Proverbs 30

Proverbs 30

The Words of Agur

1 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. 2 Surely I am too stupid to be a man. I have not the understanding of a man. 3 I have not learned wisdom, nor have I knowledge of the Holy One. 4 Who has ascended to heaven and come down? Who has gathered the wind in his fists? Who has wrapped up the waters in a garment? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is his name, and what is his son's name? Surely you know!

5 Every word of God proves true; he is a shield to those who take 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 of you; deny them not to me before I die: 8 Remove far from me falsehood and lying; give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the food that is needful for me, 9 lest I be full and deny you and say, “Who is the Lord?” or lest I be poor and steal and profane the name of my God.

10 Do not slander a servant to his master, lest he curse you, and you be held guilty.

11 There are those who curse their fathers and do not bless their mothers. 12 There are those who are clean in their own eyes but are not washed of their filth. 13 There are those—how lofty are their eyes, how high their eyelids lift! 14 There are those whose teeth are swords, whose fangs are knives, to devour the poor from off the earth, the needy from among mankind.

15 The leech has two daughters: Give and Give. Three things are never satisfied; four never say, “Enough”: 16 Sheol, the barren womb, the land never satisfied with water, and the fire that never says, “Enough.”

17 The eye that mocks a father and scorns to obey a mother will be picked out by the ravens of the valley and eaten by the vultures.

18 Three things are too wonderful for me; four 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 three things the earth trembles; under four it cannot bear up: 22 a slave when he becomes king, and a fool when he is filled with food; 23 an unloved woman when she gets a husband, and a maidservant when she displaces her mistress.

24 Four things on earth are small, but they are exceedingly wise: 25 the ants are a people not strong, yet they provide their food in the summer; 26 the rock badgers are a people not mighty, yet they make their homes in the cliffs; 27 the locusts have no king, yet all of them march in rank; 28 the lizard you can take in your hands, yet it is in kings' palaces.

29 Three things are stately in their tread; four are stately in their stride: 30 the lion, which is mightiest among beasts and does not turn back before any; 31 the strutting rooster, the he-goat, and a king whose army is with him.

32 If you have been foolish, exalting yourself, or if you have been devising evil, put your hand on your mouth. 33 For pressing milk produces curds, pressing the nose produces blood, and pressing anger produces strife.

Devotional

Introduction

Proverbs 30 provides a sort of epilogue to the rest of the Book of Proverbs. It is noticeably different to other chapters. But, to me, it is a response to the rest of the book. It begins in much the way a response should be to what someone has read in Proverbs.

The author gives us a few lessons to learn in the majority of the chapter. They are a recognition of the goodness of wisdom and the contemptability of foolishness and wickedness. Whilst this is the majority and a good response to what we have just read in Proverbs, Agur comes to an even greater conclusion at the beginning of the chapter, in his very own "confession of faith" (vs.1-6) and then his "prayer" (vs.7-9) (as labelled by Matthew Henry). It not only sees the need for wisdom and the greatness of wisdom, but the greatness of our God. So we will leave the first and best, for last in our study.

Study

1) The writer's obsession with the four things...(vs.11-31)

If you see, the writer groups these four things under six adjectives. Each adjective was taken from Matthew Henry's commentary, because I believe it is an accurate reflection of the author's sections

It was very hard for me to understand why the author used four things for each adjective. Why talk about these things all very similarly? I think the error would be to look at the organisation, how he has grouped them, and see it as a whole, to try and interpret it as a whole. Instead, I think he wants us to learn a lesson from each.

1. The wicked generations (vs.11-14) - don't be like them

2. The wicked's discontent, never to be satisfied (vs.15-17) - don't be like them, be satisfied in the Lord.

3. Things he cannot comprehend, that are unsearchable (vs.18-19) - Praise be to God that there are things we cannot fathom, but that he understands.

4. Things that are intolerable, or troublesome (vs.21-23) - that when situations do arise where a person becomes more powerful or more blessed, that we must respond appropriately and with godliness rather than pride and arrogance.

5. Things that, compared to the intolerable, are small but wise (vs.24-28) - that we should not judge people on outward appearances, but by their character (eg.wisdom). You might consider Saul who looked attractive as a King, but was not of good character. Man looks outwardly, God looks at the heart.

6. Things that are stately, or appear great (vs.29-31) - similar to the former, great things can look great, but should be judged on their character.

Each of these lessons are ones worth learning. They humble, they command, they praise God. When we listen to wisdom, we can see the difference between wicked and righteous; we can judge the difference from appearing good, and being good; and we can know whether what we are doing is right or wrong. The author praises wisdom and concludes in verse 32-33 that we must put away foolish behaviour and put on wisdom and sound judgement.

2) Agur's confession of faith (vs.1-6)

In light of everything of the six "four things" I think he realises his insufficiency in verse 1-3. He knows he is not good enough to be properly wise. He knows he is, in every way, wicked, proud, arrogant, sinful. In every conversion, there must be the recognition of our failure as mankind to measure up to God's standard. Much like the unknowns of verse 18-19, he also have no "knowledge of the Holy One".

However, there is a shift. The rhetorical questions of verse 4 may look like he is still confused. But he is not. He is actually praising that God he knows is characterised by all these things. He knows that God has "gathered the wind" and "wrapped up the waters" and "established all the ends of the earth". He is praising God for who he is!

And he reveals this in verse 5. He knows that God's words are true. And he knows he can find safety in the arms of a loving God. He even issues a warning, do not add to his words. It is only God's words that are true, and he will discipline you.

Agur confesses that not only does he not measure up and that God is worthy to be praised, but it is God's words that make wise. He actually needs God to change him.

3) Agur's prayer (vs.7-9)

So on that note, he praus that God will remove the sin that plagues his life (vs.8a), and supply him with his needs (vs.8b) in order that he may properly honour and serve God with his whole heart (vs.9).

I think the danger is seeing the majority of this proverb and forgetting our need for God's help in being wise, in judging right from wrong, in changing our ways. When we come to God first and foremost to supply what we need to live for him, God will always provide. We cannot change on our own. Agur knows that he needs God's supernatural transformation.

Conclusion

Perhaps you were, and still are, a little confused by this Proverb. The six "four things" really confused me. But if there is anything you can conclude from this chapter, it is that you need God. And throughout Proverbs, I pray you have been able to see that.

What is so great about this chapter right towards the end of the book, is that it helps initiate a response in the reader if there hasn't been one already. It helps us to see our insufficiency in our lack of wisdom, but God's power to change.

You and I are just like Agur. We cannot understand, we cannot be wise...on our own. But it is by God's grace that we are given wisdom. I was once was blind, but now I see. In Christ, with God's foreknowledge, and by the power of the spirit, you and I can be changed.

And I give God praise for that today!

Thanks for joining me on the penultimate day of #31daysinproverbs