Proverbs 30:1-33 - The Oracle Of Agur
1 The words of Agur, son of Yakeh, the oracle. Thus says the man to Ithiel, to Ithiel, and Ucal:
2 Certainly I [am more] stupid than a man, and the understanding of humankind [is] not for me. 3 And I have not learned wisdom, nor will I know knowledge of the Holy One. 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. 5 Every word of God [is] flawless; he [is] a shield for him who takes refuge in him. 6 Do not add to his words lest he rebuke you and you be found a liar.
7 Two things I ask from you; do not deny me before I die: 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. 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.
10 Do not slander a servant to his master, or else he will curse you and you will be guilty.
11 [There is] a generation [that] will curse its father, and its mother it will not bless. 12 [There is] a generation [that is] pure in its own eyes, but from its filthiness it will not be cleansed. 13 [There is] a generation--how lofty [are] their eyes! And their eyelids they will lift. 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.
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. 16 Sheol and barrenness of womb, the land is not satisfied [with] water, and fire does not say "enough!"
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.
18 Three of these are [too] wonderful for me, and four, I do not understand them: 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.
20 This is the way of a woman committing adultery: she eats and wipes her mouth, and says "I have not done wrong."
21 Under three [things] the earth trembles, and under four, it is not able to bear up: 22 under a slave when he becomes king, and a fool when he is satisfied [with] food; 23 under an unloved woman when she gets married, and a maid when she succeeds her mistress.
24 There [are] four small things on the earth, and they [are] {exceedingly wise}: 25 The ants [are] a people [who are] not strong, yet they prepare their food in the summer; 26 the badgers [are] a people [who are] not mighty, yet they set their house on the rock; 27 there is no king for the locust, yet it marches in rank; 28 a lizard you [can] seize with hands, yet it is in palaces of kings.
29 There [are] three [things] that are magnificent of stride, and four that are magnificent [when] moving: 30 a mighty lion among the beasts, but he will not turn back from {any face}; 31 a strutting rooster or he-goat, and a king [whose] army [is] with him.
32 If you have been foolish by exalting yourself, and if you have devised evil, [put your] hand to [your] mouth.
33 For pressing milk produces curd, and pressing the nose produces blood, so pressing {anger} produces strife.