Proverbs 30:1

The words of Agur, the son of Jakeh; an oracle: ²  This ³  man says ⁴  to Ithiel, to Ithiel and to Ukal: ⁵ 

The sayings of Agur son of Jakeh—an oracle: This man declared to Ithiel, to Ithiel and to Ucal:

The words of Agur the son of Jakeh, the oracle. The man declares to Ithiel, to Ithiel and Ucal:

The message of Agur son of Jakeh. An oracle. I am weary, O God; I am weary and worn out, O God.

The skeptic swore, "There is no God! No God!--I can do anything I want!

The words of Agur, the son of Jakeh, from Massa. The man says: I am full of weariness, O God, I am full of weariness; O God, I have come to an end:

The words of Agur son of Jakeh. An oracle. Thus says the man: I am weary, O God, I am weary, O God. How can I prevail?

The words of Agur the son of Jakeh, his utterance. This man declared to Ithiel––to Ithiel and Ucal:

The words of Agur, the son of Jakeh; an oracle: ²  This ³  man says ⁴  to Ithiel, to Ithiel and to Ukal: ⁵ 

¹ sn This chapter has a title (30:1), Agur’s confession and petition (30:2-9), and a series of Agur’s admonitions (30:10-33).

² tn The title הַמַּשָּׂא (hammasa’) means “the burden,” a frequently used title in prophetic oracles. It may be that the word is a place name, although it is more likely that it describes what follows as an important revelation.

³ tn The definite article is used here as a demonstrative, clarifying the reference to Agur.

⁴ sn The word translated “says” (נְאֻם, nÿ’um) is a verbal noun; it is also a term that describes an oracle. It is usually followed by the subjective genitive: “the oracle of this man to Ithiel.”

⁵ tn There have been numerous attempts to reinterpret the first two verses of the chapter. The Greek version translated the names “Ithiel” and “Ukal,” resulting in “I am weary, O God, I am weary and faint” (C. C. Torrey, “Proverbs Chapter 30,” JBL 73 [1954]: 93-96). The LXX’s approach is followed by some English versions (e.g., NRSV, NLT). The Midrash tried through a clever etymologizing translation to attribute the works to Solomon (explained by W. G. Plaut, Proverbs, 299). It is most likely that someone other than Solomon wrote these sayings; they have a different, almost non-proverbial, tone to them. See P. Franklyn, “The Sayings of Agur in Proverbs 30: Piety or Skepticism,” ZAW 95 (1983): 239-52.