PROV 30:12 Interlinear View

SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 30:1–33: Here are the sayings of Agur

This section is a collection of verses that were written or organized by Agur the son of Jakeh.Some scholars think that Agur wrote or collected only verses 1–4, 1–6, 1–9, or 1–14. UBS (page 617), Toy (page 518), and Longman (page 513) are among those who list some of these possibilities. The GNT indicates with quotation marks that Agur’s words end after v.6. No other versions indicate that Agur’s words end before the end of the chapter. Waltke (volume I, page 26) strongly defends the entire chapter as the “oracle” of Agur on the basis of its structural unity. Kidner (page 178) divides the chapter into two sections (1–9) and (10–33), but identifies both as coming from “the sage.” The title of this section (30:1a) is the only place in Scripture that Agur is mentioned. The section is divided into paragraphs that vary from one to five verses. The Notes will suggest a paragraph heading for all paragraphs after 30:1a. It is suggested that you use similar headings in your translation to help the readers follow the changes of topic and audience.

The first nine verses contain Agur’s personal thoughts and prayers. Some are addressed to God, others to his audience. The rest of the chapter contains proverbs on various topics. Some are individual warnings or statements (30:10, 17, 20, 32–33). Others contain several kinds of lists of four items each. The lists in verses 15b–16, 18–19, 21–23, and 29–31 have the same form as the numerical proverb in 6:16–19. (See the paragraph summary for 6:16–19 and the notes on 6:16a–b.) The lists in verses 11–14 and 24–28 have different forms. These will be described in the paragraph summaries where they first occur.

Some other headings for this section are:

The Words of Agur (ESV)

Wise Words from Agur (NCV)

Words that the LORD caused Agur to make known

Paragraph 30:11–14 Four kinds of wicked people

This paragraph lists four kinds or groups of people. It is not like the numerical proverb in 30:15–16, because it does not specify either the number three or four.

Each of the four verses begins with a Hebrew word that is literally “generation.” Each “generation” is a group of people that share a particular characteristic. In these verses, each of the four groups is guilty of a certain kind of sin.UBS (page 629), Ross (page 1121).

Some ways to introduce each of the four verses are:

There are those who… (ESV)

There is a group of people that… (NAB)

A certain kind of person… (GW)

Some people… (NCV)

30:12

People in this group are self-righteous. In their own opinion, they are morally pure (12a), but the truth is that they are morally filthy (12b). Notice the parallel parts that contrast in meaning:

^12aThere is a generation of those who are pure in their own eyes

^12band yet unwashed of their filth.

30:12a

There is a generation of those who are pure in their own eyes

There are other people who consider/count their own minds/hearts to be pure.
Another kind of person thinks that he has no faults/sins,
The opinion of other people is that their own characters/minds have nothing evil in them.

those who are pure: The word pure frequently describes people who are ceremonially “clean.” Here it refers to a pure mind or heart that contains nothing evil. See the notes on 15:26b for other senses of this word.

in their own eyes: People who are pure in their own eyes consider themselves to be pure. They think that they have no moral faults. Some other ways to translate this line are:

Other kinds of people consider themselves to be perfect

A kind of person who is without fault in his own estimation (VOICE)

There are people who think that their own minds/hearts are completely clean.

30:12b

and yet unwashed of their filth.

The truth is that their minds/hearts are very dirty. They have never been cleaned.
but his character/heart is full of wickedness/sin.
But their real situation is different, because nothing has removed/cleaned their filthiness.

and yet unwashed of their filth: In Hebrew, this line is literally “and has not been washed from its excrement.” This metaphor compares a person whose mind/heart is filthy with sin to a person who is covered with his own excrement and has not washed it off. In many cultures, it is not appropriate to read such an expression aloud. Some other ways to translate this metaphor are:

Keep the Hebrew metaphor. Use this option only if it is appropriate in your culture. For example:
but is not washed from his own feces (GW)
Keep the metaphor but change the wording to make it more appropriate for public reading. For example:
but they are filthy and unwashed (NLT)
but they are stained by sin (CEV)
Translate the meaning directly. For example:
but they are not really free from evil (NCV)

uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: grammar-collectivenouns

דּ֭וֹר & בְּ⁠עֵינָ֑י⁠ו וּ֝⁠מִ⁠צֹּאָת֗⁠וֹ לֹ֣א רֻחָֽץ

generation & in,its_own_of,eyes and,from,excrement_of,its not cleansed

See how you translated the same use of generation and its in the previous verse.

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

טָה֣וֹר

pure

Here, Agur speaks of people being innocent of doing anything wrong as if those people were clean. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: “innocent”

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

בְּ⁠עֵינָ֑י⁠ו

in,its_own_of,eyes

See how you translated the same use of eyes in [3:4](../03/04.md).

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

וּ֝⁠מִ⁠צֹּאָת֗⁠וֹ לֹ֣א רֻחָֽץ

and,from,excrement_of,its not cleansed

Here, Agur speaks of people being guilty of doing something wrong as if those people were not washed and as if the wrong things they did were excrement. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly or use a simile. Alternate translation: “but it is guilty of doing bad things” or “but it is guilty, as if it has not washed off its excrement”

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / activepassive

לֹ֣א רֻחָֽץ

not cleansed

If your language does not use this passive form, you could express the idea in active form or in another way that is natural in your language. Alternate translation: “someone has not washed it”

OET-LV English word order (‘Reverse’ interlinear)

Note: The OET-RV is still only a first draft, and so far only a few words have been (mostly automatically) matched to the Hebrew or Greek words that they’re translated from.

Acknowledgements: The Hebrew text, lemmas, and morphology are all thanks to the OSHB and some of the glosses are from Macula Hebrew.