.30:1-9.

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Prov 30:1-31:31 OTHER COLLECTIONS OF WISE SAYINGS

The personal testimony of Agur (Prov 30:1-9)

Agur, some of whose sayings are collected here, was apparently a well known wisdom teacher in the Palestine region. He begins his instruction with a confession that though he longs to know God he cannot, because he is merely a man.

No human being can do the great works God has done. Agur challenges his hearers to tell him the name of any person (or the name of that person’s son, if they prefer) who has been to heaven and returned to tell people what God is like (Prov 30:1-4).

God’s words, and his only, are true, and they are always reliable. Agur has such a respect for the truth of God’s word that he does not want to teach anything that is contrary to it (Prov 30:5-6).

As for the comforts of life, Agur aims at moderation. He desires neither riches nor poverty, lest he be tempted to live as though independent of God (if he were rich) or tempted to steal (if he were poor).

His moral values and his lifestyle were inseparable (Prov 30:7-9).