawless.

He is a shield to those who take refuge in him .

⁶Don’t you add to his words ,

lest he reprove you , and you be found a liar .

⁷“Two things I have asked of you .

Don’t deny me before I die .

⁸Remove far from me falsehood and lies .

Give me neither poverty nor riches .

Feed me with the food that is needful for me ,

⁹lest I be full , deny you , and say, ‘Who is the LORD ?’

or lest I be poor , and steal ,

and so dishonour the name of my God .

¹⁰“Don’t slander a servant to his master,

lest he curse you , and you be held guilty.

¹¹There is a generation that curses their father,

and doesn’t bless their mother.

¹²There is a generation that is pure in their own eyes ,

yet are not washed from their filthiness .

¹³There is a generation , oh how lofty are their eyes !

Their eyelids are lifted up .

¹⁴There is a generation whose teeth are like swords ,

and their jaws like knives ,

to devour the poor from the earth, and the needy from amongst men.

¹⁵“The leech has two daughters :

‘Give , give .’

“There are three things that are never satisfied ;

four that don’t say, ‘Enough !’:

¹⁶Sheol ,[#30:16 Sheol is the place of the dead.]

the barren womb ,

the earth that is not satisfied with water ,

and the fire that doesn’t say, ‘Enough !’

¹⁷“The eye that mocks at his father ,

and scorns obedience to his mother,

the ravens of the valley shall pick it out ,

the young eagles shall eat it .

¹⁸“There are three things which are too amazing for me ,

four which I don’t 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 maiden .

²⁰“So is the way of an adulterous woman:

She eats and wipes her mouth ,

and says , ‘I have done nothing wrong .’

²¹“For three things the earth trembles ,

and under four , it can ’t bear up :

²²For a servant when he is king ,

a fool when he is filled with food ,

²³for an unloved woman when she is married ,

and a servant who is heir to her mistress .

²⁴“There are four things which are little on the earth,

but they are exceedingly wise :

²⁵The ants are not a strong people ,

yet they provide their food in the summer .

²⁶The hyraxes are but a feeble folk ,

yet make they their houses in the rocks .

²⁷The locusts have no king ,

yet they advance in ranks .

²⁸You can catch a lizard with your hands ,

yet it is in kings ’ palaces .

²⁹“There are three things which are stately in their march ,

four which are stately in going :

³⁰The lion , which is mightiest amongst animals,

and doesn’t turn away for any ;

³¹the greyhound ;

the male goat ;

and the king against whom there is no rising up .

³²“If you have done foolishly in lifting up yourself ,

or if you have thought evil ,

put your hand over your mouth .

³³For as the churning of milk produces butter ,

and the wringing of the nose produces blood ,

so the forcing of wrath produces strife .”