Proverbs 30:1
in Proverbs 30These are the words of Agur son of Jakeh—the burden that this man declared to Ithiel: “I am weary, O God, and worn out.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
The words of Agur the son of Jakeh; the oracle. The man saith unto Ithiel, unto Ithiel and Ucal:
KJV
The words of Agur the son of Jakeh, even the prophecy: the man spake unto Ithiel, even unto Ithiel and Ucal,
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This verse in Proverbs 30
Commentary
8 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
See the introduction to Proverbs. According to the different reading, there noted, the inscription ends with: “the man spake,” and the words that follow, are the beginning of the confession, “I have wearied myself after God and have fainted.” Spake - The Hebrew word is that commonly used of the utterance of a divine oracle.
This site's exposition
The words of Agur the son of Jakeh
on Proverbs 30:1-3
The words of Agur the son of Jakeh open with a header naming an otherwise unknown sage, one voice among the wise the book of Proverbs gathers rather than an appendix to Solomon's own collections. Jewish tradition identifies Agur with Solomon under an assumed name, a reading the older rabbinic sources carry and the text itself never states. Agur's own confession runs opposite to a claim of wisdom: more brutish than any man, he says, without the understanding of a man, neither learned wisdom nor the knowledge of the holy. The opening posture is itself instructive, since Proverbs elsewhere makes the fear of the Lord, not self-assessed wisdom, the beginning of knowledge.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church2 voices
The vision which the man spoke, with whom is God, etc. The vision, he said, which he spoke, because what he saw by contemplating the more secret things with God, he revealed to men by speaking outwardly. For whoever is strengthened by the Spirit of …
The words of the Gatherer, the son of Vomenti. Hitherto are the Proverbs of Solomon, which the men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied. From henceforth, again, the words of Solomon, by himself, which is called in Greek Ecclesiastes, now translated into Latin under that …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
The word calls him God with us; faith appropriates this, and calls him " God with me, who loved me, and gave himself for me, and into union and communion with whom I am admitted." Ucal signifies the Mighty One, for it is upon one that is mighty that help is laid for us. Many good interpreters therefore apply this to the Messiah, for to him all the prophecies bear witness, and why not this then?
The words of Agur the son of Jakeh,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
This is the title of this chapter (see Introduction). the prophecy--literally, "the burden" (compare Isa 13:1; Zec 9:1), used for any divine instruction; not necessarily a prediction, which was only a kind of prophecy (1Ch 15:27, "a song").
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
The words of Agur the son of Jakeh - The words Agur, Jakeh, Ithiel, and Ucal, have been considered by some as proper names: by others, as descriptive characters. With some, Agur is Solomon; and Jakeh, David; and Ithiel and Ural are epithets of Christ. The Vulgate translates, Verba congregantis filii vomentis: visio, quam locutus est sir, cum quo est Deus, et qui Deo secum morante confortatus, ait. “The words of the collector, the son of the vomiter: the vision of the man who has God with him, and who is fortified by God dwelling with him, saith.” Coverdale makes the following words a title to the chapter: “The wordes of Agur the sonne of Jake. “The prophecie of a true faithfull man, whom God hath helped; whom God hath comforted and nourished.” The whole might be thus translated, keeping near to the letter: - “The words of the epistle of the obedient son.” Or, “The words of the collector, the son of Jakeh. The parable which הגבר haggeber, the strong man, the hero, spake unto him who is God with me; to him who is God with me, even the strong God.” The visioun that a man spake with whiche is God, and that God with him, wonyng confortid. - Old MS. Bible. From this introduction, from the names here used, and from the style of the book, it appears evident that Solomon was not the author of this chapter; and that it was designed to be distinguished from his work by this very preface, which specifically distinguishes it from the preceding work. Nor can the words in Pro 30:2, Pro 30:3, Pro 30:8, Pro 30:9, be at all applied to Solomon: they suit no part of Solomon’s life, nor of his circumstances. We must, therefore, consider it an appendix or supplement to the preceding collection; something in the manner of that part which the men of Hezekiah, king of Judah, had collected. […]
The words behind it
10 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| דִּבְרֵ֤י׀ | divrei | [the] words of | H1697 → | 1440 times |
| אָג֥וּר | ʾagur | Agur | H94 → | |
| בִּן־ | bin- | [the] son of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| יָקֶ֗ה | yakeh | Jakeh | H3348 → | |
| הַמַּ֫שָּׂ֥א | hamasa' | the oracle | H4853 → | |
| נְאֻ֣ם | neum | [the] utterance of | H5002 → | |
| הַ֭גֶּבֶר | hagever | the man | H1397 → | 65 times |
| לְאִֽיתִיאֵ֑ל | leitiel | to Ithiel | H384 → | |
| לְאִ֖יתִיאֵ֣ל | leitiel | to Ithiel | H384 → | |
| וְאֻכָֽל׃ | veukhal | and Ukal | H401 → |
דִּבְרֵ֤י׀[the] words of
divreiH1697 →1440 times
אָג֥וּרAgur
ʾagurH94 →
בִּן־[the] son of
bin-H1121 →4930 times
יָקֶ֗הJakeh
yakehH3348 →
הַמַּ֫שָּׂ֥אthe oracle
hamasa'H4853 →
נְאֻ֣ם[the] utterance of
neumH5002 →
הַ֭גֶּבֶרthe man
hageverH1397 →65 times
לְאִֽיתִיאֵ֑לto Ithiel
leitielH384 →
לְאִ֖יתִיאֵ֣לto Ithiel
leitielH384 →
וְאֻכָֽל׃and Ukal
veukhalH401 →
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
4 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Proverbs 31:1These are the words of King Lemuel—the burden that his mother taught him:
it leads to
- Proverbs 6:20
My son, keep your father’s commandment, and do not forsake your mother’s teaching.
- 2 Timothy 1:5
I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first dwelt in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am convinced is in you as well.
- Proverbs 1:8
Listen, my son, to your father’s instruction, and do not forsake the teaching of your mother.
- 2 Timothy 3:15
From infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
- Proverbs 6:20
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Proverbs
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Bede, Commentary on Proverbs; Charles Bridges, An Exposition of the Book of Proverbs; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.