301 The words of Agur the son of Jakeh; the prophecy uttered by the man unto Ithiel, [even] unto Ithiel and Ucal: 2 Truly I am more stupid than any one; and I have not a man's intelligence. 3 I have neither learned wisdom, nor have I the knowledge of the Holy. 4 Who hath ascended up into the heavens, and descended? Who hath gathered the wind in his fists? Who hath bound the waters in a mantle? Who hath established all the ends of the earth? What is his name, and what is his son's name, if thou knowest? 5 Every word of +God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him. 6 Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar.
7 Two things do I ask of thee; deny me [them] not before I die: 8 Remove far from me vanity and lies; give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the bread of my daily need: 9 lest I be full and deny [thee], and say, Who is Jehovah? or lest I be poor and steal, and outrage the name of my God.
10 Speak not too much about a servant to his master, lest he curse thee, and thou be held guilty. 11 There is a generation that curseth their father, and doth not bless their mother; 12 there is a generation that are pure in their own eyes, yet are not washed from their filthiness; 13 there is a generation,—how lofty are their eyes, how their eyelids are lifted up! 14 —a generation whose teeth are swords, and their jaw-teeth knives, to devour the afflicted from off the earth, and the needy from [among] men.
15 The leech hath two daughters: Give, give. There are three [things] never satisfied; four which say not, It is enough:
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Proverbs 30:1-15
Commentary on Proverbs 30:1-6
(Read Proverbs 30:1-6)
Agur speaks of himself as wanting a righteousness, and having done very foolishly. And it becomes us all to have low thoughts of ourselves. He speaks of himself as wanting revelation to guide him in the ways of truth and wisdom. The more enlightened people are, the more they lament their ignorance; the more they pray for clearer, still clearer discoveries of God, and his rich grace in Christ Jesus. In ver.
Commentary on Proverbs 30:7-14
(Read Proverbs 30:7-14)
In every age there are monsters of ingratitude who ill-treat their parents. Many persuade themselves they are holy persons, whose hearts are full of sin, and who practise secret wickedness. There are others whose lofty pride is manifest. There have also been cruel monsters in every age.
Commentary on Proverbs 30:15-17
(Read Proverbs 30:15-17)
Cruelty and covetousness are two daughters of the horseleech, that still cry, "Give, give," and they are continually uneasy to themselves. Four things never are satisfied, to which these devourers are compared. Those are never rich that are always coveting. And many who have come to a bad end, have owned that their wicked courses began by despising their parents' authority.