Sayings of Agur
1The sayings of Agur, Son of Jakeh, of Massa.
2He says, “My God, my God, I am worn-out and weary. Too stupid to be human, I am devoid of intelligence; 3I have not acquired wisdom or grasped the knowledge of the Holy One.”
4Who has ascended the heavens and descended? Who has gathered the wind in his hands? Who has encircled the waters with his cloak? Who has established the limits of the earth? What is his name or the name of his son?
Do you know? 5Every word of God is true, he is a shield in whom man can find refuge. 6Add nothing to his words lest he rebuke you and take you for a liar.
7O God, two things I beg of you, do not deny me them before I die. 8Keep lying and falsehood far away from me, give me neither poverty nor riches. Give me just as much food as I need lest, 9satisfied, I deny you and say, “Who is Yahweh?” Or else, out of necessity, I steal and profane the name of my God.
10Do not accuse a slave to his master’s face lest he curse you and you have to pay.
11What a people are those who curse their father and do not bless their mother, 12who consider themselves pure but their sins have not been cleansed! 13They have a haughty look and disdainful eye; 14their teeth are like daggers and their fangs, like blades to devour the weak of the land and the poor of the people.
15The leech has two daughters, “Give me!” and “Give me!”
16There are three insatiable things and four which never say, “Enough”: the grave, the sterile womb, the earth longing for water and the fire which never cries, “Enough.”
17The eye which challenges a father and despises his aging mother, will be gouged out by the ravens of the valley and devoured by the eagles.
18There are three things which I cannot comprehend and four which I do not understand: 19the way of the eagle through the sky, the way of the snake on the rock, the way of the ship on high seas and the way of the human being within the mother.
20What can I say of the adulterous woman? She eats, and having wiped her mouth, she says, “I have done nothing wrong.”
21Three things make the earth tremble; there are four which it cannot withstand: 22the slave who becomes king, the fool stuffed with bread, 23the unbearable woman who marries and the maid who inherits from her mistress.
24There are four tiny creatures on the earth that are among the wisest of the wise: 25the ants that are without strength, but in summer make sure of their supplies; 26the rock-rabbits that are without vigor, but make their home in the rocks; 27the locusts that have no king, but move forward in organized groups; 28the lizard which can be caught by hand, but lives in the palaces of kings.
29Three things have a stately step and four have a noble bearing: 30the lion, the bravest of animals, that retreats before nothing; 31the cock that struts proudly among the hens; the he-goat that leads his flock, and the king at the head of his army.
32If you have been foolish enough to get angry and afterwards regret it, cover your mouth with your hand. 33Since by churning the milk butter is produced, by squeezing the nose blood flows, and by stirring up anger arguments arise.
